1 Corinthians 3
3
You Belong to Christ
1Brothers and sisters, I couldn’t talk to you as spiritual people but as people still influenced by your corrupt nature. You were infants in your faith in Christ. 2I gave you milk to drink. I didn’t give you solid food because you weren’t ready for it. Even now you aren’t ready for it 3because you’re still influenced by your corrupt nature.
When you are jealous and quarrel among yourselves, aren’t you influenced by your corrupt nature and living by human standards? 4When some of you say, “I follow Paul” and others say, “I follow Apollos,” aren’t you acting like ⌞sinful⌟ humans? 5Who is Apollos? Who is Paul? They are servants who helped you come to faith. Each did what the Lord gave him to do. 6I planted, and Apollos watered, but God made it grow. 7So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is important because ⌞only⌟ God makes it grow. 8The one who plants and the one who waters have the same goal, and each will receive a reward for his own work. 9We are God’s coworkers. You are God’s field.
You are God’s building. 10As a skilled and experienced builder, I used the gift #3:10 Or “grace.” that God gave me to lay the foundation ⌞for that building⌟. However, someone else is building on it. Each person must be careful how he builds on it. 11After all, no one can lay any other foundation than the one that is already laid, and that foundation is Jesus Christ. 12People may build on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw. 13The day will make what each one does clearly visible because fire will reveal it. That fire will determine what kind of work each person has done. 14If what a person has built survives, he will receive a reward. 15If his work is burned up, he will suffer ⌞the loss⌟. However, he will be saved, though it will be like going through a fire.
16Don’t you know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? 17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him because God’s temple is holy. You are that holy temple!
18Don’t deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise in the ways of this world, you should give up that wisdom in order to become really wise. 19The wisdom of this world is nonsense in God’s sight. That’s why Scripture says, “God catches the wise in their cleverness.” 20Again Scripture says, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are pointless.”
21So don’t brag about people. Everything belongs to you. 22Whether it is Paul, Apollos, Cephas, the world, life or death, present or future things, everything belongs to you. 23You belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
1 Corinthians 3
3
The Problem of Immaturity
1For my part, brothers and sisters, I was not able to speak to you as spiritual people but as people of the flesh, as babies in Christ.#1Co 14:20; Heb 5:13; 1Pt 2:2 2I gave you milk to drink, not solid food, since you were not yet ready for it. In fact, you are still not ready, 3because you are still worldly. For since there is envy#Jms 3:14,16 and strife#3:3 Other mss add and divisions#Ti 3:9 among you, are you not worldly and behaving like mere humans? 4For whenever someone says, “I belong to Paul,” and another, “I belong to Apollos,”#Ti 3:13 are you not acting like mere humans?
The Role of God’s Servants
5What then is Apollos? What is Paul? They are servants through whom you believed, and each has the role the Lord has given. 6I planted,#Ac 18:4–11; 1Co 4:15; 9:1; 15:1 Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7So, then, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8Now he who plants and he who waters are one,#3:8 Or of equal status, or united in purpose and each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. 9For we are God’s coworkers.#3:9 Or are coworkers belonging to God You are God’s field, God’s building.#1Pt 2:5
10According to God’s grace that was given to me, I have laid a foundation as a skilled master builder,#3:10 Or wise master builder and another builds on it. But each one is to be careful how he builds on it. 11For no one can lay any foundation#Is 28:16; Rm 15:20; 2Co 10:16; 11:4; Gl 1:6–9 other than what has been laid down. That foundation is Jesus Christ. 12If anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver,#Jms 5:3 costly stones,#Rv 17:4 wood, hay, or straw, 13each one’s work will become obvious. For the day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire;#2Th 1:8; 1Pt 1:7 the fire will test the quality of each one’s work.#Ps 62:12; Pr 24:12; Mt 16:27; 2Co 5:10; 1Pt 1:17 14If anyone’s work that he has built survives, he will receive a reward. 15If anyone’s work is burned up, he will experience#3:15 Or suffer loss, but he himself will be saved#Mt 9:22; Ac 16:30; Eph 2:8 — but only as through fire.#Jd 23
16Don’t you yourselves know that you are God’s temple#Lk 1:21 and that the Spirit of God lives in you?#Lv 26:11; Jms 4:5 17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him;#Heb 6:8 for God’s temple is holy,#Ps 20:6; 1Co 7:14 and that is what you are.
The Folly of Human Wisdom
18Let no one deceive#2Co 11:3 himself. If anyone among you thinks he is wise in this age,#Lk 16:8 let him become a fool#Mt 5:22 so that he can become wise.#Is 5:21; Jr 8:8–9; Gl 6:3 19For the wisdom of this world is foolishness#1Co 1:18 with God, since it is written,#Ac 15:15; Gl 4:22 He catches the wise in their craftiness;#3:19Jb 5:13#Jb 5:13; Lk 20:23 20and again, The Lord knows that the reasonings#Mt 15:19; 1Tm 2:8 of the wise are futile.#3:20Ps 94:11#Ps 94:11 21So let no one boast in human leaders, for everything is yours#Rm 8:32 — 22whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas#Jn 1:42 or the world or life#1Jn 5:12 or death#Mt 10:21; Jn 8:51; Php 3:10 or things present or things to come#Rm 8:38 — everything is yours, 23and you belong to Christ,#Nm 3:12 and Christ belongs to God.
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