--- title: "1 Corinthians 4 - Study King James Bible with burkitts expository notes with practical observations on the nt" description: "Read 1 Corinthians 4 with burkitts expository notes with practical observations on the nt commentary. 1 Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be fo" image: "/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg" url: "https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4" --- [ Read](/kjv/1-corinthians/4)[ Commentary](/study/1-corinthians/4)[ Interlinear](/interlinear/1-corinthians/4) Audio 1 Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. 3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man’s judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self. 4 For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God. 6 And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and *to* Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think *of men* above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another. 7 For who maketh thee to differ *from another*? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive *it*, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received *it*? 8 Now ye are full, now ye are rich, ye have reigned as kings without us: and I would to God ye did reign, that we also might reign with you. 9 For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men. 10 We *are* fools for Christ’s sake, but ye *are* wise in Christ; we *are* weak, but ye *are* strong; ye *are* honourable, but we *are* despised. 11 Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace; 12 And labour, working with our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it: 13 Being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the filth of the world, *and are* the offscouring of all things unto this day. 14 I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn *you*. 15 For though ye have ten thousand instructers in Christ, yet *have ye* not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. 16 Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me. 17 For this cause have I sent unto you Timotheus, who is my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord, who shall bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ, as I teach every where in every church. 18 Now some are puffed up, as though I would not come to you. 19 But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord will, and will know, not the speech of them which are puffed up, but the power. 20 For the kingdom of God *is* not in word, but in power. 21 What will ye? shall I come unto you with a rod, or in love, and *in* the spirit of meekness? [1 Corinthians 3](/study/1-corinthians/3) [1 Corinthians 5](/study/1-corinthians/5) ## Commentary To verse 1 As if the apostle had said, "Although I warned you, in the foregoing chapter, against an undue esteem of your pastors, and against a factious preference of some before others, to the great scandal of religion, and the prejudice of the gospel; yet I speak not this to draw you off from paying that due honour and deserved respect which belongs to their character. But I desire you to account them all, neither more nor less, but **as ministers** of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God." Here observe, 1. A double character given of an evangelical pastor. He is, (1.) **A minister of Christ:** that is, a person deputed by the command, and invested with the authority, of Christ, to administer in holy things, to preach the word, administer the sacraments, execute church censures; being in all things an example to the flock! and the people are to account the office and work of the ministry, as a divine institution and appointment of Christ in his church; whoever slights or opposes the ministry, flies in the face of Christ himself. (2.) He is a **steward of the mysteries of God;** and that in a twofold respect. First, He is a steward of the truths of God; secondly, of the ordinances of God. Of the truths of God he is a steward, to open and explain them for the spiritual edification of all Christians, and to defend and maintain them against the opposition of all adversaries: God's steward must not suffer vermin to destroy the provision of God's household. He is a steward of the ordinances of God also: which he is obliged to dispense in all faithfulness to his congregation. **As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.** [1 Peter 4:10](/kjv/1-peter/4/10). Observe, 2. As the ministers of Christ are described, they are **stewards;** so the qualification of a steward is declared, and that is faithfulness: **It is required in stewards that a man be found faithful.** What ground is there for trust, where there is no truth? Now this faithfulness in our stewardship includes, (1.) Purity of intention; a pure end in all our services will give us abundance of comfort at the end of our service. (2.) Sincerity and integrity of heart: a faithful minister is a sincere-hearted minister, who preaches his sermons first to himself, and then to his hearers. (3.) Ministerial diligence: a slothful minister can never be a faithful steward; we must study the truths of God to paleness, preach them to faintness, maintain and defend them with stedfastness: we look for happiness from God as long as he is in heaven, and he expects faithfulness from us as long as we are upon earth. (4.) Faithfulness in stewardship includes impariality in all the adminstrations of Christ's house: we must take the same care of, manifest the same love unto, attend with the same diligence upon, the poorest and meanest in our congregations, as we do the rich, the great, and the honourable: for all our souls are at one price, and rated at one value in our Lord's book. O! let us take care we be impartial stewards, for we must shortly give an account of our stewardship before an impartial God. ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#website","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com","name":"Real Bible Believers","description":"RBB","publisher":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/search?q={search_term_string}","query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4#primaryimage","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg","contentUrl":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg","width":672,"height":448,"caption":"Real Bible Believers"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4#webpage","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4","name":"1 Corinthians 4 - Study King James Bible with burkitts expository notes with practical observations on the nt","isPartOf":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4#primaryimage"},"author":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509"},"description":"Read 1 Corinthians 4 with burkitts expository notes with practical observations on the nt commentary. 1 Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be fo","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/","name":"Home"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study","name":"Study Bible"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt","name":"burkitts expository notes with practical observations on the nt"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians","name":"1 Corinthians"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":5,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/burkitts-expository-notes-with-practical-observations-on-the-nt/1-corinthians/4","name":"4"}}]},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#personlogo","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/android-chrome-512x512.png","contentUrl":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/android-chrome-512x512.png","width":512,"height":512},"logo":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#personlogo"},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/RBiblebeliever","https://www.facebook.com/RBibleBelievers"]}]} ```