Grace Christian Fellowship: Christian Teachings from 1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 4 "My Judge is the Lord"

"Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful. But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord. (1Cor.4:1-4)

During our vacation in Oregon, my son Keita and I had a chance to paddle a canoe around a beautiful lake near the seashore. It was a great time for us to spend together. However, we were not really great canoers. It was Keita’s first time and I had not canoed for many years. I got into the front thinking to lead the way and Keita hopped in the back with his life vest. I then instructed my son in the fine art of rowing telling him to watch me and switch sides when I did. We rowed and rowed but our course was a kind of zig-zag across the lake and we could not get to where we wanted to go. I soon realized that for some reason for every one stroke of my son’s oar I needed to do three or four strokes just to keep the boat straight. Try as hard as I could I could not keep it straight if his oar was in the water. The reason for this is that his oar was acting as a rudder. The man at the back of the boat is the one who controls the direction. In this passage Paul says that we should think of him, as a "servant of Christ". There are many words for servant in Greek but this one is literally, an under-rower. On a ship of that time there would be many rowers all working together as a team under the direction of the captain who controlled the direction. This is how we should think of ourselves in relation to Christ as well. It does not matter how hard we row if we are not going His way. In fact in a boat if one person is rowing at the wrong time, it actually slows the others down! Imagine sitting at the front of the boat, frantically rowing and telling God, "No! We need to go THIS way." That’s what a lot of Christians do.

Paul also says that we should consider him a steward, or a manager of what God has entrusted into his care. There is a big difference between an owner and a manager. The owner can do whatever he likes with his property, but the manager must give an accounting to the owner at the end of the month. In fact, if the owner finds that the manager has been unwise in taking care of business he might find himself out of a job. Jesus taught that we are not the owners of things that we have in this world. Instead we are stewards, managers of what God has so freely given to us. And we must give an accounting to God for what we have done with what He has given us. What has God given you? He has given you life and breath and all things. (Acts 17:25) But Paul said that he was also a steward of one more thing, the mysteries of God! God has given us a very important commission. He has entrusted something very precious to us. He has given us the good news that Jesus Christ His Son died on the cross to save this world from sin and that all who believe in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. In fact, no one can be saved unless they catch the good news from some Christian, through a Christian’s deeds, words, writings or some other way that a Christian gives out the message of Christ. Jesus even went so far as to tell His disciples that He had given to them the keys of the kingdom. Unless we unlock the door for the lost of this world they will still be trapped in sin. Unless we unlock the door of heaven there is no way the lost can enter in. The way that we unlock those doors is by sharing our faith in Jesus. Until we do so most people are blind to God’s love and forgiveness. Until we do so it is a mystery to them.

We should all consider ourselves to be under-rowers on Jesus’ team, managers of what He has given to us. We should also look at other Christians this way and hope that they look at us in the same way. However, many times we look at each other and start to investigate every little error and mistake. On Friday night my family and I went out to see Jeff Barry play baseball with the Chiba Lotte Marines. Jeff and his wife Theresa are Christians and are from my hometown in Oregon. I like baseball but I must confess that I am not an expert on the game. I know the basic rules but the real fanatics keep records of absolutely everything each player does. How many hits, runs, errors, stolen bases, walks , runs batted in, homeruns, strike-outs. Everything! Actually it was a little disappointing because Jeff didn’t even get to play. They were playing against the best pitching team in the league and recently Jeff has been just killed by them. So the coach decided that he would just sit this one out. Paul said, "With me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court." The word in Greek for "judge" here means to investigate or to pick something apart. That is what happens to Jeff every season. Every little mistake is recorded into the books for everyone to see. But the judgement of the fans, the judgement of the coaches, even Jeff’s own judgement of himself, none of these are really important. The only judge who is really important is the Lord. The only one Jeff has to please is God who gave him the athletic ability and the talents to play professional baseball. For each of us, it is not enough to keep people around us happy. It is not enough to be self-satisfied with what you are doing. You are accountable to God for what He has entrusted you with. At the same time, it is impossible to keep everyone happy, and if you are honest you can never be totally satisfied with your own performance. The only one who you can really please is God. And He is the only one who matters.

"Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God. Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively transferred to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that you may learn in us not to think beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up on behalf of one against the other. For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?" (1Cor. 4:5-7)

Paul uses a different word for "judge" here in Greek, this one means to condemn. "Judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts." We are forbidden to condemn anyone because there are many things involved that we cannot see. As a teenager one of the men who had the greatest impact on me was a youth group leader at church by the name of Ross Meador. Ross had grown up very wild in Southern California and one day he gave his testimony and confessed that he had spent time in prison and that it was in prison that he received Jesus Christ as his saviour. I could hardly believe that this gentle godly man had once, in his own words, "committed every crime but murder." It is a sad statistic that nearly 35% of those who are waiting to be executed in the U.S. have some form of mental retardation. There are things about even the most violent of criminals that we just don’t see. There are hidden things of darkness, spiritual oppression, bitter wounds from the past, demonic lies and confusion that we would never dream of that these men battle against. But in the end when Jesus comes, all of these things will be brought to light. There are others who look so good and just naturally rise to the top of anything they try to do. They can’t seem to make any mistakes at all. And yet there are things about these people that would make your skin crawl if only you knew what was hidden in the depths of their hearts. Again on the last day, Jesus will reveal the counsels of the hearts. Some, like Ross, who once was looked down upon by men and judged guilty by the courts and even by himself, will stand before God and hear Him say, "Well done, good and faithful servant." Others who are successful and praised by all as models to be emulated will find themselves condemned by the only one who really matters.

Paul asks a wonderful question in verse seven, "For who makes you differ from another?" We can look around the room and see that we are very diverse. We are different in so many ways. In fact some days I think that the only thing that we could possibly have in common is Christ. Not only are we different in regards to race and color and culture, but we are even different from our own people. As individuals we all have different personalities, abilities, and gifts. We each have different weaknesses and different experiences in our lives. We each have experienced God through the lens of these very different lives. But is this a bad thing? Not at all! Who made us so different from each other? Of course, it was God. It is by God’s design that some are born in Korea and others are born in Japan. Is there something better about those who are born here as opposed to those who are born there? That is ridiculous. It is by God’s design that some are born into areas of poverty and danger and war and others are born into wealth and safety and ease. Is there something better about those born one way? Again it is ridiculous. Why does God design it this way? I do not know. But what I do know is that when all things are revealed God will take those difficult situations into account and those who persevere will have great rewards. Look at yourself and ask, "What do I have that has not been given to me?" You can boast and be proud of anything that is truly yours. But the things that we are given are only ours to manage for a short time, they are nothing to boast about, and really nothing to be ashamed of either.

We are under-rowers on a boat that has Jesus Christ as the captain. Our goal is to row in perfect harmony with Him, sensitive to His every command. God has equipped us for these commands with many gifts that we entrusted with as stewards. The greatest gift is the one that we get to keep. We have been given the gospel, the good news that through Jesus Christ our sins are forgiven and we are given the right to be called children of God. We received a real professional baseball bat from Jeff after the game on Friday. My son was very excited to show it off to the boys in the neighborhood the next morning. He couldn’t wait to get out the door to tell his friends what he had got. Are you excited to tell others about what you have received from Christ? Do your neighbors know that they can receive this gift too. Are your friends aware that you have been born again?

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