1 Corinthians 4:17 - Meaning and Application

Here, first, he tells them that he has sent Timothy to them, so they will remember his ways in Christ, just as he taught everywhere in every church (1 Corinthians 4:17). Timothy was to remind them of Paul’s preaching and his way of life, what he taught, and how he lived among them. Even good teaching is easy to forget, so people need their memories refreshed. A truth taught again may not bring new light, but it can leave a deeper and quicker impression.

He also reminds them that his teaching was the same everywhere, in every church. He did not give one doctrine to one group and a different one to another. He stayed close to what the Lord had given him. “What I received from the Lord, I passed on to you” (1 Corinthians 11:23). The gospel is a single message for all people, and it does not change from place to place. So he taught the same things in every church and lived the same way in every place and at every time. The truth of Christ is one and unchanging. What one apostle taught, all the apostles taught. What one apostle taught in one place, he taught in every place. Christians may misunderstand things and disagree, but Christ and Christian truth are the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8).

To make them respect Timothy more, Paul gives them his character. Timothy was his beloved son, a spiritual child of his, not just theirs. Spiritual family should create love just as natural family does. Children of one Father should have one heart. Paul also says that Timothy is faithful in the Lord, trustworthy as one who fears God. He will be faithful in the task the Lord has given him, and in the message he brings, not just from Paul but from Christ. Timothy knows what Paul has taught and how Paul has lived in every place, and they could trust his report. It is a great praise for any minister to be faithful in the Lord, faithful to his own soul, to the light he has received, and to the trust God has given him.

Second, Paul rebukes the pride of those who thought he would not come to them, by telling them plainly that he does intend to come, though he has already sent Timothy. “I will come to you soon,” he says, “if the Lord wills” (1 Corinthians 4:19). This shows that, in ordinary matters of life, even apostles did not know more than other people, nor were they always speaking from direct revelation. If Paul had certainly known God’s will here, he would not have spoken this way. But he gives us a good example. All our plans should be made with dependence on Providence, meaning God’s wise rule over events, and with room for his overruling will. “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that” (James 4:15).

Third, he tells them what will happen when he comes: “I will find out, not the talk of those who are puffed up, but their power” (1 Corinthians 4:19). He would put the chief boastful men among them to the test. He would not judge them by fine words or clever ideas, but by the real authority and power behind their teaching. He would see whether they could confirm it by miraculous acts, and whether it was joined with God’s power that truly changed people. “For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power” (1 Corinthians 4:20). God’s kingdom is not set up, spread, or held up in people’s hearts by smooth arguments or polished speech, but by the Holy Spirit’s outward power in the early miracles, and by the strong working of God’s truth in the mind and life. A good general rule for judging a preacher’s doctrine is to see what effect it has on people’s hearts. What comes from God will, in its own nature, fit with God’s work, and in the end will make people more like God, more godly, and more upright.

Fourth, he leaves it to them to decide how he should come to them, whether with a rod or in love and a spirit of gentleness (1 Corinthians 4:21). In other words, they would find him according to how they behaved. If they stayed stubborn in their faults, then he would need to come with a rod. That is, he would have to use the authority given to him as an apostle, by bringing discipline, making examples, and perhaps even sending diseases or bodily punishments, or other penalties for their sin. Stubborn offenders must sometimes be dealt with firmly. In families and Christian communities, love and compassion may sometimes require the use of the rod. Still, that is far from the best outcome, and it should be avoided if possible.

So Paul adds that it was up to them whether he would come with a rod or with a very different spirit. He says, in effect, “Stop your unchristian quarrels, fix the wrongs among you, and return to your duty, and you will find me gentle and kind. Severity would go against my own desire. I would rather come among you as a loving father than have to use authority. Do your duty, and you will have no reason to fear my coming.” It is a happy thing when a minister has love and gentleness leading the way, while still keeping proper authority.