1 Corinthians 4 (6)

Pray Psalm 40.4, 5.
Blessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust,
And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
Many, O LORD my God, are Your wonderful works
Which You have done;
And Your thoughts toward us
Cannot be recounted to You in order;
If I would declare and speak of them,
They are more than can be numbered.

Sing Psalm 40.4, 5.
(Dix: For the Beauty of the Earth)
Blessed are all who trust in You, turning both from lies and pride.
Countless wonders, LORD, You do, and Your thoughts with us abide.
LORD, Your worth who can declare? None with You can e’er compare.

Read 1 Corinthians 4.1-21; meditate on verse 18-21.

Prepare
1. Of what does the Kingdom of God consist?

2. What option did Paul give the Corinthians?

Meditation
Paul has a masterful way of summing-up and pointing ahead, even as he is introducing a new idea. We see this here, where Paul points back to the Corinthians’ sectarianism and exposes the problem of pride that lay at the heart of it. The people were “puffed-up” about their cliquish behavior (v. 18); they were like children, boasting in the school yard. So Paul points back to chapters 1-3 and ahead to chapter 8.

The rod is for children, as Solomon reminds us (Prov. 13.24). The Corinthians were acting like children. Did they want Paul to treat them as such (v. 21)? Or were they willing to be admonished (v. 14) so that, when he came to them again he might be positive, encouraging, and gentle (v. 21; 2 Corinthians)?

The issue is not what we think we can boast about but whether the power of the Kingdom of God is at work in us (v. 19). Where the Kingdom of God has come and Jesus is sorting things out for His glory, power for righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit abounds (v. 20; cf. Rom. 14.17, 18). This is what Paul is looking for in the churches, evidence that the Kingdom has come and is coming in the power of God’s Spirit. Their boasting is not good, as he has already told them (1 Cor. 3.21; 4.7). And the only way to power is by submitting to Jesus and His Word, not going beyond it. Where the power is, the churches will flourish as believers, filled with the Spirit, receive and exercise gifts for loving God and one another (1 Cor. 12).

The new idea introduced here is the power of the Kingdom—the power of God’s grace. On their own strength, the Corinthians had made a mess of things. Boasting about their “achievement” had only made things worse. They needed power from on high to get back to living and serving like mature believers in healthy, growing churches. Paul will have more to say about how to access that power in the chapters that follow. Here, he whets their appetite for it, as hopefully he does in us.

Treasures Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162.
“Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things from Your law” (Ps. 119.18).

And as Elisha prayed for his servant, “LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” “Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (2 Kgs. 6.17).

The psalmist and Elisha were both praying for sight beyond normal seeing. One was praying that the Spirit would open his understanding to see beyond the written word, into the heart of God. And Elisha was praying that God would open the young man’s eyes to see beyond the temporal into the spiritual and eternal that is alive and working all around us.

Paul wanted the eyes of the Corinthians to be open to the potential, powerful work of the Holy Spirit in their lives. Kind of like the song, If You’re Happy and You Know It, you’ll clap your hands, stomp your feet, and say “Amen”.

He was saying that if they lived in a way that they didn’t recognize—their usual puffed up, self-serving, captive, divisive, sinful way—but in an obedient and powerful way, they would be living in the power of the Spirit, and they would know it, because it was so antithetical to their normal behavior. Clap. Stomp. Amen.

We are told the same. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1.7). “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal. 2.22, 23). None of those glorious attributes come “naturally” to any of us. So, when we see them, after we have asked God for them, we know it is His Spirit. “For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Phil. 2.13).

Paul, and God, have given us a choice. “Shall I come to you with a rod, or in love and a spirit of gentleness?”
(1 Cor. 4.21).

Puffed-up or powerful? Loved and encouraged or judged? You choose.

For reflection
1. How can you keep from becoming “puffed-up” about where you are in your walk with and work for the Lord?

2. At this time, what are you asking God to do in your life beyond where you are at this point? How do you hope to know His power today?

3. Knowing the power comes from living by faith. What does this mean for you?

Whenever the gospel is effectual, it comes not in word only, but also in power, by the Holy Spirit, quickening dead sinners, delivering persons from the slavery of sin and Satan, renewing them both inwardly and outwardly, and comforting, strengthening, and establishing the saints, which cannot be done by the persuasive language of men, but by the power of God. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on 1 Corinthians 4.14-21

Pray Psalm 40.1-3, 6-10.
Thank God for the way His power has worked in you, how His Spirit has worked to transform you into the likeness of Jesus and make you a witness for Him. Call on Him for the Kingdom power you will need to serve Him today.

Sing Psalm 40.1-3, 6-10.
(Dix: For the Beauty of the Earth)
I waited patiently for God; He inclined and heard my cry,
lifted me up above the sod, set me on a Rock on high!
New songs in my mouth He gave; may He through me many save.

Off’rings You do not require – open now my ears, O LORD!
What from me do You desire? Firm delight to do Your Word.
Take my life in ev’ry part; write Your Law upon my heart.

LORD, Your truth will I proclaim to Your people gathered ‘round,
nor will I my lips restrain – let Your precious ways resound!
Of Your saving grace and Word I would speak, most loving LORD.

T. M. and Susie Moore

The Church in Corinth was in need of revival. But there was much to be done before that would happen. The Church today is in need of revival, and the same is true for us. Our book, Revived!, can help us to discern our need for revival and lead us in getting there. Order your copy by clicking here.

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter, available by clicking here.