Ruth: 3:1-9; a study on chesed – the substance of all things, God’s glory.Title: Ruth: 3:1-9; a study on chesed – the substance of all things, God’s glory.
Paul to the Corinthians, “All things belong to you.” (1Co 3:21) How do we inherit the earth? We see and therefore possess the glory of God in all things.
He begins this section with the admonition for us to not deceive ourselves. In context he would mean that we are not convince ourselves that we see God’s glory when we do not. The Corinthians were sure that they properly understood their relationship to Paul and the other pastors when they were very far from the truth.
1Co 3:18 Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become foolish that he may become wise.
The false teachers were claiming that they had a deep, mystery wisdom which few could know.
“Become foolish” – become humble or meek.
1Co 3:19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, "He is the one who catches the wise in their craftiness" (Job 5:13);
1Co 3:20 and again, "The Lord knows the reasonings of the wise, that they are useless." (Psa 94:11)
1Co 3:21 So then let no one boast in men. For all things belong to you,
1Co 3:22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things belong to you,
1Co 3:23 and you belong to Christ; and Christ belongs to God.
“let no one boast in men.” – do other (wise) men have something that you don’t? Actually; no.
Other men have more material things than you, but that is not the true substance of things. Another believer may have more divine wisdom than you, but you still possess all of the word of God, it is just a matter of time before you will catch up. A believer who has devoted decades to the plan of God would not say to a new believer that he should be envied because he has more, would he? We are all in Christ as believers. We all possess Christ and the Father. We all possess Paul and Peter. We have their epistles. We have the Spirit of God. “Let no one boast in men. For all things belong to you.”
“To inherit the earth is to grow ever more alive to the presence, in it and in all its parts, of Him who is the life of men.” [MacDonald]
We must see this passage in its context to glean the full meaning of it.
Paul gives us a wonderful example of people not seeing the glory of God in their relationships and in this case it was the Corinthian believers and their relationships with their various teachers. But then Paul hands them to the key to this vision and invites them to step out of their blindness.
1Co 3:1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to babes in Christ.
1Co 3:2 I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able,
1Co 3:3 for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?
1Co 3:4 For when one says, "I am of Paul," and another, "I am of Apollos," are you not mere men?
The Corinthians saw the glory of their teacher relationship to be their own status of importance.
They could not have been farther away from the glory of this relationship. The glory of God is in every student/pastor relationship, but only as Christ stands between them. The pastor shares the word of God and the student receives it. The word reveals the status and importance of Christ and truth. The pastor’s inheritance is that the student receives truth with joy, and not because of how he says it or his style or his oratory, but that the congregation shares the same purpose, mind, spirit, and love. Paul said, “Make my joy complete, being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.” (Php 2:2-4) The Corinthians should have rejoiced in the word and in the readiness of these teachers to learn it themselves and teach it through the Spirit of God. Then they as listeners would have inherited and owned the teachings as well as the teachers. But since they did not, they inherited only fleshliness, strife, jealousy, and division.
1Co 3:5 What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one.
They are certainly not a source of life or promotion. They are not the source of glory.
1Co 3:6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth.
1Co 3:7 So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth.
1Co 3:8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one [they are intent on one purpose]; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor.
1Co 3:9 For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building.
All belong to God. I cannot really call anything mine. But I have been gifted with the glory of God through Christ, and so I can inherit the real substance of things.
1Co 3:10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it. But let each man be careful how he builds upon it.
Paul refers to the other builders as other pastors who would come after him. They were to stick to Paul’s blueprints, nothing more. Paul’s blueprint was Christ Himself.
1Co 3:11 For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
1Co 3:12 Now if any man builds upon the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,
1Co 3:13 each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it, because it is to be revealed with fire; and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work.
1Co 3:14 If any man's work which he has built upon it remains, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15 If any man's work is burned up, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire.
In context, Paul is referring to the pastors coming after him. They are building the early church all over the Roman Empire and beyond, and the fires that will come are the many tests that will come upon those churches. They will be hit with false doctrines, selfish people, ravenous wolves within their midst, financial hardship, and physical persecution. If the teachers followed Paul’s blueprints then not only would these churches remain, but they will actually shine brighter as they withstand and endure persecution.
However, some of the teachers will not follow Paul’s doctrine, but false doctrine. Church history reveals this. We would have to assume that in some cases “the builders” in this context would be unregenerate or unbelievers.
Would this be the case for the church at Corinth?
There is some similarity in this passage with the two passages that mention the judgment seat of Christ (Rom 14:10 and 2Co 5:10), but they are not identical. The passages containing the judgment seat state that each will be recompensed for his deeds and that each will give an account. The bema seat is real, however, 1Co 3 is not specifically directed in reference to it, or at least it is not stated as being such.
I am going to avoid getting diverted from our study and only keep our context. The context tells us that:
No amount of persecution can destroy the true substance of God’s glory in a church or in anything else. God’s glory is the gold, silver, and precious stones.
We don’t exactly know what happened to the Corinthian church, but we have an early letter written to them by Clement of Rome sometime between 70 AD and 140 AD.
Some men had risen to prominence in the Corinthian church and gained enough support to unlawfully dispose of the pastors who were appointed by the apostles. The builders who adopted Paul’s blueprints were removed from their pulpits and replaced with those who brought their own blueprints.
“But we see that you [Corinth] have removed some men of excellent behavior from the ministry, which they fulfilled blamelessly and with honor.” [Clement]
“Your schism has subverted [the faith of] many, has discouraged many, has given rise to doubt in many, and has caused grief to us all. And still your sedition continues.
Take up the epistle of the blessed Apostle Paul. What did he write to you at the time when the Gospel first began to be preached?Truly, under the inspiration of the Spirit, he wrote to you concerning himself, and Cephas, and Apollos, because even then parties had been formed among you. But that inclination for one above another entailed less guilt upon you, inasmuch as your partialities were then shown towards apostles, already of high reputation, and towards a man whom they had approved. But now reflect who those are that have perverted you, and lessened the renown of your far-famed brotherly love. It is disgraceful, beloved, yea, highly disgraceful, and unworthy of your Christian profession, that such a thing should be heard of as that the most steadfast and ancient Church of the Corinthians should, on account of one or two persons, engage in sedition against its presbyters. And this rumor has reached not only us, but those also who are unconnected with us; so that, through your infatuation, the name of the Lord is blasphemed, while danger is also brought upon yourselves.”
At this time, with so many churches springing up all over the Empire, it was a privilege to be a church founded by an apostle; a See of the Apostle.
Amazingly, Clement writes: “Take up the epistle of the blessed Apostle Paul. What did he write to you at the time when the Gospel first began to be preached?”
No amount of opposition can stop the glory of God, but if by sin or evil, the glory of God is removed from a church or a relationship or thing, it will eventually result in suffering.
The first teachers were building in the early church, but all of us are teachers in some way through our lives and our witness. We are all fellow workers for the gospel of Christ in this world and we must all be wise to build only on the foundation that Paul laid, which is the person of Christ, and therefore be pleasing to the Lord.
1Co 3:11 For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
1Co 3:12 Now if any man builds upon the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,
1Co 3:13 each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it, because it is to be revealed with fire; and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work.
1Co 3:14 If any man's work which he has built upon it remains, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15 If any man's work is burned up, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire.
1Co 3:16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
1Co 3:17 If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are.
Paul tells them here that they have nothing to fear from the persecution they will receive when they build in their church according to Christ alone. He says, “You are the temple of God, don’t sweat those who threaten you.”
1Co 3:18 Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become foolish that he may become wise.
The false teachers were claiming that they had a deep, mystery wisdom which few could know.
1Co 3:19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, "He is the one who catches the wise in their craftiness" (Job 5:13);
1Co 3:20 and again, "The Lord knows the reasonings of the wise, that they are useless." (Psa 94:11)
1Co 3:21 So then let no one boast in men. For all things belong to you,
1Co 3:22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things belong to you,
1Co 3:23 and you belong to Christ; and Christ belongs to God.
Do you see it? Think of all the work we have done on this point of inheriting the earth, which the glory of God in all things.
“All things belong to you, including, Paul, Apollos, Peter, the world, life, death, all things present and future.” How can this be? “You belong to the One who owns it all, and He has shared His glory that is in all of it with you.” |