Day 86, 1 Corinthians 4 
What began as a
relatively benign letter now grows somewhat passionate. Obviously, if there
were factions in the Corinthian church, there were leaders of those factions.
And those that were claiming to be "of Peter" or "of
Apollos" rather than "of Paul" (1:12) were likely pitting
themselves, not only against those who are "of Paul," but against
Paul himself. So Paul had his work cut out to win back the affections of
everyone in the Corinthian church, and to unify them once again. In this
chapter, he goes right to work.
He first reminds
the Corinthians that it is not their judgment of him that matters, or even his
own judgment of himself. It is only the Lord's judgment of him that matters
(4:3). This is something that is true for all of us, and it ought to help us
when we are the victims of other people's judgments.
Paul slips in the
fact that he does, in fact, judge himself, and by his own judgment he is not
conscious of anything wrong that he is doing. (How many of us could make the
same claim?) That was a subtle way of telling the Corinthian believers that if
they have found a flaw in him, they were likely mistaken. And in regard to
their judgment of his hidden motives, that is something that should be left to
God alone. They can rest assured that He will one day reveal what is hidden in
people's hearts, and then "each man’s praise will come to him from God"
(4:5).
Keep in mind that
some people's hidden motives are not so hidden, and thus we are safe to judge
them. In Paul's case, however, there was no evidence against him, and thus
no rightful basis for forming judgments about his motives.
Pride is the root
of most strife, so Paul attacks the root. He again reminds the Corinthians that
he and Apollos are only Christ's servants and their servants, and nothing more.
How foolish it was for any of the Corinthian believers to become arrogant over
their favorite nobodies!
Moreover, the
Corinthian believers had no right to be arrogant about anything or anybody,
possessing only what God had given them (4:7). They had been blessed by God to
a degree that far superseded what Paul and the other apostles, by virtue
of their calling, had enjoyed. They were kings by comparison. To make
his point, Paul elaborated on his lifestyle as it compared with theirs. He and
his fellow apostles were a spectacle to the world, looked upon as fools. Even as
he wrote his letter to the Corinthians, he and his band were hungry, thirsty,
poorly clothed, roughly treated, and homeless. Being reviled, persecuted and
slandered was their regular fare. And they were the men who originally brought
to the Corinthians all the blessings they now enjoyed in Christ. Yet some in
the Corinthian church were speaking against them!
I'm sure Paul's
Corinthian readers were ashamed as they read. Paul obviously realized that,
writing, "I do not write these things to shame you" and then
affectionately adding, "but to admonish you as my beloved children"
(4:14). He then reminded them of their special relationship with him. Others
might be their tutors, but he was their "father through the gospel"
(4:15). Such words should have melted their hearts and vanquished any suspicion
of his having wrong motives.
Finally, notice Paul's
admonition, "Be imitators of me" (4:16). Every minister's goal should
be to be able to honestly say that to his or her disciples. Yet such a
statement is meaningless if a minister gives people nothing more to imitate
than how he acts when he is in the pulpit. Paul was able to say that Timothy
would remind the Corinthians, not of his sermons, but of His ways "which
are in Christ" (4:17). Paul discipled Timothy, and so Timothy was very
familiar, not just with Paul's sermons, but his lifestyle. That is what true
discipleship is all about. Keep in mind that making disciples is not just the
task of ministers, but a commandment that is given to us all.
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