Irvin Wasswa- Tylertown Campus Pastor LHBC
1 Corinthians 3:1-9
3 Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? 4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?
5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.
When I was a young child (around 7 or 8), I grew up playing with GI Joe action figure toys. Now even as a kid I was a huge sports nerd so instead of fighting with them like most kids my age did, I played football games with them. That was the life, using my imagination to have the time of my life playing with them. As time went by and I got older however, I stopped playing with them and moved on to other ways to enjoy my time. Now here is the thing, the toys themselves didn’t change. That wasn’t the reason why I stopped playing with them. The reality is that I changed. I grew up. I was no longer a young child but a teenager, and I had moved on.
Here is the reality today friends, there are many folks in the church who just simply need to grow up spiritually. Paul addresses the churches in Corinth who were immature in their faith and it showed here in 1 Corinthians 3. Paul expresses his concern for those in the churches starting in verse one. Their immaturity showed itself in the constant division and strife they had among one another. This particular one Paul addresses was about which minister they followed. One camp was #teamPaul and the other side was #teamApollos. They made this debate one of the central points of their faith and in doing so failed to keep the main thing the main thing!
The apostle Paul ends up correcting the Corinthians by sharing some great truth in which we can apply to our lives today. Part of Growing up and maturing as a Christian consists of two realities:
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- We are #teamJesus- Paul makes that clear in the second part of chapter three by letting the Corinthians know that its the Lord God who brings the growth in the lives of people, not Paul or Apollos. First and foremost child of God you are team Jesus. What does that mean? We choose to daily make Him the center of our life, by walking with Him daily in the Word and in prayer. When we choose to make our relationship with Jesus a priority, we will grow spiritually and it will become less about us and more about Him. We will let go of the petty disagreements and issues of dissention that in the grand scheme of things will not matter come eternity.
- We are #teamservants- Continuing on the thought of life not being about you, Paul hits hard on this reality. He says that he and Apollos are merely servants. WOW! Now remember, Paul wrote half of the New Testament. Paul was a major part of the movement and growth of the First Century Church. If anyone had the opportunity to pound their chest and declare that they were awesome, it was Paul. He didn’t though. He understood that it was all about Jesus and that he and Apollos were servants to Jesus and that they were privileged enough to be that. Same truth for us. The Bible says that before we met Jesus, we were dead in our trespasses and sins, BUT GOD in his love made a way for us to be made alive again through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In Him we have been saved to serve Him for the rest of our days here on earth and the great truth is that we are fortunate to be able to serve Him. Understand this reality is a sign of maturity. At the end of the day, we are all servants of the Lord. Some are called to water, others are called to sow, but the reality is we all have a role and one’s role is not greater than the other (1 Corinthians 12).
The call for us today church is to choose to grow up! So this morning I encourage you to reflect on that truth. What steps do you need to take this morning to grow up? Are you serving the Lord and His church? Are you plugged into a life group here at Living Hope that will help you grow in your walk with God, in fellowship and community with others, and in making disciples? Let us get rid of the excuses and choose to take the necessary steps to grow up!
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Dear Heavenly Father Lord, thank you for who you are! Thank you for your church. Help me to look to grow up and mature in my faith. Show me areas of my life where you may want to stretch me so that I can grow in my walk with you. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
MEMORY VERSE OF THE WEEK:
Psalm 103:1-5
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.