“HAVE I BEEN FAITHFUL?” (1 Cor. 4:3, NLB)
“Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. 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” (1 Corinthians 4:1-3, KJV).
INTRODUCTION
As we start the year 2004 it is fitting to ask ourselves, “Have I been faithful during the past year?” If the answer is yes, the prospect of continuing to be faithful this year should be exciting. If the answer is no, you should resolve to be faithful this year.
Paul welcomes an inventory of his life. He uses two common vocations as illustrations of his ministry. Then he postulates an injunction to be faithful.
THE INVENTORY
Paul uses in verse 1 the word "account" (Gk, logizestho). This is a bookkeeping term. It means to take inventory. He is saying that he welcomes an inventory of his life and ministry. This is a discipline that every Christian should practice regularly. One of many excellent times for taking inventory is at the beginning of a new year like today.
What is included in the inventory? We should begin with making sure that we are saved. In 2 Corinthians 13:5 Paul admonishes, "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith." Make sure that your sins have been forgiven. Recall the time when you asked Jesus to be your Savior and Lord. If you die today, do you know for sure that you are going straight to heaven?
Next, Paul says in 1 Corinthians 11:28, "Let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup." Examine yourself to see if you are fit or worthy to partake of the Lord Supper. The Lord Supper is a celebration of what Christ accomplished for us. It stands for everything that the cross stands for. Paul is asking if you are fit or qualified to observe such a symbolic ceremony.
How do we know if we are qualified? Someone hypothesizes, “If someone sues you for the ‘crime’ of being a Christian, is there enough evidence to convict you?” Or, will the jury find you “not guilty” because you do not behave like a Christian or talk like a Christian? Are you any different from the unbeliever?
2 Corinthians 6:14 to 7:1 helps us to find out if we are any different from the unbeliever. It says, “And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”
Here are other ways of taking inventory: (1) Compare yourself with Jesus, not with other believers, because Jesus is our model and pattern of life; (2) Go through the list in Galatians 5:22-23 and see how you fare with those Christian virtues; (3) Go through the Ten Commandments to measure your relationship with God and with your fellow men; (4) Step on the scale of the Great Commission; and (5) Compare yourself with who you were a year ago.
THE ILLUSTRATIONS
Paul goes on to mention his ministries using two common vocations during his time as illustrations.
First, he uses the word “minister.” The Greek word is huperetes. In classical Greek, this word refers to an under-rower. Under-rowers man the oars of a ship. They pull the oars that propel the ship forward.
Two things must be said about under-rowers. First, they work the oars in the belly of the ship. They do not know where the ship is going. They simply obey the direction of the Captain.
Secondly, under-rowers must work in harmony. If they do not work together, their efforts will be wasted, to say the least. The ship will not move, as it should. The worse scenario is that it will go in circles. And it will not reach its destination that way.
Christians are assigned the role of under-rowers. They propel the church forward. They are under the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ. He gives the orders. But they must pull together.
Many churches are dry rotting in the harbor because there are not enough under-rowers to move them forward. God’s plan A for doing His work is His people. And there is no plan B.
The second word that Paul uses is “steward.” This is taken from the Greek word oikonomos. The oikonomos is in charge of the administration of the house or estate. He administers the affairs of his master. He has authority. He makes crucial decisions. Ultimately, he is accountable to his master.
We are all stewards of the "mysteries of God." I Peter 4:10 says, "As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God." To be a good steward, you and I must use the gift or gifts God has given us. He does not expect us to be what we are not designed to be or to do what we are not gifted to do. Every Christian is wired differently.
Charles Swindoll illustrates this point with an interesting parable: “The Springfield, Oregon, Public Schools newsletter published an article that told about a group of animals that decided that they should do something meaningful to meet the problems of a new world. So they organized a school. They adopted a curriculum of running, climbing, swimming, and flying. To make it easier to administer the curriculum, all the animals took all the subjects.
“The duck was excellent in swimming but he only made passing grades in flying, and was very poor in running. Since he was so slow in running, he had to drop swimming and stay after school to practice running. This caused his webbed feet to be badly worn, so that he only averaged in swimming.
“The rabbit started at the top of the class in running, but developed a nervous twitch in his leg muscles because of so much make-up work in swimming.
“The squirrel was excellent in climbing, but he encountered constant frustration in flying class because his teacher made him start from the ground instead of the treetop down. He developed charley horses from overexertion, and so only got a C in climbing and a D in running.”
1 Peter 4:10 tells us that our ministry is “people”, not “programs.” An elderly preacher was rebuked by one of his deacons one Sunday morning before the service. "Pastor," said the man, "something must be wrong with your preaching and your work. There’s been only one person added to the church in a whole year, and he’s just a boy." The minister listened, his eyes moistening and his thin hand trembling. "I feel it all," he replied, "but God knows I’ve tried to do my duty."
On that day the minister’s heart was heavy as he stood before his flock. As he finished the message, he felt a strong inclination to resign. After everyone else had left, that one boy came to him and asked, "Do you think if I worked hard for an education, I could become a preacher--perhaps a missionary?" Again tears welled up in the minister’s eyes. "Ah, this heals the ache I feel," he said. "Robert, I see the Divine hand now. May God bless you, my boy. Yes, I think you will become a preacher."
Many years later an aged missionary returned to London from Africa. His name was spoken with reverence. Nobles invited him to their homes. He had added many souls to the church of Jesus Christ, reaching even some of Africa’s most savage chiefs. His name was Robert Moffat, the same Robert who years before had spoken to the pastor that Sunday morning in the old Scottish church.
The slogan of our church is “Changing lives one person at a time.” We are not interested in grandiose programs that do not impact real lives.
THE INJUNCTION
Paul states in verse 2, "Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful." This is a must. This is God’s will. His is our command, our injunction.
1 Corinthians 1:9 says, “God is faithful.” Max Lucado puts it so beautifully, "If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it. If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it. He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise every morning. Whenever you want to talk, he’ll listen. He can live anywhere in the universe, and he chose your heart... Face it, friend. He’s crazy about you." Because God is faithful, we must also be faithful.
Let us strive to be faithful. President Roosevelt made this significant statement, "It is better to be faithful than famous." Another observed, "The world crowns success; God crowns faithfulness."
Be faithful in using whatever gift you have, all the gifts you have, however small or limited the gift may be. One day after delivering a message, someone came to D.L. Moody and said, "You made eleven grammatical mistakes in your message tonight." Moody looked at the person and said, "I’m sure you’re right. My education is limited. I wish I could have had more, but I’m simply using the grammar I have to serve the Lord."
If you take on a ministry, be faithful. This is “required” of all who have responsibilities in church. Somebody told the story of a choir director who was so stressed out because at least one or more members of the choir were absent at every rehearsal for a concert. Finally came the last rehearsal and he announced: "I want to personally thank the pianist for being the only person in this entire church choir to attend each and every rehearsal during the past two months." At this, the pianist rose, bowed, and said, "It was the least I could do, considering I won’t be able to be at the concert tonight."
Be faithful in the use of your time. Time is precious. Make a commitment to attend worship regularly. That will be a good start.
I learned a great lesson from an illiterate woman of the Mandaya tribe in Mindanao when I was serving as a missionary to the tribe. I saw her shivering and I could tell that she had malaria. I approached her and said, “You should have stayed at home. You have a good reason to stay home.” She looked at me in the eye and said, “At home I shiver. In church I shiver. I’d rather shiver in church.”
It pays to be faithful. Rev. 2:10 says, “Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” Norman Geisler, as a child, went to a DVBS because some neighbor children invited him. He went back to the same church for Sunday School classes for 400 Sundays. Each week a bus driver faithfully picked him up. Week after week he attended church, but never made a commitment to Christ. Finally, during his senior year in High School, after being picked up for church over 400 times, he did commit his life to Christ. What if that bus driver had given up on Geisler at 395? What if the bus driver had said, "This kid is going nowhere spiritually, why waste any more time on him?" (Max Lucado, God Came Near, Multnomah Press, 1987, p. 133.)
Lord, help us to be faithful. Then give us the grace to leave the results to you.
CONCLUSION
God wants us to take inventory of our life. Have you taken an inventory of your Christian service in 2003?
God has given us a ministry to do. It is illustrated in huperetes and in oikonomons. Like the huperetes, we take our directions from the Lord and not from men or committees. Like the oikonomos, we are entrusted with a stewardship for which we are accountable to the Master.
God gives us an injunction to be faithful. Will you commit to be faithful this year?
To measure your faithfulness, be specific. Find out an area of your life that needs improvement and formulate a goal for improvement. Make 2 Corinthians 5:9 your motto: “We make it our goal to please Him.” Here are some suggestions:
1. Come to church regularly.
2. Attend Sunday School.
3. Start tithing.
4. Invite your friend to church.
5. Volunteer for a ministry in church.
