Teacher Accountability – 1 Corinthians 3:10-23

I recently made friends with a pastor and denominational leader in the Grace Communion International church.  It used to be the Worldwide Church of God under the leadership of Herbert W. Armstrong, teaching a number of heretical views of Christianity yet calling themselves a Christian church.  But as my friend testified, some of the leaders of the church came to the realization that their gospel wasn’t the New Testament gospel and they made a course correction.  Amazing!  They went from “destroying” God’s temple to laying the proper foundation.

According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.

Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.  (1 Corinthians 3:10-23 ESV)

Paul likens his teaching ministry to a master builder laying the foundation of the church, God’s temple, as the evangelist.  Others, like Apollos, have worked on the superstructure.  If a teacher builds well, it is like using gold, silver and precious stones on top of the foundation. If not, it is like using wood, hay and straw.  When the judgment day comes with fire to test each teacher’s work some will find their work burned up.  They don’t lose their salvation, because they haven’t contradicted the gospel, but they lose their reward.  If, however, someone teaches something other than the correct gospel, attacking the foundation of the church itself, God will destroy them for destroying His holy temple.  

So the Corinthians, either way, must stop this excitement over worldly wisdom and become fools in the world’s eyes if they are going to be on God’s side.  When they do they will realize that God has given them teachers like Paul, Apollos, Cephas, and all good teachers to benefit them and demonstrate that they belong to Christ and the Father.  They don’t need to divide over various teachers.

We may suppose, though Paul doesn’t directly address it here, that every Christian, in one sense, is building on the foundation of Jesus Christ by his or her life and expression of the gospel.  Are you building with perishable materials?  Or are you staying true to the gospel and to Jesus Christ in all you do.  If so, you are building a lasting reward that will be made evident by the fire of judgment.