Good Things Keep Growing

A familiar voice can become part of what makes church feel like home. You know how that person tells a story, explains a hard idea, or helps you feel welcome. So when a leader announces a change, it can bring several feelings at once: thanks for the past, hope for the future, and a quiet worry about what comes next. Andy Stanley’s leadership update at North Point gave people plenty to think about. Because that message did not teach a specific Bible passage, this journey turns to 1 Corinthians 3:5–11, a passage that speaks to its themes of leadership and shared work. Paul helps us see what lasts when the people doing the work change. His words give us room to appreciate a leader while placing our deepest trust in Jesus.

The church in Corinth had become divided over its favorite teachers. Some people lined up behind Paul; others preferred Apollos. Paul asks them to take another look at who these men actually are. They are servants through whom people came to believe. Each has an assignment from God. Paul describes their work like a garden: he planted, Apollos watered, and God made things grow. Planting matters. Watering matters. Anyone who has watched a garden dry out knows that care makes a difference. But the people working in the garden cannot create life by sheer effort. Paul gives the credit for growth to God. That does not erase the work people have done. It puts their work in its proper place. Their gifts are real, their service matters, and their limits are real too. No leader can carry everything that belongs to God.

Then Paul changes the picture. The church is also a building, and Jesus Christ is its foundation. A trusted pastor may help you understand Jesus, but the pastor is not the ground beneath your faith. That is good news during a handoff, and it is good news on an ordinary Tuesday. You do not have to act as if change is easy. You can miss a familiar season and still welcome the next one. You can thank God for someone’s faithful work without expecting that person to stay in the same role forever. Today, start there. Name something good you have received through another person: a fresh start, a clearer understanding of Scripture, a place to belong. Thank God for that person. Then remember the foundation under that gift. Jesus is still the one the church belongs to. The next chapter invites you to keep following him, even while some familiar parts of church life begin to change.