Believers are compared to a hive of bees because each one has a specific role and all work together toward one shared purpose.
Les Feldick teaches that believers are 'labourers together with God' (1 Corinthians 3:9) and that every believer has been placed in the Body of Christ with a function, no matter how small or unseen. Just as worker bees each do their part for the colony, believers are God's husbandry and God's building, each contributing to the same work. The whole picture is one of interdependence: every believer has a calling, and none can take credit for the increase that only God gives.
1 Corinthians 3:9 — This verse is the foundation of the comparison: believers are called 'labourers together with God' and are described as God's husbandry and God's building.
1 Corinthians 12:18 — This verse shows that God Himself places each member in the Body of Christ, supporting the idea that every believer has a distinct role in the shared work.
In 1 Corinthians 3:6, Paul writes, 'I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.' He then adds, 'So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase' (1 Corinthians 3:7). Verse 9 ties the whole picture together: 'For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building.' Paul also describes the Body of Christ in 1 Corinthians 12:18: 'But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.' The Bible's point is that the work is shared, God owns the work, and He alone gives the results.
Les Feldick uses the picture of a hive of bees to illustrate how believers work together. In a hive, every worker bee has a particular role—some may do nothing but clean for the queen—yet all belong to the hive and contribute to its work. In the same way, Les stresses, believers are 'labourers together with God' (1 Corinthians 3:9) [Clip1]. He goes beyond the idea of a single local church: believers together are God's husbandry and God's building, and each person is building his or her own segment of that larger work, just as bees fill their own place in the hive [Clip2][Clip3][Clip6]. Every believer, from the little pinky to the little toe, has a function in the Body of Christ [Clip4], and God has a plan for every life [Clip5]. Les even compares the whole thing to a symphony: believers are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, and God brings the parts together in harmony like instruments in an orchestra [Clip7].
Les explains that the word 'laborer' rules out sitting in an easy chair; a laborer is out working [Clip1]. The work itself includes planting and watering, but it is God who gives the increase, so no believer can take personal credit for someone's salvation [Clip0]. Believers are laborers in their day-to-day existence, not just in church work, and God is constantly cultivating them as His husbandry, caring for the crop until it is finally in the bin [Clip2].
Yes. Les points to the Body of Christ, where some believers have a role like a little pinky and others like a little toe that most people never see, yet every one of them has a function [Clip4]. He also says every believer has a calling—not necessarily as a preacher or missionary, but something God wants that individual to do, and it is up to each believer to seek it out [Clip5].
Les draws a mental picture of a wall: God gives each believer a section of that wall and six materials to use—gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, and straw. The gold, silver, and precious stones take effort, while wood, hay, and straw are easy substitutes, and Les challenges believers to be enterprising rather than settling for sticks and straw [Clip6]. The possessive terms—God's husbandry, God's building—show that God owns the work; He is not just the owner of the cattle on a thousand hills but of the entire enterprise [Clip3].
Planting and Watering Roles
Les explains that whether a believer plants the seed of the Word or waters what another has planted, only God gives the increase—so every role in the work matters.
Laborers Together With God
Les introduces 1 Corinthians 3:9 and says the word laborer rules out sitting in an easy chair; believers are out working as laborers together with God.
God's Husbandry
Les explains that believers are God's husbandry—a field God is constantly cultivating and caring for until the crop is finally in the bin.
God's Husbandry and Building
Les emphasizes that believers are God's husbandry and God's building, and every possessive term shows God owns the work; even carnal believers are laborers with God.
Every Member Has a Function
Les uses the Body of Christ to show that every believer has a function, even if that function is as small and unseen as a little pinky or a toe.
Every Believer Has a Calling
Les teaches that every believer has a calling—not necessarily a public ministry—and it is up to each believer to seek out what God has planned for his or her life.
Building With Valuable or Cheap Materials
Les pictures each believer building a section of God's wall, and challenges believers to be enterprising and use gold, silver, and precious stones rather than easy sticks and straw.
God's Workmanship
Les describes believers as God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus, and compares the whole work to a symphony where every instrument comes together in harmony.
1 Corinthians 3:6: I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.
This verse shows that different believers perform different tasks in the work, but God is the one who produces the results.
1 Corinthians 3:9: For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building.
This is the key verse for the bee-hive analogy because believers are depicted as fellow workers in God's own field and building.
1 Corinthians 12:18: But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.
This verse supports the idea that every believer has a specific, God-assigned role in the Body of Christ.
Ephesians 2:10: For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Believers are God's workmanship, created for good works, which reinforces the picture of believers cooperating in a shared purpose.
No. The bee-hive picture is an illustration Les Feldick uses to explain how believers work together. The biblical foundation is 1 Corinthians 3:9, where believers are called 'labourers together with God,' and 1 Corinthians 12:18, where God sets each member in the Body.
Les explains that believers are God's husbandry—a field or crop that God is constantly cultivating, caring for, and protecting from problems until it finally reaches the bin. The farmer does not just plant and walk away; he cultivates and cares for the crop all season.
Les pictures some believers settling for sticks and straw in their section of God's wall, rather than going after gold, silver, and precious stones. They are still part of the building, but their contribution is poor quality and will not stand up like the valuable materials.
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