"For when one says, "I follow Paul," and another, "I follow Apollos," are you not mere human beings?" (3:4)

My Note: It appears that Paul is addressing divisions in the church. People argue with each other, claiming that following the teachings of an individual person is the correct way to follow God.

"What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task." (3:5)

My Note: Christians are followers of God, not followers of men. People should treat God's teachings as more important than a person's teachings.

"I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow." (3:6)

My Note: Neither Paul nor Apollos have the ability to make people Christians. No one has this ability. We can only plant seeds in others by sharing God's Word. We must allow God to grow these seeds to create new followers.

"For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ." (3:11)

My Note: Christians must not reduce the value of Christianity by incorporating their own ideas into Christianity. We should not be distracted by the differences in denominations. Instead, our focus should be on Jesus Christ, who is the foundation of Christianity.

"If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person's work." (3:12-13)

My Note: If any person tries to build off Jesus by incorporating their own ideas into Christianity, God will reveal this foolishness and judge it. God makes it clear that He does not want human beliefs to mess with Christianity. People who focus on Jesus and sharing His uncorrupted Word will be rewarded, and people who try to incorporate their own beliefs will be punished.

"Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in your midst? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person; for God's temple is sacred, and you together are that temple."
(3:16-17)

My Note: +2 points for an anti-suicide message and for karmic justice. God dwells within human beings who accept Him, and people who accepts Him becomes God's temple. Anyone who destroys God's temple (including ourselves) will be destroyed.

"Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become "fools" so that you may become wise." (3:18)

My Note: This is the recurring theme of 1 Corinthians. Human wisdom is meaningless to God, and often hinders our spiritual progress. Too much reliance on human wisdom could have created these divisions in the Church. God's wisdom prevents us from perverting God's Word and allows us to effectively bring others to God.

"So then, no more boasting about human leaders! All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God." (3:21-23)

My Note: To conclude this chapter, Paul commands the Church to avoid relying on human leaders and human wisdom. God can teach us everything we need to know. We must not rely on our own knowledge.

Conclusion: Denominations are everywhere! People have differing views about God and how to follow Him. Because of these differing views, Christians divide themselves based off their views. This isn't what Paul wanted! Paul wanted the Church to be unified so that God's work could be done efficiently and without conflict. However, these people relied too much on their own knowledge, causing them to favor the teachings of specific leaders.

God doesn't want us to rely on our own knowledge. God can teach us everything we need to know about Him and how to follow Him. We need to rely on God's wisdom in order to avoid corrupting or misinterpreting His Word. We should become fools so that we become wise. How contradictory!

The main point: Don't rely on our own knowledge, rely on God's knowledge. That way, we can efficiently share God's Word and avoid divisions and conflict with other Christians.