Foundation
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. I gave you milk, not solid
food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You
are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are
you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? For when one says, “I
follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?
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.
I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has
been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is
anything, but only God, who makes things grow.
The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they
will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in
God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.
By the grace God has given
me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it.
But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other
than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this
foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work
will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will
be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s
work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it
is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though
only as one escaping through the flames.
1
Corinthians 3:1-15
We all know who Paul
was. We may not know who Apollos was. Apollos was described as having watered the word with his
eloquent Bible teaching. But it was God alone who made the seed of spiritual
life grow.
We should not put
ourselves above others. That just points out what we already know,
that we are sinners.
We should be careful
not to put any Christian leader on a pedestal. Instead, let’s appreciate how
God is using a variety of spiritual leaders for His honor and His glory.
Each
person has his place in God’s service, and only God deserves the glory.
Our Daily Bread –