1 Corinthians 4:5

Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts; and then shall every man have praise of God.

The apostle had shown the relation of himself and the other teachers to the Church of Christ, to the temple of God, namely, that they are servants. But from that it does not follow that the Christians are the masters of their teachers. God is the Householder, the Master, and therefore all those that formed factions in the congregation at Corinth, and thus presumed to judge and censure other teachers than their own adopted chief, were usurping a function which properly belongs to Christ alone. So, in this way, he says, let a man think, account of us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. That is the right, the proper way in which every person, but especially the members of the Christian congregations, should regard the apostles and all ministers of Christ. Thus they should think of them, this reasonable estimate they should have of them at all times. Servants of Christ they are, the word originally denoting rowers in a galley, but later used for domestic servants that enjoyed the trust of their master, that were, in a manner of speaking, assistants: thus the men that work in the doctrine are the trusted servants of Christ. And they are stewards of the mysteries of God. "The steward was the master's deputy in regulating the concerns of the family, providing food for the household, seeing it served out at the proper times and seasons, and in proper quantities. He received all the cash, expended what was necessary for the support of the family, and kept exact accounts, which he was obliged at certain times to lay before the master. " Thus the ministers are the stewards of the mysteries of God; they are in charge of, and are responsible to God for the administration of the means of grace, through which God reveals to men and imparts to them the riches of His grace in Christ Jesus. "What, then, are these mysteries of God? Nothing but Christ Himself, that is, faith and the Gospel of Christ; for everything that is preached in the Gospel is placed at a distance from the senses and reason and hidden before all the world; nor may they be obtained except only through faith, as He Himself says, Matthew 11:25: I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. " This description of the apostle fitly includes all the work of the true minister's office in every respect, beyond which no congregation should go in making demands on the pastor's ability and time. "We have, then, the apostle's statement in these words that a servant of Christ is a steward of the mysteries of God, that is, he should regard himself, and have himself regarded, as preaching and giving nothing else to the members of God's household than only Christ and concerning those that are in Christ; that is, he should preach the pure Gospel, the pure faith, that Christ alone is our Life, Way, Wisdom, Power, Praise, and Salvation, etc., and that our things are nothing but death, error, foolishness, powerlessness, shame, and damnation. Him that preaches otherwise, no man should regard as a servant of Christ and as a steward of divine treasures, but shun him as a messenger of the devil."

From the statement of v. 1 Paul now makes a plain inference: Since this is the case, it remains that the quality sought for in the stewards is that faithful everyone be found. That, to be sure, is a demand, but it is the only demand that can and should be made, that the minister of Christ be faithful in his stewardship. The Lord does not require, as Luther says, that he be so holy as to raise up the dead by his very shadow, or that he be as wise as all the prophets and apostles were. Neither does he ask that he be a spirited orator, a witty conversationalist, a good mixer, nor any of the many other points which nowadays are mentioned as essential qualities of a pastor. Of all these things the Lord says nothing. He wants only that His stewards administer the Word of God, preach the Gospel, bring forth the necessary spiritual food out of the rich treasury of God's mysteries, making use of the proper pastoral wisdom: that is the faithfulness which the Lord seeks in His servants. This includes that a faithful pastor should rebuke the prevalent sins in his congregation and in the world round about it, that he should call the sinners to repentance, that he should deny the hardened sinners the sweet comfort of the Gospel, that he should reject all schemes which will lead to cheap popularity, that he, above all, should not grow weary in following the lost lambs and sheep of the flock of Christ, that he should bear all the members of his congregation in his heart and make remembrance before God for them in his prayers.

And if a pastor is thus faithful, making use of the talents which the Lord has given him in his pastoral work, then he may say with the apostle: But to me it is a small matter that I am judged by you or by any human day of judgment; on the other hand, neither do I try myself, v. 3. Paul was, in a manner of speaking, on trial in Corinth; the members were passing judgment upon his talents, upon his motives, upon his administration. But it does not cause him serious concern that this is the case, that his person and work were being investigated; he thinks lightly of any human judgment, does not even ask his own, does not even try himself. Arraigned before the bar of all these human opinions, Paul calmly states that he estimates all their findings as amounting to very little in comparison with that of his heavenly Master. For, as he goes on to say, he is conscious of no special charge against himself in his work as a minister of Christ; he has done his labor as steward with all the faithfulness of a believing heart. He knows, of course, that by this fact he is not justified before the one highest tribunal; for He that has the final sentence is the Lord, and the apostle cannot hope to stand acquitted until the Lord's examination has come to a close. Experience has taught Paul that he cannot rely upon the verdict of his conscience apart from that of Christ. He knew that in his flesh dwelt no good thing, Romans 7:18, that even the good which he performed could not be performed without the participation of the sinful flesh. Therefore he relies upon the grace and mercy of his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He knows that the same Lord that has charge of the final examination is the Lord that justifies sinners, even with regard to their secret faults. "Since Paul accepted justification by faith in Christ, not his innocence, but his Savior's merit has become his fixed ground of assurance."

And so he adds a word of gentle, but emphatic warning: So, then, do not indulge in judging before the time, do not be premature in passing sentence in my case or in that of any other minister. All judgments should rather be held in abeyance until the Lord comes. When the Lord shall appear for the great final trial, then we can and must agree with His findings. For He will bring to light the hidden things of darkness and will reveal the counsels of the hearts. Before the eyes of man most of the things that are found in the innermost recesses of the heart are absolutely unknown and therefore cannot be adduced in a trial. But before the all-seeing eye of God all things are open; He will disclose the secrets hidden in darkness, especially the motives that actuated men in the performance of their duties. He will make manifest the counsels of the hearts; the innermost motives and desires crystallize in the thoughts of the heart, in projects of various kinds, whether for good or for evil. Then it will be known definitely whether it was faithfulness and obedience to the Word of God which actuated the servants of Christ; then the full measure of their love for Christ and for the immortal souls entrusted to their care will be shown. All human investigations and trials, all premature judging and condemning, will then be brought to shame, as Luther says, "just as though I should intend to weigh eggs on a scale, and would weigh them according to their shells alone, leaving the yolks and the whites outside. " And then, in the just judgment of God, praise will come upon everyone from God. In the same measure as the Lord finds faithfulness flowing from the love of Christ and the believers, in that measure will He openly bestow praise upon every one of His ministers and stewards, not from vague opinions and estimates, but from the clearness of omniscient knowledge. Christ's commendation, judging on God's behalf, alone is of value, a reward that might well be coveted by every pastor. "Praise the Corinthian partisans lavished on their admired leaders: this is God's prerogative, let them check their impertinent eulogies."