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"Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as
the Lord gave to every man?" (I Cor. 3: 5).
These concluding words "even as the Lord gave to every man" become the starting
point of a disquisition upon the difference between salvation and service, gift and reward,
that will throw a deal of light upon the subject before us. Paul speaking of his own
ministry likens it to "planting", and the ministry of Apollos he likens to "watering", but
before he says another word as to the relative value of "planting" and "watering" he
reminds us all that apart from the living "increase" or growth which can come alone from
the Creator Himself, all such labour would be meaningless and vain. From that angle
Paul can say:
"So then neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth: but God that
giveth the increase."
This at first reading seems drastic and unsympathetic--but the Apostle had an obvious
lesson to teach before he could safely speak of the individual share of each believer in the
mighty scheme. When however the fact that growth or increase alone comes from God is
acknowledged, the relative value of individual service is recognized.
"Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his
own reward according to his own labour."
Here, however divine the labour, or relatively more important one phase may appear
than another, each one will be assessed by an impartial judgment. A matter that will need
the most careful consideration is the scope of the words "every man" here. The same
necessity for care will be present when we examine II Cor. 5: 10 where at the Bema we
learn "every one" will receive the things done in his body. There are two words
translated "every", "every man" and "every one" in the N.T. that need to be used with
discrimination.
Pas. This word is translated "every man" in I Cor. 9: 25 where it means every man
without distinction, the same applies to the translation "every one" in I Cor. 16: 16.
Pas is, of course, the word usually translated "all", as in I Cor. 1: 2 "all that in
every place call". The word employed by the Apostle however in I Cor. 3: 5 and
II Cor. 5: 10 is the Greek ekastos. Etymologists differ in their opinion as to the root
of this word, but all are agreed that it means "each one separately or distinctly". In
I Cor. 3: 5, 8, 10 and 13, we are not dealing with "all . . . . . everywhere" but with
individuals, "each one".
The words "Even as the Lord gave to every man" are preceded and explained by the
words "ministers by whom ye believed". "Each one" of such ministers shall receive "his
own reward according to his own labour". When the Apostle said "let every man take
heed how be buildeth" he of necessity limited "every man" to those who were "builders".
So the double reference to "every man" in verse 13, does not refer to every one of the
redeemed as such, but to every one who has work that can be tried so as by fire. This by
no means limits this passage to so-called "ministers"; all believers have a work to do. It