It’s Messy: Divided Hearts, Divided Church

Big Idea: The Corinthians' divided hearts, rooted in spiritual immaturity and misplaced allegiances, led to destructive church divisions that undermined God's glory, work, and presence. True unity comes from boasting in Christ alone.

Intro

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Intro Illustration: Hook: Start with a relatable scenario of division (e.g., family squabbles, workplace cliques, or even the current political climate) – highlight how messy it gets.

Series Context: "We're in our series, 'It's Messy,' and today we're looking at a foundational mess in the church: division."

Sermon Title & Big Idea: "Today's message is 'It's Messy: Divided Hearts, Divided Church,' focusing on how internal spiritual immaturity and misplaced allegiances created destructive divisions that undermined God's glory, work, and presence. The solution? Boasting in Christ alone."

Tension: childish behavior

Divisions Display Immaturity V1-3

1 Corinthians 3:1-3: Our spiritual immaturity is often the starting point for internal church splits and factions.

1 But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ.

2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready,

3 for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?

1.  Paul's gentle rebuke: He couldn't speak to them as "spiritual," but as "fleshly" or "infants in Christ." What does "fleshly" mean here? Not necessarily immoral, but acting according to human wisdom/preferences, not spiritual maturity.

2.  The "milk" diet: They couldn't handle solid food (deeper truths) because of their immaturity.

3.  Evidence of immaturity: "Envy and strife among you." This is the direct result of their "fleshly" nature.

4.  Partisan spirit: "I follow Paul," "I follow Apollos." This was the manifestation of their immaturity – forming cliques around human leaders.

Application: 1. Are we still on a "milk" diet? Where do we show signs of spiritual immaturity? 2. Do we fall into the trap of forming "camps" or cliques around personalities, worship styles, or preferences within the church? 3. Why is this a problem? It reveals our focus is not fully on Christ.

Transition: "But why is this kind of division so dangerous? Because it distorts God's glory..."

Divisions Distort God's Glory V4-9

1 Corinthians 3:4-9: When we divide over people, we shift the focus from what God is doing to who is doing it, taking glory away from Him.

4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human?

5 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each.

6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.

7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.

8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor.

9 For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.

1.  Who are Paul and Apollos? "Servants through whom you believed." They are instruments, not the source.

2.  The agricultural analogy: Paul planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth! This is crucial. All ministry is God's work through human agents.

3.  Unity in purpose, different roles: The planter and waterer are "one" in their ultimate purpose – serving God, not building their own ministries.

4.  "God's field, God's building": The church belongs to God, not to Paul, Apollos, or any human leader.

Application: 1. When we get wrapped up in "who did what" or "whose ministry is better," we take glory from God. 2. Do we celebrate who God is using, or do we put human beings on pedestals? 3. How can we intentionally shift our focus to God's glory in all church activities?

Transition: "And it's not just about glory; how we lead and participate in the church has eternal implications..."

Divisions Damage the Building V10-15

1 Corinthians 3:10-15: How we contribute to the church's growth and health matters; careless approaches stemming from division will not stand up to God's test.

10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it.

11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—

13 each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.

14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward.

15 If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.

1.  Paul as a "wise master builder": He laid the foundation, which is Jesus Christ (v.11). No other foundation can be laid.

2.  Building materials: Gold, silver, precious stones (enduring, valuable) vs. wood, hay, straw (flammable, perishable). This isn't about salvation, but about the quality of our work in the church.

3.  The "fire" of judgment: Our work will be tested on the Day of the Lord. Anything built on self-promotion, human wisdom, or division will be consumed.

4.  Reward and loss: Salvation is by grace, but rewards are based on the quality of our service. If our work burns up, we suffer loss, but are still saved "as through fire."

Application: 1. How are we building on the foundation of Christ? Are we adding to the church's health or contributing to its weaknesses? 2. Are our efforts in the church driven by God's truth and love, or by personal ambition, pride, or partisanship? 3. Consider how division specifically contributes to building with "wood, hay, and straw."

Transition: "And this 'building' is more than just an organization; it's something sacred..."

Divisions Disrupt God's Presence V16-17

1 Corinthians 3:16-17: The church is God's sacred space, His temple. When we cause division, we are disrespecting and disrupting the very place where God's Spirit lives.

16 Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?

17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.

1.  The church as God's temple: This isn't primarily about the individual believer, but the collective body of believers. God's Spirit dwells among them.

2.  Warning against destruction: "If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him." This is a severe warning against actively undermining, splitting, or corrupting the church.

3.  The holiness of the church: The church is set apart for God's purposes, a holy entity because of His Spirit dwelling within it.

Application:1. Do we treat the church (the body of believers) with the reverence and respect due to God's dwelling place? 2. How do our words, attitudes, and actions contribute to or detract from the holiness and unity of the church? 3. Recognize that engaging in division is not just annoying; it's a serious offense against God's presence.

Transition: "So, if division is so damaging, what's the ultimate antidote? It’s rejecting false wisdom and re-centering on Christ."

Divisions Deny Boasting in Christ V18-23

1 Corinthians 3:18-23: When we boast in human wisdom or leaders, it creates divisions and moves Christ from His rightful place of centrality; true unity comes from boasting in Him alone.

18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.

19 For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,”

20 and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.”

21 So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours,

22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours,

23 and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's.

1.  Foolishness of worldly wisdom: "Let no one deceive himself... If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise." The wisdom of the world (including pride, human philosophy, self-exaltation) leads to foolishness in God's eyes.

2.  God captures the wise: God sees through and even uses the "wisdom of the world" to expose its emptiness.

3.  The core problem: Boasting in men: This is the underlying pride that fuels divisions ("I am of Paul").

4.  "All things are yours": Paul flips the script. Instead of belonging to Apollos or Paul, they(and all things) belong to the Corinthians, because the Corinthians belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.

5.  Christ is Central: The ultimate antidote to division is recognizing that Christ is the head, the center, and all true glory belongs to Him.

Application: 1. Where do we seek wisdom, validation, or identity – in human leaders, clever arguments, or Christ alone? 2. Are we quick to boast in our favorite pastor, our denomination, or our church's programs, instead of solely in Christ? 3. How can we practically shift our boasting from human achievements to Christ's supremacy in all areas of our lives and in the church?

Transition: "So, what does this mean for us?"

Conclusion

Embracing Unity in Christ

Reiterate the call to move from divided hearts to united purpose, centered on Christ alone, for the health and witness of the church.

A. Recap Main Points: Briefly remind listeners of the "Divisions from..." points.

B. Reiterate the "Mess": Division is messy, destructive, and ultimately denies Christ's headship.

C. The Call to Action/Response: 

1.  Self-Examination: Ask: Where am I contributing to division, even subtly, through immature attitudes, misplaced loyalties, or worldly wisdom? 2. Repentance: Acknowledge pride, envy, strife, or partisan spirit.

3.  Re-centering on Christ: Actively choose to boast only in Christ. Live out the truth that all things belong to Him. 4.  Pursue Unity: Seek reconciliation, speak truth in love, value the body of Christ as God's holy temple.