Cliques in the Kingdom

1 Corinthians 1-4

Fools for Christ unite! Paul is warning about boasting in the body of Christ.
1:28 He (God) chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things - and the things that are not - to nullify things that are so that no one may boast before him.

3:16 Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? 17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.

I think many people have individualized the concept of the "body" being just their own body. The body of Christ as the temple of the Holy Spirit is to be guarded as sacred. What does that mean for you? It puts a whole lot more meaning to me about who we are when we gather as believers together for anything - Sunday School, Small Groups, staff meeting - places of the holy. Do you take them for granted?

When talking about the foundation in verses 10 -15 I thought about the 3 little pigs story. The test for the the little pigs was the breath of the wolf (I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house down). The test for the temple (the body of Christ) will be FIRE. The fire will test what sort of work each has done (3:13).

4:12 When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; 13 when slandered, we speak kindly. We have become like the rubbish of the world, the dregs of all things, to this very day.

The Message puts it this way "When they call us names we say "God bless you". When they spread rumors about us, we put in a good word for them. We are treated like garbage, potato peelings from culture's kitchen. And it's not getting any better."

According to Paul, belonging to Christ is not about having the the right opinions or ideas. When the good news is made out to be ideas that one agrees with, then faith is robbed of it's transforming power. The power to save is to save us from what? Maybe to save us from thinking too much of ourselves, and too little of others.

Are you liking Paul?