1 Corinthians 3
3
Following Men Is Wrong
1Brothers, in the past I could not talk to you as I talk to spiritual people. I had to talk to you as I would to people of the world—babies in Christ. 2The teaching I gave you was like milk, not solid food. I did this because you were not ready for solid food. And even now you are not ready. 3You are still not spiritual. You have jealousy and arguing among you. This shows that you are not spiritual. You are acting like people of the world. 4One of you says, “I follow Paul,” and another says, “I follow Apollos.” When you say things like this, you are acting like worldly people.
5Is Apollos important? No! Is Paul important? No! We are only servants of God who helped you believe. Each one of us did the work God gave us to do. 6I planted the seed of the teaching in you, and Apollos watered it. But God is the One who made the seed grow. 7So the one who plants is not important, and the one who waters is not important. Only God is important, because he is the One who makes things grow. 8The one who plants and the one who waters have the same purpose. And each will be rewarded for his own work. 9We are workers together for God. And you are like a farm that belongs to God.
And you are a house that belongs to God. 10Like an expert builder I built the foundation of that house. I used the gift that God gave me to do this. Others are building on that foundation. But everyone should be careful how he builds. 11The foundation has already been built. No one can build any other foundation. The foundation that has already been laid is Jesus Christ. 12Anyone can build on that foundation, using gold, silver, jewels, wood, grass, or straw. 13But the work that each person does will be clearly seen, because the Day# The day Christ will come to judge all people and take his people home to live with him. will make it plain. That Day will appear with fire, and the fire will test every man’s work. 14If the building that a man puts on the foundation still stands, he will get his reward. 15But if his building is burned up, he will suffer loss. The man will be saved, but it will be as if he escaped from a fire.
16You should know that you yourselves are God’s temple. God’s Spirit lives in you. 17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him, because God’s temple is holy. You yourselves are God’s temple.
18Do not fool yourselves. If anyone among you thinks he is wise in this world, he should become a fool. Then he can become truly wise, 19because the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. It is written in the Scriptures, “He catches wise men in their own clever traps.”# Quotation from Job 5:13. 20It is also written in the Scriptures, “The Lord knows what people think. He knows they are just a puff of wind.”# Quotation from Psalm 94:11. 21So you should not brag about men. All things are yours: 22Paul, Apollos and Peter; the world, life, death, the present, and the future—all these things are yours. 23And you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.
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Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
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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