“For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.”

The church and God conjointly employ God’s service, so there is no cause for divisions within the church.

For we are God’s fellow workers;

Paul uses the possessive “God’s” three times, making the term “God” emphatic. Those who serve God belong to God as His fellow ministers. Here we are God’s “fellow workers.” The point is not that we are workers for God but workers who belong to God.

you are God’s field,

The sphere of labor is God’s “field.” The sphere of our labor is where God wants us to labor. The word “field” carries the idea of a cultivated field. We work on God’s farm, not ours. God provides the sun and rain and the photosynthesis.

you are God’s building.

The church is “God’s building.” A building needs both a foundation and a superstructure. Paul laid the foundation, and Apollos erected the superstructure under God.

PRINCIPLE:

The entire result of God’s work is completely His.

APPLICATION:

All spiritual production is based on a partnership with God. God is the Senior Partner in ministry; we are junior partners. The perspective that our sphere of ministry is God’s work through the church is the cure for schism and division. God’s perspective on the church will help the church to forgive and live together in the community.