The Toxic Environment of Division

Title: The Toxic Environment of Division

Text: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9

Intro: Division is a sin.

Whether we’re talking about a divided marriage, a divided family, divided friendships, divided church members, or the division of an entire church:

Division is a sin – it always has been, and it always will be.

And because no sin is ever found in isolation (that is to say, sin always exists in combination with other sins)

the Division Paul uncovered in Corinth, existed in combination with other sins.

And since the sin of Division is a common denominator in many other areas of sin, Paul spends a tremendous amount of time dealing with it,

because he realized that if he could correct their Division, it would correct a lot of the other problems this church had.

Now Paul has already identified worldliness as being one of the issues that had caused division in this church.

And he explained this issue in great detail from the end of chapter 1 to the end of chapter 2.

But there’s a second issue that was directly related to the division in the Corinthian church.

And Paul identifies it there in chapter 3:1,

1 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.

Here, the discussion Paul began back in 2:6 concerning the nature, the revelation, and the recipients of God’s wisdom, transitions to the Corinthians complete failure to apply the wisdom that was readily available to them.

And because of that, Paul declares that he was not able to speak to the Corinthians as spiritual people, but as carnal people – people of the flesh.

And their carnality was such that Paul describes the Corinthians ability to discern the spiritual things of God as being on a level equal to that of ‘babies in Christ.’

Now what I want you to see here is that the carnality and the worldliness that depicted this church, created the toxic environment that ultimately divided it.

Transition: Now in our text this morning, Paul explains how overruling the factors that created the division – can overrule the division itself.

And he takes us straight to the heart of the matter there in vs1,

I. The Source of Division

1 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.

2 I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.

3 For, ye are yet carnal:

Transition: Now not only is the toxic environment of division created by WORLDLINESS and CARNALITY, but its existence is manifested through 2 symptoms:

II. The Symptoms of Division

3 for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?

4 For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?

Transition: So far we’ve seen how the toxic environment of division is created by WORLDLINESS and CARNALITY.

And we’ve seen how its existence is manifested through ENVYING and STRIFE.

But is there anything that can be done about it?

Paul explains the solution for it there in vs5,

III. The Solution for Division

5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?

6 I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.

7 So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.

8 Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.

9 For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building.

Transition:

IV. Conclusion