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  Do Not Judge Anything Until the Lord Comes   1 Corinthians 4:3-5: "It is a very small matter to me that I should be judged (anacrido) by either you or by others. I do not even judge myself, for I am not aware of anything to reproach myself for, but by this I am not justified. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore do not judge anything before the time comes, that is, until the Lord comes. He will bring to light things hidden in darkness and will reveal the intentions of the heart. Then each person will receive praise from God." Anakrido ( ἀ νακριθ ῶ ) is a compound word of Ana ( ἀ να : above: Kingdom of God) and Krido ( κριθ ῶ : judgment). Anakrido signifies God's judgment. It means that it is a very small matter for you or others to judge me. This is because judgment is something God does, and human judgment is of no significance. "Before the time comes" means before Jesus returns. The point is that Jesus will judge when He returns, and that He Himse...

  Workers of Christ and Stewards of God's Mysteries   1 Corinthians 4:1-2: "Let people regard us as workers of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. And what is required of stewards (tois oikonomois) is faithfulness (pist ó s)." Paul is speaking about the identity of a Christian. He is that they are ministers and stewards of God's mysteries. Tois oikonomois ( το ῖς ο ἰ κον ό μοι ς ) means steward, and pist ó s ( πιστ ός ) means faith. If one seeks faith, it is given from heaven, as stated in Galatians 3:25. "Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the tutor." God's mysteries are mysteries from before the creation of the world; Jesus revealed these mysteries to His disciples, but He said He kept them a mystery to others. He also expressed these mysteries through the parable of the sower. The Parable of the Sower describes sowing seeds in the field of the heart, signifying that the seeds grow and bear fruit for those whose heart has...

  All things are yours.   1 Corinthians 3:21: "Let no one boast about people (kauchado en anthropois), for all things are yours (gar hymon estin)." "Kaukado en anthropois" ( καυχ ά σθω ἐ ν ἀ νθρ ώ ποι ς ) means that no one should boast among people. This is because all people are spiritually dead. The only thing to boast about is Jesus Christ of the cross and resurrection. Even people in the church try to put themselves forward to others through honor, money, and power. This is what those who love the world do. Those who have fallen into a faith focused on material blessings are precisely these kinds of people. Regarding the phrase "gar hymon estin" ( γ ὰ ρ ὑ μ ῶ ν ἐ στιν ), if translated again, it means, "All things are for you." A saint is not one who is in the world, but one who is in heaven above the world. In Ephesians 1:22-23, it states, "And He has put all things under His feet, and made Him head over all things for the church...

  The wisdom of this world is foolishness to God.   1 Corinthians 3:19-20: “ The wisdom of this world is foolishness to God, as it is written: ‘ He causes the wise to fall into their own traps. ’ And the Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile. ” The wisdom of this world refers to humanistic thought. Humanism appears rational and wise to worldly people, but it is foolish to God. This is because God ’ s thoughts and human thoughts are different. Humanism signifies a Christian ideology that is human-centered rather than God-centered. While humanism exists as various topics, one cannot help but speak about humanism regarding the view of salvation. The core themes of the view of salvation are the problem of sin and resurrection. First, regarding sin, humanistic thought regards the disobedience of God ’ s commands as the root of sin; therefore, it accepts that keeping the commandments means there is no sin. However, no matter how strictly one tries to keep th...

  The temple of God is holy, and so are you. 1 Corinthians 3:17: "If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him. The temple of God is holy, and so are you." Although the people of the Corinthian church claimed to be in Christ, they did not understand the Logos who dwells in the temple within the hearts of the saints. Furthermore, because they were diluting the Gospel with Gnosticism in addition to the Gospel of Christ, the temple of God is established as an abomination. The saint becomes holy only through the union of the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Therefore, there is no salvation other than the Gospel of the death on the cross and the resurrection. However, Gnostics claim that one must strive diligently for spirituality in addition to the Gospel. It appears that they have an idol of themselves sitting in the temple. Acts 20:31-32: “Therefore be watchful, remembering how for three years I did not cease night and day, but instructed each of you with t...