The Cross’ Message about “Self”

1 Cor. 3:1–4:4

Break Bread

Enjoy the company of each other. Eat together with gratitude. If possible and/or if no food, take communion together. Ask highs and lows of the week.

Worship (Worship through a Psalm)

Transition to a space friendly for deep engagement. Worship through a Psalm

We are going to start a time of worship. For worship instead of singing songs, we are going to use a Psalm (the Israelite’s “Spotify” for worshiping God). This is how we’re going to do it. We are going to pick a Psalm. And each of us will read aloud 2 verses aloud. After it is read, we will spontaneously say a prayer of praise in response to what is read. When we feel led to continue (or after 1-2 min, we will continue onto the next 2 verses until the Psalm is complete.

Suggested Psalms:

  • Psalm 100

  • Psalm 8

  • Psalm 19

  • Psalm 92

  • Psalm 145

Reading

Go in a circle and read the passage taking it a few verses at a time

1 Cor. 3:1–4:4 (*If short on time, summarize the first few chapters in Corinthians so far & then simply read 4:1-4)

Traditional Culture

Up until the 20th c., the dominant view among every prior civilization was that the primary cause of personal and social strife were persons with too high a view of themselves. Having too high a view of oneself was the root of most evil in the world; crimes, wars, the reason for which a person is cruel, why one spouse is abusive or unfaithful to another, and so on. Historically the answer to why people behave in such ways was arrogance and pride––thinking too highly of oneself and therefore entitled to take such actions.

Modern Culture

But in modern culture, and particularly in the U.S., we have the opposite cultural consensus. We believe the root cause of human strife is that we have too low a view of ourselves: Our education system is built around it, much of our legal system is built around it; our rehabilitation programs in prisons are built around it; and emphasis upon the need for high self-esteem is prevalent in modern counseling services.

4:1–4 (Main Idea)

To be clear, Paul is not simply arguing against modern or traditional models of self or identity! That background above is important for recognizing how far off the map of human thought–– how other-worldly––Paul goes in 4:1–4.

  • After reminding the Corinthians that people like himself and Apollos should be regarded only as servants and stewards (vv. 1–2), Paul asserts that “[T]o me it is an insignificant matter that I would be examined by you, or by any human court” (v. 3a).

  • In older translations, the term “examined” is more often translated “judged.”4 To ‘judge’ has a negative valence in modern culture, but the term Paul uses is neutral; hence, more modern translations will render “examine,” but the contextual sense is that of “verdict.”5 However, in English it would be odd to render Paul’s phrase as, “[I]t is an insignificant matter that I be verdicted by you or by any human court,” so, even thought that is the force of Paul’s statement, modern translations prefer “examined.”

Is Paul Pro-Modern Culture?

So far it feels like Paul might be agreeing with our modern self/culture quite well:

  • “Why should I care how you judge me, I don’t care at all what verdict you pass upon me,” which seems, at first, as individualistic as any American could like.

  • However, what Paul says next takes him completely off the map of human history. He adds, “I do not even examine / judge / verdict myself” (v. 3b),

  • WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? It means that Paul is not promoting the modern OR traditional self!

  • He's not promoting individualism or a set of moral norms based upon what he thinks defines him individually. But if the judgments of others do not mean anything to him, and not even the judgment he speaks over himself means anything to him, then Paul is completely off the map of human history in terms of self-regard, self-esteem, and personal identity formation.

SO HOW DO WE WORK OUT OUR WRESTLE BETWEEN TRADITIONAL + MODERN IDENTITIES?

Traditional Culture: Addressing Shame

In traditional cultures the means of “judging” someone who had done wrong was to shame them into submission to the norms and standards of a given society or culture.

  • “If you marry outside the race everyone will look down on you; If you turn away from our family’s religion you’ll be an outcast; If you don’t abide by our family’s wishes for you education and career we’ll disown you.”

  • OUTSIDE- IN. This is because in traditional cultures one’s sense of self-worth comes from the evaluation others make of you: your family, your community, your cultural heritage.

  • In this paradigm of self-worth you must add-up to what others expect of you, your self-esteem is entirely dependent upon how others judge your performance in meeting the expectations of your social or familial role (e.g., as a son, daughter, mother, father, blue-collar worker, or white-collar worker).

  • Paul disowns this completely, he says “It’s not a big deal what you make of me. My identity and sense of self-worth owes nothing to what others think of me” (v. 3a). But Paul does the same with our modern sensibilities immediately afterwards...

Modern Culture: Addressing Identity

In modern culture, our identity and sense of self-worth is supposed to come exclusively from ourselves: “Who cares what other people think, just do what seems right to you; so long as you live authentically by your own judgments and genuinely believe them to be true, then you’ve done right in your own eyes and that’s all that matters.”

  • This is because in modern culture one’s self-esteem and sense of self-worth comes from what you think of yourself. But Paul disowns this notion just as forcefully, “It’s not a big deal what I make of myself, I don’t care at all what verdict I pass upon myself; My identity and sense of self-worth owes nothing to what I think of myself” (v. 3b).

  • Paul is arguing that his self-regard is not tied in any way to what others think of him, nor is his self-regard tied to what he thinks of himself. Paul even takes both lines of reasoning further, “I am not aware of anything against myself; however, I am not vindicated by this” (v. 4a). Paul argues that not even a clean verdict from others, nor even a clear conscience known only to him is sufficient to vindicate him.

  • So, in no sense, not even when others think he’s good nor even when his own conscience confirms the same, in absolutely no sense is his self- worth trusted to either of these ways of identity and self-worth. Instead, “[T]he One who examines / judges / verdicts me is the Lord.”

  • Paul’s self-worth and personal identity is entirely dependent upon Jesus, that One who already gave him the only verdict that matters on the cross.

Do this Practice Tonight

Go around and try to summarize what is going on in the passage.

Discuss any of the Following Questions (or add your own!)

  1. What word or phrase or idea in the passage caught your attention?

  2. How has my  personal identity been formed? (No spiritual answers! What is actually your lived experience?)

    • What do I live for? (The main thing. What defines you? What you aspire towards?)

    • Am I reaching it? (What am I worth? An assessment if I am reaching what I aspire)

    • Who's giving the verdict?  (Who gets to say? Who gets to evaluate you)

  3. How has both traditional and modern identity cultures shaped you or influenced the way you see the world?

  4. Begin to ask the Lord to show you how "the Cross" has a different message & story to live out?

  5. What am I going to do about it this week?

Suggestions for Practices for the Week

  1. Journal at the start of the day with the prompt: “Where do I find my identity? In what ways of my identity do not have Christ at the center?”

  2. Consider finding Bible passages related to identity in Christ that you need to meditate on.

Leaving Together

Say goodbye
Stand at the door with a blessing and a hug