“What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one.”
Paul is explaining to the Corinthians that the power of the church is not dependent on performers. The function of church is to worship God, and He provides the Spirit that makes that possible. The Corinthians had turned church into a talent show and had split into factions, promoting their favorite speaker.
There is no room for that in God’s house. The church is not a corporate entity, or fraternity… The rules that apply to secular organizations have little to do with the House of God. The function and governance of God’s church are laid out in scripture and its purpose is not to entertain you, but to glorify The Lord.
God ordained His church to spread the gospel, and to be a triage unit for those who have been wounded. Choosing a church should be more like signing up for combat, than finding a comfortable place to be entertained. Your preferred styles of communication are immaterial; the truth in the message is all that matters.
I once heard a preacher respond to parishioners who were angry with the style of “worship”… He simply said, “that’s OK, we aren’t worshiping you”… and that is an important point for us all to remember.
God is a jealous God … and zeal for His Father’s house caused Jesus to drive some folks out of the building… So, our attitude matters to God, and it cannot be polluted with selfish pursuits.
What attitude will you have this Sunday? Will you go to church to check a box, and while there, complain about the coffee, grade the sermon, and scrutinize the praise team?
Or will you focus on loving God and His children, and pray for the humility, that will make you a man after God’s own heart? Who will you worship this Sunday… The Lord, or yourself?
Because they were focused on themselves instead of God, Paul tells the Corinthians that they have missed the point. They’ve forgotten that church has a singular goal… to magnify Christ as Lord and Savior. That is what God’s Church exist to do.
Energy spent doing anything else is wasted energy.
“I don’t think the job of the church is to make people happy… it’s to make them holy.” - Chuck Colson
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