What are Your Motives for Serving?
What are your Motives for Serving?
I The Foundation
Continuing with the idea of building, the apostle first of all acknowledges that anything he has been able to accomplish has been due to the grace of God. By this he means the undeserved ability from God to do the work of an apostle. Then he goes on to describe his part in the beginning of this assembly at Corinth: “As a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation.” He came to Corinth preaching Christ and Him crucified. Souls were saved and a local church was planted. Then he adds: “And another builds on it.” By this, he doubtless refers to other teachers who subsequently visited Corinth and built on the foundation which had already been established there. However, the apostle cautions: “But let each one take heed how he builds on it.” He means that it is a solemn thing to exercise a teaching ministry in the local church. Some had come to Corinth with divisive doctrines and with teachings contrary to the word of God. Paul was doubtless conscious of these teachers as he penned the words.
3:11 Only one foundation is required for a building. Once it is laid, it never needs to be repeated. The Apostle Paul had laid the foundation of the church at Corinth. That foundation was Jesus Christ, His Person and Work
II The Function
The materials used in the building may be interpreted in at least four ways: (a) The gold, silver, costly stones refer to the enduring quality of the builder’s work; and the wood, hay, or straw suggest work that is temporary and valueless. This view is supported by “work” (v. 13) and “what he has built” (v. 14). (b) The three expensive materials suggest sound doctrine which the builder “builds” into people’s lives, and the three valueless materials are false doctrines. (c) The first three materials refer to the worker’s worthy motives, and the other three point to his unworthy motives (cf. 4:5). (d) The “gold, silver, costly stones” refer to believers who constitute the church (this is supported by similar uses of the metaphor in Eph. 2:22; 2 Tim. 2:20; and 1 Peter 2:5), and the “wood, hay, or straw” represent unregenerate people present in the church (chorton, rendered “hay” in 1 Cor. 3:12, is used of unbelievers in James 1:10, where the NIV renders it “wild flower”)
Subsequent teaching in a local church may be of varying degrees of value. For instance, some teaching is of lasting worth, and might be likened to gold, silver, or precious stones. Here precious stones probably do not refer to diamonds, rubies, or other gems but rather to the granite, marble, or alabaster used in the construction of costly temples. On the other hand, teaching in the local church might be of passing value or of no value at all. Such teaching is likened to wood, hay, and straw.
This passage of Scripture is commonly used in a general way to refer to the lives of all Christian believers. It is true that we are all building, day by day, and the results of our work will be manifested in a coming day. However, a careful student of the Bible will want to note that the passage does not refer primarily to all believers but rather to preachers and teachers.
III The Final Judgement
3:13. The day of judgment is when Christ will judge the quality of His servants’ work (2 Cor. 5:10). It is not a question of salvation which is a gift (Rom. 6:23), or a matter of individual deeds (Eph. 2:8–9), but of service which is judged on the basis of quality not quantity. Considerable apparent success can be had by dint of human effort and wisdom (cf. 1 Cor. 2:4), but unless it is empowered by God in accordance with His plan it cannot last (Ps. 127:1).
3:14–15. The image of fire associated with the coming of Christ is used elsewhere in the New Testament (2 Thes. 1:7; Rev. 18:8). What the reward for the expert builder consists of was not detailed, though praise (1 Cor. 4:5) is certainly a part. The inept builder will see the loss of his labor, but he himself will be saved, like a burning stick snatched from a fire (Amos 4:11; Jude 23). Before such judgment the various materials may coexist and appear indistinguishable (cf. Matt. 13:30).
In a coming day, each one’s work will become clear. Day refers to the Judgment Seat of Christ when all service for the Lord will be reviewed. The process of review is likened to the action of fire. Service that has brought glory to God and blessing to man, like gold, silver, and precious stones, will not be affected by the fire. On the other hand, that which has caused trouble among the people of God or failed to edify them will be consumed. The fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is.
3:14 Work in connection with the church may be of three types. In verse 14 we have the first type—service that has been of a profitable nature. In such a case, the servant’s life work endures the test of the Judgment Seat of Christ and the worker will receive a reward.
3:15 The second type of work is that which is useless. In this case, the servant will suffer loss, although he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. E. W. Rogers points out: “Loss does not imply the forfeiture of something once possessed.” It should be clear from this verse that the Judgment Seat of Christ is not concerned with the subject of a believer’s sins and their penalty. The penalty of a believer’s sins was borne by the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary, and that matter has been settled once for all. Thus the believer’s salvation is not at all in question at the Judgment Seat of Christ; rather it is a matter of his service.
Through failure to distinguish between salvation and rewards, the Roman Catholic Church has used this verse to try to support its teaching of purgatory. However, a careful examination of the verse reveals no hint as to purgatory. There is no thought that the fire purifies the character of a man. Rather, the fire tests a man’s work or service, of what sort it is. The man is saved despite the fact that his works are consumed by the fire.
An interesting thought in connection with this verse is that the word of God is sometimes likened to fire (see Isa. 5:24 and Jer. 23:29). The same word of God which will test our service at the Judgment Seat of Christ is available to us now. If we are building in accordance with the teachings of the Bible, then our work will stand the test in that coming day.