1 Corinthians 3
CHAPTER 3
Spiritual growth
And I, brothers, can not speak to you as spiritual people, but as carnal people, as infants in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk, not with solid food. For you were not yet able to bear it; no, not even now are you able. 3 For you are still carnal. For whereas there is among you jealousy and strife, are you not carnal and do you not walk after the manner of men? 4 For when one says: I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos- are you not mere men?
5 Who then is Apollos? And who is Paul? Ministers through whom you believed, and each as the Lord gave to him. 6 I planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither is he that plants anything, neither he that waters, but God that gives the increase. 8 Now he that plants and he that waters are one, but each shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. 9 For we are God's fellow-workers. You are God's husbandry, God's building.
10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another builds upon it. But let each man take care how he builds upon it! 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 But if anyone builds on the foundation gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, stubble, 13 each man's work shall be revealed. For the day of judgment shall declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire itself shall test each man's work of what sort it is. 14 If anyone's work shall endure which he built thereon, he shall receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet as having passed through fire. 16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys the temple of God, him shall God destroy. For the temple of God is holy; and such are you.
18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone thinks that he is wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written: He takes the wise in their craftiness. 20 And again: The Lord knows the reasonings of the wise, that they are vain. 21 Therefore, let no one boast in men. For all things are yours. 22 Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come- all are yours. 23 And you are Christ's, and Christ is God's.
Commentary
3:2 When we are baptize, we are born again (Jn. 3:3-5); in spiritual terms we are babies, and we grow spiritually from the milk of God's word, the basic teachings of the Gospel; but as we mature, we move on to the meat of His word. But the Corinthians hadn't matured.
3:8 The labour we expend upon others will receive an eternal reward- unlike the labour we expend upon our secular lives, careers etc.
3:9 Paul likens God to a fellow worker on a building site or on a farm; this shows the humility of God in being prepared to work with us as we try to help others to His Kingdom.
3:15 If those we convert or try to build up in faith should fall away, we ourselves will still be saved, although we too must pass through the testing fire of the final judgment.
3:23 Christ even after His ascension is "God's" and therefore not God Himself.
