Footsteps #217

Note that little phrase at the end of verse 12. “The things that mark an apostle were done among you with great perseverance.” Why does he add that? Just as his opponents couldn’t match his ability to do signs, wonders, and miracles, so they didn’t have his staying power. Yes, he had performed miracles from time to time, but between those exhilarating experiences were years of unrelenting effort against massive odds through which he endured. In v14 he recounts how he did not exploit them for gain. This is still one of the major lines of demarcation between a worldly view of spiritual leadership and a godly view, between true men of God and false teachers: are they pursuing God’s people, or are they pursuing the possessions of God’s people? –decent parents don’t exploit their children; they cheerfully accept the responsibility to rear them, educate them, and establish them as self-sufficient adults. Paul is the spiritual parent of the Corinthian church. As such he refused any financial support from them but instead sought his support from established churches. Once they were on their feet then they would be able to support their own pastor, but he would not ask them to support him during his time there. They interpreted his kindness as weakness. And they chose leaders who sucked them dry while they enjoyed extravagant lifestyles. (Sounds familiar?) In vs15&16 Paul affirms such love for the Corinthians that he would give them everything he had, including his very life. Without his efforts, there would have been no church in Corinth. Without his teaching and his discipleship and his patient encouragement, many of them would never have survived the persecution from their pagan families. There is serious pathos in Paul’s voice as he asks, “If I love you more, will you love me less?” In the last paragraph of chapter 12 Paul states the obvious: Paul’s friends need to repent. (12:19-21)  

They need to repent of their questioning of his motives.  Their quarrelling, jealousy, factions, slander, gossip, and disorder – sins that have destroyed the church’s unity. Sins that were tearing the church apart. Please read Chapter 12 for yourself.