ARTICLE – 26 June 2016
Heard of the word ‘humblebrags’? A humblebrag is to say it subtly and manipulate the listeners to admire or envy. The Apostle Paul was concerned about believers being subtly misled, coming under bondage while yet professing the faith. What is this bondage? How do Christians come to allow themselves be misguided?
Christians can be ignorant of God’s Word – the Bible. A lacking personal time reading the Bible searchingly has one consequence – “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). To seek the Word of God is to seek God to reveal Himself to us. Receiving a correct view of who God is and who we are in Jesus (forgiven, reconciled) shields us from deceptive, persuasive words of any individual. Conversely, lack of full repentance, guilt and feelings of inferiority (being never-good-enough) drive people to be receptive to the deception of leader hero-worship to the point of being gullible. Bondage devours; it takes from you. In Jesus, there is forgiveness and freedom from all guilt to live the new life.
Paul did not seek to defend himself. However, his ministry opponents made him an obstacle that hindered the Corinthian Christians from receiving the Word of God whole- heartedly. For this reason he boasted of his multiple sufferings in Christian ministry. They had to be clear about what being an apostle means. For that, Paul was only ready to speak of his physical and mental tortures he had endured for the sake of the gospel of Jesus. It was only to prove one thing – that the message of salvation through Jesus by the grace of God had to be taught at all cost.
The mere fact of hardships endured did not make Paul a true minister of Christ. Many people live hard and difficult lives but are in no way servants of Jesus. For Paul, all these perils and hardships were freely chosen to bear the message of salvation. He could have lived differently if he wanted to. It was not just spiritual talk of obedience but living out the gospel message, not for self. In Paul’s life, the zeal of God to accomplish and fulfil the deep concern for the churches. His deepest concern was for the subtlety of the enemy of souls in deception to lure them away from the Truth. A spiritual leader does not lead by his credentials but in humility, suffers (come what may), aiming to ground Christians in the Word of the Lord.
Know your God, His mercy and compassion. Then, go ahead and share unreservedly how God works in your life to establish you and those in your life, in the Word of Truth. Work like Paul. Be like Jesus Christ.
