humility

Wise Fools

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21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. – Romans 1:21-23 ESV

Wise fools. The world is full of them and always has been. Paul describes them as futile in their thinking. The Greek word Paul uses is mataioō, which can mean “to passively become foolish, or to become idolatrous.” Paul says these wise fools are without excuse because they have had every opportunity to honor or recognize the existence and reality of God, who has revealed Himself through His creation.

For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. – Romans 1:20 ESV

These kinds of people indict themselves because they all end up worshiping something or someone. They may not call it worship, but they esteem or honor other things, giving them the place of prominence in their lives that belongs to God alone. Some end up worshiping man, making humanity the end-all be-all of our existence; they believe we are our own savior. Others worship science, placing all their hope and trust in reason and man’s ability to solve all of the world’s problems through scientific research and development. There are those who worship political parties or governmental and ideological policies.

Elevating men or man-made ideas to a god-like status in our lives has been humanity’s lot since the fall. That was the original temptation of the serpent in the garden.

“For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” – Genesis 3:5 ESV

Paul makes it painfully clear that all men know God because they sense the existence of something greater than what they can see. Creation virtually shouts that there is something or someone out there, the first cause behind all that exists. Ancient man inherently knew that there was a force greater than themselves; that’s why they created idols. It is the reason they worshiped the sun, moon, stars, animals, nature, and every other created thing.

Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles. – Romans 1:22-23 ESV

But modern man is more sophisticated than that; our idols are more subtle and sensible. We wouldn’t dream of worshiping the sun but we will worship the Big Bang Theory. We will go out of our way to concoct every possible explanation for our existence, while refusing to accept the idea that God exists. Claiming to be wise, we become fools, self-deceived, and sadly mistaken in our conclusions. We end up exchanging the glory of the immortal God for a cheap, but seemingly plausible replacement.

Paul insists that man’s persistent attempt to explain away God has left him with a darkened heart. What was once clearly discernible to them, the invisible attributes of God, has become cloudy and veiled. Man has lost the ability to sense God’s presence and power. This has left him with the nagging need to explain his existence and make sense of a world that continues to spiral out of control, despite all our scientific advances, modern conveniences, and misguided hope in moralistic relativism. We keep believing we can make the world a better place. We have made vast improvements in communication, transportation, medicine, education, and agricultural production, yet the world remains plagued by hatred, disease, famine, ignorance, and inequities in all their hideous forms. We have made advances in everything except the state of man’s heart. We can help him live longer, but we are incapable of making him live better. Human reason will never come up with a way to deal with sin. Science will never find a solution to the problem of the human heart. In our wisdom, we have become fools.

And yet, in the midst of all of mankind’s arrogance and pride, God sent His Son. Paul calls it the gospel, “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16 ESV). In the gospel, the righteousness of God has been revealed through the life of His sinless Son. God’s righteous expectations for humanity were fulfilled by Jesus.

For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. – 2 Corinthians 5:21 NLT

The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. – Romans 8:3 NLT

He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed. – 1 Peter 2:24 NLT

Jesus did what no other man had been able to do since Adam; He lived in perfect obedience to the law of God. As the author of Hebrews states, “he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15 NLT). And it was His sinless life that made Him the perfect sacrifice to pay for the sins of man. He died so that man might live. He gave His life so that we would not have to give ours. The death of Jesus was what God required so that men might be made right (righteous) with Him. And this righteousness is only available by faith. Not by reason. Not by scientific explanations or experiments. Not through human effort or any amount of seemingly moral advancements.

Man, apart from God, is helpless, hopeless, blind, ignorant, and spiritually dead. Even his best efforts on his best day are flawed and, ultimately, worthless. As the prophet Isaiah so aptly put it, “We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind” (Isaiah 64:6 NLT).

Man has become too smart for his own good. His intelligence has left him unable to honor God or give Him thanks. He is determined to come up with his own explanation for his existence and a personal plan for his future. But in the end, all men must face the reality of God’s existence. God doesn’t go away because we attempt to explain Him away. He doesn’t cease to exist simply because our intelligence refuses to accept Him. God has revealed Himself in His creation and made Himself known through His written Word. And He has given men the means by which they can know Him personally and permanently through His Son. But the knowledge of God is ultimately available through faith, not wisdom.

Father, You are self-evident. Your existance is displayed in the universe You created. Yet, in our “wisdom,” we have determined to write You out of the script, to remove You from the story of our lives. Yet, rather than give up on us, You sent Your Son to live among us. Jesus became one of us, so that He might demonstrate what obedience to Your righteous law looks like. Not only that, Jesus made You, the invisible God, visible and knowable. As the apostle John wrote, “No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is at the Father’s side, has made Him known” (John 1:18 BSB). He walked among us. He lived like us. Then He died for us. All so we could be restored to a right relationship with You. In our foolish wisdom, we turned our backs on You. We became too smart for our own good. However, You had a plan to redeem us from our own stupidity and self-destructiveness. You sent Jesus and He offered His life as payment for our well-deserved judgment. As Paul told the Corinthians, “The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18 NLT). Thank You for graciously loving a fool like me. And forgive me for the many times I fall back on my own foolish wisdom and fail to honor You as God and give You thanks. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Paradoxical Power of Weakness

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2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. 3 And I know that this man was caught up into paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows— 4 and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter. 5 On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses— 6 though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth; but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. 7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. – 2 Corinthians 12:2-10 ESV

In verse one, Paul confesses, “I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord.” He is letting his readers know that he is about to provide additional evidence to validate his apostleship and to set him apart from the false apostles who are dogging his ministry. His reference to visions and revelations suggests that what he is about to divulge is well beyond the usual arguments for his apostleship; it will involve the supernatural and direct communication from God. Visions are typically visible manifestations of God’s power. The Greek word Paul uses is optasia, and it means, “a sight, a vision, an appearance presented to one whether asleep or awake”(“G3701 – optasia – Strong’s Greek Lexicon (KJV).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 20 Oct, 2016. https://www.blueletterbible.org).

Paul’s reference to “revelations” seems to indicate verbal communication from God. The Greek word is apokalypsis and it means, “a disclosure of truth, instruction; oncerning things before unknown” (“G602 – apokalypsis – Strong’s Greek Lexicon (KJV).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 20 Oct, 2016. https://www.blueletterbible.org). Paul shares a personal experience that included a vision and word from God. He refers to himself in the third person simply to diminish the aura of bragging that comes from sharing such a story.

He says, “I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven” (2 Corinthians 12:2a ESV). It is clear that Paul is referring to himself, because he later adds, “So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations…” (2 Corinthians 12:7 ESV). This was a personal experience that Paul had and one he shared reluctantly. He provides little detail and refuses to share exactly what he saw or heard. But fourteen years earlier, Paul had received a vision from God and was somehow transported to the “third heaven.” In the ancient mindset, there were three heavens. There was the sky or the visible atmosphere, and then there was the heavens containing the sun, moon, stars, and planets; what might be referred to as “outer space.” The third heaven or paradise was a reference to the dwelling place of God.

Paul recalls being somehow transported into heaven. He could not tell if it had all been a dream or whether he had actually gone there in his physical body. While there, he “heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human is allowed to tell.” (2 Corinthians 12:4 NLT). Paul spends no time describing the sights or sounds of heaven. He provides no insights into what “paradise” looked like. Not only that, he gives us no clue about what he heard; he only describes it as unrepeatable.

This one-of-a-kind, supernatural event clearly set Paul apart. Who else could claim to have been transported to heaven and given a glimpse of the sights and sounds associated with that remarkable place? But while blown away by the experience, Paul refused to boast about it. He would not allow himself to turn his divinely ordained experience into an opportunity to elevate his stature among the Corinthians. He would boast about “this man,” but when it came to himself, he would rather boast about his weaknesses. He explains, “I don’t want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message” (2 Corinthians 12:6 NLT). Paul wanted his life and message to fuel his reputation, not his supernatural vision.

It is interesting to note that earlier, Paul recounted a time when he had been saved from arrest by being lowered in a basket from a window (2 Corinthians 11:33). He prefaced this story with the statement, “I would rather boast about the things that show how weak I am” (2 Corinthians 11:30 NLT). His disclosure of this rather ignoble event was meant to emphasize his weakness. He had been forced to suffer the humiliation of being crammed in a basket and lowered out a window. This would have been a blow to the ego for a man of Paul’s temperament. Yet, he viewed it as a reminder of his own weakness and God’s power.

But now he talks about having been raised by God to the very heights of heaven. This may have been what Paul meant when he wrote, “I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:12 ESV).

Paul could have easily let this divine encounter produce a spirit of pride and spiritual superiority. He could have viewed himself as somehow more anointed and blessed by God. After all, who else could claim to have gotten an all-expenses-paid trip to paradise? But God wasn’t going to let Paul get a big head. In fact, Paul says, “So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.” (2 Corinthians 12:7 NLT).

Paul does not say what this “thorn” was. The Greek word Paul uses is skolops, and it actually refers to a sharp, pointed stake. It was far more than a “splinter” or an inconvenient annoyance; it was potentially debilitating and described by Paul as “a messenger of Satan to torment me.”

Was it a physical disability or a spiritual weakness? Paul doesn’t say. Since Paul mentions “conceit,” it may have been a proclivity toward pride and arrogance. The constant harassment Paul faced from his ever-present adversaries could easily have driven him to boast of his superior calling and intellectual prowess. Paul was an educated man who had risen high in the ranks of the Pharisees. He was an expert in the Hebrew Scriptures. So, it would have been easy for Paul to develop a haughty spirit and arrogant attitude toward those who questioned his ministry. However, God lovingly kept Paul humble.

On three different occasions, Paul pleaded with God to remove this “stake” from his life, and each time God refused. But He reminded Paul, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9a NLT). God’s grace was greater than Paul’s problem. His strength was far superior to Paul’s weakness in the flesh. And, more than 14 years later, Paul was able to say, “I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9b NLT).

Paul’s awareness of his weakness led him to appreciate God’s gracious love and power. Anything he accomplished in his life that was worthwhile or worthy of praise was attributable to God, not himself.

Paul would gladly suffer the humiliation of being lowered down the wall in a basket. He would willingly go through the pain of another stoning or the indignity of arrest and imprisonment, all for the sake of Christ. Through it all, he had learned the invaluable life lesson of “when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10 ESV).

Father, I bring nothing to the table except my willingness to submit to Your will and rely upon Your strength. You do not need me and yet You lovingly use me to accomplish Your will. Your Holy Spirit empowers me. Your Word convicts and instructs me. You have provided the body of Christ, the church, to comfort, support, and encourage me. Yet, how easy it is to take credit for my accomplishments and to view myself as some kind of indispensible asset to Your Kingdom causes. Thank You for graciously and lovingly keeping me humble by constantly reminding me of my weaknesses. Indepenence is a dangerous thing for any Christ follower to embrace. Any time I think I can stand on my own by relying on my far-from-sufficient strength, I am doomed to disappointment and failure. But You love me enough to expose my inadequacies and call me back to a willful reliance upon Your all-sufficient power, and for that I am grateful. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Human Weakness and Resurrection Power

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7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our bodies. 11 For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So death is at work in us, but life in you. – 2 Corinthians 4:7-12 ESV

Paul was not afraid to admit that he was human. He knew he was far from perfect. In fact, later in this same letter, he writes, “I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10 NLT).

Paul did not believe his inherent flaws and faults negatively impacted his ministry for Christ. This was an important distinction he felt compelled to make because the value and integrity of his ministry were constantly under attack.

Strangely enough, Paul’s admission of weakness was intended as a defense of his ministry. As far as he was concerned, it wasn’t about him; it was about the glory of God as revealed in the face of Christ and made accessible by the indwelling presence of the Spirit of God. He was simply an unworthy conduit through whom God communicated His message of reconciliation to the lost. He confessed, “We don’t go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Corinthians 4:5 NLT).

Just like the believers in Corinth to whom he was writing, his life had been transformed by the gospel.

So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. – 2 Corinthians 3:18 NLT

Ever since his conversion experience, it had been his Christ-commissioned duty to take that same gospel message to the ends of the earth. His life had been transformed by his encounter with the “light of the world,” and he was determined to reflect that light to a world darkened by sin.

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. – 2 Corinthians 4:6 ESV

For Paul, the amazing thing was that God had chosen to place His glory in a “clay jar,” a flawed and frail vessel of little value. He viewed himself as common and unimpressive, and unworthy to be a receptacle for the very Spirit of God. He humbly confessed, “We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure” (2 Corinthians 4:7 NLT).

God had chosen to place His glory into less-than-perfect vessels. Not only that, Paul saw himself as sharing in the very sufferings of Christ as he bore the light of God’s message of redemption to the world. Just as Jesus suffered and died to make possible the redemption of mankind, so Paul and his fellow apostles suffered for the sake of the gospel, and he declared, “through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies” (2 Corinthians 4:10 NLT).

In a sense, Paul saw his physical body as a tool for declaring the resurrection power of Christ. When his weak and worthless body reflects the glory of Christ, it “makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves” (2 Corinthians 4:7b NLT). Anything he accomplished of worth or value was proof of Christ’s resurrection because it evidenced the Spirit’s presence and power.

Paul explains, “We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9 NLT). Despite all the problems, persecutions, rejections, and roadblocks they faced in their daily ministries, the apostles were supernaturally sustained by God. He protected and provided for them. This does not mean they were somehow immune to trouble. Paul knew what it was like to go hungry and do without the essentials of life. In fact, he wrote the believers in Philippi, thanking them for their willingness to help him, but confessed, “I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:11-13 NLT).

Paul knew what it was like to experience all kinds of deprivations and indignities for the sake of the gospel. On one occasion, he had even been stoned and left for dead (Acts 14:19-20). Yet God had sustained and revived Him. Just days later, Paul and Barnabas continued their missionary journey, sharing the gospel and leading others to Christ, encouraging “them to continue in the faith” and “reminding them that we must suffer many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22 NLT).

Paul knew what it was like to suffer pain and persecution. But rather than complaining about his trials, he saw them through the lens of Jesus’ death and resurrection. He wrote, “Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies” (2 Corinthians 4:10 NLT). Jesus suffered in a body just like ours. He endured pain, loss, hunger, thirst, rejection, and, eventually, death. But His death was part of the Father’s plan because it paved the way to His resurrection, and it was His resurrection that made possible the gift of the Spirit. That is what Paul means when he writes, “We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this surpassingly great power is from God and not from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7 BSB). The very fact that Paul’s bruised, battered, and weakened body could be used for God’s glory was living proof that Christ has risen from the dead and the Spirit of God had been poured out on His people.

This incomparable reality led Paul to confess, “We live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be evident in our dying bodies. So we live in the face of death, but this has resulted in eternal life for you” (2 Corinthians 4:11-12 NLT).

Paul would later write to his young mentor, Timothy, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8 ESV). He wrote something similar to the believers in Philippi.

Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. – Philippians 2:17 ESV

Paul was not perfect, but he was perfectly content in knowing that he was being used by God. He was a clay jar containing the glory of God and carrying the life-transforming message of the gospel to the ends of the earth. He had no problem admitting his own weaknesses, and even referred to himself as the chief of all sinners (1 Timothy 1:15). But it was this indisputable realization that made his ministry all the more amazing. It led him to say, “Our great power is from God, not from ourselves” (2 Corinthians 4:7 NLT).

The thousands of changed lives Paul left in his ministry wake were not the result of his powers of persuasion or oratory skills; they were the result of God’s glory in the form of the indwelling Holy Spirit. That is why Paul was content with suffering for the cause of Christ and could boldly claim, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13 ESV).

Father, I had never thought about the fact that my flawed human body could be a demonstration of Christ’s resurrection power. I even long for the day when I will get a new, glorified body that will replace the rapidly aging, progressively weakening, and sin-prone one I have at the moment. But Paul viewed his “vessel of clay” as a positive, not a negative. It was in his weakened and worthless state that the glory of God was revealed in all its power. The Spirit of God had taken up residence in Paul’s temporary “earthly tent” (2 Corinthians 5:4) and was daily demonstrating the resurrection power of life over death. That is the way I want to view my life. Rather than complaining about the fractured clay jar that is my present body, I want to rejoice that I get to demonstrate Your power through my weakness. People don’t need to be impressed with me; they need to be awed by Your presence in me. Jesus’ death was required before resurrection life could show up. So, I want to see my life in this body as a daily opportunity to see Your power manifested in my weakness. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Conduits of God’s Grace

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1 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you? 2 You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all. 3 And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

4 Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. – 2 Corinthians 3:1-6 ESV

Paul ended the last chapter with the words, “You see, we are not like the many hucksters who preach for personal profit. We preach the word of God with sincerity and with Christ’s authority, knowing that God is watching us” (2 Corinthians 2:17 NLT).

He can’t help but feel frustrated at having to defend himself and his ministry again. In his first letter to the Corinthians, he found himself dealing with those who questioned his authority and apostleship. But as far as he was concerned, he only answered to God and no one else.

As for me, it matters very little how I might be evaluated by you or by any human authority. I don’t even trust my own judgment on this point. My conscience is clear, but that doesn’t prove I’m right. It is the Lord himself who will examine me and decide. – 1 Corinthians 4:3-4 NLT

Much of what Paul writes in this letter is not new information to the Corinthians; he has said it all before, in writing and in person. He wants them to know that he is not attempting to prove himself to them again. He doesn’t need a letter of recommendation, either from himself or anyone else, to affirm his status as an apostle of Jesus Christ. If they require proof of the effectiveness of his ministry, all they have to do is look at their own lives.

The only letter of recommendation we need is you yourselves. Your lives are a letter written in our hearts; everyone can read it and recognize our good work among you. Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you.– 2 Corinthians 3:2-3a NLT

Paul’s ministry was fruitful and had produced results. Lives had been changed. So, there should have been no reason for him to defend himself. The believers in Corinth were his letter of recommendation “written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God…carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts” (2 Corinthians 3:3b NLT). There was no greater proof of the validity of Paul’s apostolic ministry than the transformed lives of those who made up the church in Corinth.

When Paul had first arrived in Corinth, he did not impress them with his oratory skills or blow them away with his eloquence and powers of persuasion. In fact, just the opposite was the case.

When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters, I didn’t use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God’s secret plan. For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling. And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God. – 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 NLT

The establishment of the church in Corinth had been the work of the Holy Spirit, not Paul. He was simply a conduit through whom the Spirit had worked, making him an instrument in God’s hands. Paul could look at the changed lives of the people in Corinth and know with confidence that his work had been effective. He also knew that it had not been because of his own skills or abilities.

Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant. – 2 Corinthians 3:5-6a ESV

Any success Paul had enjoyed was the result of God’s power, not his own.

We are confident of all this because of our great trust in God through Christ. – 2 Corinthians 3:4 NLT

It is important to note that, while Paul viewed himself as a servant of God, he did not believe he was working for God so much as he was being used by God. He truly believed that God was working through him, not that he was helping God out. Sometimes we can easily begin to think that we are doing God a favor by serving Him. We can believe that we are doing all the work, while He sits back, eagerly watching and waiting to see what we will accomplish. But Paul knew that, without God’s power, all his efforts would have been in vain. God is not dependent upon us; it is the other way around. It was Paul who proudly proclaimed, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13 ESV). And it was God who said to Paul, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9 NLT).

Paul knew that it was the Spirit who gives life, and that only God can make the salvation of men possible. We have a role to play, but we must never forget that our role is that of servants of God. We are tools in His hands, empowered by His Spirit and obligated to do His will, His way. Paul emphasizes his understanding of his God-given role later on in this same letter.

And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” –2 Corinthians 5:18-20 NLT

We are conduits of God’s grace. We are PVC pipes carrying the life-giving message of the good news to those who are spiritually thirsty and starving. And we can be confident that God can and will use us as we make ourselves available to Him. Our weakness does not disqualify us; it makes us perfect candidates for God’s service.

God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God. – 1 Corinthians 1:27-29 NLT

So, Paul writes, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:31 NLT). God can and will use you. Your value to Him begins with your recognition of your absolute dependence upon Him. Your greatest use by Him starts with your understanding that you are useless without Him. When we understand that God is the power behind our effectiveness, we can become confident conduits of His grace.

Father, thank You for choosing to use me, despite my sometimes over-self-confidence, pride, and arrogance. I am reminded that You don’t use me because You need me. My gifts, talents, and abilities are not assets to You; they are more often liabilities. I am nothing more than a conduit of Your grace and mercy; a means of distributing Your love and communicating Your redemptive message to all those who need to heat it. You chose me, filled me with Your Spirit, gave me access to Your power, and equipped me with a spiritual gift — all so that You might use me to reconcile the lost and build up the body of Christ. But I am more than just a servant to You; I am Your child. You love me and are patiently transforming me into the likeness of Your Son, Jesus Christ. And anything I accomplish in this life that has value or worth is because of You, not me. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

A Battle of the Wills

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15 Because I was sure of this, I wanted to come to you first, so that you might have a second experience of grace. 16 I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and to come back to you from Macedonia and have you send me on my way to Judea. 17 Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? Do I make my plans according to the flesh, ready to say “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? 18 As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. 19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. 20 For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. 21 And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, 22 and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. – 2 Corinthians 2:15-22 ESV

When reading any book in the Bible, especially the pastoral letters, it is important to recognize that the letters were written to an original audience. That means there was a specific context that shaped the letter’s content, and that is the case with our text for today. Paul was addressing an issue that was unique to him and his audience in Corinth. In his previous letter to them, he had said he planned to come and see them.

I will visit you after passing through Macedonia, for I intend to pass through Macedonia, and perhaps I will stay with you or even spend the winter, so that you may help me on my journey, wherever I go. For I do not want to see you now just in passing. I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord permits. – 1 Corinthians 16:5-7 ESV

Evidently, Paul’s plans had changed, and he was unable to follow through. The result was that there were those in Corinth who began to question the sincerity of his word. So, on top of having to deal with a faction in the church that was questioning the validity of his apostleship and, therefore, his authority, he was now having to defend his integrity.

Paul wanted them to know he had been sincere when he told them he would visit them. In fact, twice in this passage, he claims his intention was to visit Corinth.

I wanted to come to you first. – 2 Corinthians 1:15 ESV

I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia. – 2 Corinthians 1:16 ESV

But his plans had changed; his agenda had been altered by God. Luke records in Acts that it was not uncommon for Paul’s plans to be influenced by the Spirit of God.

Next Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. So instead, they went on through Mysia to the seaport of Troas. – Acts 16:6-8 NLT

Paul was a servant of God, and as such, he was obligated to do God’s will. His plans were subordinate to God’s, and yet the Corinthians viewed his failure to visit them as vacillation or, even worse, disingenuousness. So Paul addresses their misgivings by asking a series of questions.

You may be asking why I changed my plan. Do you think I make my plans carelessly? Do you think I am like people of the world who say ‘Yes’ when they really mean ‘No’?” – 2 Corinthians 1:17 NLT

Paul insists that his failure to come to see them had nothing to do with vacillation, but everything to do with submission to the will of God. In fact, he claims that he, Silas, and Timothy were being faithful to what God was calling them to do, just as Christ was faithful to do the will of His Father.

Paul’s point seems to be that his will and desires were completely subservient to God’s will. He was obligated to do what God wanted him to do, even when it was in direct conflict with his own well-intentioned desires. 

In essence, Paul is boldly claiming that questioning his integrity and faithfulness is tantamount to questioning the very will of God. He strongly believed that he was obeying the will of God, who is always faithful. God’s yes is yes, and His no is no. As a former Pharisee and a student of the Hebrew Scriptures, Paul would have been intimately familiar with the following passages.

God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through? – Numbers 23:19 NLT

…he who is the Glory of Israel will not lie, nor will he change his mind, for he is not human that he should change his mind!” – 1 Samuel 15:29 NLT

God cannot lie, so His word can always be trusted. And because Paul was doing the will of God, the Corinthians were essentially questioning the integrity of God and His Son. In fact, Paul states, “For Jesus Christ, the Son of God, does not waver between ‘Yes’ and ‘No.’ He is the one whom Silas, Timothy, and I preached to you, and as God’s ultimate ‘Yes,’ he always does what he says” (2 Corinthians 1:19 NLT).

The bottom line for Paul was that Jesus was the living example of God’s integrity, veracity, and reliability. Jesus was the unquestioned expression of God’s faithfulness because through Him all the promises of God had been fulfilled. This wasn’t about Paul keeping his word, but about God keeping His. It was about the gospel and its spread throughout the known world. That was Paul’s God-ordained duty and responsibility, and if it meant that his own will had to take a back seat, he was okay with that, and the Corinthians needed to be so as well. Their unmet expectations had to take second place to God’s divine plan. Paul wanted the Corinthians to know that God’s will took precedence over their personal and somewhat petty disappointments.

Rather than being put out with Paul, they needed to remember what God had done for them. As much as they desired to see Paul and were disappointed that he had failed to keep his word, they needed to recall the unbreakable nature of God’s promise and that Paul had been the one to bring it to them. 

It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us. – 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 NLT

People will let us down, but God never will. Even faithful believers, who are committed to and bound by the sovereign will of God, will occasionally disappoint us. But we must remember that God’s word is always reliable and the fulfillment of His will is unstoppable. From our limited perspective, what appear to be setbacks are simply God’s will being done in ways that we can’t understand. What appears to be disappointments or delays is nothing more than the will of God conflicting with our own desires and agendas.

Paul was just as disappointed that he had been unable to make it to Corinth, but he knew that God’s will was better than his own. Paul had plans and aspirations, but he knew that God’s plans were worthy of his trust and obedience.

We can know we’re learning to trust God when we find ourselves gladly submitting our will to His, displaying dependence rather than disappointment.

Father, I’ll be honest, it can sometimes be difficult to discern Your will. There are times when I feel like I am operating within Your will, only to discover that things don’t turn out quite like I expected, and that always throws me for a loop. I feel like I am being obedient and then everything seems to fall apart around me. The least little bit of trouble makes me question whether I was actually doing Your will. But Paul provides me with the insight that recognizing and obeying Your will has more to do with trust than discernment. You said, “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,…And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine” (Isaiah 55:8 NLT). Paul said that it was impossible for us to understand Your decisions and ways (Romans 11:33). So, You call us to trust You, even when we don’t understand Your will or Your ways. You don’t always write Your will on the wall for us to see. Sometimes, it is hidden and working behind the scenes. Our inability to see it doesn’t invalidate it. Help me to trust that Your will is always being done. And when I can see it, give me the strength to obey it even if I don’t fully understand it. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

To Build Up, Not Puff Up

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7 If even lifeless instruments, such as the flute or the harp, do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is played? 8 And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle? 9 So with yourselves, if with your tongue you utter speech that is not intelligible, how will anyone know what is said? For you will be speaking into the air. 10 There are doubtless many different languages in the world, and none is without meaning, 11 but if I do not know the meaning of the language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me. 12 So with yourselves, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church. – 1 Corinthians 14:7-12 ESV

Paul is not attempting to prioritize one gift over another; he is simply trying to point out the community mindset that should always dictate the use of the gifts. They are meant for the body of Christ, not the individual. The gift of tongues, if used in a corporate context, but without interpretation, would be useless to those who hear it. It would be unintelligible and, therefore, of little or no value to their edification. As Paul mentioned earlier, the unknown language was not the point; the message it conveyed was.

God’s purpose behind giving the gifts of the Spirit was to build up the body of Christ, and there was a time and place for each of them to be utilized. Speaking in a language no one in the audience understood would be inappropriate and unhelpful; it would serve no purpose. In fact, it could be confusing. Paul compares it to a military bugler calling the army to battle, but playing a tune no one understands or recognizes. The result could be potentially devastating.

How will anyone enjoy a tune being played if the notes themselves are unrecognizable? Sounds will be heard, but because they are unknown or unfamiliar, they will go unrecognized. These easy-to-understand metaphors are Paul’s way of illustrating the purpose behind the gifts, particularly tongues. God is conveying a message through the gift, but if it is unintelligible to the hearers, its value is lost. Once again, Paul is pointing out the value of the content or message. Look closely at what he says.

Even lifeless instruments like the flute or the harp must play the notes clearly, or no one will recognize the melody. – 1 Corinthians 14:7 NLT

To bring this into a modern context, it is like a contemporary worship service where the musicians play a song that no one knows. It is recognizable to the music team, but the tune and lyrics are unfamiliar to the congregation. No matter how enthusiastically the worship band plays and sings, the congregation is lost and unable to enjoy the experience. They become spectators, watching and listening, but failing to participate in the worship experience as intended. Now, imagine being in that same situation, but the band is singing in a foreign language. They are gifted, skilled, energetic, and well-intentioned, and the song’s lyrics carry a powerful message, but the audience does not understand a word. How will they benefit from the experience? How will the content of the song being played have an impact if those who hear it can’t understand the words being sung?

Paul says, “It’s the same for you. If you speak to people in words they don’t understand, how will they know what you are saying? You might as well be talking into empty space” (1 Corinthians 14:9 NLT). The objective should always be clear communication and comprehension for the purpose of edification. When it comes to the gifts, Paul says, “seek those that will strengthen the whole church” (1 Corinthians 14:12 NLT). But the New Living Translation actually conveys an unintended message in its translation of this verse. It seems to suggest that Paul is encouraging the Corinthians to seek out particular gifts, as if they had a choice. However, earlier in this same letter, Paul made it clear that the gifts are given at the Spirit’s discretion. In chapter 12, he wrote, “It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have” (1 Corinthians 12:11 NLT). We don’t get to choose our gift; it is given to us by the Spirit of God.

In the original Greek, Paul is essentially saying, “In your eagerness to have a spiritual gift, make sure you don’t forget that their purpose is to build up the church.” The Corinthians viewed the gifts from a selfish perspective, desiring particular gifts because of the perceived status they conferred. They desired the more flamboyant gifts. But Paul reminds them that God’s purpose for the gifts is the spiritual edification of others, not the prideful elevation of the one with the gift. Three times in the first 12 verses, Paul emphasizes the building up of the body of Christ – the church.

A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally, but one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church. – 1 Corinthians 14:4 NLT

For prophecy is greater than speaking in tongues, unless someone interprets what you are saying so that the whole church will be strengthened. – 1 Corinthians 14:5 NLT

Since you are so eager to have the special abilities the Spirit gives, seek those that will strengthen the whole church. – 1 Corinthians 14:12 NLT

Paul emphasized the same thing in his letter to the church in Ephesus.

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. – Ephesians 4:11-12 NLT

Earlier in this letter, Paul wrote a very similar thing:

All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. Here are some of the parts God has appointed for the church:

first are apostles,

second are prophets,

third are teachers,

then those who do miracles,

those who have the gift of healing,

those who can help others,

those who have the gift of leadership,

those who speak in unknown languages. – 1 Corinthians 12:27-28 NLT

God the Father has appointed the gifts to be given to the church. But it required that the life of His Son be sacrificed before the gifts could be given. Once Jesus was resurrected, the Holy Spirit was free to distribute the gifts as He deemed necessary, for the good of the body of Christ. As a believer in Jesus Christ, your giftedness is guaranteed, and its purpose is clear: the building up of the body of Christ.

When God saved you, He placed you within the body of Christ and made you part of His family, the community of believers. Your presence within that corporate body is God-ordained, and your mission is clear. You are to use the gift given to you by the Spirit to help build up, edify, encourage, and strengthen those around you.

Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. – Romans 12:4-5 NLT

Father, You don’t do anything haphazardly or without purpose. You divinely ordained that every believer become part of the body of Christ and You equipped each of them with a spiritual gift that uniquely benefits the entire community. When we function within our giftedness, the body is blessed and You are glorified. We get to see Your wisdom on display as the gifts of the Spirit flow through us to all those around us. It is like being a musician in an orchestra that is playing a beautiiful symphony. Each note that is played is important, but it is the blended effect that makes the symphony recognizable and enjoyable to all who hear it. Lord, may we learn to play our Spirit-ordained part in humility and with excellence so that the final product is music to Your ears and a blessing to all who hear the gospel message it contains. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

A Spirit of Unity, Community, and Mutual Dependability

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13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

1 Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy. 2 For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries in the Spirit. 3 On the other hand, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation. 4 The one who speaks in a tongue builds up himself, but the one who prophesies builds up the church. 5 Now I want you all to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues, unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up.

6 Now, brothers, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? – 1 Corinthians 13:13-14:1-6 ESV

Now Paul begins to differentiate between the gifts. He is not necessarily making one more important or spiritually more relevant than another, but he is prioritizing them based on their particular benefit to the body of Christ. He has just spent an entire chapter emphasizing the importance of love.

He has described love as selfless and sacrificial. Those who practice this godly brand of love under the influence of the Holy Spirit put the needs of others ahead of their own. And the same should be true when they use their spiritual gift. Now, it seems that the Corinthians had so elevated the gift of tongues that it had become a problem within the church. And their practice of the gift was not in keeping with Paul’s admonition that love be the motivating factor behind all the gifts. For the Corinthians, the gift of tongues had become the most desirable of all the gifts. Evidently, they viewed that particular gift as more spiritual and therefore, more preferable. It was flashy and flamboyant, and to be able to speak in an unknown tongue was sure to be an attention-getter. But that was a big part of the problem with their prioritizing this gift over all the others.  Those who practiced it seemed to do so with a focus on self rather than on building up the body of Christ.

So while Paul encourages them to earnestly seek the spiritual gifts, he promotes prophecy over tongues, and his explanation is simple and direct.

For if you have the ability to speak in tongues, you will be talking only to God, since people won’t be able to understand you. You will be speaking by the power of the Spirit, but it will all be mysterious. – 1 Corinthians 14:2 NLT

If no one understands what you are saying, no one benefits from your use of the gift, not even you. It will remain a mystery, known only to God. And while you may be speaking in the power of the Spirit of God, it will do nothing to build up those around you. However, as Paul points out, someone “who prophesies strengthens others, encourages them, and comforts them” (1 Corinthians 14:3 NLT).

The gift of prophecy was the Spirit-empowered ability to reveal truth from God that had not yet been revealed. It was a word from God intended for the benefit of the entire congregation. This gift was evident and necessary in the early days of the church because the Canon of Scripture had not yet been compiled. The Hebrew Scriptures (the Old Testament) existed but were not always available to the new congregations springing up among the Gentiles. The gospels had not yet been written, and Paul, Peter, and James were still writing their letters, which would later be included in the Canon of Scripture. So, there was a desperate need among these fledgling and far-flung congregations to hear the truth of God. And those who had been given the gift of prophecy were to speak through the Spirit’s power for the benefit of the people of God. But tongues, at least as practiced by the Corinthians, was a more self-centered gift.

A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally, but one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church. – 1 Corinthians 14:4 NLT

The one who spoke in an unknown tongue may receive a blessing from knowing that they were being used as an instrument of God, but if no one could understand what they were saying, the body of Christ could receive no benefit. But when someone prophesied, everyone gained from the experience. In the previous chapter, Paul made the bold statement, “If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:1-2 NLT).

None of the gifts were of benefit if they were practiced without love. But tongues, because it involved speaking in an unknown language, was particularly troublesome. The first time the gift of tongues was manifested in the church was at Pentecost.

When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language?” – Acts 2:1-8 ESV

The purpose of this manifestation of the Spirit of God was to communicate the gospel so that all could comprehend it. For this to happen, the Spirit enabled the disciples to speak in languages they did not know, for the benefit of the thousands of people from other countries who had gathered in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost.

There was no need for interpretation, because the hearers understood what was being said. However, in Corinth, the use of tongues had become self-centered and self-edifying. They were missing the point. At Pentecost, the people who heard the disciples speak in tongues, or foreign languages, were amazed. They said, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language?” (Acts 2:7-8 NLT). But look closely, and you will see that it was the substance of their message that got their attention, not the style. The very same people reacted, “‘We hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.’ And all were amazed and perplexed” (Acts 2:11-12 NLT).

It was the content that was important, not the means of delivery. For Paul, the bottom line was the church’s spiritual edification. The question to ask is, “How will I benefit you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching” (1 Corinthians 14:6 ESV). Speaking in a foreign tongue was of no benefit to anyone unless the message it contained was understandable and from God.

We tend to think of the gifts of the Spirit from a purely personal perspective. We seem to believe our gift was given for our own benefit and spiritual enlightenment. But the gifts are given to individuals for the benefit of the community. My gift is for you, and your gift is for me. The one who receives the gift is simply a conduit through whom God pours His blessings on others. As Paul told the church in Rome, when we practice our gifts in love, all will benefit.

In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. – Romans 12:6-10 NLT

Notice the other-oriented nature of Paul’s instructions. His emphasis is on the edification and encouragement of the body of Christ, not the individual. The gifts were never to be used in a selfish or self-promotional manner. They were never intended to elevate the recipient’s spiritual status. Instead, they were to promote a spirit of unity, community, and mutual dependability that edified all and glorified God.

Father, thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit. You didn’t have to provide us with His presence and power, but You did. And I am grateful that Your Son’s resurrection and return to Your side in heaven was accompanied by the coming of the Spirit. Without Him, we would be helpless and hopeless. Yet, we tend to operate as if He doesn’t exist or we’re tempted to use His gifts as if they only exist for us. But You have always been about unity and community. And, Holy Spirit, Your presence in my life was never intended to make me appear good to others or make me feel better about myself. My life is supposed to serve as a conduit for Your power as it passes through me to all those around me. The gift You have given me was never for my benefit; it was intended to bless others. We have all the gifts we need but, like the Corinthians, we need to learn how to use them for Your glory and the good of others. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Love Defined and Displayed

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4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. – 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 ESV

It is virtually impossible to read these verses without considering Paul’s description of the fruit of the Spirit found in his letter to the Galatian churches.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. – Galatians 5:22-26 ESV

It is important to keep in mind that Paul’s discussion of love in 1 Corinthians 13 follows his discussion of the spiritual gifts. Those gifts, given by the Spirit of God, would most certainly reflect the fruit that He produces, including love. Operating under the Spirit’s influence and displaying a gift He has given, but without love, would be impossible. God is love, and the same is true of the Spirit of God. When we live under His influence, our lives will reflect His loving nature, and Paul describes what that love looks like.

It is patient – it puts up with a lot, including others’ offenses against us. It doesn’t seek to get even or enact revenge.

It is kind – it acts benevolently. In other words, it manifests as tangible expressions of kindness and goodness toward others. Even to those who hurt us.

It isn’t envious – the actual Greek word means to “be heated or to boil with envy.” God’s kind of love rejoices with others, rather than getting jealous of what they have.

It doesn’t boast – It is impossible to love like God and grandstand at the same time. When godly love is in operation, it is other-focused rather than self-promoting.

It isn’t arrogant – God’s love requires humility, not pride. It doesn’t exhibit an inflated sense of self-worth.

It isn’t rude – you can’t say you love someone and treat them in a disrespectful or unseemly way.

It doesn’t insist on getting it’s on way – we can know we are displaying godly love when we aren’t out for our own good. His brand of love is selfless and sacrificial.

It isn’t irritable – when the Spirit’s love is operating in us and through us, we won’t be easily provoked. We will have resilience and a resistance to the words and actions of others.

It isn’t resentful – God’s kind of love doesn’t keep score or maintain a list of wrongs suffered, and it most certainly doesn’t seek to get even.

It doesn’t rejoice at wrongdoing – when we love like God does, we won’t approve of others’ sins, and we won’t find pleasure in sinning ourselves.

It rejoices with the truth – godly love is overjoyed when others do what is right. It allows us to rejoice alongside them, rather than being jealous of them.

It bears all things – Spirit-empowered love can endure all kinds of people and circumstances.

It believes all things – when we love as God does, it allows us to maintain our faith in all kinds of situations and among all kinds of people.

It hopes all things –godly love doesn’t become hopeless or defeated by what happens to us in this life. It remains hopeful in the face of difficulties.

It endures all things –despite what others might do or say, godly love patiently and persistently weathers the storms of life without giving in or giving up.

It never ends – the kind of love Paul is describing is long-lasting, not short-lived. There will never be a time when godly love becomes non-existent or non-essential.

But spiritual gifts have a shelf life; they will not always be needed or necessary. When Christ returns and establishes His Kingdom on earth, there will be no more need for prophecy, tongues, or the gift of knowledge because all will be fulfilled. God’s plan will be complete. But love will prevail and persist, because God is love. The permanence of godly love is why it should have preeminence in our lives, and when we operate under the Spirit’s control, we will display the characteristics of God’s love. Our spirituality will be marked by love, rather than envy, deceit, or provocation.

Godly love unites and never divides. It always flows out and never turns in on itself. Paul describes a life in which God’s love flows through us to others. The apostle John provides a much-needed reminder of love’s source and its significance in our lives.

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. – 1 John 4:7-12 ESV

It is God’s unwavering and undeserved love for us that should motivate our love for others. Jesus told His disciples, “As I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (John 13:34 ESV). All those who have been the recipients of God’s love, as expressed through the gracious gift of His Son, should reciprocate by passing that love on to others. According to John, claiming to love God while failing to love others is not only hypocritical but also a sin.

If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? – 1 John 4:20 NLT

If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him? – 1 John 3:17 BSB

According to Paul, godly love is not only practical, but it’s also practicable. With the Spirit’s help, we can love others as God has loved us because His brand of love is tangible and applicable to everyday life. But our love is more than beneficial to others; it’s educational.  When we love one another as Jesus has loved us, we prove to the world that we are not only His followers, but that we are His agents of reconciliation to a lost and dying world.

“A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.” – John 13:34-35 BSB

Father, if we truly learned to love as we have been loved, the world would sit up and take notice. That kind of love is in short supply and desperately needed. And You have not only commanded us to love well, but You have provided the means to do so through the gift of Your Spirit. We have the power to love and more than enough opportunities to put it into practice every day. So, light a fire in our hearts so that we might reject selfishness and embrace the selfless, sacrificial love You have showered on us and share it with all those we meet — no matter how undeserving or unloveable they may be. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Gift of Love

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27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. 28 And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? 31 But earnestly desire the higher gifts.

And I will show you a still more excellent way.

1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. – 1 Corinthians 12:27-13:3 ESV

Paul says that we are individuals who, together, make up the body of Christ, the church. We are individuals, and our Spirit-endowed giftedness makes us indispensable. We have each been given a gift by the Holy Spirit for the corporate good of the rest of the faith community in which God has placed us. God has designed it so that none of us is an independent agent operating in isolation.

As Paul points out to the Corinthians, the body of Christ included some who were apostles. Others were assigned the gift of prophecy or teaching. Some worked miracles or performed healings, while others used their gift of administration or helping. And then there were those who had been given the gift of tongues. Each was necessary. Yes, some of the gifts might seem more significant, but all were essential to the church’s overall well-being. Their fallen nature led the Corinthians to elevate one gift above another. This categorization and prioritization of the gifts produced jealousy or pride, depending on the particular gift an individual received. So, Paul determined to show them a “more excellent way.”

Essentially, Paul addresses the one thing that holds the body of Christ together. Interestingly enough, it isn’t going to be our shared faith in Christ. That is what places us in the body of Christ, but it is not the glue that holds us together. Even our giftedness is not enough to keep us unified and compatible. So what is the glue that holds this unique collection of individuals together? What prevents our diversity, even in our areas of giftedness, from creating division, disorder, and dysfunctionality?

For Paul, the answer was love.

Within the Corinthian church, the gift of tongues had been elevated to rock-star status. In their estimation, tongues was a more flamboyant, outwardly obvious gift that garnered attention and created an aura of spirituality for the one who practiced it. But Paul is going to take a handful of the gifts, including tongues, and show that each is worthless if they are performed without love.

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. – 1 Corinthians 13:1 ESV

The gift of tongues, practiced without love, was nothing more than a loud, irritating noise. It may be unavoidably noticeable, but it will also be undeniably unprofitable. The gift of tongues, like every other gift of the Spirit, was intended to build up and edify the body. To practice tongues without love would be to focus on self and to neglect the overall health of the church. The goal of the one speaking in tongues would be to garner attention for themself, rather than allowing the Spirit to use the gift for the good of others.

But Paul is not done.

And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. – 1 Corinthians 13:2 ESV

You could have legitimate prophetic power to foretell the future and reveal God’s hidden truth, but if you did so without love, your efforts would be of no value. In essence, Paul is saying that, while your gift might make you a somebody in the eyes of others, in God’s eyes, you would be a nobody, unimportant and non-essential. Your lack of love would negate any value your gift might have had. It is worthless to understand the mysteries of God and to grasp the knowledge of God if that information is shared in a loveless and selfless manner. Paul drives his point home by stating that mountain-moving faith is useless without love. Even if you had enough faith to do the impossible but lacked love, your actions would not impress God, because your accomplishment would lack any redeeming value.

Next, Paul brings up a seemingly contradictory example.

If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. – 1 Corinthians 13:3 ESV

Isn’t sacrifice always motivated by love? Wouldn’t love be the only thing that would cause someone to sacrifice their life? After all, Jesus Himself said, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13 ESV). But Paul’s point is that even the gift of giving, demonstrated by the ultimate act of martyrdom, can be done without love. You can die for a cause, but fail to do so out of love for others. You can give away all your possessions to gain the praise of men, but not out of love for them. It was Jesus who said, “When you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward” (Matthew 6:2 ESV). You may enjoy the accolades of men, but you will gain nothing from God.

Love is essential because God is love. To practice any of the gifts without love would be ungodly and out of character. It is possible for us to emulate or imitate the spiritual gifts, but we can’t produce them on our own. We can easily confuse talents with gifts. Just because we are capable leaders in the marketplace does not mean we have the spiritual gift of leadership or administration in the body of Christ. We may be gifted teachers or educators, but that does not mean we have the spiritual gift of teaching. When the Spirit of God gives a gift, it is always accompanied by love and intended to build up others in the body. Each gift is inherently selfless in its expression and is never accompanied by the question, “What’s in it for me?” A spiritual gift simply gives, expecting nothing in return, because that is the essence of love.

As Paul will make clear in the following verses, love is the only thing that will last. There is a day coming when all of the spiritual gifts will be unnecessary, having served their earthly purpose. In the eternal state, there will be no need for tongues, prophecy, healing, or miracles. We will no longer need faith or hope, because all things will have been fulfilled and made complete. God is love, and because He is eternal, so is love. Love is the glue that holds all things together; it is the bond of unity between God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

For Paul, love is the more excellent way. It is the ultimate expression of God’s identity and far surpasses any of the gifts. In fact, it is love that gives each gift its true value.

Father, the bottom line for You is love because it is the greatest expression of Your divine character. Even Your holiness is best expressed through Your love. But Your love is not some kind of sentimental, sacrine, Valentine’s card kind of love. It is selfless, righteous, redemptive, and always focused on the betterment of others. Paul seemed to have You in mind when he wrote, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7 ESV). You desire that we follow Your example, and You sent Your Son, as an expression of Your love for us, to make it possible. Then You gave us Your Spirit so that we have the power to model Your love here on earth. But we tend to make everything about us. We practice a form of self-love that is always motivated by greed rather than grace. We can even make the gifts of the Spirit all about us. But without love, even the gifts of the Spirit lose their value. Without love, our faith becomes meaningless. So, give us an ever-increasing understanding of  and appreciation for Your love for us so that we might pass it on to all those around us. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

That’s the Spirit!

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1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.

4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills. – 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 ESV

Paul now takes on yet another issue causing conflict within the Corinthian church. Like authority in worship and the celebration of the Lord’s table, this one has led to conflict and confusion. It is being misunderstood and, therefore, misused by many within the church. This will cause Paul to dedicate far more time and attention to this topic than any of the previous ones, indicating its importance within the body of Christ.

The issue at hand is the role of the Spirit of God within the life of a believer and the usage of the gifts He provides within the body of Christ. There is an obvious difference of opinion between Paul and some in the church regarding the Holy Spirit’s role and the use of the gifts He gives. The Corinthians, having come out of a pagan background, brought their own definition of the Spirit to the table. They tended to view the Holy Spirit through their former religious experience.

Living in a Greek culture, they viewed life from a dualistic perspective, separating the spiritual from the material. They believed that the spiritual portion of their life is what led to wisdom and knowledge, so it was considered good. But the physical or material aspects of life and the world were evil. Even tongues, as practiced in the pagan religions of the time, was a means of having a spiritual, heavenly-like experience while living in the physical/material realm. This bifurcated view of the human existence was having an unhealthy influence on their understanding of the Spirit of God and the use spiritual gifts within the church. For instance, they tended to view the gift of tongues from a self-centered perspective, considering it as a highly personal experience. They gave little thought to its influence or impact on the body of Christ as a whole.

Paul tells them, “I do not want you to be uninformed.” The word translated as “uninformed” can also be translated as “ignorant.” He is inferring that they were ignorant regarding the role of the Spirit and the proper use of the spiritual gifts, but he didn’t want them to remain that way. Throughout this section of his letter, and culminating in chapter 14, Paul stresses the role of love and the importance of community when it comes to the Spirit and the gifts He bestows. He will tell them, “Since you are so eager to have the special abilities the Spirit gives, seek those that will strengthen the whole church” (1 Corinthians 14:12 NLT). And sandwiched in-between chapters 12 and 14 he places his famous “love” chapter, dedicating a section on the significance of love when it comes to the use of the gifts of the Spirit.

Early in this chapter, Paul provides a simple test for true Spirit-filled expression. He wants to clear up any misconception that any seemingly spiritual-sounding utterance was necessarily from the Spirit of God. Someone could claim to be filled with the Spirit, but the proof would be in the words that came out of their mouth. He tells them, “no one speaking by the Spirit of God will curse Jesus, and no one can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:3 NLT). In other words, a Spirit-filled person would never deny Christ, and a non-Spirit-filled person would never proclaim the deity of Christ. The presence of the Spirit is the key, and the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ, always promoting and making much of Him.

Paul confirms that there are all kinds of spiritual gifts, but they all come through the Holy Spirit and are ultimately given by God to the church. In fact, Paul states, “to each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:7 ESV). Every spiritual gift is intended to build up of the body of Christ. The gifts of the Spirit are for mutual edification, not the personal pleasure or promotion of the individual.

Paul provides them with a partial list of the gifts, indicating that each of them comes from the Spirit. It is the Spirit who determines how the gifts are distributed. It is not a competition, and the gifts are not handed out based on merit. However, the Corinthians were using their gifts as a kind of barometer to determine spiritual worthiness. The more demonstrative the gift, the more spiritual the bearer considered themselves.

In the opening of his letter, Paul seemed to indicate that the church in Corinth had been given all of the gifts of the Spirit. He proudly proclaimed, “you are not lacking in any gift” (1 Corinthians 1:7 ESV). The problem was not the presence of the gifts, but the proper use and understanding of them. The Corinthians were guilty of prioritizing the gifts, making some more important or significant than others. They tended to elevate and aspire after the more flamboyant gifts, such as tongues or prophecy. They were turning the gifts into badges of honor, wearing them with arrogance and pride, and promoting themselves as somehow more spiritual than others because of their particular gift.

But the gifts of the Spirit, like the fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5, were not to be self-promoting or self-focused. They were intended for the good of others. The Holy Spirit apportions or hands out the gifts based on community need, not individual merit. The gifts are given for the good of others. For instance, the gift of tongues was intended to minister to those who spoke another language. The gift of wisdom was not meant to make one person wiser than everyone else, but was given to share the wisdom of God with all. Healing, miracles, faith, prophecy, and tongues are all other-oriented and designed to build up, edify, minister to and strengthen the body of Christ.

The Spirit of God brings a spirit of unity and love, not division and competition. We can know that the Spirit of God is active within us when our lives have a positive influence on those around us. The Spirit never produces jealousy, pride, anger, or division. When we pridefully conclude that we are more spiritual than someone else, we are operating outside the will of the Spirit. He produces a spirit of humility and a heart of service. His power creates within us an unnatural compassion and care for others. When He is at work within us, we will be motivated to put the needs of others ahead of our own desires.

This problem of misusing or abusing the gifts of the Spirit was not unique to the church in Corinth. Paul addressed s similar issue when writing to the believers in Galatia.

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another. – Galatians 5:25-26 NLT

There is no place for pride, petty posturing, and a spirit of competition within the body of Christ. The gifts of the Spirit are not evidence of our godliness. They are not the byproduct or fruit of our personal success at achieving spiritual maturity. They are gifts freely given by the Spirit of God and designed to build up the body of Christ.

Our new life in Christ was made possible by the Spirit, and He is the one who makes possible our daily walk with Christ, so that we can live in selfless, sacrificial, loving community with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Father, thank You for the promise of the Spirit. Had he not opened my eyes to the truth of the gospel message, I would have remained blind and incapable of accepting Your gift of grace and forgiveness made possible through faith in Your Son. And the One who played a vital role in my salvation is continuing His work in my sanctification through the gifts He has given me. But I needed this reminder that the gifts of the Spirit were never intended for the benefit of the bearer. The gift I have been is not my own; it belongs to the body of Christ. It was never intended to be a measuring rod to determine my spirituality. Everyone of the gifts of the Spirit are other-oriented and intended for the edification of the church. Keep us from allowing pride and selfishness to dilute the impact of the Spirit’s gifts. Show us how to operate in His power and for the good of Your people at all times. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.