The Mission

The Letter to the Corinthians Is Timely Today

In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthian church, he referred to the comparisons made between his efforts and those of Apollos: “I have applied all this to Apollos and myself for your benefit, brothers and sisters, so that you may learn through us the meaning of the saying, ‘Nothing beyond what is written,’ so that none of you will be puffed up in favor of one against another. For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you received it, why do you boast as if it were not a gift?” (1 Corinthians 4:6, 7, NRSV). 4TC 144.5

Paul told the church about the hardships that he and those working with him had endured. “To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, and we are poorly clothed, and beaten, and homeless. And we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure; being defamed, we entreat. We have been made as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things until now. I do not write these things to shame you, but as my beloved children I warn you. For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel” (1 Corinthians 4:11-15). 4TC 144.6

He who sends out gospel workers is dishonored when church members develop so strong an attachment to some favorite minister that they are unwilling to accept some other teacher. The Lord sends help to His people, not always what they might choose, but what they need, for people cannot recognize what is for their highest good. Not very often does one minister have all the qualifications necessary to develop a church perfectly, so God often sends others, each one possessing some qualifications that the others did not have. 4TC 145.1

The church should gratefully accept these servants of Christ. They should seek to gain all the benefit possible from each minister. In humility they should accept the truths that the servants of God bring, but no minister is to be idolized. 4TC 145.2

As God’s ministers obtain the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to extend the triumphs of the cross, they will see results—they will accomplish a work that will withstand the attacks of Satan. Many people will turn from darkness to light, converted not to the human messenger but to Christ. Jesus only, the Man of Calvary, will appear. And God is just as ready to give power to His servants today as He was to give it to Paul and Apollos, to Silas and Timothy, to Peter, James, and John. 4TC 145.3