1 Corinthians 9:7: Who ever goes to war at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Or who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk of the flock?
Everyday experience teaches us that a workman deserves some reward for his labors. If a man is drafted to be a soldier, the government pays his wages and provides a certain amount of supplies for him. The man who plants a vineyard gets to eat the fruit, just as the shepherd or herdsman has the right to use the milk from the animals.
Perhaps in the “back of his mind,” Paul was comparing the church to an army, a vineyard, and a flock. As an apostle, Paul was in the very front line of the battle. He had already compared the church at Corinth to a cultivated field (1 Cor. 3:6–9), and the Lord Himself had used the image of the vine and branches (John 15) as well as the flock (John 10). The lesson was clear: The Christian worker has the right to expect benefits for his labors. If this is true in the “secular” realm, it is also true in the spiritual realm. 1
Application
- Read Proverb 3:9-10. How do you honor the Lord with your possessions?
- Do others consider you a giver or a taker? Do you think about what you’re “gonna get from a deal” or what you’re willing to give so that everyone is blessed?
Thought to Share
Do you possess your possessions, or do your possessions possess you? – TWEET IT
Prayer
Lord, help me live my life with complete transparency before You.
1. Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
