Thanks very much, Ben. Good morning, everyone. It's lovely to see so many here in the church
and to know there are lots more watching on the live stream or listening to the recording.
You will find it helpful if you're trying to follow me. If you have a Bible in front of you,
open to 2 Corinthians 10, or if you can get it on your phone. If you were here last Sunday,
you may remember that during the service, I gave an update on our church's finances
and encourage everyone to think about their giving to the Lord's work here.
Thank you. A number of people have responded positively to that. Really grateful.
If you still want to give, there is information in the foyer.
But I want you to imagine just now, if last week, having asked for your money,
I stood up this morning and said, you think you're good Christians, but actually you're really unspiritual.
You're self-satisfied, you're proud of yourselves, and you're a bunch of troublemakers.
And unless you change pretty quickly, I'm going to get tough with you.
Now, imagine if I said that, you might say, well, if he's looking for our money, he can forget it now.
There's no need to insult us. Now, let's be clear, I'm not going to do that.
But it is very much what Paul does in 2 Corinthians.
Last week, we were looking at chapter 9, before that chapter 8 with Graham,
and Paul is encouraging the Corinthians to give to help the churches in Judea during a time of famine.
And then in chapter 10, there's a really dramatic change of tone.
And Paul starts by saying, well, you think I'm timid when I'm with you and both when I'm in writing.
Just wait till I come. If you haven't sorted yourselves out, you'll see how tough I can be.
There really is a strong change in the letter.
And we might ask, well, why is that?
Why does Paul go from being very ingratiating, if that's right words, to the Corinthians,
to suddenly slamming them and saying he's going to come and to condemn those who oppose him?
One quite attractive theory of that is perhaps Paul wrote 2 Corinthians,
having a good report from Titus about what is happening in the church at Corinth.
And perhaps when he was writing the first part of the letter,
he received more word from Corinth that said, actually, Titus was maybe a bit premature.
There are still huge problems in the church.
And at that point, he thought, well, I'm going to need to change a bit and be a bit tougher with them.
It's possible that's what was the case, but I don't think we need to assume it was something like that.
If we look a little bit differently at 2 Corinthians, I think there is a natural flow to it.
So the first seven chapters are largely looking backwards.
There have been big problems in the church.
We'll come back to them.
Paul had written to the church and told them they needed to sort themselves out.
Titus was able to come back and say, yes, they have largely repented of what they've done.
And Paul was really encouraged.
And the first seven chapters, on the whole, are quite upbeat.
And Paul talks about everything that we have in Lord Jesus.
He talks about the future, a glory for the Christians that awaits us.
And it's a rejoicing by Paul that the Corinthians have repented, or most of them at least have.
That was looking backwards.
Chapter 8 and 9 were more looking at the present.
So I was saying to the Corinthians, if you really have changed, and I believe you have,
why don't you demonstrate that through your generosity to Christians elsewhere who are going through a time of great difficulty?
Now is your chance to do that.
And Paul expresses confidence that indeed they will.
And then in chapters 10 through 13, he is looking forward.
He's thinking, I'm going to be visiting Corinth again.
And when I do, I want to make sure the church is in good shape.
I don't want to be going there and having to judge them and to put things right.
And chapters 10 to 13 are Paul preparing the way in advance and saying to the Christians in Corinth,
if you can sort things out, it will be a good visit that I'll come with.
If you're still following those who oppose me and are not preaching the right message,
well, then I'm going to have to come and be tough and sort things out.
So although the juxtaposition of chapters 9 and 10 might slightly jar us in 21st century Scotland,
there is a logic to them.
And I think in first century Greece, they wouldn't have come across in quite the same way.
But we definitely are now in a different part of the letter.
And for the next four chapters, Paul is going to be defending himself.
He's going to be defending himself against those who say he's not really a true apostle,
that the people shouldn't follow him.
And he's going to be saying to the church, they have to get rid of these people.
And he uses lots of different ways of doing that.
There's quite a lot of irony in the chapters.
You may notice he go through a little bit of sarcasm.
And Paul uses the word boast a lot.
You'll see this in today's passage.
And we get again and again as we go through.
Said with some embarrassment, Paul doesn't want to boast,
but feels that he needs to just to highlight how much better he is
than these people who are opposing him.
Let's just take a minute before we dig into the passage to remind ourselves of who it is that Paul's talking about.
They're probably Jews encouraging the Corinthians to follow more of the Jewish religion
rather than just rely on faith in Jesus alone for their salvation.
They were people who came with oratory, who had a bit of presence to them,
and who came to the church expecting to be supported financially by it and to be looked up to in it.
They would talk of mystical experiences they had of the Lord.
They would try to show works of power, miracles,
and they would present themselves as what Paul will call in a couple of chapters later, super apostles.
We are the real deal.
We are the people who are really spiritual.
You need to follow us.
And they looked at Paul and said,
he's a little man.
He's not very imposing.
He's not the greatest of speakers.
He even is a manual laborer.
He makes tents for a living.
Why should people listen to him?
We are much more positive in our preaching,
and we are the ones that you should follow.
Follow.
But crucially for Paul,
they weren't bringing the right gospel to the church.
They weren't building the church up.
They were just there for their own good,
so that people would think a lot of them,
and would give them lots of money.
They didn't have any real interest in the Christians in Corinth.
And so Paul in these chapters will defend himself against a number of accusations.
I'll just give an idea of where we're going this morning.
There are a couple of particular criticisms that Paul deals with.
The chapter divides itself quite neatly into two sections,
from verse 1 to 11,
and then from verse 12 to verse 18.
And in the first section,
the people who oppose Paul are saying,
he's bold when he writes.
He's willing to have a go at us in writing.
When he's actually with us,
he's very timid.
He doesn't follow up what he says he will when he's writing.
He is really not a person who has great confidence in himself,
or who's someone that you should listen to.
Paul responds to that in these verses.
And then verses 12 through to 18,
the people are saying,
well, he's not got any commendation with them.
We come with our letters,
saying how great we are,
and all the wonderful things we've done.
Where does Paul have that?
And so Paul has to deal with that
in the second part of the chapter.
Now, below that, there are a number of sub-themes.
Now, the questions here aren't quite too clear-cut,
but let me just suggest the kind of things
that the people might have been saying.
So they were saying,
Paul's worldly.
He's not spiritual.
We are super-Christians.
We are super-apostles.
Paul's not like that.
He just doesn't have the spiritual power that we do.
They also question Paul's authority.
They're saying,
Paul's constantly criticising you.
He's putting you down.
What kind of authority does he have to do that?
And then they're saying,
he's encroaching on our patch.
We are the people in Corinth now.
What right has Paul got to come
and to tell you what to do?
And it's that kind of criticism
that we'll be thinking about.
Paul, though, turns it around
and he presents things much more positively.
And I want to focus more this morning
rather than the criticism
on the priorities that Paul presents to us.
So when they talk about him being hard
or being soft,
Paul says,
I want to appeal to you
with the gentleness of Christ.
When they say that they're spiritual
and he's worldly,
Paul says,
what I really want
is to have the mind of Christ.
When they say he's only interested
in criticising,
that he's not really helping the church,
Paul says,
my concern is the body of Christ
in building up,
not in bringing down.
When they say he's got no commendation,
he didn't come with all these letters,
Paul says,
what really matters to me
is the commendation of Christ,
that the Lord Jesus is happy
with what I do.
And when the question is right
to encroach on where they are,
Paul says,
I was sent to you
with the gospel of Christ
and that is what I'm going to bring to you.
So that's where we're going.
We'll briefly talk about each of these
and then at the end,
we'll pull it together.
So let's begin
with the Corinthians saying about Paul
that he's timid when he's with them,
but he's bold when he writes to them
and Paul countering that.
So this little picture
I put up on the screen
is a brief summary
of Paul's dealings with the Corinthians.
So his first visit
we read about in the book of Acts.
He went to Corinth
after he'd been to Athens
and he had a fairly difficult time there,
but he established a church.
He established a church
that really flourished.
It was supremely gifted.
They had lots of spiritual gifts
and they were able to grow
and to develop.
But they also developed lots of issues.
That was 1 Corinthians.
Paul's first letter is in our Bible
is about lots of issues
that Corinthians had
because they just thought
a little too much of themselves
and they didn't deal
with some of the sin and issues
that they had in the church.
So 1 Corinthians is in our Bible.
Paul then found that things were going
or heard that things were getting worse
in Corinth
and he went back again.
What's sometimes called
his painful visit.
He went and essentially
he was rejected by the church.
These people who'd come in
and were trying to present themselves
as superior to Paul
had wormed their way in
and they had taken a lot of control
within the church.
And Paul then had a very difficult
decision to make.
He could have been
very confrontational.
He could have said
no they're all wrong
and I'm the true apostle
and you've got to listen to me
and got into a bit of a slanging match.
But he decided not to do that.
Out of love and consideration
for the church
he didn't want to split it completely.
He decided at that point
not to bring judgment on them
but to leave fairly quietly.
But what he did after that
was he wrote them
what's known as
his severe letter.
Now that's not in our Bible
but it's referred to
in 2 Corinthians.
What he didn't feel able
to say to them
face to face
he put in a letter
and sent to them
via Titus.
And that's why the Corinthians
are saying
or those who've come to Corinth
are saying
he's bold when he writes
and he's timid
when he's with us.
It was Paul
out of consideration
for the church
not wanting to split it
by getting to a slanging match
with them
but to write them
his considered views
and warnings
of what might happen
if they didn't change.
So that last letter
as I said
was sent with Titus.
The church responded
well to it
didn't become perfect
by any means
responded well
and Titus came back
with the good report
and that's when Paul
wrote 2 Corinthians.
And as I said
he looks forward
in that to his third visit
and hopes that
that will be
more positive.
So if we go back
to our thing
about Paul's priorities
what do we learn
then in these
opening verses
about Paul's
approach?
Paul almost says
in these verses
I'm going to do
the opposite
of what you said
I'd do.
You said
I would be bold
in writing
and I would be timid
when I come to you
actually in my writing
I'm going to be gentle
I'm going to plead
with you
I'm not going
to force you
but if you don't change
when I come to you
things will be
very different.
Paul wanted
them to change
he was desperate
for them to change
without him having
to come
and to force it
on them.
And he says
in verse 1
by the humility
and gentleness
of Christ
I appeal
to you.
Very measured
very calm
but also
very compelling.
And he says
in doing this
I'm following
the example
of Jesus.
Now of course
we know
if we read
the gospels
that Jesus says
Matthew chapter 11
take my yoke
upon you
and learn from me
for I am gentle
and humble
in heart
and you will
find rest
for your souls.
And in some ways
that is exactly
what Paul is trying
to do here
being humble
and gentle
but enabling
the Corinthians
to learn
from him.
But I think
it's maybe a bit
more in what
Paul says
than that.
If we think
back to the life
of Jesus
now Jesus
could be very firm
when he chose
to be.
When it was
the money changes
in the temple
or when it was
exposing the hypocrisy
of the Pharisees
Jesus didn't
hold back.
But when he came
to earth
the first time
he didn't come
in judgment.
John 3 17 says
God did not send
his son
to condemn
the world
but to save
the world
through him.
He gave plenty
of opportunities
for people
to repent
and change
their ways.
But when ultimately
he was rejected
by his own people
when he was nailed
to the cross
he didn't bring
down condemnation
and judgment
on them
he says
Father forgive them
for they don't
know what they do.
His first coming
was not to judge.
And similarly
Paul's saying
when I came first
and found all
these problems
I didn't come
in judgment
I came to give
you a chance
to change.
Over the last
2,000 years
we've lived
in a period
of God's grace.
And we have
God's word
that tells us
about how
our God
is
about his
holiness
and also
about his
love
and that
urges us
to repent
and to turn
away
from our sins.
And many
millions
over the years
have done
that
and come
to faith
in Jesus.
But there
are warnings
in the Bible
about what
happens
if we don't
do it
just like
Paul does
in his
letter
here.
And when
Jesus comes
again for
the second
time
we don't
know when
that will be
could be
very soon
when Jesus
comes again
for the
second time
he won't
be coming
to save
the world
to take
the sins
of the world
as he did
when he died
on the cross.
Rather he'll
be coming
so that people
can be divided
into two
groups.
Those who
have trusted
Jesus
who have
obeyed
what he
said
who have
their faith
in him
and not
in themselves
and those
who have
rejected
Jesus.
And those
who have
rejected him
will be
judged
and will
be
eternally
condemned.
That's a
really solemn
thought.
It's one
perhaps we
don't talk
about often
enough in
church.
There's a
judgment
coming and
we all
need to
make sure
that our
trust is
in Jesus
so that we
can escape
that judgment
and have
eternal life
through him.
Maybe I
could echo
Paul's
words.
By the
humility
and gentleness
of Christ
I appeal
to you to
make sure
that you
are right
with God
through faith
in Jesus
so that
when he
returns
you will
be saved
and not
condemned.
Something there
for everyone
to think
about.
And if we
are Christians
if we are
following Jesus
to reflect
on that
and to
think how
we can
help others
to understand
their need
of the
Lord Jesus.
That is
the gentleness
of Christ
that Paul
displays.
The second
thing we want
to think about
is the
mind of
Christ.
We're
looking at
verses 3
to 6
here.
And the
accusation
that's been
made against
Paul is
at the
end of
verse 2
where he
talks about
people who
think that
we live
by the
standards
of this
world.
I think
what they're
saying here
is that
they are
strong
Christians
full of
the Holy
Spirit
and they
are able
to say
exactly
what they
think
and to
teach the
people
in exactly
the way
they want.
Paul
lives by
a different
standard.
He's not
got the
spiritual courage
and the
spiritual ability
to deal
with problems
face to face.
He has to
try and do it
in writing.
That's a very
worldly way
of looking at
things,
they say.
Paul says
not at all.
What is
key here
is that we're
in a battle.
The language
of verses
3-5
is very
much the
language
of
warfare.
Paul says
I'm fighting
a battle,
I'm going
to win
that battle
and in
particular
he says
the battle
is for
the mind,
to have
the mind
of
Christ.
Verse 5
he says
we take
captive
every thought
to make
it
obedient
to
Christ.
That's a
great theme
as we go
through the
New Testament.
that the
battle in
our lives
is very
largely a
battle for
our minds.
Paul writes
in Romans
12,
do not
conform to
the pattern
of this
world
but be
transformed
by the
renewing
of your
mind
then you
will be
able to
test and
approve
what God's
good will
is.
His good
pleasing
and perfect
will.
Above
anything else
in our
lives,
if we are
Christians,
if we know
Jesus as
saviour,
we need
to seek
to have
the mind
of Christ
to be
filled with
thoughts of
him and
of his
standards
and to
live by
these and
not the
world's
standards.
That's just
what I've
been doing.
You may
accuse me
of being
worldly.
I've been
trying with
love and
with gentleness
to help you
to get in
the right
path.
But I
have the
mind of
Christ and
if you
don't,
then there
will be
consequences.
Paul says
in Colossians
chapter 3,
set your
mind on
things above,
not on
earthly
things.
Can I
challenge us
this morning?
What do
we do to
make sure
that we
have the
mind of
Christ?
I suggest
the key
things in
that are
reading our
Bibles and
meditating on
God's Word
and spending
time in
prayer,
looking for
God's will
and his
guidance in
our lives.
If we're
Christians,
if we're
followers of
Jesus,
very important
that we
have the
mind of
Christ,
that we
look at
the world
from his
perspective,
not from
the way
the world
looks at
it,
and we
seek to
be
obedient
to it.
Third
point,
then,
is on
the body
of Christ.
So the
troublemakers
in Corinth
seem to be
saying,
Paul is
just someone
who criticizes
constantly,
but he's
not got
the authority
to do
it,
and you
should just
ignore him.
In fact,
they seem to
be saying,
he may not
even be a
Christian.
If he's
not got
the spirit
of Jesus
in him
the way
that we
do,
is he
really a
Christian
at all?
Apocryphals
that one
straight away,
that he's
saying they're
judging by
appearance,
or maybe
it could
be better
translated,
you're
missing the
obvious.
If anyone's
confident that
they belong
to Christ,
they should
consider,
again,
that we
belong to
Christ just
as much
as they
do.
The evidence
of belonging
to Christ
is not
having great
confidence in
your speaking,
is not being
able to do
things that
other people
can't do,
not even
being able to
do miracles
or whatever.
All of us
who have our
trust in
Jesus,
we have
Christ,
we are part
of the body
of Christ,
the church.
And Paul
says,
my aim
is to build
up this
church.
Paul
had established
the church
in Corinth,
he loved
it,
he loved
the people
in it,
and his
greatest desire
was that
they should
obey the
Lord and
that they
should follow
him closely
as they
grew in
faith.
Bodybuilding
can be
painful,
and I'm
not a
bodybuilder,
but I know
people who do
it can be
quite a painful
and difficult
process,
but at the
end of the
day,
they end up
stronger,
they end up
physically
in better
shape.
I think Paul
is saying
here,
actually,
building the
body of
Christ at
times can
be painful
too.
It's not
all about
just encouraging
each other
and saying
how wonderful
we are
and pointing
to Jesus,
vital though
that is.
Sometimes in
love we have
to correct
one another
if we're
going wrong,
or we have
to be willing
to accept
correction
if other
people have
seen things
in us
and point
it out.
But the
key thing
is that
together we
build up
the body
of Christ,
that together
we seek to
help one
another to
grow in
our faith
and in
our love
of the
Lord Jesus
and our
devotion to
him.
You and
I are not
apostles,
far less
super apostles,
but all of
us have
spiritual gifts
that God
has given
us,
and all of
us have a
duty,
a responsibility
if we are
Christians and
we are part
of the church
to build
one another
up and
to help
us to
grow in
our faith.
And sometimes
that can
mean saying
things people
don't necessarily
want to
hear,
but that God
would direct
us to help
them to
understand what
they need to
change in
their lives.
We all have
the opportunity
to serve
and to help
others on
our Christian
walk.
So that's
the first half
of the chapter
if you like,
the overall
heading,
the gentleness
of Christ,
but within
that the mind
of Christ
and the body
of Christ
are priorities
for Paul.
For the second
part of the
chapter I
want to take
the gospel
of Christ
first and
we'll come
back to
the commendation
of Christ
later.
Paul was
commissioned
by Jesus
to go
and to
take the
gospel
to the
Gentiles.
There was
later an
agreement
between the
leaders of
the early
church
that that
is what
they would
do.
Peter and
others
would
concentrate
on taking
the gospel
to the
Jews.
Paul would
concentrate
on taking
the gospel
to the
Gentiles.
And as
part of
that,
Paul had
come to
Corinth
with the
gospel
message.
The people
who were
critical of
him had
come in
later.
They'd
kind of
ridden on
his
coattails
and got
into the
church
and led
it astray.
But Paul
was the
one who
had
established,
in human
terms,
established
the
church.
So he
says,
quite
legitimately,
I can
come and
I can
try to
tell it
where it's
going wrong.
I have
that authority,
I've been
given that
authority by
God,
and I am
going to
ensure that
the church
get back
on the
right lines.
Paul wasn't
a fly-by-night
preacher,
come in
today,
preach the
word,
maybe get
paid something
and then go
on and do
something
somewhere else.
Although he
had a
wide
teaching
ministry,
although he
went all
over the
known world
at that
time,
when he
established
a church,
Paul really
wanted to
care for
it and
to nurture
it and
to give
it opportunities
to grow
and to
serve.
You may
have noticed
in the
chapter that
Paul talks
about going
to the
regions
beyond.
Now regions
beyond in
that case
would be
places like
Rome and
Spain and
other parts
of the
world which
hadn't
necessarily
been reached
with the
gospel.
And Paul
wants to
partner with
the
Corinthian
church in
going and
taking God's
word to
these places.
They said,
I won't do
that until
the problems
are resolved
in Corinth.
My first
priority is to
sort out the
issues in the
church that I
established.
Then with
your support,
I can go
and take the
word elsewhere.
I think this
illustrates for us
two very
important areas
of gospel
work.
On one
hand, all
Christians
should have a
restless desire
to tell others
the good news
of the gospel.
To reach for
Christ, those
who haven't yet
been saved
and are heading
for judgment
unless they
repent and
turn to Christ.
To die without
Christ is to be
lost forever
and we want to
give everyone
we can the
opportunity to
experience God's
salvation.
But Paul
reminds us the
gospel is not
just about making
converts.
It's not enough,
it's essential,
but it's not enough
that people just
become Christians
and then drift on
with their old
life and nothing
changes.
Rather, the
gospel is about
making disciples,
about people
coming to faith
in the Lord
Jesus and then
growing in him
and becoming
more like Jesus
in their daily
lives.
And that's what
we're about as
a church.
We want people
to come and
to trust in
the Lord
Jesus.
But we also
want to see
spiritual growth,
people developing
and flourishing
in their faith
as they draw
closer to the
Lord Jesus
and as they
serve him.
I think there's
a slightly
sobering warning
here as well
that maybe we
need to think
about.
I'm not thinking
about anything
particular when
I say this,
but there is a
danger in churches
that if there are
problems, if there
are people causing
difficulties or
divisions or
troubles, that
takes up an
awful lot of
the time of
church leadership
and it restricts
the ability to
spread the gospel
and to grow the
work of Christ.
We all need to be
sure if we are a
member of a church
that we are people
who are there for
the building up of
others and not
for causing
trouble or to
reduce the time
that the leaders
of the church
have to reach
out and to plan
ahead with the
gospel.
The final one
and then we'll
put things
together.
The commendation
of Christ.
What was
happening here
was that these
people had come
to Corinth with
letters saying
how wonderful
they were.
Paul says
actually they
wrote the letters
themselves.
I don't think
each individual
probably wrote
their own
letter, but
probably a group
of people and
they wrote
glowing reports
of each other.
They had very
little value
because it was
only their
assessment and
they were only
comparing people
with a small
group.
Might have looked
convincing, might
have looked as
if these were
good people and
people you should
listen to.
In practice the
letters that they
brought were
worth almost
nothing.
Back in chapter
three where Paul
faced a similar
challenge about
his letter of
commendation, he
said that actually
his letter was
written on the
heart.
His letter was
the church in
Corinth.
You only had to
look at what
had happened in
the church, at
the change that
had been in
people's lives, and
you could see that
the work that Paul
had done among
them was genuine,
that his gospel
really could bring
changes.
He doesn't repeat
that here, but he
makes a vital point.
Right at the end
of the chapter,
verse 18, he
says,
it is not the one
who commends
himself who is
approved, but the
one whom the
Lord
commends.
Ultimately, when
we get praise from
others, we enjoy
it, let's face
it.
If someone comes
and says, you
did a really good
job on something,
that's good, and
it gives us a
boost, and it's
something that we
should do for one
another, encourage
each other as we
serve the Lord
Jesus.
But ultimately, the
kind of commendation
that we get from
humans has limited
value.
It will give us a
boost, it will
maybe help us,
hopefully doesn't
make us too
proud, but it's
not what we
should be doing
things for.
Paul says what
really matters is
the commendation of
Christ.
What really matters
is serving
faithfully so that
when we face the
Lord Jesus and give
account for our
lives, he's able
to say to us,
well done, good
and faithful
servant.
And that is worth
so much more than
any praise or
commendation we may
get from others.
Let's not look just
at the things that
we think will be
popular with others
that will make them
think highly of us.
In our service for
the Lord Jesus, let
us do it for him,
and much of it may
be unseen, but he,
our Father, our
Heavenly Father, sees
what is done in
secret, and he will
reward us.
If we do things
deliberately for the
praise of humans and
we get that, Jesus
tells us we'll have
had our reward in
full at that point.
So let's serve with
the right motives, and
let's have all the
right priorities that
Paul talks about.
Now just very
quickly, let me bring
things together.
This is my favourite
book on 2 Corinthians,
written by Jonathan
Lamb, who's preached
several times at this
church, and it's
called integrity.
It's not a
commentary as such.
Jonathan has
written a great
commentary.
It isn't a
commentary as such,
but it's taking the
theme of integrity,
particularly integrity
and leadership, and
exploring how that
is brought out in
2 Corinthians.
And Jonathan
identifies three
marks of integrity.
I think there's
three marks that
Paul's bringing
before us in our
passage this morning.
The first of these
is sincerity.
It is about our
motivation.
Are we doing
things to build up
the church and for
the benefit of
others, or are we
doing them for
ourselves?
Are we doing
things so that we
win the praise of
humans, or are we
doing things so that
we win the
commendation of
God?
Paul's motivation
were to develop the
mind and character of
Christ and to build
up the body of
Christ.
His motives were
sincere.
The second part of
integrity is
consistency, what
Lamb calls living
life as a whole.
Paul's opponents
accused him of
inconsistency between
his writings and
his visits.
But Paul says,
no, in verse 11,
what we are in our
letters when we are
absent, we will be in
our actions when we're
present.
Paul says, by
taking every thought
captive, he's able
constantly to be
obedient to Christ and
to live a consistent
Christian life.
And then the third
thing is reliability,
reflecting God's
faithfulness.
It would have been
very easy for Paul to
turn his back on the
church in Corinth and
to say, I'm having
nothing more to do
with it.
He could move on to
other churches that
might be a bit more
receptive to what he
had to say.
But no, he'd committed
himself to the church,
to boarding it up, and
he was going to see
it through.
He was faithful not
just to God, but to
the church as well, and
even willing to change
his plans to meet its
needs.
So can I challenge us?
Are we people of
integrity, of
sincerity, of
consistency, of
reliability?
And let me end with
two American
presidents.
Barack Obama and
Jimmy Carter.
Whatever you think of
their politics, I
think these two are
widely regarded as
men who had
integrity, who had
compassion.
As you probably know,
Jimmy Carter died
towards the end of
last year.
He drove her 100.
And I think the best
tribute I saw to him
came from Barack
Obama.
Obama's tribute
highlighted the fact
that Jimmy Carter
was a Christian,
indeed, that he
preached quite
regularly in the
Baptist church that
he attended.
As an aside, Jimmy
Carter a few weeks
ago won his fourth
Grammy for some of
his sermons that he
preached at that
church.
Barack Obama said
this about Carter.
He believed some
things were more
important than
re-election.
Things like
integrity, respect,
and compassion.
Jimmy Carter
believed that we
are all created in
God's image.
He didn't just
profess these
values.
He embodied
them.
And in doing so,
he taught all of
us what it means
to live a life of
grace, dignity,
justice, and
service.
That's a wonderful
tribute, isn't it?
I wonder if it
could be said of
us.
Do we have
integrity in our
lives?
Are our priorities
the gentleness of
Christ, the mind of
Christ, the body of
Christ, the gospel of
Christ, and the
commendation of
Christ?
And I need to ask
the question again,
do we all have
Christ in our lives?
Is our faith in
him?
Let me pray, and
then we're going to
look at some
questions.
Father, we thank you
for your word.
We thank you for the
power with which
Paul writes as he
counters his
critics, but yet
highlights to us
how we should live
our lives.
Help us to be
people who are
marked by our love
of the Lord Jesus
and our love
of the church.
Help all of us
too to be sure
that our faith is
in Jesus, that we
are following him
and living for him.
Thank you for your
presence this morning,
we pray you'll be
with us now as we
continue together.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
I think I think I think I think I think I think I think I think I think I think I think