1 Corinthians 4:1
This, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed.
Paul believed that God had given him a message that needed to be proclaimed. Paul did not event this message but only recounted what he had received from God and had been confirmed in the early church (1 Cor 15:3-5; Gal 1:11ff). He was a steward of the divine mysteries. At the heart of this mystery is Jesus Christ. What is a steward? A steward does not assume personal authority but has the authority of the master. We should be careful anytime a minister or lay person speaks with his or her own authority or acts in his or her own authority. The person is not being a servant of Christ or steward of God’s message. A steward also does not invent the message. Stewards speak only what they have been commissioned to speak. In every day terms, this means that we must read and interpret the Bible very carefully. The Bible is our primary source for the divine mysteries. Sloppy interpretive method will lead to sloppy and inaccurate proclamation. Steward is given a level of trust by the master. We are God’s hands, feet, and mouth in this world. God has given all believers the task of sharing this message and living it out everyday. This verse challenges me to re-examine how well I am a channel of God’s grace in Christ.
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