Bullet Point Bible - 1 Corinthians 3

Spiritual Immaturity and Divisions

¹ So, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but instead as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ.² I fed you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready. In fact, you are still not ready,³ for you are still influenced by the flesh. For since there is still jealousy and dissension among you, are you not influenced by the flesh and behaving like unregenerate people?⁴ For whenever someone says, "I am with Paul," or "I am with Apollos," are you not merely human?

Paul addresses the Corinthians as "brothers and sisters" but critiques their spiritual immaturity.
He contrasts "spiritual people" (pneumatikos) with "people of the flesh" (sarkinos), indicating they were operating based on worldly standards rather than the Spirit.
The metaphor of "milk" versus "solid food" illustrates their inability to grasp deeper spiritual truths due to their immaturity.
Paul identifies jealousy and strife (quarreling) as clear evidence of their fleshly behavior, aligning them with "ordinary people" (unbelievers or those living by worldly standards).
Their allegiance to human leaders (Paul, Apollos) is presented as a primary symptom of their immaturity and worldliness, echoing the concerns raised in 1 Corinthians 1.
This immaturity hinders Paul's ability to teach them more advanced concepts.
The term "infants in Christ" suggests they have genuine faith but haven't progressed spiritually.
Paul's critique aims to call them towards spiritual growth and unity, away from divisive human allegiances.

God's Servants and God's Field

⁵ What is Apollos, really? Or what is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, and each of us in the ministry the Lord gave us.⁶ I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused it to grow.⁷ So neither the one who plants counts for anything, nor the one who waters, but God who causes the growth.⁸ The one who plants and the one who waters work as one, but each will receive his reward according to his work.⁹ We are coworkers belonging to God. You are God's field, God's building.

Paul diminishes the status of human leaders like himself and Apollos, defining them merely as "servants" (diakonoi) used by God.
Their role was instrumental ("through whom you came to believe"), but secondary to God's work.
The agricultural metaphor (planting, watering) illustrates the different but complementary roles of ministers. Paul initiated the work in Corinth ("planted"), while Apollos continued it ("watered").
The crucial theological point is that God alone gives the growth; human effort is necessary but not sufficient.
This perspective undermines the basis for the Corinthians' factions, as credit belongs to God, not the human servant.
Paul emphasizes the unity of purpose ("work together," lit. "are one") among God's servants, despite different functions.
While servants are insignificant in terms of causing growth, they are accountable for their labor and will be rewarded accordingly by God.
Two key metaphors for the church are introduced: "God's field" (emphasizing growth) and "God's building" (emphasizing construction, developed next).
Believers are reminded that they belong to God, not to human leaders.

Building on the Foundation

¹⁰ According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master-builder I laid a foundation, but someone else builds on it. And each one must be careful how he builds.¹¹ For no one can lay any foundation other than what is being laid, which is Jesus Christ.¹² If anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw,¹³ each builder's work will be plainly seen, for the Day will make it clear, because it will be revealed by fire. And the fire will test what kind of work each has done.¹⁴ If what someone has built survives, he will receive a reward.¹⁵ If someone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as through fire.

Paul shifts to an architectural metaphor, describing himself as a "wise master builder" who laid the foundation in Corinth through God's grace.
The one essential and unchangeable foundation for the church is explicitly identified as Jesus Christ.
Other teachers ("someone else") build upon this foundation, highlighting the responsibility that comes with ministry and teaching.
The quality of the subsequent building work varies, symbolized by durable materials (gold, silver, precious stones) versus perishable ones (wood, hay, straw). This likely refers to the faithfulness and truthfulness of teaching and ministry.
"The Day" refers to the future day of judgment when Christ returns.
Fire serves as a metaphor for divine judgment, testing the quality and endurance of each person's work (ministry). It reveals, not destroys indiscriminately.
Faithful work that endures the test ("survives") will result in a "reward" for the builder (minister/teacher).
Unfaithful or worthless work ("burned up") results in the builder suffering "loss" – specifically, the loss of reward, not salvation itself.
The builder whose work is inadequate is still "saved," but with difficulty, "as through fire," emphasizing the seriousness of judgment even for believers involved in ministry.
This passage serves as a solemn warning about accountability for those who teach and lead within the church.

The Temple of God

¹⁶ Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?¹⁷ If someone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, which is what you are.

Paul employs another powerful metaphor: the Corinthian community collectively ("you" is plural) is "God's temple" (naos Theou).
This builds on the "God's building" idea from v. 9, specifying the nature of that building.
The presence of God's Spirit dwelling within the community signifies its sacred status as God's temple. This emphasizes the corporate dimension of the Spirit's indwelling.
A stern warning is issued: anyone who "destroys" (phtheirei) God's temple (likely referring to actions causing division and strife within the church) will face God's judgment ("God will destroy [phtheirei] him"). The same Greek verb implies a reciprocal consequence.
The reason for this severe warning is the inherent holiness ("holy," hagios) of God's temple, the church.
This passage strongly condemns the divisions and factions within the Corinthian church as acts that desecrate the sacred community where God dwells.
It underscores the theological importance of church unity and purity.

True Wisdom vs. Worldly Wisdom

¹⁸ Guard against self-deception, each of you. If someone among you thinks he is wise in this age, let him become foolish so that he can become wise.¹⁹ For the wisdom of this age is foolishness with God. As it is written, " He catches the wise in their craftiness ."²⁰ And again, " The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile ."²¹ So then, no more boasting about mere mortals! For everything belongs to you,²² whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future. Everything belongs to you,²³ and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.

Paul returns to the theme of wisdom, warning against self-deception regarding worldly wisdom.
He presents a paradox: true wisdom in God's eyes requires becoming "foolish" by worldly standards (rejecting worldly values and embracing the cross).
Worldly wisdom, often prized in Greco-Roman culture (and seemingly in Corinth), is declared "foolishness" before God.
Paul supports this claim with two Old Testament quotations: Job 5:13, showing God traps the worldly wise in their own schemes, and Psalm 94:11, stating God knows the futility of human reasoning.
The conclusion drawn is that boasting in human leaders ("mere mortals") is inappropriate and illogical.
Instead of belonging to specific leaders, Paul declares that "all things" belong to the believers. This includes leaders (Paul, Apollos, Cephas), the entire scope of existence (world, life, death), and time (present, future).
This universal ownership stems from the believers' relationship with Christ: "you belong to Christ."
The ultimate hierarchy is established: believers belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God. This divine order relativizes all human allegiances.
This final section provides the ultimate theological rationale against the divisions plaguing the Corinthian church, grounding their identity and sufficiency entirely in Christ and God.

The Bullet Point Bible

1 Corinthians 3