“For the kingdom of God
is not a matter of talk but of power” 4:20.
Power is an important topic for Paul in the book of 1 Corinthians. Paul will mention it 13 times, chiefly
referring to the power of God (1:17; 1:18; 1:24; 2:4; 2:5; 4:19; 4:20; 5:4;
6:14; 12:10; 15:24; 15:43; 15:56). What
is the power of God? It cannot be said
enough, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are
perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God”
1:18. The cross is the power of
God. What does that look like?

The range of God’s power covers not only the
material realm of controlling the universe, and not only the mental realm of changing men’s opinions, particularly at
salvation, but also the realm of the
moral and spiritual. By the Cross we see
God’s redemption; by the Cross we are united with Christ; by the Cross we are cleansed and purified, and
by the Cross we are “kept” unto salvation. [CBL,
Romans-Corinthians, p. 269]

What does that mean? Like an outlet in a house that is powerless
until something is placed into it. Place
a blender into it and joy in making a strawberry smoothie. Stick a fork in it and experience pain. Submit our will/morality to Jesus at the
cross and experience the joy of salvation.
Deny Jesus our will/morality and experience the wrath of the cross.

Paul does not intend to shame
the Corinthians, as if to negatively encourage them to a right action
[from me:
guilt, shame and fear are never productive motivators] No, much like
Paul would express in 2 Corinthians 7, his intent here is as a
father towards his children in loving discipline speaking truthfully to
them
with a hope that maturity will be made more complete. As the
Corinthians spiritual father, the
first to bring the gospel to them, Paul admonishes them to follow his
example. This is not to encourage more
division, Paul has already stated that both he and Apollos have served
as
examples (4:6). What is Paul’s
desire? Power comes to mind (4:20). What is the power--the Cross.
Paul said “I resolved to know nothing while I
was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (2:2). Paul will
admonish his children to follow him
as he follows Christ again in 11:1, because he wants them to have what
is
good. The power of God.

Paul
is sending Timothy, also his son in the gospel, to remind (also includes
the
connotation to help the Corinthians to remember) his life and his
teaching. It is not that we just act the right way, nor
is it that we merely have correct doctrine, but that both are evident
and
intertwined.

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Text

This portion of the chapter is imbedded with
deep
relationships and the responsibility we have in those relationships.

Are
you living well and teaching/studying well, so as
to experience the power of the cross?

Who are you indebted to as a
spiritual father, mother,
brother or sister?

Have you taken seriously your responsibility to
pray
for, teach, encourage, rebuke and live as an example to your spiritual
family
members?

The harshest portion
of chapter four is today’s section. Paul
opens this section in a sarcastic tone confronting the self-sufficiency
ideology that the Corinthian church had adopted and arrogantly used to divide
the church. The thoughts “Already you
have all you want! Already you have become rich! You have become kings..” (4:8) are
Paul’s way of confronting the secular Greek thought that had found its way into
the Christian mind in the Corinthian church.
Namely Paul is attacking the mentality “I’m sufficient, I’m wealthy, I
rule” (Oster, p. 112). As we know, Paul
would follow this section reminding the Corinthians that he was their father
and they had arrived to their current state through his obedience to the cross
of Christ.

Paul follows in 4:9-13 continuing to compare and contrast
the life of the apostle and the Corinthian.
A list with its significance is helpful here:

“…condemned to die in the area” - Criminals would end
the procession to the arena, amusing the crowd, while being jeered at and
mocked.

“We are fools for Christ” - Considered fanatical and
looked at poorly.

“We are weak…we are dishonored” - Feeble and
unrespectable.

“hungry…thirsty…in rags…brutally treated…homeless…work
hard with our own hands” - Most of us can see in a culture, like our own, that
values the appearance and accumulation of things the first five in this
list. The “work hard with our own hands”
was considered the lowly job of a laborer and unsophisticated.

And the apostles response is to “bless…endure…answer
kindly” while being treated as the scum and refuse of the world.

What is Paul’s
intention? Remember, he is confronting
issues of pride, particularly the sin of taking pride in one person over
another (1:12; 3:4; 4:6). Paul clearly
tells the Corinthians how the they are treated so as to show the absurdity of
trying to take pride (a very worldly act) in the actions that are utterly
despicable to the world.

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One
question: Have you ever adopted an
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act, thought or feeling that
is primarily worldly, so as to be looked at with more esteem by those who do
not know Jesus, rather then to submit to Jesus?

In case you need an example:

Affiliation with the poor

Language used

Clothes worn

Movies watched

Games played

Accumulation (and subsequent justification) of stuff

Beauty

Abilities

Sacrafice

The central thought of today’s
text is “Do not go beyond what is written” (4:6). Oster writes, “It comes as no surprise in vs.
6 that the specific sin Paul is hoping the Corinthians can overcome, by using
himself and Apollos as examples, is the sin of human pride and boasting, one
against the other” (p. 110). What the
Corinthians are being exhorted not go beyond is the written word of
Scripture. Scripture exalts God. The
Corinthians were exalting man. [CBL]

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Read Psalm 119; Ezekiel 3;
John 6; Ephesians 6; Hebrews 4; 2 Timothy 3

What is your view of the Scripture?

For those of us, who have such ample opportunity to
read the Scripture, is it possible that our laziness to do so reveals a
Corinthian like heart? What have we
exalted in our time?

We end the week with the
beginning of the chapter. Just as when
we misplace our keys, we work backwards to find them, we have done so with 1
Corinthians 4. Power is central to this
book. The power of the Jesus’
cross. The power in living life in
submission to Jesus and with an undivided heart. The power of a heart set free.

Paul levels the arguments of who is more important by
addressing both he and Apollos as servants who have been entrusted with the
“secret things of God”, better said “mysteries of God.” In the New Testament “mystery” of God is
revealed in several ways, what should be understood is that Paul is not somehow
the beholder of secret knowledge that fosters the false thoughts of first
century (or 21^st century) Gnosticism [For mystery see: Rm 11:25;
16:25; 1 Cor 15:51-same as 1 Cor 4:1; Eph 1:9; 3:3; 3:4; 3:6; 3:9; 5:32;
6:19; Col 1:26; 1:27; 2:2; 4:3; 1 Tim 3:16; Rev 1:20; 10:7; 17:7].

We
end with “I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human
court; indeed, I do not even judge myself” (4:3). Judge, to examine. Paul is making sure the Corinthians do not
inadvertently take his comment in 3:22 to mean they can approve or disapprove
of Paul or anyone else’s inner fidelity.
Having already expressed in 3:11-15 the foundation and way in which we
will be examined, Paul is also acknowledging that as one can be misjudged one
can also misjudge his or her own actions/intentions. All of this is left to Jesus. Note: this is not saying we are unable to judge
anything, as we will see in the rest of the book there are many things to be
judged. Some adhere to teachings that
say nothing can be judged, that is not what is being expressed here, our
actions done plainly are able to be judged plainly. Our intents are much more difficult to
judge. If we lie, steal, commit
adultery, etc. these are all things seen plainly and are rightfully
judged--examined and submitted to Scripture.

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Do you live and think in such a way as to have comfort
in Christ’s judgment of you?

Chapter Background

1 Corinthians chapter 4 is closely linked to chapter
3. Paul is concluding thoughts that
began in 3:1, the reason for which he “could not address you as spiritual but
as worldly - mere infants in Christ.”
There will be lots of overlap between the two chapters. In chapter 4, Paul will expose clearly the
reason for the Corinthian problem, that is PRIDE. The Corinthian church had many sinful fruit,
but none more insidious then the tree itself, that of the Devil (1 Tim
3:6). Paul, as a father for his children,
will attempt in every way to try and get them to see their error and turn from
it (4:15).

From time-to-time it is good to look at Scripture from a
different angle; although, not always easy.
An easy way to do so is to change how it is read. We will start with the end of the chapter and
work to the beginning. I encourage you
to try it in a book like Ephesians, read chapter 6 first (or even try working
backwards paragraph by paragraph through a book). Be captured by the scripture, for that is what
Paul desires even in our current chapter, ie. 4:6. One way we are captured is reading it with
fresh eyes, as if for the first time.
Peace and love.