1Cor 3:10 According to the grace of God given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid a foundation, and another builds upon it. But let each man take heed how he builds upon it. 11 For another foundation no one is able to lay besides that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 But if anyone builds upon the foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, grass, stubble,
In verse 10 Paul says, "But let each one take heed how he builds upon it." The church must be built with gold, silver, and precious stones. However, there is much possibility that we may build with wood, grass, and stubble. Hence, each of us must take heed how he builds, that is, with what materials he builds. We must take heed not to build with anything other than Christ. This means that whenever we give a message or a testimony, or whenever we have fellowship with others, we must be careful not to give others anything except Christ. Furthermore, the Christ we share should not be a doctrinal Christ, but a Christ whom we have experienced. We should minister not merely the knowledge of Christ or the doctrine of Christ, but Christ Himself. In everything we do in the church life, we must take heed not to minister anything other than the Christ we have experienced. In chapter three Paul seems to be telling the Corinthians, "Brothers, be careful how you build on Christ as the foundation. God desires a building, a temple. Take heed that you do not build with your Greek culture, philosophy, and wisdom. Likewise, those with a background in Judaism must be careful not to build with Jewish culture, religion, and concepts. Instead, we all must learn to minister Christ to others." This is what it means to take heed how we build on the foundation already laid. I am concerned that many brothers and sisters will simply repeat messages in a doctrinal way. What is urgently needed is the actual, practical, present, and living Christ in our experience. To build with such a Christ is to take heed how we build. (c) Living Stream Ministry.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study of 1 Corinthians, pp. 232-233. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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