In verses 21 and 22 Paul says, “All things are yours, whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours.” All things, including the world and even death, are ours and work good for us (Rom. 8:28). The Corinthian believers said they were of Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas (1:12), but Paul says he, Apollos, and Cephas are of them; all are theirs. They are the church, and all these things are for the church. Furthermore, the church is for Christ, and Christ is for God.
According to these verses, not only the spiritual giants are for us, but all things, including negative things such as the world and death, are for us. This means that even the world and death can work good for us. Have you ever realized that the negative condition of the church in your locality is yours and that it works good for you? Some saints may say, “The situation of my local church is not good. I am thinking of moving to a place where the condition of the church is better.” However, those who are dissatisfied with a certain local church and move to another place do not experience the growth in life as a result. We all must see that the condition of the church in our locality, like death, is ours, and is for us. Truly all things are for us.
As you read 1 Corinthians 3, you may wonder why Paul concludes the chapter in this way. After speaking of wisdom and the exalting of spiritual giants, he concludes by saying that all things are ours, that we are Christ’s, and that Christ is God’s. Here Paul seems to be saying, “You Corinthian believers exercise your Greek culture, wisdom, and philosophy. According to your wisdom, you have preferences and choices. You have preferences in persons, doctrines, and practices. These preferences are all related to your wisdom, to your philosophical way of thinking. But I want you to know that all things, whether good or evil, and all persons are used by God to perfect you. Even the world and death are means used by God to work good for you. All things are your servants for your perfection.”
I would like to speak a comforting and encouraging word to all the saints in the Lord’s recovery. Do not feel that the church in your locality is not the right place for you. Even if the condition of your church is poor, God still uses that church to perfect you. He uses a church which does not satisfy you to work good for you. This means that you need this kind of church. When I was in China, many saints regarded the church in Shanghai as excellent and wanted to move to that city. But those who went there were disappointed. Many who had never been to Shanghai thought that the church there was wonderful. But some of those in the church in Shanghai were unhappy with the church there. This illustrates the fact that we should not move to another locality in order to be in a place which we imagine is better than the church in our locality. No matter where you may be, the church is yours, and God uses that church to perfect you. God used the church in Shanghai to perfect the saints in Shanghai. Those in that locality needed that church. However, those who lived elsewhere needed the church in their own locality.
God uses everything to perfect us. Hence, all things are for us, we are for Christ, and Christ is for God. God uses everything to perfect us so that we may be the living Body of Christ. Therefore, we are the Body for Christ, and Christ is the expression of God. Thus, Christ is for God. God is expressed through Christ, Christ is expressed through us, and we are perfected through all things. If we see this, we shall not complain or have any preference, choice, or selection. Furthermore, we shall be content to receive all that God ordains for us. If God ordains a difficult church life for you, you should accept it and praise Him for it. God may ordain a difficult husband or wife. He may even ordain death. But even a difficult spouse or death itself is for us and is used to perfect us. Therefore, we need to receive what God has ordained and acknowledge that it is being used by Him to perfect us.
As an elderly person, I have passed through a great many things in my lifetime. I can truly testify that all things are mine and that God uses them all to perfect me. Because God uses all things, I find it very difficult to say who would make the best wife for a certain brother or the best husband for a certain sister. Likewise, I do not know who would be the best co-worker. The Lord has brought me to the point where I do not consider which co-workers are good and which are not so profitable, for I realize that they all work good for me. Even those whom I may regard as the worst may be used to perfect me the most. How blessed we are to be perfected by all things! Oh, how good it is to see that all things are for us!
Since all things are ours and work for us, we should not be so foolish as to have personal preferences and choices. We are for Christ, and Christ is for God. God is manifested through Christ, Christ is expressed through us, and we are perfected by all things. Every thing, every person, and every situation is ours. God is sovereign, and He is using everything and everyone to perfect those who love Him. As long as you love the Lord, you may have the assurance that He is using everything to perfect you. Therefore, all things are ours for the church, the church is for Christ to be His Body, and Christ is for God to be His expression. This is Paul’s concluding word in 1 Corinthians 3.
In the light of this word, we should not exalt anyone, and we should not have any preferences or choices concerning persons, matters, or things. Rather, we should see that all things, bad as well as good, are for us to perfect us so that we may become the Body of Christ, who is the expression of God. This is the proper understanding of Paul’s word that all things are ours, that we are Christ’s, and that Christ is God’s.