The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, and majestic in his radiant splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Corinthians 4:9-13,
"It seems to me that God has put us apostles on display at the end of the procession, like those condemned to die in the arena. We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to human beings. We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment."
Paul describes for his readers an aspect of how he viewed his life as an apostle of Jesus Christ. It certainly would be a major mistake to view his statement here as his overriding view however. In other passages he exults in the fullness of joy and passion in his role as an apostle. One such passage is Romans 15:17-19, "Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done— by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ."
Here in 1 Corinthians 4:9-13 he shares the difficulties he (as well as the other apostles) faced in his role as an apostle. He does so here to make a point to his readers that they should not be so boastful by going "beyond what is written", verse 6, in bragging about which leader they followed. Earlier in this letter he called them out, "My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, 'I follow Paul'; another, 'I follow Apollos'; another, 'I follow Cephas' [Peter]; still another, 'I follow Christ.'" 1 Corinthians 1:11-12.
"It seems to me that God has put us apostles on display at the end of the procession, like those condemned to die in the arena. We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to human beings. We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment."
Paul describes for his readers an aspect of how he viewed his life as an apostle of Jesus Christ. It certainly would be a major mistake to view his statement here as his overriding view however. In other passages he exults in the fullness of joy and passion in his role as an apostle. One such passage is Romans 15:17-19, "Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done— by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ."
Here in 1 Corinthians 4:9-13 he shares the difficulties he (as well as the other apostles) faced in his role as an apostle. He does so here to make a point to his readers that they should not be so boastful by going "beyond what is written", verse 6, in bragging about which leader they followed. Earlier in this letter he called them out, "My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, 'I follow Paul'; another, 'I follow Apollos'; another, 'I follow Cephas' [Peter]; still another, 'I follow Christ.'" 1 Corinthians 1:11-12.
Such quarreling was born out of the boastfulness of arrogance with which they turned against each other. Paul points out that if they wanted to boast about who they supposedly followed, keep in mind, these apostles had become as criminals or captives at the end of a procession headed for condemnation. They had become as though they were "the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world." It is enough to follow Jesus Christ himself.
Paul was telling them that if they thought they were high and mighty because of which apostle or leader they followed in Christ Jesus, they didn't have a clue as to what it was they thought they were boasting about.
It appears to me that this same error is still seen in the church today.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
No comments:
Post a Comment