This is Monday evening, August 6, 1973, in Richmond, Virginia. Ministry is being given through Brother Stephen Kong.
Let us look to the Lord in prayer.
Lord, we do come to Thy presence together this evening, not because we are worthy, not because we are able to come, but because Thou hast shed Thy blood for us. Oh, how we praise and thank Thee for the precious blood.
How we praise and thank Thee for the new and living way that Thou hast opened for us. How we praise and thank Thee that we can trust Thee as our great High Priest. Lord, it is only by Thyself that we are here and that we come. We come to Thee, Lord.
We pray, Lord, that Thou wilt open our eyes, open our ears, and open our hearts to Thyself, that we may hear Thy voice, see Thy glory, and be touched by Thyself.
Oh, Lord, we would see nothing and no one but Jesus Christ, our Lord. Lord, make us very open and very humble before Thee.
We pray that by Thy light we may see light; that we may walk in the light, as Thou art in the light; that we may have fellowship with one another; and that the blood of Jesus Christ, Thy Son, cleanseth us from all sin.
We commit this time into Thy hands and trust Thy Holy Spirit to quicken Thy words to us. In the name of our Lord Jesus, amen.
We have been fellowshipping for the last two times on 1 Corinthians. Last night we were on 1 Corinthians 1:13: “Is Christ divided?” Paul raised that question not only to the Corinthian believers, but that question is raised by the Spirit of God to us tonight: Is Christ divided?
If Christ is not divided, then the Christ is not divided. As Paul says, as the body is one but has many members, though the members are many, yet the body is one, so also is the Christ. Christ is indivisible. Therefore, the Christ, which is the church—His body in union with the Head—is undivided.
This morning we were on 1 Corinthians 2:2. Paul says, “I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.” That is the foundation.
But on that foundation Paul says, “We speak wisdom among the perfect,” among those who are grown up in Christ. There is the wisdom of God. The preaching of the cross of Jesus Christ is the foolishness of God. Now, if the foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of man, then how much wiser is the wisdom of God?
Thank God, we know the foolishness of God. We are saved by that foolishness. But, dear brothers and sisters, do we know the wisdom of God? We know Christ crucified, but do we know why He was crucified?
The cross is not the end; the cross is a means to the end. Now, what is that end? The end is Christ glorified in and among His people.
Tonight we would like to go on to 1 Corinthians 3. Again, we will read the whole chapter.
I hope, brothers and sisters, as we are reading the Word of God, that we will pay very close attention to what the Word says. Just look to the Lord that, as His Word is read, somehow, somewhere in the Word, He may speak to each one of us.
You know, very often we may read the same Word in the same chapter, but I doubt that we will all get the same message. I believe that probably when we read a chapter, the Spirit of God may speak to one through one sentence and to another through another word.
So I do hope that we will look to the Lord. When His Word is read, the Spirit of God is able to speak to each according to our need and according to His need.
And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, as unto babes in Christ.
I fed you with milk, not with meat; for ye were not yet able to bear it: nay, not even now are ye able;
for ye are yet carnal. For whereas there is among you jealousy and strife, are ye not carnal, and do ye not walk after the manner of men?
For when one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not men?
What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Ministers through whom ye believed; and each as the Lord gave to him.
I planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.
So then neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.
Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: but each shall receive his own reward according to his own labor.
For we are God’s fellow-workers: ye are God’s husbandry, God’s building.
According to the grace of God which was given unto me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation; and another buildeth thereon. But let each man take heed how he buildeth thereon.
For other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
But if any man buildeth on the foundation gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, stubble;
each man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it is revealed in fire; and the fire itself shall prove each man’s work of what sort it is.
If any man’s work shall abide which he built thereon, he shall receive a reward.
If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as through fire.
Know ye not that ye are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
If any man destroyeth the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, and such are ye.
Let no man deceive himself. If any man thinketh that he is wise among you in this world, let him become a fool, that he may become wise.
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He that taketh the wise in their craftiness:
and again, The Lord knoweth the reasonings of the wise, that they are vain.
Wherefore let no one glory in men.
For all things are yours;
whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours;
and ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.
You know, the first four chapters of 1 Corinthians deal with one subject: divisions in the church—the parties in the church, the party spirit that existed in the church at Corinth.
As we mentioned in the beginning, Paul did not write this letter by starting with answers to their questions. They wrote to Paul and asked several questions which, to them, were very important. But when Paul answered their letter, he did not start by answering their questions. He reserved that until the seventh chapter.
When he wrote his reply to the church in Corinth, he began with what he considered the most serious problem in the midst of those Corinthian believers. They did not realize the seriousness of it. Probably they overlooked the whole thing. Probably they took it for granted, as if it were something that had to exist and had to be lived with.
But not at all. When Paul heard that there were divisions among them—some saying, “I am of Paul,” some, “I am of Apollos,” some, “I am of Cephas,” and some even coming out and saying, “I am of Christ,” in an exclusive way—Paul said, “Is Christ divided?”
Dear brothers and sisters, in the sight of God, and with those who know God’s heart and His eternal purpose, there is no problem more serious among God’s people than this problem of division.
Today we take division for granted. We think we have to live with this evil. It is the evil of our days, and what can you do with it? We are too intelligent, too sophisticated, too clever—just like the Corinthian believers.
But God forbid that we should take divisions, party spirit, and sectarian spirit among God’s people for granted. The division of God’s people strikes at the very heart of God’s purpose. It violates the very meaning and nature of our calling. It destroys the testimony of the church.
Therefore, you find Paul using the first four chapters—of course, in the original it was not divided into chapters—to speak extensively on this most serious and basic matter that existed among the people at Corinth. Sad to say, it still exists.
Very often our attitude is just like the attitude of the Corinthian believers. We are more interested in marriage, virginity, things offered to idols, spiritual gifts, and so forth. We seem to allow divisions among God’s people to exist as if they were nothing.
Dear brothers and sisters, divisions among God’s people destroy the very testimony of the church.
Paul deals with this matter from different angles. When he came to 1 Corinthians 3, remember that he was still dealing with the same problem. He had not finished with it yet. So I hope, as we fellowship tonight on this third chapter, that we will bear in mind that Paul was still dealing with the problem of divisions among God’s people.
He said, “And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, as unto babes in Christ.”
When Paul was in Corinth for eighteen months, he was in their midst. He preached nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. He did not treat these Corinthian believers as grown up, because they were not. They were new in the faith; they were babes in Christ.
He did not treat them as spiritual, as if you could become spiritual in a day. Oh, brothers and sisters, if anyone comes to you and says, “I can make you spiritual instantaneously,” I think you will listen. If anyone gives you a formula and tells you that if you do certain things you will become spiritual immediately, who would not want that? He will have lots of followers.
But Paul did not help our ego very much. When he was among the believers in Corinth for eighteen months, he treated them as babes in Christ—not in any sense looking down on them, no, but for what they were.
So he preached nothing among them but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. They needed to know the cross. They needed to know Christ crucified. Oh, Christ crucified! You may preach on that for eighteen months, day in and day out, and never get tired of it.
Paul said, “When I was with you, I was not able to speak to you as spiritual, but as fleshly.” Now, in the original there is a little variation in the Greek concerning the word fleshly in the first verse and the third verse.
In verse 1 he says, “I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto fleshly, as unto babes in Christ.” Then in verse 3 he says, “Ye are yet carnal.” In our English versions different words are used. It is very refined, but sometimes it is so refined that you miss the meaning or the emphasis.
In the original it is the same word with a little variation. Fleshly and carnal are the same word, and yet not exactly the same.
In verse 1, the word means that you are made with the material of flesh. The emphasis is on the material, the substance, that composes a thing. You are fleshly; you are made up of flesh. And, of course, they were.
Why? Because even though they were saved and had a new life in them, yet, so far as their condition was concerned, they were still fleshly—very much of the flesh. The new life in them was very young. The new life had not yet taken over the whole being.
Even though they were saved, they were still fleshly. They still acted like babes in Christ. That is to say, many of the things they manifested were still of the flesh. Now, is that not true with us when we are first saved?
That is the material—native, perhaps. I do not know whether there is such a word in English. But it may help us see a little distinction. I would rather translate that word, not “fleshly,” but “fleshy.” Take away the “l” and let the “y” remain. Not spiritual, but fleshy. You are still fleshy—lots of flesh.
Even though you are saved, there is a lot of flesh. Oh, very fleshy—just babes in Christ.
Is there anything wrong with that? Nothing wrong with that. You do not expect a baby in Christ to be spiritual. You do not expect one who has newly believed in the Lord to be fully mature.
One who is newly saved is a babe in Christ. There is new life in him, and yet you will find that what he manifests is his flesh. Very innocent, though.
You look at a baby. He is a baby—very fleshy. If you have company, oh, how that baby will act! Very fleshy, but quite amusing and quite impressive. Do you condemn a baby? No. That is what he is.
He is not conscious of it. When he is trying to attract attention and trying to do something that he considers an inventive achievement, do you laugh at him? Not at all. You praise him: “Oh, great! Oh, great!” Is that not true?
Now, among God’s people it is the same thing. When one newly believes in the Lord and begins to act in a certain way, perhaps attracting people to himself, you do not condemn him. You say, “Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.” Right? Flesh—very fleshy.
To a baby, you give milk. Milk is predigested food. You digest it for him and then give it to him, because he cannot digest it himself.
Oh, brothers and sisters, to babes in Christ all you can give is milk. It is Christ crucified, the foundational truth of Christ. That is all he can take, and there is nothing wrong with that.
If someone is newly saved and is a little bit fleshy, do not condemn him. It is just innocent.
But the thing is, Paul says, “Ye have not yet been able, nor indeed are ye yet able, for ye are fleshly.” Now, that is something wrong.
After a few years, they ought to grow out of their babyhood. They ought to be able to take solid food, to exercise their abilities. Paul says, “When I was with you, I treated you as babes, and that was all right. That was the right thing to do. I knew nothing among you but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. You needed a foundation, and that was perfectly normal and right.”
But now a few years have passed, and you are still not able to take solid food. You are fleshly. So far as time is concerned, you should not behave that way any more. You should have grown up a little bit. You should have grown out of your fleshiness.
You should not try to attract people to yourself. You should not try to display yourself. You should know Christ in a deeper way. You should be able to enter into the purpose of God, to be God-centered and Christ-centered instead of self-centered.
You are no longer innocent; that is ignorance. Oh, brothers and sisters, when Paul said, “You are fleshy,” his heart was at peace. But when he said, “You are carnal,” his heart was disturbed.
We who have believed in the Lord Jesus should have a period of babyhood. That is normal. If a baby is born and acts like an old man, that is abnormal. That is ugly. Be natural. Do not try to be too spiritual.
But after a few years, if you still act like a baby, it grieves the heart of the apostle. That is carnality.
“Fleshly” speaks of the material or physical substance that makes up a thing, but it also may speak morally. It is more than makeup; it reveals a moral deficiency, a state of moral deficiency.
You ought to be controlled by the Holy Spirit, and you are still under the rule of the flesh. You still walk according to the flesh and not according to the Spirit. That is flesh; that is carnality.
Why did Paul say, “You are still carnal”? What symptoms enabled Paul to discern that they were still fleshly and not spiritual?
There is an unmistakable sign here: “For whereas there is among you jealousy and strife, are ye not carnal, and do ye not walk after the manner of men?”
Brothers and sisters, one sure sign of carnality, one sure sign of being fleshly, is division, strife, emulation, and walking according to men. You ought to be able to walk according to God, but you are still walking according to men.
You act as any natural man would act, even though you belong to the Lord. That is flesh. That is carnality.
What was this emulation? What was this walking according to men? “For when one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not men?”
Dear brothers and sisters, after we have known the Lord for years, if we are still saying, “I am of Paul,” or, “I am of Apollos,” remember that this is the sure sign of carnality.
You say you are spiritual, but you are still saying, “I am of Paul. I am of Apollos.” You are carnal.
What is it? Brothers and sisters, if anybody should come to you and say, “I am of you. I am all for you,” would you be happy about it? Probably you would like more people to come to you in that way.
But not with Paul. When some of the Corinthian believers said, “I am of Paul. I stand for Paul. I exalt Paul. I am a follower of Paul. I know only Paul and the Christ that Paul knows,” brothers and sisters, Paul’s heart was broken.
He would not lend himself to party spirit. Why?
This evening I would like to share with you on one thing. I believe it is of great significance. Let me put it in the form of a question, and I hope you will answer this question before the Lord.
Is the church a platform for a servant of God, or is the work of the servant of God for the building of the church?
Let me repeat it. It may be a little complicated. What is the relationship between God’s ministers, or ministry, and God’s church? Put it this way, very simply: What is the relationship between ministry and church? What is the relationship between ministers and the church?
Is the church a platform for the ministers? In other words, is the church here to support a ministry? Or does a ministry support the church?
I wonder whether you consider this a very important question. It is very, very important. Unless we can see the difference here, and unless we choose the right answer, party spirit and division will continue. There is no way to stop divisions.
But if we can really answer that question according to God, then there is no place for division or party spirit.
Is the church a platform for ministry? Does the church exist for ministry or for the minister? Or are ministry and ministers given by God to the church for its building up? Very simple, and yet very important.
These Corinthian believers said, “I am of Paul. I support Paul. We exist for Paul. Paul is our leader. We support him. We are his platform. Please follow him.”
Then somebody else would come out and say, “No, no, no. We are of Apollos. Paul is only a very rough teacher, but Apollos is a refined teacher. We are greatly helped by him. We do not follow Paul; we follow Apollos. He is our leader. We support him. We are his platform, that his ministry may be fulfilled.”
Then some other people would come out and say, “We are of Cephas. We are the most original. We go back to Jerusalem.” Others would come out with a so-called spiritual pride and say, “We are of Christ.”
Brothers and sisters, in doing that, they made the ministry, or the minister, bigger than the church. The church was supporting a special minister or a special ministry.
Some support one minister, some support another minister, some support another ministry. In other words, the center is ministry, work, or minister—not Christ.
When people are supporting a minister, a ministry, or a work, you will find that there are bound to be divisions, because other people will support other men, other ministries, and other workers.
But if all the ministers and all the ministries are for the church, then you will find everything flows into the church, and there is unity. Otherwise, everyone will take away some people and make a party for himself. The church is divided.
I wonder whether you have experienced it. Suppose there is a group of people coming together to serve the Lord, with Christ as the center. When we uplift Christ and gather together unto Christ, we are one.
Then suppose a servant of the Lord comes. He may be a great apostle. He begins to preach the pure gospel of Jesus Christ, and many people are helped. Then some say, “We are of Paul. Whoever follows me, come over.” Soon you find a group gathered around Paul.
Then Apollos, the great teacher, comes. After he has helped people for a while, some say, “We will follow Apollos,” and establish an Apollos church.
Then Cephas comes and says, “Paul and Apollos entered in midway. I started from the very beginning. You have to go back to the original.” Those who want to be original come with him, and there is a Cephas church.
Then some people try to be more spiritual than everybody else and say, “We are of Christ.” So they form another sect.
Brothers and sisters, do you see? The more ministry you have, the more ministers you have, the more divided you are—if ministry becomes the center. The division is according to men. The division is according to ministry.
Every man becomes a center. Every ministry becomes a center. Every special teaching becomes a center. If that should happen, the church is divided. There is no way to save it from division.
But did God give these ministers to the church for division?
In Ephesians 4, you find that God has given to the church some apostles, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints.
God gave these ministers, with their special ministries, to the church—not to draw people away from the church to themselves or to their ministry. They are given to the church for the perfecting of the saints, with a view to the building up of the body of Christ.
Surely Paul’s heart was broken by those who admired him. You know, sometimes you are more troubled by your friends than by your enemies.
Paul was broken by these people who said, “I am of Paul.” “Oh, I do not want you to be of Paul. I am not going to be a party leader. I am not.”
What about Apollos? When the Corinthian believers were divided, with some saying, “I am of Apollos,” what happened? Did Paul say to Apollos, “From now on, I forbid you to go to Corinth. Corinth is my territory”?
No. On the contrary, Paul encouraged Apollos to go to Corinth. “Why do you not go to Corinth?” And how did Apollos react? Apollos said, “I am not going. I am not going to be a cause of division.”
He would not take the opportunity to try to build his own kingdom. A true servant of God never tries to attract people to himself and never tries to make himself or his work a center.
A true servant of God leads people to Christ for the building of the body of Christ.
Dear brothers and sisters, thank God for Paul. Thank God for Apollos. Thank God for Cephas. Thank God for these men of God. Even though people tried to use them to build up divisions, they would not give their names to sectarian people.
Dear brothers and sisters, God’s people should see that the servants of God are given by God to the church, each as the Lord gives.
In other words, these servants of God are only God’s channels of blessing. If you are blessed by any of God’s servants, do not look at them. They are but channels. What you have received is from God, not from them.
They are nothing. They are nothing. It is God; it is Christ. Oh, let us keep our eyes on Christ and not on men.
You know one thing: many of God’s servants are destroyed because they are exalted by men. God is a jealous God. He will not share His glory with anybody.
Sometimes it may be the servant’s own fault, and sometimes it may not be his own fault. He may not say anything, but people just uplift him as if he were God and worship him. The result is that God’s hand will be very heavy upon that man of God.
It is not mere reckoning; it is true. Dear brothers and sisters, do not spoil God’s servants. You should respect them if they are God’s channel of blessing to you, but do not worship them. Do not make them what they are not.
One thing Paul was afraid of was that people would look at him as more than he really was. He said, “Do not consider me more than I really am.”
Because if you do that, you put me in a precarious position. I may lose my head, and the hand of the Lord may be heavy upon me. Oh, servants of God, be afraid of the praise of man as of the fire of hell.
But it must work both ways. If a servant of God begins to attract people to himself and longs to establish his own kingdom, that is flesh, that is carnality, and that divides the church.
But if the people of God try to uplift man instead of Christ, no matter how much that man may help them, they are acting in the flesh. They divide God’s people.
“Who then is Apollos? And who is Paul?” Some are uplifting Paul as if he were something, and others are uplifting Apollos as if Apollos were somebody. Paul says, “Who is Paul? Who is Apollos?” Ministering servants.
They are not masters; they are servants. They are appointed by God for special jobs to be done.
Through them you believed, and each served as the Lord gave to him. In other words, Paul and Apollos, or any servant of the Lord, are merely ministering servants. God calls them and appoints them for certain works to be done.
They are only God’s channels of blessing. They do not have the blessing in themselves. They can only bless as they are given by God.
Why do you stay with the servants? Why do you not look through the servants to the Lord, to the Master? Dear brothers and sisters, we have only one Master, not many. It is the Lord Himself.
“I planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.” It is true that Paul planted. He came to Corinth and sowed the seed of the gospel. He planted the gospel. Apollos came and watered the seed, helping it to grow.
But it is God who gives the increase. We may say, “If you plant and you water, there is bound to be increase.” It is not so. You may plant and water, yet there is no increase automatically.
That does not mean you do not need to plant or water. Surely you need to plant and water. But whether there will be increase depends upon the Giver—that is God.
So neither he that planteth is anything, nor he that watereth, but God who gives the increase. Oh, dear brothers and sisters, what is man? What is a servant of the Lord?
I do not want to give a wrong impression. I remember once, when I was in a certain city, I was talking with brothers and sisters and realized that they uplifted men too much. They made man everything.
If a certain man said something, they did it. I challenged them: “Do you have the Word of God? Does the Lord speak to you? Are you sure this is what God wants you to do?”
One brother answered, “No, but so-and-so is my authority. He says it, so I do it.” I said, “That is not good enough.”
Not because I despise any servant of God. We should respect those who help us. But, dear brothers and sisters, a servant of the Lord is nothing. He may be a planter; he may be a waterer. He plants and waters according to God’s appointment and by God’s grace, but he is nothing.
If God does not give the increase, no matter how he plants or how he waters, there is nothing coming up. God is everything; man is nothing.
Dear brothers and sisters, to make man something is of the flesh. Are we fleshy? Are we still looking to man? Are we still following man? Are we still uplifting one man over another man?
That will divide God’s people. They are nothing; God is everything. Oh, brothers and sisters, how I thank God that these words came out of the mouth of Paul, one of the greatest servants of God. Yet he humbly confessed, “I am nothing.”
I am afraid many so-called servants of God think of themselves more than they should. If they can attract people to themselves, they are glad. Brothers and sisters, that is carnality.
“But he that planteth and he that watereth are one.” It is true: one is called to be the planter and the other is called to be the waterer. You need a planter, and you need a waterer. But the planter and the waterer are one.
Even though their works are distinct and different, they are one. Why? They are all ministering servants of the same Master. They are all doing one work—the work of God. They are one in work, and they are one in spirit. Do not differentiate them; they are one.
“Each shall receive his own reward according to his own labor.” If the servants of the Lord are faithful, they will receive their reward. That is their share before God.
But to reward them before the time may make them lose the reward that comes from God.
“For we are God’s fellow-workers.” All the servants of the Lord are engaged in God’s work. They are engaged in different works and given different gifts, but they are fellow-workers.
What is the work? “Ye are God’s husbandry, God’s building.” Brothers and sisters, when Paul said, “Ye are God’s husbandry, God’s building,” to whom did he point? To the church that was in Corinth.
The church that was in Corinth was the work of God. Whether Paul, Apollos, or Cephas, they were all engaged in the same work. Paul came to plant, Apollos came to water, and Cephas came to strengthen. It is one work.
In other words, the church is the work of God. Which is greater: the church, or all the workmen? The workmen work so that the church may be built. The workmen are only the means; the church is that which is being built.
Oh, brothers and sisters, let us realize that the church is greater than any or all the servants of God. The servants of the Lord exist for the church; the church does not exist for them.
The church is not a platform for any of God’s servants. Rather, all the labors of God’s servants should contribute to the building of the church of God.
The church is like a husbandry. When you think of a field or husbandry, the emphasis is on life. The church is also like a building. When you think of a building, the emphasis is on relationship.
One stone is built to another stone—relationship. So the work of God’s servants is to help develop the life of God’s people and to help their relatedness one to another.
These are the two sides of the work of God’s servants. Whether you plant or water, the work is, on the one hand, that God’s people may be deeply rooted in Christ, growing down in life; and, on the other hand, that they may rise up as a building.
All the servants of God are engaged in that. Only the Holy Spirit can make us see that the church of God is God’s work today, and that the servant of the Lord is called to that work.
If any servant of the Lord makes his work, or himself, the center, he destroys the work of God.
Many are working for God, but not working with God. That is what I would rather watch when He says, “I remember that many are working for God, but not working with God.” They are engaged in so-called God’s work, but are they working God’s work?
Paul begins to broaden the matter. Not only Paul and Apollos are working in God’s work, the building of the church; he now includes all the Corinthian believers. That is to say, he includes everybody.
It is true that Paul and Apollos were given by God to the church for the perfecting of the saints, with a view to the ministry of the body and the building up of the body of Christ.
In other words, after the foundation is laid, after the servants of God have worked upon God’s people, everyone is engaged in the same work. We are being worked upon, and we are working upon it.
How do we build upon this foundation? There is no other foundation but Jesus Christ. Paul says that as a wise master builder he laid the foundation. You cannot lay any other foundation.
Now notice how you build upon it. Brothers and sisters, we are all building upon that foundation. We are all engaged in the work of God. Some build with gold, silver, and precious stones. Some build with wood, hay, and stubble.
Gold speaks of the nature and glory of God. Silver speaks of the redemption of Christ, because silver is used as redemption money. Precious stones speak of the operation of the Holy Spirit. He works hiddenly and patiently to produce something very precious.
If we build upon the foundation with gold, silver, and precious stones, we build with that which is of God. Or we may build upon the foundation with wood, hay, and stubble.
Wood speaks of the nature of man. Hay speaks of the manifestation of the flesh: “All flesh is as grass, and all the glory thereof as the flower of grass.” Stubble speaks of the work of man.
You remember Pharaoh commanded the children of Israel to make bricks without straw. Stubble represents the work of man.
Dear brothers and sisters, whether you build upon that foundation with that which is of God or with that which is of man, today people who have no spiritual discernment may not see the difference. They may even see the opposite.
If you build with gold, silver, and precious stones, no one may see it. Why? It may be very small; it is too costly. But if you build with wood, hay, and stubble, you can build a big building that stretches for miles.
How people look for something big, visible, and successful! But it is not now; it is in that day.
When the Lord returns, the work of each shall be made manifest, for the day shall declare it. The day shall come when we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
Then we shall be judged, each according to our work. It is not the great white throne judgment. Thank God, that judgment is past, because Christ was judged for us on the cross.
But that does not mean a Christian will not be judged. Paul says we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. It is not the throne; it is the judgment seat. It is a family judgment, not a governmental judgment—not eternal life or eternal death, but loss and reward.
One day, when Christ returns, we shall all stand at the judgment seat of Christ, and it will be revealed in fire. The fire shall try the work of each, of what sort it is.
Brothers and sisters, if our work were tried by other ways, the truth might never be known. But if it is tried by fire, then it becomes very clear.
Gold, silver, and precious stones, when fire tries them, are not consumed; they are purified. They glow with greater brilliance. But wood, hay, and stubble are fuel for the fire. They are all consumed.
Are they not saved? They are saved, but as through fire—barely saved. Why? Because the fire cannot consume the foundation. The foundation is Christ.
So they are still saved, but saved as through fire, with all their life on this earth and all their work completely wasted. Dear brothers and sisters, what a loss.
But if your work can stand the fire, then you shall receive a reward. The Lord will say, “Come, enter into the joy of thy Lord.” You may rule ten cities or five cities, because you have proven yourself faithful and wise.
“Know ye not that ye are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man destroyeth the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, and such are ye.”
We often use these words and apply them individually. There is a place for that. But if you read the context, you have to apply them properly.
“You” is plural, but “temple” is singular. You are, collectively, the temple of God. Why? Because God’s work is to build His temple.
Every one of us is engaged in this work. You are building a part; I am building a part. If you build with gold, silver, and precious stones, and I build with wood, hay, and stubble, we are all building the temple of God.
We are the temple of God—not each individual a temple in this context, but together the temple of God. Of course, in other places you find that the individual body is a temple of God. But here, in the context, Paul is speaking to the whole church in Corinth: “Ye are the temple of God.”
The Spirit of God dwells in you. If anyone corrupts or destroys that temple, God will destroy him.
If you read the context, do you know what building with wood, hay, and stubble is? Do you know what destroying the temple is? It is saying, “I am of Paul. I am of Apollos.”
That is wood. That is hay. That is stubble. That destroys the temple of God, and God says He will destroy you, because God is holy. The fire shall try it. You will be saved, but as through fire.
Paul says, “Let no one deceive himself. If anyone thinketh himself to be wise among you in this world, let him become a fool, that he may become wise.”
Dear brothers and sisters, do not deceive yourselves. You may think you are wise when you say, “I am of Paul,” or, “I am of Apollos.” You may think that is easy, big, and successful—that it is building.
But it is building with wood, hay, and stubble. You may look at others and think they have to pay so much while you have so little to show. You think you are wise. Paul says, “I hope you will become foolish.”
When you think you are wise, you are deceiving yourself, because the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God.
Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, Paul says, “Let no one glory in men.” Let us not glory in men.
Why should we not glory in men? Has not Paul helped me? Was it not through Paul that I was saved? Has not Apollos helped me? Is it not through the teaching of Apollos that I grow?
No. Do not glory in men. Why? For all things are yours.
Is that not surprising? Paul is yours, yes. You hold on to Paul and say, “I glory in Paul because Paul is mine.” Paul says, “Why are you so small?”
Apollos is yours. Why do you hold on to Paul and not want Apollos? You need both. All these are given by God to the church for the building of the church.
No one servant of God is complete. Every servant of God has his share, his portion. But all are yours.
Oh, dear brothers and sisters, the church is bigger and greater than any servant of God, and greater than all the servants of God. All are yours—Paul, Apollos, and Cephas.
What would you rather have? Paul alone? Apollos alone? Or, if you can have both, why not have both? Thank God.
Through these two thousand years, all the servants who have been and are being sent by God, they are all ours. Yes, all are ours.
How we receive help from Paul through the reading of his epistles! Peter is ours; how we are helped by his epistles. Apollos is ours, even though he did not leave us an epistle. Some say the book of Hebrews was probably written by Apollos. I will not argue with you. It is uncertain who wrote it.
But anyway, by his better life and example, we are helped. Augustine is ours. Martin Luther is ours. John Wesley is ours. Oh, brothers and sisters, how rich we are!
We inherit from God all the servants, all their ministries, all the grace and gifts of God that are in these people. They are contributed and deposited into the church. They are ours.
“Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world.” The whole world is ours. What does that mean? Even the world is ours? Are we not called out of the world? We are in the world, yet not of the world. How can the world be ours?
“Whether life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours.” Is that not too much?
You remember that famous verse in Romans 8:28: “All things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose.” That is what it is.
Not only are the servants of God ours, and we receive from all of them; this is our inheritance from God. Do not be so narrow-minded. Do not be content with a little. Open your mouth wide and receive much.
Not only are all the servants of God ours; even the world, life, death, things present, and things to come are ours. Why? All things work together for good.
Sometimes it is life; sometimes it is death. Some things are here, and some things are coming. Our environment, the things with which we come into contact, even the world itself—all are ours.
Why is it that we are not of the world and yet are still in the world? Because the world is ours. We can learn something here. There are precious lessons to be learned.
We learn discipline. We learn to forsake the world. We learn to endure suffering in the world. We learn to see through it. We learn to claim it for the Lord.
Brothers and sisters, in our everyday life, all the things and events that happen in this world, whether adversity or prosperity, are ours. They are all for the building of the church. That is the Word of God.
How great is the church! But do not forget: all are yours, but that is not all. You are Christ’s.
Do not hold these things and say, “All are mine, so I will hold them.” No. They are all given to you that you may give all to Christ.
You are Christ’s. You do not belong to any man. You do not belong to Paul. You do not belong to Apollos. You do not belong to Cephas. You do not belong to the world. You belong to Christ.
All the gifts and grace of God that come to you are for Christ—for His good, for His honor, and for His pleasure.
And Christ is God’s. Look at Christ. Everything that He has, everything in His life, is for the Father, is for God. He has set an example for us.
So whatever God has given to us, whatever is deposited in the church, is for the glory of the Head, Christ.
Dear brothers and sisters, here we can see the relationship between ministry and the church, between ministers and the church.
If we can see the right relationship—that ministers or ministries are given by God to the church for the building of the church, and that the church is not for these ministries—how can God’s people be divided?
We are able to receive all God’s servants. We will be spiritually rich. We will be the deposit of all the grace and gifts of God.
But, sad, sad, sad: God’s servants may be such that, when a servant of God comes, he takes some away and builds his own kingdom. God’s people may be such that they hold on to men instead of holding on to Christ.
That is why the church is divided. May God be merciful to us, dear brothers and sisters.
May we see that God’s purpose is the building of the church. We all contribute to it; we do not take away from it. We are for it; it is not for us. We do not expect anything from it.
If we all take that kind of attitude, there can be no division. There can only be increase and the building of the body.
Dear Heavenly Father, Thou knowest what is happening in Thy church today. Thou knowest the hearts of each one.
Oh, we do confess before Thee how we are still in the flesh, how we glory in man, and how men try to make themselves centers. Oh, forgive us.
Open our eyes to see that Thy work is the building of the church, and we are to contribute to it, not to take away from it.
Oh, Lord, have mercy upon us. We pray that Thy Holy Spirit will impress us very deeply and make it impossible for us to be a cause of division.
Rather, may we contribute to the building up of Thy church. Oh, Lord, have mercy upon Thy people. Have mercy upon Thy servants throughout this world.
Oh, Lord, may Thy will be done and Thy purpose be realized. Unto Thee be all the praise and the glory, both now and ever. In the name of our Lord Jesus, amen.