Bible Truth #396 - 1 Corinthians 3:5

1 Corinthians 3:5

Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?

...as the Lord GAVE to every man - GAVE, the Greek word is didomi. It is used elsewhere in the same context, God sovereignly acting without one shred of evidence of any prerequisite of man:

- the Lord gives the knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven to the apostles but not to others (Matthew 13:11, Mark 4:11).

- the Lord gives His Life as a ransom for many (not all) - this is the Limited Atonement (Mark 10:45).

- the Father gives His Elect to Jesus (John 6:37)

- Jesus will lose none of those the Father has given to Him (John 6:39).

- no man can come to Jesus except it were given unto him by the father (John 6:65).

The time when there was a requirement first, before something would be given, was when Satan tempted Jesus. He said, “All these things will I give (didomi) thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.” (Matthew 4:9)

Paul can not do the job, or ministry, God gave to Apollos, nor could Apollos do the job God gave to Paul. The Lord has assigned to each and every man (Romans 12:3), and to each believer, a specific task - and to facilitate man's ability to accomplish that task God has given each believer a spiritual gift. Where was the free will in their lives? Where was the free will for them to do whatever they wanted to do?

It isn’t there. God has a plan for each man’s life, a purpose for every human being who ever lived. No one will go through their lives not fulfilling God’s purpose for them (Psalm 57:2, Psalm 138:8, Revelation 17:17). God will work in each man to accomplish His will (Ephesians 1:11, Philippians 2:13).

Is it also possible that when Paul writes that God has assigned a specific task to every man, that he is writing not only of Christians, but also of those He has chosen NOT to redeem? I think it must be considered because of how He had a plan for the life of Judas long before he was born. Judas was destined to do what he did (Psalm 41:9, John 13:18, Acts 2:23). God owns each and every human being who was ever born (Psalm 24:1, 2 Peter 2:1), and can have mercy and compassion upon whomever He wants (Romans 9:15). He has an expected end for each and every person because we were created for for His pleasure (Revelation 4:11). Do you think God would create a specific individual without a plan for his life?

Free will? Sorry, that is simply a weakness of the flesh that many believers have not yet overcome. God has given every believer a spiritual gift and we can’t work successfully outside of the “boundaries” of that gift.