1 Corinthians 4:1-5

Butler's Comments

SECTION 1

Partiality (1 Corinthians 4:1-5)

4 This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2Moreover it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.3But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. I do not even judge myself. 4I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. 5Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then every man will receive his commendation from God.

1 Corinthians 4:1-4 Cause: The Corinthian Christians were showing partiality toward their favorite apostles and other leaders of the church. Partiality has no place in the kingdom of God. Partiality is defined: To show favor to a person because of his external possessions, position or privilege; or, to accept the person instead of the cause. In the Old Testament the Hebrew words nasha panim are translated partiality and mean literally, face-taking (i.e. to judge on the basis of appearance). The Greek words prosopolempsia and prosopolemptes (sometimes translated, respect of person) also mean literally, face-taking (see Acts 10:34; Romans 2:11; Ephesians 6:9; Colossians 3:25; James 2:1; James 2:9). Partiality is severely condemned in the Old Testament (see Leviticus 19:15; Deuteronomy 1:17; Deuteronomy 16:19-20; Job 13:10; Proverbs 24:23; Proverbs 28:21; Malachi 2:9). Jesus clearly taught that it was not to be a part of the character of the kingdom-citizen (Matthew 5:43-48). The epistles speak severely against partiality (see Colossians 3:22-25; Colossians 4:1; Romans 2:11; Galatians 2:6; Ephesians 6:9; 1 Timothy 5:21; James 2:9).

Partiality creates discord (Matthew 20:24; Mark 9:34; Luke 9:46 f; Luke 22:24-27; Acts 6:1-6; I Cor. ch. 11-14); it causes denigration of God (Jeremiah 18:13 ff.; Romans 2:24; Galatians 2:11 ff.); it defiles the conscience; it destroys the soul.

The cause for the display of partiality among the Corinthian brethren is evident to Paul. They were not evaluating apostles and other leaders by the one and only God-approved standard which is faithfulness. Paul uses two Greek words by which he categorizes all Christians whether they be leaders or followers. The word servant in Greek (huperetas) is the word from a mariner's vocabulary designating the under-rower in the ancient galley ships of the Mediterranean Sea. It came to mean under-servant or underling and was applied to anyone who took orders from someone higher. The second word, steward, in Greek is oikonomos, literally, law of the house, meaning house manager. Barclay calls the oikonomos, the major domo. The point Paul is stressing here is no matter what a Christian's place in the church, he is a servant. All Christians are underlings and take orders from Christ. All Christians are merely stewards taking care of the Master's goods. All Christians are to be evaluated only as to whether they have faithfully accepted this position as servant or not. We are not to compare one another's relationship to the Lord on the basis of skills, talents, accomplishments or any other quantitative measurement. When Jesus told the parable of the pounds (Luke 19:11-27) it is noteworthy that the nobleman did not condemn the man who had been given five pounds and came back with only five pounds more. If quantitative measurements are the criteria of God's judgments, the servant given five pounds should have been condemned for not returning ten more like the first servant. The only servant condemned was the third one who was unfaithful and distrusted the nobleman's faithfulness and fairness, (see comments, The Gospel of Luke, pages 420-425, by Butler, pub. College Press).

Christians must always think of apostles or other brethren in places of leadership as servants. To think otherwise produces favoritism and partiality and, ultimately, destructive division. Paul was emphatic! He insisted that the Corinthian Christians should regard the apostles as no more than underlings and stewards. The Greek word translated regard is logizestho. It is a word from the Greek world of business and finance. It means to enter a calculation on a ledger. He wants it calculated and written down that apostles are merely servants. They are not Masters! The church must not enter one apostle on the ledger as of more account than others. The church must not show favoritism toward any church leaderthey are all servants. Human judgments are always on the basis of appearances, seniority, popularity, or the like. Paul said the only thing that counted was trustworthiness.

The apostles were merely the first stewards commissioned by the Lord to dispense the mysteries of God. The apostles were specially gifted dispensers, to be true, but nothing more than dispensers. The Greek word musterion, translated mystery is used in the New Testament of God's redemptive program. The word musterion is often used by the pagan religions of the first century for doctrines and rites known by the members of their cults but kept secret from the uninitiated. The writers of the New Testament gave a new meaning to the word. God's redemptive program was symbolized and prophesied progressively but dimly in the Old Testament (Romans 3:21; Hebrews 1:1). Redemption was fully accomplished and revealed in the incarnate work of Christ and through the apostolic message which explains it and applies it.

Verse two begins with an unusual Greek phrase; ho de loipon zeteitai en tois oikonomois. Literally it would be translated, As for the remaining, it is sought among stewards.. What Paul means is that a certain character is sought after in all servants. That character is faithfulness (Gr. pistos). It is not simply sought forit is required! The Greek word zeteitai is often translated required, demanded (see Luke 11:50-51; Luke 12:48). J. B. Phillips paraphrases, And it is a prime requisite in a trustee that he should prove worthy of his trust. Faithfulness is dependability and reliability. All servants of Christ (and that includes apostles) are evaluated not on the basis of giftedness but of dependability and reliability. Because some Christians may have been given miraculous powers in the first century, or even the calling as an apostle, does not mean they are to be set apart from other servants who never received miraculous gifts. Each servant is required only to be reliable and dependable with as much as Christ has given him. Jesus described the faithful and wise steward in Luke 12:42-43. Some classic examples of men who were faithful to earthly masters are Joseph to Potiphar, Daniel to King Darius (Daniel 6:4), and Hananiah (Nehemiah 7:2).

The apostles have come down to us in history as men of greatness, not because of their educational attainments or political achievements but because they were faithful to Christ. Being the servants of all, they became the greatest of all (see Matthew 20:20-28).

The Corinthian Christians had a problem with judging! Paul had to warn them again in his second letter that they were comparing themselves with one another and, in so doing, were without understanding (see 2 Corinthians 10:12). Jesus evidently anticipated that all citizens of the kingdom of God would have a problem with judging. He devoted the last one-third of his Sermon on the Mount to the problems of making proper judgments (see Matthew 7:1-27). Christians are supposed to make certain judgments:

a.

Christians must judge that some are swine and some are dogs and not cast pearls before them (Matthew 7:6).

b.

Christians must judge what they would wish others to do to them so they may do the same to others (Matthew 7:12).

c.

Christians must judge which is the narrow gate and which is the broad way (Matthew 7:13).

d.

Christians must judge who are false prophets by the doctrines they teach and by the fruits they produce in their teachings (Matthew 7:15-20).

e.

Christians must judge that doing the will of God is of primary importance (Matthew 7:21-23).

f.

Christians must judge the proper place to build their lives (Matthew 7:24-27).

g.

Christians must not judge by appearances, but with righteousness and justice (John 7:24).

h.

Christians ought to be able to make fair and honest judgments between themselves when one has a grievance against another (1 Corinthians 6:1-8).

i.

Christians are to test everything for its evil-quotient and abstain from every form of evil (1 Thessalonians 5:21), especially in the matter of religious teaching (see 1 Corinthians 14:29; 1 John 4:1-6).

j.

Christians must be able to judge when a brother is living in idleness (2 Thessalonians 3:6-15).

k.

Christians must be able to judge when a brother is overtaken in any trespass and restore him in a spirit of gentleness (Galatians 6:1 ff.; James 5:19-20, etc.).

There are many judgments Christians must make about people and situations. Why then did Paul say, But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court? Literally, the Greek phrase is: de eis elachiston estin hina huph humon anakritho e hupo anthropines hemeras; But unto a little it is that by you I have been judged, or by the agency of a man's day. The context makes it clear Paul is saying human beings, even Christians, should not be arrogating to themselves the prerogatives of selecting the best apostle to follow. Christ chose the apostles. Christ alone has authority to distinguish one above another. So Paul is telling these divisive minded people that what they are doing is of no significance whatever, except that it is ruining the Christian fellowship there. Their decisions that one apostle or leader is better than another is ridiculous. If they were trying to decide whether Paul were actually an apostle or a false apostle, they had every right and obligation to do so. That could be decided, and should be decided, on the basis of the signs of an apostle (see 2 Corinthians 12:12). But deciding as to which apostle or leader was better than the other, and then using such a decision to form divisions and opposing sides within the church was utterly pointless. It was worse than that! It was assuming prerogatives which belonged only to Christ.

The phrase, or by the agency of a man's day, is an idiomatic statement referring to the indisputable limitations of the human experience to make eternal judgments. Human life is bounded by too narrow an horizon to make such judgments. The word day in all languages and idioms signifies judgments. The word diet to designate a legislative or judicial body comes from the Latin word dies, the word for day. The word daysman means an arbitrator. The RSV has translated the phrase to give its idiomatic meaning. There is no human diet (or court) with sufficient authority or expertise to divide the church over human leaders. What Paul has said here condemns all division in the body of Christ, and especially that division which is perpetuated by and in favor of religious leadership. Modern denominationalism with its proclivity to perpetuate the distinguishing of one Christian from another by elevation of human religious leaders (dead or alive) stands under this apostolic censure! All a Christian needs to know about a spiritual teacher and leader is whether he is faithful to the Lord's Word and the Lord's way of life. All Christians manifesting honest effort to be dependably and reliably following Christ are to love, cherish and honor one another and unite their hearts and minds in singleness of praise and service to Christ alone.

Continuing to expose the cause of so much favoritism and division, Paul implies that part of it may be the tendency of the Corinthians to misevaluate themselves. The way Paul makes this inference is to say that he does not even critique (judge) himself. Every man is predisposed to evaluate himself too highly (Romans 12:3; Philippians 2:3). No human being can trust self-evaluation because the heart of man is deceitful above all things, and desperately corrupt (see Jeremiah 17:9). Only the word of God is able to discern the thoughts and intentions of the human heart correctly (cf. Hebrews 4:12-13). The Greeks placed great emphasis on the adage, Know thyself. That is good advice if a man has in his possession the revealed word of God, the Creator, and if he will saturate his mind with that word surrendering to its divine judgments and evaluations. But by himself no man can know himself for he did not create himself! When men reject God's word for their own opinions, they overlook their faults and are always able to find someone else more wicked than they. Consider Jesus-' parable of the two men who went to the temple to prayone a Pharisee the other a tax collector (Luke 18:9-14), or consider the Jewish ruler's estimate of the common people (John 7:49).

We think J. B. Phillips has captured the essence of Paul's statement here in his paraphrase, I don-'t even value my opinion of myself. For I might be quite ignorant of any fault in myselfbut that doesn-'t justify me before God. My only true judge is the Lord. When Paul said he knew nothing against himself he was not claiming that he had never sinned. He was well aware of his failings (see Romans 7:13-25; 1 Timothy 1:15, etc.). Paul is simply speaking hypothetically. He is saying, For the sake of illustration, let us presume that I can-'t think of any wrong doing or wickedness against myselfthat still does not prove infallibly there isn-'t any! All it would prove is that Paul could not think of any. But what about the omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent God? Before God all men are sinnerseven apostles! Before God all men saved are men saved by grace through faith.

1 Corinthians 4:5 Cure: In the final analysis, the judgment of God is the only infallible and absolute judgment. God alone knows all the circumstances, secret thoughts, intentions and motives behind man's actions. Much that the world thinks is goodness may have been done from very wicked and self-serving motives. So Paul advocates as the cure for the problem of favoritism and conceit an awareness that honoring one Christian servant above another must be left to the judgment of God. Paul exhorts these Corinthian Christians to cease their favoritism and partiality toward spiritual servants. When Paul says, Therefore do not pronounce judgment. he uses the Greek verb krinete, in the imperative mood, which means Paul is commanding them to stop making such superficial judgments. Christians must not pronounce final verdicts on any person who is evidently trying to the best of his ability (and is not causing divisions in the church) to be faithful to the Lord. Christians must wait upon the Lord's return for final rewards and honors to be handed out to his servants. The Lord alone has the prerogative to hand out final commendations or condemnations. Some of these Corinthian church members were usurping the Lord's prerogative and honoring one servant of the Lord over another by their fallible, schismatic standards when they said, I am of Paul or, I am of Apollos. Some of them, causing division and disorder in the church by jealousy and selfish ambition (see James 3:13-16), were collaborating with the demons of hell! One would think the elders of the Corinthian church would have recognized such schismatic persons as false teachers by the fruits (division and disorder) of their teachings (see Matthew 7:16; Acts 20:29-30).

Applebury's Comments

Attitude Toward the Apostles (1-5)

Text

1 Corinthians 4:1-5. Let a man so account of us, as of ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Here, 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. 4 For I know nothing against myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord. 5 Wherefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and make manifest the counsels of the hearts; and then shall each man have his praise from God.

Commentary

Let a man account of us.This chapter brings to a close the discussion of the subject of division which had been reported to Paul by members of the household of Chloe. Up to this point, Paul has mentioned the problem of wisdom in contrast to the word of the cross which was the revealed wisdom of God. He has shown the correct view of men in relation to the church as a means of overcoming the party spirit that lay at the root of the problem of division. He has raised the appreciation of all for the things of God by reminding them that they were the temple of God and that the Spirit of God was dwelling in them.

He now pleads for a correct view of the apostles as the ones through whom the Corinthians had believed and who had continued to instruct them in the Christian life.
He uses a significant word with which all were familiar in presenting this plea. Account suggests the bookkeeper's term for entries in his ledger. Paul is suggesting that they enter this in their ledger to his credit. They are to set it down in their minds so as to make the accounts balance. He is asking them to look upon the apostles in their relation to this problem in a way that will bring to bear all that has been said by him upon the subject of division. The use of the plural pronoun does take in all the inspired teachers, apostles in particular, as the ones through whom God carried out the project of building the church and caring for it as one would cultivate his field.

as of ministers of Christ.The apostles are Christ's servants; they are not to be thought of as ones to divide the body of Christ. In chapter 1 Corinthians 3:21-23, Paul has explained that he and Apollos and the other leaders really belong to the church as their servants. There is a sense, however, in which they also belong to Christ. This is of primary importance in the solution of the problem before them. They were ministers (literally, deacons) who were to perform a service for the church under the direction of the Lord. He uses another word that is translated minister in this context. It means a subordinate or an attendant. Originally, it referred to the galley slave who was chained to his oar. But this idea is not to be read into the New Testament usage. There it refers to the one who has a subordinate position that requires absolute devotion to his superior. It is the word that describes the temple guards who were subordinates of the ruling body of the Jews. Paul considered himself as such a servant of Christ. He is a subordinate whose sole duty is to please the Lord Jesus Christ. Since the church is Christ's and the appointed servants are Christ'S, there is no reason for dividing the church over loyalty to any man. Christ demands absolute priority in the lives not only of teachers but also of all other members of His body, the church. See Colossians 1:18.

and stewards.This important word also enforces the lesson of relationship between teachers and Christ. It means household servant. Joseph was such a slave in the house of Potiphar. His task was to manage the affairs of his master and to look after his property. He was strictly accountable to the master for the proper discharge of his duties. This accurately describes the inspired apostle's relation to Christ. They were not appointed by men and not accountable to them. Christ appointed them and equipped them to do the task He had for them, and He held them accountable as stewards who were watching over the mysteries of God.

the mysteries of God.Arndt and Gingrich in A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament define mystery as a secret. See my comment on 1 Corinthians 2:6-9. These are not mystical things or mysterious things. They are those things in God's plan to save the believer in Christ that would have remained forever hidden to man had not God revealed them through the inspired apostles and prophets. Essentially then, the term refers to the Bible as the revealed will of God. The apostles were to watch over, guard, and protect that which belonged to God. Paul's appeal to Timothy emphasizes this important truth: O Timothy, guard that which is committed unto thee, turning away from the profane babblings and oppositions of the knowledge which is falsely so called; which some professing have erred concerning the faith (1 Timothy 6:20-21).

that a man be found faithful.This seems to be the most important qualification of a stewardfaithfulness to his master. Jesus-' story of the steward who was accused of wasting his master's goods illustrates the attitude toward unfaithful servants (Luke 16:1-20). So far as the apostles were concerned, their responsibility was that they be faithful to Christ. They were not to gather men about them for their own glory and thereby divide and destroy the church. Thus the descriptive terms that refer to the apostles and the necessity remaining faithful to the Lord all show the wickedness of the divided state of the church.

that I should be judged of you.Having laid down the basic principles that govern his relation to the church and to the Lord, Paul proceeds to state that it is an inconsequential matter that some of them were presuming to pass on his qualifications to be an apostle. The word for judge in this context means to examine one's qualifications for office. See comment on 1 Corinthians 2:14-15. The one who is spiritual (the inspired apostle) is judged (examined as to his fitness for the task) by no man. Man didn-'t appoint the apostles of Christ; He did. No man, therefore, has the right to pass on their fitness for the work Christ had for them to do. Why then should one say, I am of Paul, and another, I am of Cephas? Who were they to approve one apostle above another? This is the party spirit that was causing splits in the church at Corinth. Paul let them know that it was a very small thing to him that some were attempting to disqualify him as an apostle of Christ by appealing to human standards or verdicts handed down by men.

I judge not mine own self.That is, Paul did not pass on his own qualifications to be an apostle, and surely the Corinthians were less qualified to do so. Judge in this context is still the word for passing on one's qualifications for office.

I know nothing against myself.This remark, like everything else, must be taken in the light of its context. Paul is saying that he did not know anything against himself that would disqualify him as an apostle. Of course, he knew that at one time he had been a persecutor of the church. By his conduct, he had insulted God. See 1 Timothy 1:12-13. He had even consented to the death of Stephen. But this did not prevent his being appointed to God's service for by God's grace he had obtained mercy because of his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus who appeared to him on the Damascus way appointed him a minister and witness both in the things he had seen and in the things that would be shown to him (Acts 26:16). He sent Ananias to him saying, Get up and get yourself baptized and wash away your sins because you have called on the name of the Lord (Acts 22:16).

not hereby justified.Justify, justification, and righteousness are usually used in the New Testament with the meaning that has to do with God's forgiveness of sin or His looking upon the one who is justified as being right in His sight because of faith in Christ who shed His blood for the remission of sins (Romans 3:21-26). But it may also be used in its ordinary sense as in this case. Paul is saying, I know nothing against myself, but that does not justify me in assuming that I am qualified to be an apostle of Christ. It is the Lord who passes on my qualifications and approves me as His apostle.

judge nothing before the time.This word is accurately rendered judge in this instance. It refers to the act of weighing evidence, making decisions, and handing down verdicts as a judge on the bench would do. The Corinthians were doing exactly this thing when they said, I am of Paul or I am of Apollos. They were not qualified to do this for they did not have full information and did not know the hearts of men. This is very similar to Jesus-' statement, Judge not that ye be not judged (Matthew 7:1). He was forbidding hypocritical judging. He, of course, made allowance for the fact that men are capable of recognizing false prophets, for He said, By their fruits ye shall know them (Matthew 7:16). It would seem that by this standard the Corinthians should have been able to see through the false teachers who were promoting division in their midst.

In handing down verdicts that glorified one man and dishonored another, they were violating another principle, that is, the time God has set for judgmentthe coming of the Lord.

bring to light the hidden things.All men face the judgment day before the Lord (Revelation 20:11-15). The one who sits on the throne knows the hidden things that are in darkness. They may not all be evil, for that matter, But God who knows the hearts of all men (Acts 1:24) will judge with righteousness. The light of His truth will illumine the secrets of men's hearts and make manifest their plans, thoughts, and desires (Romans 2:16).

then shall each man have his praise from God.Praise from God! This should satisfy the need of any man. Why then should they seek the praise from men and in so doing divide the church of God? Well done, good and faithful servant from God is more than all the praise from men.