Fellow Workers with God

OBJECTIVE

Today's objective is to read 1 Co. 3:5-15 and describe what it means in service for us to be God's fellow workers, what is this work, and how may we be prepared for it.

HOLY SCRIPTURE - 10 Minutes

5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor. 9 For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, you are God's building. 10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire 1 Co. 3:5-15

Memory Verse

"For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, you are God's building"

1 Co. 3:9

CONTENT - 20 Minutes

Being Called a Servant (1 Co. 3:5)

  • The word for minister in 1 Co. 3:5 is "diakonoi," which means servant
  • Calling himself a servant of God, Paul shows that God uses him to bring others to the faith
  • The servant doesn't only preach the Gospel, like an evangelist, but ministers to people
  • Therefore, the servant is a minister, who doesn't only preach, but acts and ministers what is a minister

Different Functions, Same Work (1 Co. 3:6-7)

  • Servants may have different jobs and responsibilities within the service, but each one partakes in God's work, as Paul and Apollos had different roles
  • Therefore, we do not envy someone else's service or think that we are better than someone else, but rather consider God's mercy that He allows us to participate in some way
  • No matter our role in service, it is God who works in us

The Great Blessing of Service is Working with God (1 Co. 3:8-9)

  • The reward of a servant is not distributed by man, whose honor can take away from service, but is distributed by God, who sees our secret efforts and blesses us accordingly
  • God grants us the greatest reward as servants: to be His fellow workers, which means we take part in His plan for salvation and sanctification of mankind

The Foundation is Christ (1 Co. 3:10-11)

  • The foundation of our service is Christ, who lovingly purchased us with His blood, taught us the ways of salvation, and sanctified man in Baptism and the Sacraments
  • As servants, we must have a strong foundation ourselves, meaning that we must read our Bibles, have healthy prayer lives, regularly participate in the sacraments, and strive to live according to the teachings of Scripture and the Church Tradition
  • We must recognize that the foundation of our service is grace in Christ, so that we may never become haughty and offer our own teachings or opinions, or use the service to glorify ourselves

Our Service is Tested in Fire (1 Co. 3:12-15)

  • As Jesus faced opposition and even temptation in His service, we, as God's fellow workers, will also face fiery trials and challenges in service
  • When our foundation is strong as servants, we may depend on the Lord Jesus and the Church to overcome difficult circumstances and temptations
  • When our foundation is worldly or shallow, we will fail in our service, will fall into sin, and will not be able to serve God or anyone else
    • However, a good servant, even when he fails, is chastised, or is corrected, will take this as an opportunity to repent and grow to be more like Christ
    • Therefore we may continue to establish the foundation of gold, silver, and precious stone, that we may be worthy to endure fire

DISCUSSION (Challenge) - 10 Minutes

  • What is God's work? If God has a service or a goal for mankind, what is it?
  • How does it make you feel that you are called God's fellow worker? How important is your service considering that God has called you to work with Him?
  • Why is it important for a servant to have a strong foundation? How may we strengthen our foundation?

APPLICATION - 5 Minutes

  • The work of God is the salvation and sanctification of mankind, meaning that we are saved through the Sacraments, by which we share in His death and resurrection, and that we are set aside to become more and more like God
  • As fellow workers with God, we are given a small piece of this work (dispensation), that through ministry, we may demonstrate God's loved to us, while simultaneously experiencing God's love ourselves
  • The servant who has a strong foundation in Christ will grow as he faces oppositions and challenges, and will feel the presence of God very strongly in his life because it's only through God that we may overcome these fiery trials

PARENTS CORNER/HOMEWORK

  • Have your child participate in some sort of service
  • Talk to the priest or servant of the class and see what kind of service the parish may arrange for the class, such as feeding homeless, visiting sick, or helping around the church
  • Relate these services to Christ's ministry and help your child understand that service is much greater than giving talk or lessons, but is about ministering to others