1 Corinthians 3:1-11 So, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but instead as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready. In fact, you are still not ready, for you are still influenced by the flesh. For since there is still jealousy and dissension among you, are you not influenced by the flesh and behaving like unregenerate people? For whenever someone says, “I am with Paul,” or “I am with Apollos,” are you not merely human?
What is Apollos, really? Or what is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, and each of us in the ministry the Lord gave us. I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused it to grow. So neither the one who plants counts for anything, nor the one who waters, but God who causes the growth. The one who plants and the one who waters work as one, but each will receive his reward according to his work. We are coworkers belonging to God. You are God’s field, God’s building. According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master-builder I laid a foundation, but someone else builds on it. And each one must be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than what is being laid, which is Jesus Christ.
Jesus taught us the importance of working together when he said.
"Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand." Matt 12:25.
In today’s scripture Paul is trying to get the Corinthians to become a team that works effectively for building the kingdom of God. They were gifted people but they just hadn’t learned how to best use their gifts and abilities for the good of all. Some would say, “I follow Apollos’ teaching” and others would say, “I follow Paul.” This lead to a lot of bickering among them. Some were inclined to think they were more important than others and that their work was more important while they devalued the work of others. Paul said, “you are acting like worldly people, not as spiritual Christians.” We need to understand that teamwork is important if we are going to accomplish God’s purposes.
Two things to help with God’s work….
1. You have to show up.
A farmer noticed a highway department truck pulling over on to the shoulder of the road. A man got out and dug a hole, then got back into the truck. Then the other occupant got out, filled up the hole and got back in the truck. Every fifty yards this amazing process was repeated. ’What are you doing?’ the farmer asked. The driver replied, ’We’re on a highway beautification project, and the guy who plants the trees is home sick today.’
2. You have to do your part.
It is not that we are without a desire to see God’s work done, it’s just that we hope that someone else will do it.
That’s Not My Job This is a story of 4 people:
Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody.
There was an important job to be done and Everybody was asked to do it.
Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it.
Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did.
Somebody got angry because it was Everybody’s job.
Everybody knew that Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Somebody wouldn’t do it.
And Everybody blamed Somebody because Nobody did what Anybody could have done.
Great TEAMWORK makes things happen more than anything else in organizations – more than skill, qualifications or money! Whether it’s your Family, Church, Ministry, Business, Personal life
Throughout the Bible we read stories about people working together as teams to achieve a mission.
In the Beginning God said ‘it is not good that man should be alone’, Noah & his family, Nehemiah built wall in 52 days with a team, Moses had a team of leaders around him, Jesus & 12 Disciples, Paul & Silas, Barnabas & Mark, Gideon’s 300 etc…
AIR CONDITIONED BEE HIVE
Recently I discovered some FACINATING FACTS about Honey Bees:
On a warm day about half the bees in a hive stay inside beating their wings while the other half go out to gather pollen and nectar. Because of the beating wings, the temperature inside the hive is about 10 degrees cooler than outside. The bees rotate duties and the bees that cool the hive one day are honey gatherers the next.
3 PRACTICAL STEPS FOR EFFECTIVE TEAMWORK
1.) The team members must Care For One Another.
Uncaring people on a team remind me of two guys in a sinking boat, sitting together at one end doing nothing. As the people at the other end are bailing furiously, one says, ’Thank God that hole isn’t in our end of the boat.’ Without Sacrifice there can be no Success! Sometimes we are called to sacrifice: time, effort, comfort, own desires for the sake of the team. We need to adapt the Musketeer motto ‘All for One & One for All!’
2) The team members must Communicate.
In Hurricane Katrina, hundreds died while those who could have rescued them stood by. Why? Communication broke down.
3) ’Your rights’ must take second place.
The team’s success must always be of greater value than your own individual interests. Your ’I’ll do it myself, that way I know it’ll get done right’ attitude, robs others of the opportunity to participate, learn and grow, and leaves the job undone or poorly done.
Ephesians 4:11-16 It was he who gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, that is, to build up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God – a mature person, attaining to the measure of Christ’s full stature. So we are no longer to be children, tossed back and forth by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching by the trickery of people who craftily carry out their deceitful schemes. But practicing the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ, who is the head. From him the whole body grows, fitted and held together through every supporting ligament. As each one does its part, the body grows in love.
A man who couldn’t swim went fishing with his friend and after awhile caught a really big fish. He was so excited about catching such a big fish that he leaned too far over and fell into the water.
“Help! Save Me! Help! Save Me!”
His friend reached out and was going to grab him by the hair and get him into the boat. But the man’s toupee came off and he slipped back into the water. He came up again and yelled, “Help! Save me!” This time his friend grabbed him by the arm. As he pulled on his arm, it came off because it was an artificial limb. The man continued to kick and thrash around. The friend reached out and managed to grab a leg and as he pulled on it, it came off. It was a wooden leg. As the man continued to splash, calling out for help his friend disgustedly said, “How can I help you if you won’t stick together?”
Sometimes God has a difficult time helping us with teamwork because we have a hard time “sticking together” as a team.
" Teamwork is the FUEL that allows Common People To Produce Uncommon Results!"
HORSE POWER!
In a horse-pulling contest at a county I fair the first-place horse moved a sled weighing 4,500 pounds. The runner-up pulled 4,000 pounds. The owners of the two horses wondered how much the animals could pull if they worked together. So they hitched them up and loaded the sled. To everyone’s surprise, the horses were able to pull 12,000 pounds that’s 3,500 pounds more than if they had gone solo!!
Here we observe SYNERGY taking place – where combining forces produces better RESULTS than individual effort. Teamwork Greater Outcome than going solo. In other words 1 + 1 = 3!
Have you ever wondered why geese fly in a very organized V Formation? Winging their way to a warmer climate, they often cover thousands of miles before reaching their destination. We can discover a lot about teamwork by studying geese – their flight patterns & in-flight habits.
SOME KEYS THINGS WE LEARN FROM GEESE
A. Those in front rotate their leadership. When one lead goose gets tired, it changes places with one in the wing of the V-formation and another flies point.
B. By flying as they do, the members of the flock create an upward air current for one another. Each flap of the wings literally creates an uplift for the bird immediately following. One author states that by flying in a V-formation, the whole flock gets 71 percent greater flying range than if each goose flew on its own.
C. When one goose gets sick or wounded, two fall out of formation with it and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with the struggler until it’s able to fly again.
D. The geese in the rear of the formation are the ones who do the honking. I suppose it’s their way of announcing that they’re following and that all is well. For sure, the repeated honks encourage those in front to stay at it. As I think about all this, one lesson stands out above all others: it is the natural instinct of geese to work together. Whether it’s Rotating, Flapping, Helping, or simply Honking, the flock is in it together...which enables them to accomplish what they set out to do.
T.E.A.M = Together Everyone Achieves More!
Everyone have a wonderful weekend!!!
“Help! Save Me! Help! Save Me!”
His friend reached out and was going to grab him by the hair and get him into the boat. But the man’s toupee came off and he slipped back into the water. He came up again and yelled, “Help! Save me!” This time his friend grabbed him by the arm. As he pulled on his arm, it came off because it was an artificial limb. The man continued to kick and thrash around. The friend reached out and managed to grab a leg and as he pulled on it, it came off. It was a wooden leg. As the man continued to splash, calling out for help his friend disgustedly said, “How can I help you if you won’t stick together?”
Sometimes God has a difficult time helping us with teamwork because we have a hard time “sticking together” as a team.
" Teamwork is the FUEL that allows Common People To Produce Uncommon Results!"
HORSE POWER!
In a horse-pulling contest at a county I fair the first-place horse moved a sled weighing 4,500 pounds. The runner-up pulled 4,000 pounds. The owners of the two horses wondered how much the animals could pull if they worked together. So they hitched them up and loaded the sled. To everyone’s surprise, the horses were able to pull 12,000 pounds that’s 3,500 pounds more than if they had gone solo!!
Here we observe SYNERGY taking place – where combining forces produces better RESULTS than individual effort. Teamwork Greater Outcome than going solo. In other words 1 + 1 = 3!
Have you ever wondered why geese fly in a very organized V Formation? Winging their way to a warmer climate, they often cover thousands of miles before reaching their destination. We can discover a lot about teamwork by studying geese – their flight patterns & in-flight habits.
SOME KEYS THINGS WE LEARN FROM GEESE
A. Those in front rotate their leadership. When one lead goose gets tired, it changes places with one in the wing of the V-formation and another flies point.
B. By flying as they do, the members of the flock create an upward air current for one another. Each flap of the wings literally creates an uplift for the bird immediately following. One author states that by flying in a V-formation, the whole flock gets 71 percent greater flying range than if each goose flew on its own.
C. When one goose gets sick or wounded, two fall out of formation with it and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with the struggler until it’s able to fly again.
D. The geese in the rear of the formation are the ones who do the honking. I suppose it’s their way of announcing that they’re following and that all is well. For sure, the repeated honks encourage those in front to stay at it. As I think about all this, one lesson stands out above all others: it is the natural instinct of geese to work together. Whether it’s Rotating, Flapping, Helping, or simply Honking, the flock is in it together...which enables them to accomplish what they set out to do.
T.E.A.M = Together Everyone Achieves More!
May God Bless You and Yours
Gene
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