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REFLECTIONS

Laying foundations is the theme for our reflection. A foundation is the lowest load-bearing part of a building, typically below ground level. In matters of faith and Christian spirituality, Jesus is the foundation of the Church. Paul addressed the issue of division in Chapter 3 of his letter to the Church of Corinth. Church politics and leadership preference had surfaced in the Church such that some of the Christians in the Church of Corinth owe their allegiance to Paul and Apollos respectively. Paul laid the foundation by preaching towards their salvation and the beginning of the Church but Apollos also played the instrumental role of providing additional teaching and spiritual guidance towards the growth of the Church. Paul admonished that “For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human? What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labour. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building. (1 Corinthians 3:4-9) In other words, pastors, evangelists, church agents or teachers are mere servants of God called into the field or ministry of the Lord by God’s enablement and grace. Their only duty is to contribute towards the physical and spiritual development or growth of the church.

It is important to understand that no human being can become the foundation upon which a church is built, God only uses us as instruments to lay the foundation (Jesus Christ) in the hearts of people who desire salvation and to have a personal relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ. It is for this reason, Paul said that “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:11) Without Jesus Christ as the foundation there will be no church. We are called as believers to build our faith and spiritual lives on Christ the foundation through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Without the grace and empowerment of the Holy Spirit, we will only be building carnally or what Paul described as “being merely human”. We must resist the temptation of making human leaders who are gifted by the Holy Spirit as the foundation of our faith and Spiritual lives. They are mere mortals with human frailties gifted by grace. Some churches are currently facing division and some have collapsed or divided because of congregants’ allegiance to some leaders of their choice. Unfortunately, some of these leaders are so carnally minded, attention seeking and power-driven that they have ignorantly accepted taking the place of Christ in the lives of their wayward congregants as the foundation of their faith and spirituality. Some Christians mention their pastor’s name more than Jesus’ name, and some Christians give glory to their spiritual leaders more than Jesus Christ the foundation of the Church. Dear friends, let us not fall into the temptation of putting our faith and trust in mere mortals thereby causing division in the church of Christ but let us rather put our faith in Jesus Christ, the foundation of the Church through whom we are empowered by the Holy Spirit. Paul again reminds us “So let no one boast in men” (1 Corinthians 3:21), we are further charged by the Psalmist that “Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save. When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD their God. He is the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them— he remains faithful forever.” (Psalms 146:3-6) Shalom.

PRAYER

Almighty God, may we be guided by the Holy Spirit to build the Church on Christ the foundation. Strengthen us to overcome power struggles and politics in your church and enable Christian leaders to learn to decrease that you may increase as the head and foundation of the Church. Amen.