Worldly Christianity?

Reflection:  Paul introduces a very interesting concept in his letter to the Corinthians.  He uses the analogy of an infant growing into a child to illustrate growth in Christ.  He admonishes the Corinthians for their worldliness.  It begs the question can someone be a worldly Christian?  Apparently so!  What does that mean?  Apparently it means that one’s behavior conforms more to the world’s standards than the lifestyle that Jesus modeled. 

To take the analogy one step further Paul says he could only feed them milk, for they were not ready for solid food.  And where was there worldliness manifesting itself, in jealously and quarrelling.  Their worldliness was about following personalities rather than Christ himself. They were getting prideful about who they were following, which is obviously antithetical to Jesus’ message about true greatness lies in true humility. 

In many ways the arguments back and forth between Job and his colleagues were about how one could justify themselves.  And this kind of thinking can easily slip into the church today.  One of the strongest aspects of our human nature is wanting to take credit for something we have done.  We want to be responsible for the success we are seeing even in spiritual matters and growth in the church.  This could subtly manifest itself in a pastor padding worship attendance numbers to feel better about work!  You can fill in the blank how this manifests in your own life. 

Paul urges them to take the high road.  This is characterized by this kind of construction that Paul makes: “I planted the seed, Apollos watered, but God made it grow!”  Notice the glory goes to God and our pleasure is in seeing someone come to faith by God’s grace and God’s allowance for us to play a part in that! 

This is the beauty of being a in a church.  We all get to play.  We all get to play a role in God’s kingdom coming on earth as it is in heaven, and ultimately more people being in heaven as a result of the process Paul shares here. The process of preaching the Gospel by planting seeds, watering it, and watching God make it grow!  Are you still dining on milk or are you ready for the solid food?  As you mature and are more concerned with watching God make things grow, you will be ready for a good steak dinner! 

Psalm 50:16-23

16 But to the wicked person, God says:

“What right have you to recite my laws

    or take my covenant on your lips?

17 You hate my instruction

    and cast my words behind you.

18 When you see a thief, you join with him;

    you throw in your lot with adulterers.

19 You use your mouth for evil

    and harness your tongue to deceit.

20 You sit and testify against your brother

    and slander your own mother’s son.

21 When you did these things and I kept silent,

    you thought I was exactly like you.

But I now arraign you

    and set my accusations before you.

22 “Consider this, you who forget God,

    or I will tear you to pieces, with no one to rescue you:

23 Those who sacrifice thank offerings honor me,

    and to the blameless I will show my salvation.”

Job 22,23

Eliphaz

22 Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:

2 “Can a man be of benefit to God?

    Can even a wise person benefit him?

3 What pleasure would it give the Almighty if you were righteous?

    What would he gain if your ways were blameless?

4 “Is it for your piety that he rebukes you

    and brings charges against you?

5 Is not your wickedness great?

    Are not your sins endless?

6 You demanded security from your relatives for no reason;

    you stripped people of their clothing, leaving them naked.

7 You gave no water to the weary

    and you withheld food from the hungry,

8 though you were a powerful man, owning land—

    an honored man, living on it.

9 And you sent widows away empty-handed

    and broke the strength of the fatherless.

10 That is why snares are all around you,

    why sudden peril terrifies you,

11 why it is so dark you cannot see,

    and why a flood of water covers you.

12 “Is not God in the heights of heaven?

    And see how lofty are the highest stars!

13 Yet you say, ‘What does God know?

    Does he judge through such darkness?

14 Thick clouds veil him, so he does not see us

    as he goes about in the vaulted heavens.’

15 Will you keep to the old path

    that the wicked have trod?

16 They were carried off before their time,

    their foundations washed away by a flood.

17 They said to God, ‘Leave us alone!

    What can the Almighty do to us?’

18 Yet it was he who filled their houses with good things,

    so I stand aloof from the plans of the wicked.

19 The righteous see their ruin and rejoice;

    the innocent mock them, saying,

20 ‘Surely our foes are destroyed,

    and fire devours their wealth.’

21 “Submit to God and be at peace with him;

    in this way prosperity will come to you.

22 Accept instruction from his mouth

    and lay up his words in your heart.

23 If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored:

    If you remove wickedness far from your tent

24 and assign your nuggets to the dust,

    your gold of Ophir to the rocks in the ravines,

25 then the Almighty will be your gold,

    the choicest silver for you.

26 Surely then you will find delight in the Almighty

    and will lift up your face to God.

27 You will pray to him, and he will hear you,

    and you will fulfill your vows.

28 What you decide on will be done,

    and light will shine on your ways.

29 When people are brought low and you say, ‘Lift them up!’

    then he will save the downcast.

30 He will deliver even one who is not innocent,

    who will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands.”

Job 23

23 Then Job replied:

2 “Even today my complaint is bitter;

  his hand is heavy in spite of my groaning.

3 If only I knew where to find him;

    if only I could go to his dwelling!

4 I would state my case before him

    and fill my mouth with arguments.

5 I would find out what he would answer me,

    and consider what he would say to me.

6 Would he vigorously oppose me?

    No, he would not press charges against me.

7 There the upright can establish their innocence before him,

    and there I would be delivered forever from my judge.

8 “But if I go to the east, he is not there;

    if I go to the west, I do not find him.

9 When he is at work in the north, I do not see him;

    when he turns to the south, I catch no glimpse of him.

10 But he knows the way that I take;

    when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.

11 My feet have closely followed his steps;

    I have kept to his way without turning aside.

12 I have not departed from the commands of his lips;

    I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread.

13 “But he stands alone, and who can oppose him?

    He does whatever he pleases.

14 He carries out his decree against me,

    and many such plans he still has in store.

15 That is why I am terrified before him;

    when I think of all this, I fear him.

16 God has made my heart faint;

    the Almighty has terrified me.

17 Yet I am not silenced by the darkness,

    by the thick darkness that covers my face.

1 Corinthians 3:1-11

The Church and Its Leaders

3 Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? 4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings? 5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building. 10 By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.

You came near when I called on you; you said, “Do not fear!” Lamentations 3:57

The Lord has said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.” So we can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?” Hebrews 13:5-6

Holy Spirit, replace our fears with Christ’s love. For any whose fear has been brought on by the world’s strife, comfort them. For any who fear the unknown or your call to brokenness, help them to live boldly and courageously. Amen