Praise From God

 

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

PRAISE FROM GOD

1 Cor 4:1-5

4:1 So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. 2 Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 3 I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4 My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.

NIV

It is interesting that Paul says that his conscience is clear. That almost sounds like he is saying that he has no sin left in his life. However, before we get so involved in that idea, maybe it would be best to first consider if men regard us as servants of Christ and as someone who has been entrusted with the secret things of God. But what then are these secret things of God. Certainly, Paul is speaking about the salvation of God, the redeeming power of the blood of Jesus. The key to knowing this meaning lies in the Greek word which means steward. Here it is written as those entrusted, but in the Greek, it is written as a servant of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. This is not to say, as some who have us believe, there is the musterion of God. What Paul is saying is that there are men who God has revealed these mysteries for the purpose of providing for the family of God. This is the word steward, the one who provides for the needs of the family. So then, in some sense, the church is in need of men who have been called by God, not by men, to provide, explain, or reveal these secret things of God, the fullness of the gospel. Whoever these men are they must prove faithful. It is not up to men to judge how faithful they have revealed or instructed the church in the secret things of God. Because we have been called to be faithful in providing the secret things of God to the church, we can say that our conscience is clear, as Paul does, in the sense the whenever we have the opportunity to share any message in any manner, whether through preaching, teaching, or in a written form, we are faithful to the truth of God. We do not want to start a cult or draw men unto us, but we are always pointing people to Christ. But the most important matter of all is that all who have been called to be stewards of the things of God will be judged, not by men, but by God. This actually applies to all believers. We are not to judge each other but are to wait for the Lord to come. He will bring to light what is hidden in the heart of man. The darkness in the heart of those who do not believe, and the motives of those who do believe. It is even possible that within the church, within the stewards, there is darkness and wrong motives. But we cannot judge that, for this is reserved for God to judge. What we know for certain, this is not about being totally free of all sin, but it does mean that those who have been called to be stewards, need to be faithful in their stewardship of the secret things of God, and as they are, then God will reward them, God will praise them. Who wants the praise from men, when they can receive praise from God?