Graduate 129: 1 Corinthians 4:6-21

"Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that in us you might learn not to exceed what is written, [1] in order that no one of you might become arrogant in behalf of one against the other." (4:6)

Here Paul refers to the argument of 3:5-4:5. In that section, he indicated to the Corinthian Christians that they should not place their confidence in Paul or Apollos or quarrel amongst themselves concerning the apostles because the apostles are mere servants. Not only that but the Corinthians, like the apostles, have been called by God to be ministers of the gospel and kingdom of God; they should be working instead of arguing with one another. Paul has pointed to his own work and to Apollos' work in order to illustrate to the Corinthian Christians how they ought to conduct themselves. The result should be that they no longer "become arrogant in behalf of one against the other." Now Paul continues:

"For who regards you are superior? And what do you have that you did not receive? But if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?" (4:7)

Here Paul further undermines their boasting. Have they been boasting in their leaders? How ridiculous since they have nothing to do with the accomplishments or merits of their leaders. Have they been boasting in their own gifts and attainments. That is also ridiculous for their gifts and attainments are not their own but all come from God. But in fact, the extent of their boasting runs still deeper as evidenced by Paul's ironic rebuke.

Fee expresses the point quite nicely in this passage: "Their [i.e. the Corinthians'] "boasting" is sure evidence that they have missed the gospel of grace. Instead of recognizing everything as a gift and being filled with gratitude, the possessed their gifts--saw them as their own--and looked down on the apostle who seemed to lack so much. Grace leads to gratitude; "wisdom" and self-sufficiency lead to boasting and judging. Grace has a leveling effect; self-esteem has a self-exalting effect. Grace means humility; boasting means that one has arrived. Precisely because their boasting reflects such an attitude, Paul turns to irony to help them see the folly of their "boasting."" (Fee, 171)

"You are already filled, you have already become rich, you have become kings without us; and I would indeed that you had become kings so that we also might reign with you. For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men." (4:8-9)

At several points throughout this letter (and also in 2 Corinthians) there are indications that the Corinthians (or at least some portion of them) are doubting and questioning Paul's apostleship and authority. Given the fact that they have become so enamored of the world's wisdom, this is not surprising. In chapter 2, Paul says of himself, "And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom.... And I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. And my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom...." (vv. 1, 3-4) Such a manner of speaking and teaching would hardly inspire confidence in people who judge and evaluate by human standards of quality. That is why Paul has to remind them that the wisdom of the world is foolishness to God. At the very least, those who belonged to the party of Apollos or of Cephas would have questioned Paul's authority and ability, especially if they viewed it as inferior to that of their own preferred leader.

Especially for those who are in positions of great wealth, power, and influence (as well as for those who aspire to such positions) it is often difficult to see success and blessing as taking any other form. Certain members of the Corinthian congregation (the Corinthian church would have been extremely mixed, socially and economically) have attained such success and perceive themselves as already having arrived. They are already recipients of the fullness of God's blessings--and they are boasting in that fact. This is a curious view, Paul indicates ironically, because none of the Lord's apostles have risen to such levels of blessing. Quite the opposite, in fact.

"We are fools for Christ's sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor. To this present hour we are both hungry and thirsty, and are poorly clothed, and are roughly treated, and are homeless; and we toil, working with our own hands [3]; when we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure; when we are slandered, we try to conciliate; we have become as the scum of the world, the dregs of all things, even until now." (4:10-13)

Paul comes to the Corinthian Christians in weakness and humility. He carries with him none of the trappings of success. As a result, many of them are led to question whether he is a true apostle and possesses real authority. But Paul points out that this is not only his own position but that of all the apostles. If the Lord's own apostles have not entered into their full and final blessings, does it really make sense to think that these recently converted Corinthians have? [2] Note Paul's opening statement in v.10. "We are fools for Christ's sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor." Does that progression sound familiar? It should. It closely resembles a list of contrasts that Paul draws back in chapter 1. "[B]ut God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are." (vv. 27-28) If that is the way that God works, then 4:10 indicates that the Corinthian Christians are on the wrong side. They boast of being prudent, strong, and honored, while God has chosen to exalt the foolish, weak, and despised. Every point that Paul adds to the list of the apostles' characteristics no longer serves to show how the Corinthians are superior to the apostles; rather, they each shows how much farther the Corinthians have gone astray. Not only in their condition (hungry, thirsty, poorly clothed, roughly treated, homeless) are they far off but in their attitudes as well (when we are persecuted, we endure, etc.).

All this comes of being too much enamored of the ways of the world. You see the things that the world calls success and you begin to confuse them with what God calls success. You chase after them as if they were the things that would truly fulfill and when you have them you think that you have received the blessings of God. Then when you lose those good things, you think that you have fallen out of God's favor and you perceive others who are so lacking as also deprived of God's blessings.

I find myself doing this. I have friends who are already making very comfortable livings at jobs that don't require a great deal of skill or training. And I sometimes feel envious of them--wishing that I was in their situation and wondering to myself why on earth I'm on the career path that I am. But that's just me being confused. That's me losing sight of how much I love learning and studying and how I hope to teach and impact students lives. In a world that is constantly bombarding us with messages about what it takes to be happy and successful, in a society that pressures us to conform and pursue popularity and the good opinion of our peers, we have to work hard not to lose ourselves in the world's values--not to get swallowed up in that trap. Being hungry, thirsty, poorly clothed, roughly treated, and homeless might not look like success to some--but for the man who knows that he is exactly where God wants him to be, even those kinds of difficult circumstances will be nothing compared to the joy of walking and working with God.

Does this mean that wealth, power, and influence are bad things? Certainly not. Again, the Corinthians' problem is not that they are rich but that they are boasting in their riches--that they are placing their confidence in their riches. They view riches as the mark of God's favor and believe that God's favor is withheld from those (like Paul) who lack such riches. Paul is not criticizing their wealth. He is only criticizing their pride and boasting. He is criticizing their misguided judging. [4] But as strong and sometimes caustic as his tone is at points, his purpose is not to humiliate them. His purpose is, rather, constructive. He writes:

"I do not write these things to shame you, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For if you were to have countless tutors in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. I exhort you therefore, be imitators of me." (4:14-16)

That Paul refers to the Corinthians as his beloved children is a point worth pausing to consider. Paul is not some dispassionate, remote, or far-removed teacher giving instruction to people that he knows little about. Rather, he founded ("begot") the church at Corinth. It is his beloved children that he addresses. Sometimes we have a tendency to read the Scriptures as if they were written by some cold preacher to a faceless congregation, but that is not the case at all. Paul loves and cares for the Corinthians and his heart's desire is that they should grow into the fullness of their calling in Christ. That is his hope and his confidence. (1:1-9) Making these claims clear is also part of Paul's effort to establish and confirm his authority and apostleship to those who doubt him within the Corinthian congregation. But his goal is not that they would honor or revere him in some special way; his desire, rather, is that they should imitate his example.

Here is an important lesson for contemporary teachers of the Bible to consider (including the writer of these blog posts). We often focus on conveying information ("truth") and increasing people's knowledge about God and the Bible, but the most compelling witness and most effective tool for transformation is not to be found in the words that we say but in the manifestation of the Spirit in our actions. Of course, many will quite understandably feel uncomfortable about telling people to "imitate me." That sounds like arrogance. On the other hand, we have to consider whether there is not something wrong in a church where all the teachers say really wonderful things about God's faithfulness and the Holy Spirit's inspiration and spiritual transformation but evince absolutely no marks of any of it. Even if we do not go around saying, "Imitate me," we should endeavour to live lives in which people will recognize the presence and action of God's grace. Timothy is another example of such a person:

"For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, who is my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, and he will remind you of my ways which are in Christ, just as I teach everywhere in every church." (4:17)

"Now some have become arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I shall find out, not the words of those who are arrogant, but their power. For the kingdom of God does not consist in words, but in power. What do you desires? Shall I come to you with a rod or with love and a spirit of gentleness?" (4:18-21)

As if to further underscore this point about the difference between words and deeds, Paul concludes this section by indicating to the Corinthians that he will come and test their words and deeds. Certainly they have been using a lot of strong (and arrogant) words; but is their true power behind those words? The proverbial ball is now in the Corinthians' court. It is up to them to decide how Paul will come to them--"with a rod or with love and a spirit of gentleness". If they persist in their boasting and quarreling and foolish arrogance, then he will have to be harsh with them. But if they take to heart his instructions and follow his example, then he can come to them in a spirit of gentleness.

This concludes this section of the letter. (1:10-4:21) Some scholars speculate that this marked the end of the letter that Paul originally intended to send to the Corinthians but that when received the another letter from the Corinthians--full of questions and concerns--he added the subsequent twelve chapters. Not a great deal hangs on whether or not this is the case. It is the case that many of the topics of those twelve chapters seem to be foreshadowed in 1:1-9 and that themes that emerge in the first four chapters continue to play a part in the subsequent material. However, the letter developed, it is clear that a shift has occurred at the beginning of chapter 5. Paul begins to address many particular concerns that the Corinthians have raised and about which they have communicated to him. The first has to do with sexual immorality in the church. (5:1-13)

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But before moving on, let us stop to consider what we've seen in these last four chapters. The Corinthians, Paul hears, have been quarreling and divided by allegiances to various leaders within the church community. Paul rebukes them and points to the absurdity of their manners and attitude; they are acting just like the world and placing value on the things that the world considers valuable. But God's ways and different from the world's ways and the things that God considers valuable, the world considers rubbish. The clearest example of this is found in Jesus, Himself. Jesus was despised by the world, but God has exalted Him to the highest place.

That the Corinthians have gone down the wrong path should be obvious to them just because it has born fruit in factions and divisions; but they have become so narrow-minded that they cannot see their truly pathetic condition. So Paul has to remind them of where their proper focus should be; also that they have been called to do God's work and are heirs of all the blessings of God. They should place their confidence and trust in God and focus on obedience to Him.

Where are you placing your confidence? How important is it to you that you have a certain amount of money in the bank? A certain kind of car? A certain kind of job? A certain kind of house? Enough for your retirement? How important is it to you that people approve of you? That you are respected? That people compliment you? How important is it to you that you be up to date on the latest news? The latest trends? The latest fashion? The latest gossip?

How do you judge and evaluate other people? By how they dress? By how they speak? By how much money they have? By what kind of coffee they drink? By how white their teeth are? By how they smell? How do you judge Christian leaders? By how attractive they are? By how well they speak? By the numbers that they draw? By the size of their budget?

Who are you relying on for success? How much time do you spend in prayer? How willing are you to be interrupted by God's calling? Do you become very frustrated and angry when things don't go as you expect? Are you thanking God for the gifts that He has given you? Are you trusting God to take care of your finances--even when things are tight? Do you find yourself frequently skipping out on church? Are you able to share struggles and trials with other Christians? How do you deal with obstacles, discouragement, and failure?

Jesus was willing to humble himself to the point of death on a cross. How far are you willing to go? And if you find that you're not willing to go that far then consider this question: Do you want to be willing to go that far?

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Footnotes:

[1] Just in case there is a question on anyone's mind about the meaning of this phrase, I have included the following passage from Keener's commentary that I think treats the scholarly views fairly comprehensively. "Scholars debate the meaning of, "Nothing beyond what is written" (4:6). Some suggest that it means not to exceed the bounds of (i.e., to transgress) Scripture (the most common view); or a child tracing the lines of letters established by teachers (cf. 3:1-2); or a plea to maintain terms of an agreement used in ancient arguments for unity). Perhaps the basic sense is, "Do not boast beyond the appropriate station God has given each one" (cf. 2 Cor 10:13, 15; Rom 12:3-8). (By pointing out that he is using parabolic speech [a claim obscured by NRSV's "applied"] rather than merely implying it, as appropriate for rhetors' "covert allusions," Paul probably treats them like children, as in 3:1.) Certainly, as ancients sometimes noted, it was foolish to boast in another's gift to one as if it were one's own achievement (4:7; cf. 1:7; 12:4-11)." (Keener: 2005, 45. All brackets and parentheses are in the original.)

[2] Additional comments on v. 8. "Some take without us to mean 'without our help', but in view of the second part of the verse it means rather 'without our company'. The Corinthians thought that they had attained a position to which neither Paul nor the other apostles dared lay claim. Paul expresses the wish that they really were in the royal position they imagined. Then perhaps he and his associates might be linked with them in this splendour! The construction Paul employs implies that the wish has not been fulfilled: 'Would that you did reign (though in fact you do not)' is the sense of it." (Morris, 77.)

[3] Regarding the phrase, "and we toil, working with our own hands": "Here Paul distinguishes himself from most kinds of philosophers and from the more aristocratic ideals of the higher-status faction within the Corinthian church. Philosophers might beg, charge tuition or be supported by a patron; to them, manual labor was the least honorable option. Because wealthy landowners also considered manual labor undignified, well-to-do people in the church would be embarrassed to invite friends to their own social circle to hear the teachings of Paul, who worked as an artisan (skilled laborer). Paul here supports the majority, lower-class faction in the congregation and boasts in his low social status." (Keener: 1993, 461.) The particular difficulty that some of the Corinthian Christians have with accepting Paul's manual labor comes up again in 9:1-15.

[4] "This is an admittedly difficult text to hear well in the contemporary church, especially in Western cultures. In fact one feels a certain sense of personal dissonance commenting on it while sitting at a word-processor surrounded by books and other modern conveniences. The rhetorical questions of v. 7 come through loud and clear. They still have their powerfully disarming effect, no matter who one is or in what circumstances. Life, all of life, is a gift; and it is all the more so for one who knows the Giver: "For out of His infinite riches in Jesus, He giveth and giveth and giveth again." But what do we do with the rhetoric and irony of vv. 8-13? Some would easily dismiss it as rhetoric; others simply read it and leave it in the first century (Paul may have been like that, but so what?); ; still others read it, but are greatly puzzled as to how it might speak to them. How does one avoid either guilt, on the one hand, because we are not like that, or a martyr complex, on the other, in which one loves to suffer because he/she does it so well? / Two observations might be made: (1) We need to become more aware of the Corinthian side of this text than we tend to. That is, we try desperately to identify with Paul, when in fact we are probably much more like the Corinthians than any of us dare admit. We are rich, well-filled, etc.; (p. 113), between Paul's and the Corinthians' views of ministry "there can be little doubt which conception... corresponds more closely to the Lord's command (e.g. Mark viii.34f.)." (2) Perhaps if we were truly more like our Lord, standing more often in opposition to the status quo with its worldly wisdom and more often in favor of justice, we too would know more about what it means to be scum in the eyes of the world's "beautiful" and "powerful" people. In any case, we greatly need to recapture Paul's eschatological perspective so that neither wealth nor want tyrannizes us." (Fee, 181-182) I actually think that Fee is mistaken in the overall tone of his assessment. Regarding (1), in particular, it is true that we probably more closely resemble the Corinthians than Paul; however, this is not in virtue of simply having wealth but in virtue of our placing confidence in wealth. Paul is not objecting to the Corinthians' wealth. He is objecting to their boasting in their wealth. That is why he draws the contrast--not to show that being poor is better than being wealthy but to show that the Corinthians standard for measuring God's favor is not true to reality. Poor, hungry, and wretched are not always the recipients of God's disfavor.

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God is in this place,
And that reality, seen and understood by the grace of God in Christ Jesus through the work of the Holy Spirit, makes all the difference in the world.