Daily Devotional for Saturday, November 14
Paul’s Sufferings
2 Corinthians 11:23-33
“In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren,” 2 Corinthians 11:26.
Listening to a powerful testimony is great. To hear the evidence that Jesus has changed a life is a reassurance to others that Jesus can change them too. On the other hand, some testimonies turn into biographies. Occasionally, people are telling everybody how bad they used to be to draw attention to themselves.
In light of the above verse, we wonder what Paul was up to. He wrote a long laundry list of the things he had suffered due to service for the Lord Jesus Christ. Is Paul bragging about his spiritual exploits? Because we know that Paul has always been humble, we also know that he was not bragging to draw attention to himself. This is why reading the Bible in context matters.
False teachers were working in the Corinthian church, and Paul was determined to put them in their place. This chapter is a great literary work by Paul, and he built his case methodically using God’s Word, his own experiences and even strong sarcasm.
Paul was hardly bragging; he was establishing his credentials as a servant of Jesus Christ and comparing himself to the false teachers who had not suffered but were, in fact, improving their lives under the guise of serving God.
False teachers still work among us, and we must stamp them out firmly. But if we want the credibility to confront those who are wrong, we have to be absolutely sure we are in the right. Is our position actually biblically based? Are our lives such that we have the right to confront another? If not, we may not be the ones to confront the offender.
Just a Thought
If your house is clean, your credentials to say something about another person’s house are better.
Wally Fry