Having the spirit v. living by the spirit

1 Corinthians 3:1–9 (NIV) — 1 Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? 4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings? 5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.

Paul concluded chapter two talking about people who have the Spirit, who speak by the Spirit, and who have the mind of Christ. He starts chapter three Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. Notice he didn’t say they didn’t have the Spirit, just that they didn’t live by the Spirit. What is the difference between having and living by the Spirit? What example does Paul give to show that they were not living by the Spirit? Thinking about his example, what might living by the Spirit look like?

Have there been times when you have not lived by the Spirit? What did you do, or not do? When we find ourselves not living by the Spirit how do we get back to living by the Spirit?

Paul talks about assigned tasks (v. 5b-9). What was Paul’s assigned task? What was Apollos’ assigned task? Do you think every leader has assigned tasks? Do you think every Christian has assigned tasks?

What do you think your assigned task might be? If you don’t know, how might you find out? How well are you doing in your assigned task?

Verse 7 is a key verse. Each does his or her assigned task, but who is ultimately responsible for the outcome? Who is ultimately responsible for our church? Who is ultimately responsible for your Christian growth? Who is ultimately responsible for missions, for your children’s salvation, for the welfare of this whole world?

What is our responsibility? What is your responsibility?