DRAFT ONLY

Introduction
      Paul, in this passage, continues to address the false view of church and ministry held by the Corinthian Christians, 3:5-17. In 3:5-9 he makes the point that church leaders are merely servants of Christ, now in v10-15 he states that believers must strive to build the church with care, and then in v16-17 warns those who would harm God's temple (the church) in Corinth.

The passage
      v10-15. A true Biblical ministry centers on Christ for the upbuilding of the children of God that they might stand firm in trouble and not fall away in the time of testing. Great is the reward of a faithful minister of the Word, but great is the loss of a minister whose ministry leaves the people of God vulnerable to the pressures and temptations of the world. He doesn't necessarily loose his salvation, but he obviously can't be entrusted with great responsibilities in eternity.
      v16. You have placed yourselves in a position of extreme danger - terrible ruin, eternal loss. This you have done by allowing squabbles to disrupt the church. The temple of God is holy, it is his dwelling place, and you are that temple (the church).
      v17. If someone, by the promotion of party spirit, dissensions and the like, divides the unity of the Christian fellowship, that person must face the terror of God. The consequences are fearful (although undefined) for tampering with the apple of His eye.

Unity in the Church
      Our passage for study exposes the nature of church. It is probably true that we take too lightly our Christian fellowship. We can easily treat church as a Sunday club where we play at commitment but fail to live it. The Corinthians had brought dissension into their little group and in so doing were destroying something very precious. How often do we show little regard for the fellowship of believers in our willy-nilly attendance, our little commitment, our lack of involvement, our cutting words .....? How often do our actions hurt our Christian fellowship? How easy it is to struggle out of bed on a Sunday morning and arrive at church in a less than enthusiastic frame of mind. To only just join in, mumble the prayers, strain through the hymns. How easy it is to treat the meeting of the congregation in a drowsy manner. How easy it is to harbour grudges, to emphasize personalities, to uplift one and down another. We sometimes treat church as though it is a most unimportant activity.
      The Christian fellowship is the very dwelling place of the Spirit of God. It is the living fulfillment of the ancient Jerusalem temple - God's house, the visible display of his glory. It is holy, a set apart entity. To damage the Christian fellowship, to treat it lightly, is a most dangerous activity.
      Our passage for study tells us the following about the church.
          i] We are God's field, God's building, v9. The Church is God's creation and he sustains and maintains it. He tends it and he cares for it because it is his. He loves the church and cherishes it. We can easily understand what that means for we ourselves have our little place, our little space, that we love and cherish. Something we have created and care for. It may be a vegetable patch, a flower garden, a home, a job....... So we can understand what it means to be God's project.
          ii] The foundation is Christ, v11. Paul's ministry was to lay a foundation upon which the church at Corinth could grow. That foundation was Christ, and others who came to build on Paul's ministry were bound to similarly build with Christ, for in the end, Christ is the building. In simple terms, the church, which is the gathered people of God meeting in the Name of Christ, can only be a true church if gathered on the basis of the pure gospel of God's grace in Christ. That church can only grow through a faithful gospel ministry where the knowledge of Christ is made known. (Grow in the sense of grow spiritually, not necessarily grow numerically). So those who minister to the church must do so as ministers of the gospel.
          iii] We are God's Temple, that is, God's Spirit dwells within, v16. The Old Testament depicts God's presence with his people Israel as a shining glory residing in the temple at Jerusalem. That is, he dwelt in the midst of his people. In the New Testament we find that God now dwells in a temple not made with hands. It turns out to be the gathered people of God. As Jesus promised, "when two or three are gathered in my Name there am I in their midst." So when we meet to worship God, the Spirit of Jesus is present with us. His glory resides with us when we meet. Of course, that meeting is but an image of the heavenly gathering of God's people which is even now gathered about him. The amazing thing is, we are even now part of that heavenly meeting.
          iv] If anyone harms the church, ("the apple of his eye") God will harm them, v17. Jesus himself touched on this idea when he spoke of those who give a drink to "these little ones". When someone touches his family in love, they are honoured before God. When someone hurts his family, they face his anger. We ourselves know the same emotion - "touch one of mine and you touch me." We are reminded of how special we are before God.
          v] We are sacred, v17. The church is the holy, set-apart people of God. We are the new humanity, the new Adam, a people in the image of God. We are even superior to the angels. So, although we may worry when we hear the word "high church" and may not want to take that title to ourselves, we should, none-the-less, have a high view of church and not a low one.