Chambersburg Bible Church

Text: 1 Corinthians 4:1-71 Corinthians 4:1-7
4 ¹ Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. ² Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. ³ But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man's judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self. judgment: Gr. day ⁴ For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord. know: or, I am not conscious of any fault ⁵ Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God. ⁶ And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another. ⁷ For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it? maketh...: Gr. distinguisheth thee  

Topic: Understanding the truths concerning individual service in the church

When a person trusts Christ as Savior, he enters into a relationship with the Creator. The Bible describes this relationship in a variety of ways:

• John 3 teaches that we are a Child in God’s Family
• John 10 illustrates that we are Sheep in God’s Flock
• Ephesians 1 shows that we are Members of Christ’s Body
• 2 Timothy 2 admonishes us to be a good Soldier of Jesus Christ
• 2 Corinthians 5:202 Corinthians 5:20
  20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.  
  calls us Ambassadors of the King

1 Corinthians 4:11 Corinthians 4:1
4 ¹ Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.  
calls believers “servants” and “stewards” of the Lord. Servants and stewards are required to be faithful (v 1-2) and that judgment/evaluation is postponed (v 3-5)

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• Spiritual Faithfulness is Required
  • Faithful Servants
    • The word for “servant” (translated “minister” in KJV) is different than the word translated in 1 Corinthians 3:51 Corinthians 3:5
      5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?  
      (“deacon”), and rather was applied to an “under-rower” – a galley slave in a ship. This signifies the lowly place of a servant
    • The Servant of Christ must be willing to labor faithfully and dependably, usually “out of sight” in a position of less prominence
  • Faithful Stewards
    • The word for “steward” carries the idea of a trusted slave, an overseer of an estate (think Joseph in OT). This slave is given a position of responsibility and is required to account for his actions and decisions.
    • Stewards must be trustworthy – faithful and dependable, loyal to the master
  • All believers are to be servants in attitude and stewards by privilege
• Spiritual Judgment is Postponed
  • Human judgment is of little value
    • The Corinthians were constantly judging (evaluating) other believers and their service
    • The church in Corinth passed judgment upon Paul’s service to Christ
    • Our service cannot be properly judged by man – to include ourselves (vs 3-4)
  • Human judgment is based on limited understanding
    • We have limited facts, ability, and time
    • All human judgment therefore is flawed in at least one way, and is unreliable
    • Notice Paul himself discounted his own ability to judge his service for God (vs 3-4)
    • “We are not declared righteous by a clear conscience”
  • Human judgment is presumptuous
    • When we judge/evaluate the service of others, we usurp the role of Christ
    • Jesus Christ is the only one qualified to judge
    • He is omniscient, omnipotent, and eternal – he is NOT limited
    • Christ will reveal hidden service and the motivations behind open service

As servants and stewards of the Lord, let us be found faithful and let us leave the evaluation of our service to the Lord! Remember that the flawed judgment of man is divisive in the work of the Lord and usurps the role of our Savior

Other Texts:

• Ephesians 3:20-21Ephesians 3:20-21
  20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, ²¹ Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.  
  
• 1 John 1:81 John 1:8
  8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  
  
• 2 Corinthians 5:172 Corinthians 5:17
  17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. he is: or, let him be  
  

It has been our conviction that when we have enough prayer support, the Lord will give us enough financial support to start our church planting ministry. Now, with close to 1,000 people receiving our prayer letter directly and many others through their church, the Lord is opening the door for our departure. With 95% of our support in place, we are making firm plans to move in October. This will give us time to pack, sell our house, and hold several more meetings to wrap up our deputation ministry. We are excited, but well aware that in faith we are stepping far outside our comfort zone.  As a family we are resting in this promise in Deut 31:8Deut 31:8
8 And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.  
: “And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee.”

House—Theo has been finishing a number of projects around the house and has listed the house in several places. We have had a few responses, but no serious inquiries yet. Please pray that the Lord would bring the right buyer our way. Along these lines, we are also actively looking for housing in the Netherlands. We have several options and need the Lord’s clear direction.

Ordination—We rejoice that Theo passed his public ordination questioning! He will be formally set apart for the Gospel ministry on August 15th (5 p.m.) at our home church, Mount Calvary Baptist Church. We invite all who are in the area to come share this special service with us.
Support—At 95% we are getting close to having all our needs met! We are pressing on toward an October departure with confidence that the Lord will indeed bring together the final members of our support team. We praise Him for providing almost fifty percent of our passage fund (which covers all one-time expenses involved in our move) and plan to hold a large yard sale in September to help add to this fund. We are entering a bittersweet time as we begin our farewells! This past weekend we said goodbye to extended family and dear friends in Sarah’s home state of Virginia.

Looking Ahead

• Aug 15–Ordination Service, Greenville, SC
• Aug 22–Community Baptist Church, Bradenton, FL
• September–Pack
• Oct 10-13–Fairview Baptist Church, Towanda, KS
• Oct 17–Crossview Baptist Church, Harrisburg, NC
• Oct 20 – Potential  Departure Date (10-20-2010)

Prayer Requests

• Daily growth in grace through God’s Word.
• The sale of our house.
• Effective ministry to churches.
• Our final support and passage fund needs.
• Increased evangelistic opportunities.

Serving Him Joyfully,
Theo and Sarah van Reijn