You Are Rich

1 Corinthians 4:8–9: You are already full! You are already rich! You have reigned as kings without us—and indeed I could wish you did reign, that we also might reign with you! For I think that God has displayed us, the apostles, last, as men condemned to death; for we have been made a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men.

Paul used a bit of sanctified sarcasm in 1 Corinthians 4:8 when he described the Corinthians as kings. “I wish I could reign with you and be important!” he wrote. “But instead, I must go into the arena and suffer for the Lord Jesus Christ. You are first in men’s eyes, but we apostles are last.” In the eyes of God, the apostles were first (1 Cor. 12:28), but in the eyes of men they were last. There is no place for pride in the ministry. If a truly great leader like Paul considered himself “on exhibition last in the program,” where does this leave the rest of us? Church members are wrong when they measure ministers other than by the standards God has given. They are also wrong when they boast about their favorite preachers. This is not to say that faithful servants cannot be recognized and honored, but in all things, God must be glorified. ¹

Application

• Read 1 Thes. 5:12–13. What does it mean to esteem someone in love?
• Two things to pray often for your pastor:
  1. His prayer life
  2. His study of the Word

Thought to Share

To have Him is to have everything. – TWEET IT

Prayer

Lord, help me to love more, pray more, and study more.