THE JUDGMENT ONE DESERVES

1 Corinthians 4:5-7 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. 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. 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?

Only God, His Son, Jesus Christ, His apostles, and possibly others, by inspiration, had the ability to see into the hearts and minds of other men and women, and to know their thoughts (See Matt. 9:1-6, Acts 5:1-11). Since that time, no human being has possessed the ability to know the thoughts of others without it being made known to them by that individual. Unless revealed by words or deeds, the thoughts of one's mind remain unknown to others. The lesson text refers to the untold thoughts of an individual as the hidden things of darkness. Because of the unrevealed nature of the mind, Paul tells the church at Corinth: therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come. Only at the coming of the Lord, the Day of Judgment, will all things be made known; only then will light be shown on the hidden things of darkness; only then will the counsels of the hearts be made known; only then shall every man have praise of God.

This was Paul's defensive reasoning to his admonition contained in the first four verses that precede the lesson text. Paul did not judge himself as a "spiritual leader." Neither did he want any other human being, including the Christians at Corinth to judge himself, Apollos, or Cephas as leaders. They were to be recognized as mere servants of God through Christ Jesus - ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. To hold them up, that is to judge them, as deserving of any higher authority within the kingdom of God, was not within their judgmental capability. Proof was given in the previous chapter of this letter that such judgments, by them, of individual ministers of Christ, resulted in envying, and strife, and divisions within the body of Christ (Vs. 3). It was Paul's opinion that, if there was ever to be an elevation of himself beyond that of a servant it would by God, the righteous Judge of all mankind - the only Judge that could see into and know his heart and mind.

Using himself and Apollos as examples, Paul taught the children of God at Corinth this wonderful lesson - 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. To do so usually results in a congregation made up of disciples of a particular preacher, rather that being disciples of Christ. This usually leads to the assumption of a name that identifies them as a follower of the tenets of that particular preacher. The long-term result from similar past instances resulted in congregations known as Lutherans, Congregationalists, Calvinists, Methodists, Presbyterians, Latter Day Saints, Pentecostals, Adventists, etc.

When this happens, the name Christian, which identified members of first-century church, becomes modified by a sectarian name such as an Episcopalian Christians or a Baptist Christians. Due to the divisions that generally result, no true, faithful preacher of the word of God should be exalted, by those in his audience, to such a glorified status. Neither should a preacher of the word of God allow himself to be lifted up to such a position of glory - to a position higher than that of a faithful servant. Paul was a servant of God. What preacher would ever desire a position in God's kingdom, His church, higher that that of Paul? The answer is, and should always remain, No One!

In Verse 7, of the lesson text, Paul gives another reason why church members are not to elevate preachers to positions of leadership and praise beyond that of a servant. It is God, our Creator, who gives mankind the various talents that distinguish each of us from another. We, then, are only stewards of the talents we possess. As stewards, we are responsible for using them to the best of our ability, in demonstrating our love for God and for our fellow man. Since our talents and abilities belong to God and are not our own, there can never be an occasion for us to receive pre-eminence or self-glorification above that of a servant. Are we servants of God or servants of self? Of this we can be assured: just judgment will not come from mankind, but from God. All will receive the judgment one deserves.