Responsible to God for the Work
Excerpt
In this section, the builders were being warned about the quality of their work. The foundation of the church is a Person, not a doctrine (3:11). The true building of the church involves a person’s participation in the very life of Christ. This cuts against the “I am of Paul” mentality. For the final evaluation (3:12–15), see Amos 4:11 and Zechariah 3:2 regarding being saved through fire.
Paul shifted from God’s building (the church) to his dwelling (the individual Christian) (3:16–17). Paul reminded the Corinthians that their work would be evaluated at the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10; Rom. 14:10). Paul did not explain the nature of the reward (1 Cor. 3:14) but elsewhere referred to “crowns” as representative of the believers’ reward (1 Thess. 2:19; 2 Tim. 4:8; cf. also James 1:12; 1 Pet. 5:4).
Hughes, Robert B., and J. Carl Laney. Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2001. Print. The Tyndale Reference Library.
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