A Faulty View of God’s Shepherds
3:5 to 4:5
A second and related cause of division in the church at Corinth (to see link click Ak – Splits and Division in the Church at Corinth) concerned a faulty view of God’s shepherds. In a series of three metaphors, using images from agriculture and architecture, Paul proceeds to address three closely related issues.
Beginning with a farming metaphor (At – Only God Makes Things Grow), he takes up the question of how the Corinthians as a whole are to regard their shepherds, since their own “fan clubs” (I am of Apollo, I am of Paul) must go. God’s shepherds are only servants, farm laborers, as it were, each with their own task and reward. But the Corinthians had focused on men when, in fact, ADONAI alone was the source of their blessing. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills (Psalm 50:10b) – the farm, the workers, and the growth of the crops. By implication, boasting in mere servants of the farm is foolishness in its own right.
Then shifting to a construction metaphor (see Au – God is the Master Builder), Paul speaks directly to those who were currently responsible for the leadership of the church in Corinth. He warns them in the strongest possible terms to build the church with the eternal materials consistent with the foundation of the Church – Messiah crucified. Those who ministered to the Corinthians were only accountable to Him.
From that warning Paul moves naturally to the Temple metaphor (see Av – God’s Spirit Lives in God’s Temple), to the character/nature of the building per se. YHVH has chosen to dwell both within us and within the collective gathering of His people, which He calls “The Church.” Later, Paul will make the case that God dwells within each believer since our bodies are a temple for the Ruach Ha’Kodesh who lives inside you (6:19). Here, he states emphatically that God similarly dwells among us when we come together in corporate worship. God inhabits the praises of His people (Psalm 22:3). In that sense, a Messianic synagogue, or a church – be it the church at Corinth, or your place of worship today – is God’s temple.82
Finally, Paul brings together two principles mentioned earlier: the apostles are God’s servants (see At – Only God Makes Things Grow) and the leaders of the church need to be building on the right foundation (see Au – God is the Master Builder). At the same time, he picks up on language that made clear what one may have only suspected up to this point, namely that the Corinthians were, in fact, passing judgment on Paul himself (Aw – God’s Shepherds are Merely His Servants).83
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