The Legacy of a Transformed Man – Part Three – 2 Corinthians
Synopsis: The highest mark of Christian leadership is a Cross-Shaped-Life. And the highest goal is helping people experience spiritual transformation.
Head – The Helpful Information
It might come as something of a surprise to realize that the Apostle Paul was not an impressive public speaker. He was brilliant and gave us some of the first Christian theology and some of our New Testament. He was a faithful pastor, and those who knew him best love the man dearly. But he was not a dynamic speaker. So unimpressive was he that someone once fell asleep during his sermon, and fell out of a window, suffering severe injuries (Acts 20:7-12).
Super-Apostles – some of the apostles from Jerusalem had visited Corinth, and while they were there, basically said that the church in Corinth shouldn’t pay too much attention to Paul. They bragged about having a more authentic claim to apostleship than Paul, because they had known Jesus when he was still here on earth, something Paul could not claim. They were also apparently more polished and impressive in stature and presentation than Paul. Paul was short, bald Jewish man, who apparently was not that good looking. And so, the Christians in Corinth decided they would basically ignore Paul. They wanted a super-star for a leader, not a servant.
This is still a temptation for churches in our day. When congregations look for clergy leadership, they usually go looking for someone with rockstar qualities, such as being young, good looking, and a dynamic speaker. And who can blame churches for wanting those qualities. The problem is, sometimes a church is so enamored by these qualities that they neglect to look at a person’s character.
And, make no mistake about, a church should try to to hire a candidate with impressive leadership skills and credentials. But, when looking for spiritual leadership, character should always trump credentials. In the long term, a church will do better to have a less polished leader with good character than a dynamo who will later embarrass or wreck the church by bad behavior.
Paul uses the term “super apostles” to describe these rockstars, and to point out that the church in Corinth was making a pretty big mistake. And, the point is not that Paul is jealous or that he doesn’t think this church should ever have leadership other than Paul. The point is they are ignoring some badly needed guidance from Paul because he is not that impressive from a worldly point of view. So, why should they listen to him? Because he loves them, because he knows them well, and because he is their spiritual father. He led most of them to Christ and founded this church. So, in order to win a hearing from them, he lays out his credentials, almost as if he were at a public hearing or job interview. And here are the credentials he offers:
3 We live in such a way that no one will stumble because of us, and no one will find fault with our ministry. 4 In everything we do, we show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles and hardships and calamities of every kind. 5 We have been beaten, been put in prison, faced angry mobs, worked to exhaustion, endured sleepless nights, and gone without food. 6 We prove ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by the Holy Spirit within us, and by our sincere love. 7 We faithfully preach the truth. God’s power is working in us. We use the weapons of righteousness in the right hand for attack and the left hand for defense. 8 We serve God whether people honor us or despise us, whether they slander us or praise us. We are honest, but they call us impostors. 9 We are ignored, even though we are well known. We live close to death, but we are still alive. We have been beaten, but we have not been killed. 10 Our hearts ache, but we always have joy. We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing, and yet we have everything.
11 Oh, dear Corinthian friends! We have spoken honestly with you, and our hearts are open to you. 12 There is no lack of love on our part, but you have withheld your love from us. 13 I am asking you to respond as if you were my own children. Open your hearts to us.”
What sets Paul aside from these “super Apostles” was his character and his willingness to suffer for the Gospel. The proof of his apostolic authority was the transformed lives of the people in Corinth.
Heart – The Personal Connection
I want to speak to our young people for a few minutes. When you get to college or out into the world, a lot of people are going to try to talk you into walking away from your faith. They will try to make convincing arguments that will make you feel stupid and as if you made a big mistake in following Jesus.
One of the arguments is based on showing that you made a mistake in your thinking, what is called a logical fallacy. Specifically, they will accuse you of making the logical fallacy of appealing to an authority as evidence for believing in something. So, for example, why should you believe Christianity just because your mom told you it was true? That is an appeal to authority. Besides, your mother could be wrong. Maybe she even lied to you. Or maybe she was just mistaken. Or, maybe you believe because of terrific youth leaders, like Amy Bradahm or David Jackson. Why should you believe the faith based on what they have told you? Just because a youth leader told you something is no reason to believe it, right?
On the surface, this argument seems correct. And, if you are trying to convince someone of the truth of Christianity, telling them that your preacher told you something is not, alone, a very strong argument and will probably not convince anyone. In the same way, at some point in your life, as you examine your beliefs, you will probably want something more than just the testimony of your grandfather. But, that doesn’t mean that the witness of loved ones is completely unimportant. Nor does it mean that you should walk away from Jesus just because your first act of faith was based on trusting a youth leader or a friend, or a family member.
Whenever a matter of history is investigated, whether it be learning about a president, an important battle, or trying to understand the life of an important artist or scientist, the historian seeks out the testimonies of important witnesses, such as talking to people were friends with that person, rivals of the person, enemies, or co-workers who just happened to be around that person a lot. And, if the witnesses prove to be credible, the historian will use the information they get from those people. If they find that a person is not credible, then they may choose not to use the information that person gives. But historians rely heavily on credible witnesses.
The same thing happens in a court case. Lawyer doing the investigation try to find credible witnesses that can help a jury figure out what happened. And there is a big difference between a dishonest witness and an honest one. Yes, an honest witness can be wrong, but that is completely different from being dishonest.
Here is the point. At some point in your faith, you are going to probably want to have a reason for following Jesus that is built on something more than the fact that your mom was the first one to tell you about Jesus.
But, if your mom has been consistently a person of integrity, who has always tried to be honest with you and has proven over and over to be a good guide of life to you, then deciding to follow Jesus because of mom’s witness is not an illogical decision to make. It is no more illogical than trusting a professor who has giving you a good education, or trusting a police officer who has served her community with integrity for over thirty years. If an atheist professor makes fun of you for believing mama about Jesus you should ask, “Professor, the real question is, why do I trust my mama. I trust her because she has lived a life of integrity and led me well in life. The question is, professor, why should I trust you?” It is not wrong to take the word of someone who has been a trust worthy guide.
Blind faith or bad faith is when we choose to trust people who do it deserve to be trusted. But even secular and non-religious people must act of faith. When they buy groceries, they must trust that the people who handled their food did not lie about the expiration date or the place from where there food came.
When they decide whether or not to get on an elevator, they must decide whether or not to trust the county inspector who placed a certificate on the elevator declaring it to be safe. Even in higher education, you will have to take most of what your professors say on faith. You will not have time to independently verify everything they say. Doing that for one class alone would take a lifetime. The point is, we all depend on the testimony of others. The question is, are the people we trust worthy of that trust? It is bad faith if we choose to listen to someone we know to be a liar.
If you are Christian because of a good youth leader, a loving parent, or another trusted adult, that is neither illogical nor foolish; nor is it bad faith.
Paul had given selflessly of himself for the sake of the church at Corinth and they knew it. For a year and half, they witnessed a man living out the faith in costly ways, for their sake. And Paul’s point is that that should count for something, even if he was less impressive in other ways.
Hands – The Practical Application
Now, Paul urges them to imitate him and, more importantly, to imitate Christ, by taking up an offering for the Christians in Antioch who were suffering through a famine. Just as Paul had made sacrifices for them, he now urges them to make sacrifices for others.
Friends, our most credible witness is when we make sacrifices of time, money, energy, and talent for those who can never repay us. My hope is that over time, our church would make such an impact on our community that even the most hardened atheist will be thankful our church was here. She may think we are wrong about our beliefs, but she won’t be able to deny that we lived out what we believe.
Let us live in such a way that our lives become one of the reason others come to believe in and follow Jesus. Let us live lives of credibility. Let our lives be so compelling, so saturated in the presence of God, that they can’t ignore the testimony on display before them.