December 6: 2 Corinthians 10-13

December 6, 2 Corinthians 10-13

2 Corinthians continued…

2 Corinthians 10 Paul Defends His Ministry. Paul writes to the Corinthians defending his Apostleship. He addressed some allegations against him and in a sense, he apologizes for the harshness of his last letter (which we don't have access to… its been lost, but it must have been harsh!). They were living in disobedience and he was trying to get them on the right track again. When Paul wasn't around, his opponents were falsely accusing him and stirring up trouble. Paul battled with them using God’s Word and His calling - to reach them. Paul’s ultimate goal: “But our hope is that as your faith increases, our area of influence among you may be greatly enlarged, so that we may preach the gospel in lands beyond you, without boasting of work already done in another’s area of influence. “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.” If you are going to boast, make sure that it is about Jesus

2 Corinthians 11 Paul and the False Apostles. This chapter is interesting. At first glance it seems very confusing. However, looking at it closer, we can see that Paul is still defending himself to the Corinthians. Bakers Commentary, “To counteract his opponents, Paul writes a discourse on boasting foolishly. Breaking his principle to boast only in the Lord, he asks his readers to put up with him and his foolishness. He uses an illustration taken from marriage. Christ is the husband of the Corinthians, who then should be pure. Would the local church fall away from Christ, much as Eve deserted God? The danger is real, because “superapostles” have entered the church and preach a different Jesus, have a different spirit, and bring a different gospel. Paul admits that he is not an orator but he has consistently taught the Corinthians the gospel of God free of charge.

Earlier Paul had written that he would not receive any remuneration for his spiritual work in Corinth. He repeats himself by saying that he preaches gratuitously so as not to be a burden to anyone, although he does receive financial aid from Macedonian churches. His boast is that he can work by being independent of the people he serves. He maintains this principle because he loves the Corinthians and because he wants to eliminate the intruders’ boasts that they are Paul’s equals.

Paul bluntly calls the intruders false apostles and deceitful workers. They are not apostles of Christ but agents of Satan who masquerade as servants of righteousness. They will receive judgment and condemnation.

After directly confronting his opponents, Paul resorts to setting aside his rule not to boast about himself. He calls himself a fool for doing so, but he must boast so that the Corinthians are able to see the difference between his love for them and the exploitative behavior of the intruders.

Boasting, says Paul, is done by a fool. In fact, he notes that he is talking like someone who is irrational. He begins by giving a résumé of his physical descent and spiritual commission: he is a Hebrew, an Israelite, Abraham’s descendant, and Christ’s servant. Then he presents a list of his sufferings, which include hard work, imprisonment, flogging, beating, being stoned, shipwrecks, and risking dangers on land and sea, in city and country. He suffered from hunger, cold, and lack of sleep. In addition, he feels his responsibility for all the churches.

Last, he boasts in things that expose his weakness. He freely mentions that as a fugitive, he was let down the wall in a fishbasket and so escaped from Damascus.”

He wants God to use his weaknesses for Jesus’ glory. 

2 Corinthians 12 Honestly, as much as I want to write this commentary, I lean on Bakers Commentary again - they clarify it and sum it up so well. “The apostle continues to boast, not for self-promotion but for God’s glory. He counteracts the boasts of his opponents by saying that he has received visions and revelations from the Lord. He modestly refers to himself by talking about a man in Christ who was privileged to ascend to the third heaven, that is, paradise. There he heard things that he is not allowed to repeat. Thus, he is unable to boast about heavenly things. Instead he boasts about his weaknesses.

The celestial experience can lead to sinful pride. To keep Paul from such sin, the Lord sends a messenger of Satan to torment him with a thorn in the flesh. Three times Paul pleads with the Lord to remove this affliction. The answer he receives is that God’s grace is sufficient for him, because God’s power is perfected in Paul’s weakness. Paul, accepting the Lord’s response, exults in infirmities and other impediments.

Forced against his will to boast, Paul states that he has made a fool of himself. Not he but the recipients of his epistle should have commended him in the presence of the superapostles. Paul lists the marks of apostolicity: signs, wonders, and miracles. He also states that he has never been a burden to the readers, that he did not ask for their possessions, and that parents should gather treasures for the children. Neither he nor Titus ever took advantage of them.

Paul concludes by telling the readers that he has done everything to strengthen them in the knowledge that he lives in God’s presence. He expresses his fear that on his arrival there may be misconceptions. He wars them to avoid the sins of strife, jealousy, anger, and selfishness. He speaks directly to those who have continued to live immorally and have not repented.”

2 Corinthians 13 Final Warnings. Paul is going to come to them again, a 3rd time. The reason that he is coming this time is to call out and rebuke those that are still in sin and know better. He encourages them to “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test.” Like I say often, check yourselves and make sure that you are living the life that Christ has called you to. Paul ends it with a call to unity, “…Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you…” 

To sum it all up: 

• Opposition comes and we are to battle it with Scripture, not vengeance or anything like that. Stand firm in what God has called you to and do not waiver.
• Let God use your weaknesses so that He can be seen as the strong one. That takes a selfless person to actually do. 
• Beware of fake Christian leaders that Satan is using. If anyone speaks a Gospel contrary to what Scripture says, flee from that. Have nothing to do with it.