Commentaries:
"The days of our lives are seventy years," writes Moses in Psalm 90:10. King David concurs: "Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow" (Psalm 144:4). Unlike God, "who inhabits eternity" (Isaiah 57:15), we mortals have a limited existence. Because of our finite time, we tend to view things through the lens of immediacy. We continually take stock of where we are and how much progress we have made toward this or that goal. We take a short-term view of time—relative to God, at least—and in our zeal for efficiency, we measure where we are against where we have been to get an idea of how things are going.
This natural aspect of humanity is readily seen in business, where all manner of data is collected and analyzed to evaluate where a company is and where it seems to be headed. Companies publish press releases to highlight quarter-to-quarter and year-to-year growth. If a given metric can be massaged into a chart to show an upward trend, it will be the talk of the company.
But unless their disclosure is required by law, the downward trends are typically boxed up and hidden in a dark closet. Companies highlight the metrics that make them look superior to their competitors, and downplay the impressive numbers their rivals trot out for display. Such is business in the Western world.
But problems—serious problems—arise when such practices are applied to the church because numbers cannot tell the whole story. In the relationship between God and man, the things that truly matter cannot be measured—and those that can do not really matter. Members, co-workers, visitors, and subscribers can all be tallied, yet who save God can track the increase of faith or the building of character of members of a church? No minister can present a yearly report to a church board on the ratios of sheep to goats or wheat to tares. Managers can keep close tabs on income and expenses, but no quarterly reports can be given on the ripening of the fruit of the Spirit. No chart can mark the increase or decrease of the poor in spirit, the meek, or the pure in heart. Humans cannot measure such things, yet paradoxically, those are precisely the matters about which a church should be most concerned.
We need to look no farther than the Worldwide Church of God (WCG) to see that impressive membership numbers and abundant income are profoundly poor indicators of spiritual health. Before the scattering of the church, WCG had upwards of 140,000 members. It had eight million subscribers to the Plain Truth magazine, and radio and television programs that blanketed the globe, not to mention its own television studio and publishing department to handle all of its media. It had full-time ministers in nearly every corner of the world and an increasingly active youth program. It had a four-year college spread across three stunning campuses, complete with multiple gardens, fountains, streams, paths, and ponds.
On every count, the metrics and markers pointed to growth and vibrancy. The people took these indicators as proof that God was with—and pleased with—them. Yet their spiritual state went unmeasured—and immeasurable, except through anecdotes—and eventually, the WCG imploded.
This suggests that a focus on preaching to the world does not give church members the staying power that they need to grow and persevere in the face of doctrinal confusion. The vast majority of the WCG's infrastructure and support used to preach the gospel—very impressive on paper—crumbled.
When things fell apart, it became evident that only a small percentage of those supporting that work was truly converted. If we follow the same pattern today—focusing on financial and membership growth rather than "the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God [and growing] to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:13)—will the result be any different? Can a church make a faithful and true witness of God to the world if its members do not resemble Him?
It is helpful to recall what God is doing. If we examine the many examples and statements in the Bible, we see that God's work is not defined as preaching the gospel of the Kingdom to the world. That is only a facet of what He is doing. God is creating men in His image (Genesis 1:26). Psalm 74 says He is working salvation. John 6:29, the closest thing to a definition scripture in this regard, says clearly that the work of God is that we believe in Him whom God sent.
In short, the work of God is centered on changing people—bringing them into alignment with Him so that they are ready to live with Him for eternity. The announcement of a major step in this process—the establishment of His Kingdom on earth—is not His overriding concern. It will happen, to be sure, in the time and manner that He has ordained, for "this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come" (Matthew 24:14).
Paul gives the proper approach in I Corinthians 3:7: "So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase." The ones doing the planting and watering should not be the focus. God is the One leading His work and the One determining its results.
While it may be natural—and harmless enough by itself—to want to measure the number planted or watered, we must remember that such metrics cannot tell the whole story. The vital measurement is the spiritual increase that He gives—in faith, in character, in humility, in love, in unity with Him and with the brethren—the metric only He can track.
David C. Grabbe
The Impossible Metric
This passage begins by seeming to say that God sends only the ministry to labor in His behalf. However, as Paul proceeds, the context reaches out to embrace all the called of God by admonishing us to take heed how we build the Temple, the church of God. I Corinthians 12 leaves no doubt that we are all members of the Body of Christ, and it is the Body of Christ that is sent forth to witness for God in the world. The Body of Jesus Christ is the Israel of God in this New Testament period (Galatians 6:16).
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Elements of Motivation (Part Five): Who We Are
When we are doing God's will and yielding to Him in obedience, God adds a miraculous element to produce spiritual growth. Verse 8 adds that, even though we have different functions, we are united in submission to God, but we will be rewarded individually. This proves that God is watching each person's conduct. To Him, we are not a faceless blob in a sea of church members. How could we be rewarded accordingly if our labors were not being individually noted?
God's work involves many individuals with a variety of gifts. To God there are no superstars, only team members called and placed to perform their own special role for which He has prepared them. When we fail to do our part, a slow separation begins, and because a part is not functioning as it should, the body suffers. Paul begins this epistle asking, "Is Christ divided?" (I Corinthians 1:13), and proceeds to discuss a variety of sins that produce division. Later, he teaches the application of the body analogy to the church, and in chapter 13 he stresses the main function of every member: to love.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Little Things Count!
The apostle Paul may have drawn upon this Parable of the Growing Seed (Mark 4:26-29) in his analogy.
He changes the metaphor at the end of the passage to God's building because he is progressing toward describing His people as the Temple of God (verses 16-17). However, the idea in his analogy is the same as in the parable, that God is the One who gives the increase to the crop in His field. He has provided the ministry to help things along (see Ephesians 4:11-16). He will give His sons and daughters whatever is needed to bring them to maturity—the best resources and experiences to cause real growth.
As he continues the building analogy, Paul cautions in I Corinthians 3:10, "But let each one take heed how he builds on it." He is speaking specifically to the ministry here, but this care also applies to the individual. In other words, returning to the growing-seed metaphor, the plant has some work to do, too; it does not just stand in the soil and do nothing. Even though God provides the bulk of the resources for growth—water, nutrients, sunlight, etc.—the plant has to absorb them and use them to maintain itself and to grow.
In the illustration, the seed, activated by water, puts out roots and a shoot. Continued use of those resources causes it to put on height, develop a head, display flowers, and eventually produce fruit. God could spend eternity supplying sun and water to the earth, but if the seeds never responded to His blessings, not one sprout would ever break the soil's surface.
In the same way, God provides the knowledge, environment, energy, gifts, and whatever else is needed for a Christian to grow and produce spiritual fruit, but the Christian must consistently respond to God's providence to make them happen. Paul goes a step further and cautions us that not only must each Christian respond, but he must be careful how he responds.
A plant that does not respond well to what God supplies withers and dies, and so does the improperly responsive Christian. Jesus addresses this in His Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23), speaking of seed that "fell on stony places" and that "fell among thorns." These fail to grow due to "tribulation or persecution" or "the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches." In effect, they let external troubles and the stresses of living in this world halt the growth process. Such a Christian, Jesus says, "stumbles" or "becomes unfruitful."
Obviously, an analogy can be taken too far, but this one holds up well. God has planted us in His field, and He is looking for spiritual growth so that He can harvest us for His Kingdom. For our parts, we can cling to the promise in Malachi 4:2: "But to you who fear My name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings; and you shall . . . grow. . . ."
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Like a Growing Seed (Part Two)
Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing 1 Corinthians 3:7:
Matthew 25:14-30
2 Corinthians 5:9-11
2 Corinthians 5:11
