What are we eating? What are we making?

 Read 1 Corinthians 3

I recently discovered that the Apostle Paul and I have something in common—not just this whole Christ, love, and making disciples thing, but something else.

Neither Paul nor I know any Taylor Swift songs. I’m good with that. Just thought you should know.

During high school, I lived on a farm about 5 miles east of Mangum, Oklahoma. Last year, I attended my 50th alumni reunion. I was shocked to find out that I was the same age as old people.

It was good to see those old people. A fourth of us didn’t get the chance to grow old, and we are fewer now.

Back to those high school days. I lived with my family (I let them live there, too. I was generous like that.) in a granite house. The granite blocks that made up the house weighed between 300 and 400 pounds.

If the Soviet Army had invaded Oklahoma in the 1970s, we could have withstood all of their tanks and artillery. This house was built.

On a side note, granite might be the worst insulator in the world. This old place had a fireplace on each end and a couple of gas heaters. I don’t know how efficient the fireplaces were, but I was warm all winter.

That was mostly because I was the woodchopper.

So there was my granite house, our propane tank off to the side, our storm cellar (which my mother didn’t like to go in. I didn’t care much for it either, so I would go stand outside to watch the tornados go by) and wood lined up all across the south side of the house.

Oh, and there was this foundation. I don’t know what it was supposed to support. It was at least 75 years newer than the house.

It wasn’t a solid foundation. It was one of those that just outlined the area. I have always been inquisitive and a little creative, maybe., I would wonder what might have been. What changed?

Why had nobody built upon this foundation?

It was like I had social media in my head in the 70s. I had plenty of opinions and theories but not many facts.

Why had nobody built upon this foundation?

Paul wrote to the church in Corinth and asked:

Why had nobody built upon this foundation?

Paul noted that he gave them the only foundation that they needed. Why hadn’t they built on it? How could Paul say this?

The church still had divisions. I follow Paul. I follow Apollos. I follow Peter. Really? There was quarreling and jealousy. 

Paul noted that he fed them milk when he was with this church body. They couldn’t handle more. Now, he chastises them and adds, "It appears you are still on the milk."

How many people are we talking about here? The best guesses are between 40 and 150 people. That sounds like us.

It was as if Paul was scratching his head, staring at the foundation in the sand by the old farmhouse that I knew over half a century ago. There was so much potential, but human nature kicked in.

What foundation had Paul laid? What foundation are we discussing?

Christ.

Christ alone.

Nothing other than Christ.

God included everyone in salvation. Christ died for all, but the path to receiving salvation narrows. It is by Christ alone.

This whole one true God thing was new to the Gentiles. If they wanted a god, they just made one or one-click ordered one on Amazon. They mighty save five to fifteen percent if they subscribe.

This whole Son of God thing was a stumbling block to the Jews. Remember, the Synagogue didn’t want anything to do with Paul. Christ complicated their lives.

Christ revealed the magnitude of God’s love for all. For all!

Christ surpassed the Law—the law that had governed for so long.

Christ Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe.

He is the Good Shepherd.

He is full of mercy and grace, just like his Dad.

We know this, but have we done any better than Corinth? Comparing details is hard. Who joined? Who died? Who professed their faith?

OK, so why make the comparison?  To ask this question to our believers in 2025.

Has anyone built on this foundation?  What have we done with the good news of life in Jesus Christ?

The church in Corinth liked Bon Jovi. Whoa, I’m halfway there. Whoa, living on a prayer.

Paul was thinking we should be farther along by now.

In 2025, we will produce annual reports to make something tangible for our church bodies and help us understand what’s happening. Maybe it helps. Maybe it’s just a placebo.

Numbers are easy, sort of. But are we on milk or meat? Are we growing in grace? Are we hungry for the things of God?

Are we who believe still encumbered by the things of this world? I’m not talking about paying the mortgage or making sure the kids do their homework and update your phone before they go to bed.

Are we weighted down, laden, burdened by hate, anger, bitterness, self-righteousness, lust, greed, jealousy, coveting, excess comfort, and others I have not named?

The Jews and the Gentiles were alike in one way. They loved their comfort zones. The law for the Jews and false gods, idolatry, and so many unspiritual things for the Gentiles.

They knew these things. They were comfortable with these things. This whole Christ business disrupted comfort zones among Jews and Gentiles alike.

So I ask, what comfort zones we tolerate that Christ would abhor? What comfort zones do we have that would make us like the church in Laodicea?  What would make Christ want to vomit us out?

What are we holding on to that we should let go of or cast off?

Procrastinating. Plenty of high-priority things deserve high-priority effort in the here and now. 

Any procrastinators?

Fatalism. The whole, for what it’s worth, it just doesn’t matter, or it ain’t nothing but a thing sort of thinking is what we are talking about.

Any negative thinkers here?

There’s probably a level down from the fatalists. It’s the worrier. It’s always presuming the worst-case scenario. Let’s not sugarcoat it. It’s fear or fear-based

Are there any comfort lovers? Growth lies outside our comfort zones.  Our comfort zones should be labeled “Growing.” We are growing.

Here is a comfort zone example: When we don’t agree on something, we say, “Let’s just agree to disagree.”

Agree to disagree sounds good if we are talking politics. I would love a sabbatical from talking heads talking politics.

But what if we are discussing scripture, putting those words into practice, and disagreeing? What should we do? We are believers. We don’t want to offend others. So, we:

Agree to disagree

What if we took the iron sharpens iron approach and dug down, drilled down, or just started searching for answers? What if, instead of fearing disagreement or argument, our differences motivated us to search for the answers, the truth?

Then, we are not defending our positions against each other. We are exploring God’s word together.

Why can’t we take this approach to politics as well? Too many people don’t want to spend time searching God’s word for answers.

The truth is if we are searching God’s word, we have our political answers as well.

Let’s take our disagreements as opportunities to dig deeper into God’s word. When you hear something in the message that you don’t agree with or disagree with, don’t you already search the scriptures?

I got this far in the year without any Marine Corps analogies.  That’s too long. Marines as well as soldiers are often taught in their boot camps never to answer a question with, “I don’t know.”

But what if they don’t know?  The answer is, “I do not know, but I will find out.” The recruit now has a mission.

Being a Berean is the cure for this part of the comfort zone. Search the scriptures! Still not of one accord, don’t retreat keep searching.

The theme here is what we are holding onto that we should discard.

Let’s get blame in there. We are so quick to blame. Surely, some situations require community awareness and action, but does everything that happens immediately feed the blame mill?

I remember driving my mother to appointments, reunions, and other things that took us a few hours away.  That meant that somewhere along the way the traffic would be backed up.

We would creep along for a while, and then she would point out a vehicle a quarter mile ahead of us and say, "That’s the guy holding up traffic."

“You see him?”

“Yeah, the white truck. I see him, and he is doing a fine job. He is also holding up traffic for at least a mile in front of him.”

My mother would break out her index finger and shake it at me when I would point that stuff out.  

I think blame helps us construct our own understanding. The remedy for giving so much effort to our own understanding is trusting God.

You might realize that these letters by Paul are letters not lesson plans. There is more in this chapter. We caught some of it at the early service, but for now, here is your charge, your challenge for this week.  Ask yourself:

Am I subsisting on spiritual milk or meat?

Am I learning from my Master?

Am I growing in this incredible grace that I know?

Am I building upon this foundation, which is Christ alone?

Am I known as the Lord’s disciple by my love?

What happens if I genuinely profess Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised him from the dead? You will be saved.

But what if I don’t do anything else? You will be saved, but you will be as one escaping a burning building.

What does that mean? Your salvation was always assured in the blood of Jesus, but you have little to show for the sum of your life experience.

You are saved from sin and death but missing the abundant part of abundant life.

You escaped the flames of hell with only the singed clothes on your back and missed so much life.

Two questions from this chapter to consider.

Are we consuming spiritual milk or meat?

What have we built upon the foundation which is Christ?

What are we eating? What are we making?

Amen.