II Corinthians 1:12 For our rejoicing is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our conversation in the world, and more abundantly to you-ward.
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God…” Paul wrote as a saved person. What he wrote was directed by God. That is how the true child of God needs to function.
Philippians 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
True Christianity is an interesting life. It is life. It is a life that is no longer that of the flesh. It is a life that needs to learn how to walk in the Spirit. It is a life that functions in a different way. The world will not understand the way of the Christian. Throughout the centuries, hatred has been expressed toward those who know and love the Lord. It affects the conscience of the lost to see how the saved live.
New Evangelicalism has tried hard to erase the God-made division between the saints and the lost. Too many people have bought the lie of N.E. and they believe that the few who choose to know the Lord and walk with Him are out of touch and need to be ignored and silenced.
Paul spoke of his conscience. He was with Timothy as he was directed to write this letter. He had a clear conscience. He was doing the will of God. There was nothing sophisticated about him or his ministry. There are four things that defined his ministry:
1) Simplicity. Paul and Timothy were not actors. They were not putting on a show. They were real. They were sincere in what they were doing. Paul had proved that in his life since he was saved. He continued to pursue godliness, regardless of the circumstances he found himself in. At this time he had Timothy with him. Sometimes he would be alone. He never looked back and he never turned back.
2) Godly sincerity. Notice Paul did not just write of sincerity. He qualified that sincerity with the word “godly”. There are thousands of people who are very sincere in their beliefs. They will even fight for what they believe. The problem is their sincerity is not godly sincerity. Godly sincerity is the demonstration of complete openness in the actions and the motivation. There are far too many religious leaders who are in it for their glory. They scam people into following them and giving to their heresies. They lie about the “miracles” they see God do in their lives, and they convince the gullible to support them because they too are looking for a “miracle”.
3) Not with fleshly wisdom. We have talked about university and college before. I went to Bible school for 3 years. Some of the staff wanted to change the classification of that school to “college”. The president refused to allow that change. After he left, the next president convinced the board to change the classification to “college”. If local churches were functioning according to God’s will, there would be no need for Bible colleges or seminaries. If those who believe they are called to serve God in leadership were genuine, they would not be pursuing Dr. or Masters degrees. It has been my observation that when a man becomes a Dr. or has a Masters in some field, he is so compromised that he has lost the blessing of God.
Learning is important. II Timothy 2:15 is still in the Bible. The godly servant studies to meet God’s approval not some college board.
Lost people want fleshly wisdom, but they do not need it. They need godly sincerity. They often do not appreciate that, but that is what they need.
4) By the grace of God. That is how godly leaders must function. That is how Paul functioned. He was a well educated man. He had spent years learning from men like Gamaliel. However, when he was saved, none of that mattered. He threw that all away for the sake of knowing Christ. He had been teaching Timothy the importance of that as well. A godly man can teach others the truth, but it is the Holy Spirit of God Who drills that truth down into the soul of the saved person. When He is working in the heart, the recipient is not seeking the approval of the world. The recipient is seeking to walk humbly with the Lord. The recipient is not ashamed to be identified with the words of the people in Acts 4:13
Acts 4:13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.
Peter and John were not ashamed of who they were. They were threatened not to speak anymore in Jesus’ name, but they did not heed those threats. They had a higher calling. They stood out like a sore thumb in the world. However, they were precious in the sight of the Lord.
We read further that Paul and Timothy had their “conversation” in the world. They lived in the world, but they were not a part of the world. No one could accuse them of being like the world. They were different in a righteous way.
Not only were they a clear and good testimony in the world, but more importantly to the saints at Corinth. As we have noted, they were genuine. They were real. The saints at Corinth had witnessed this already. By the grace of God, they had listened to Paul’s previous words. It was the Holy Spirit at work in the carnal Corinthian saints, that caused them to snap out of that carnality and to become the spiritual saints they were saved to be.
Every true child of God needs to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. The problem that is so common today, is that there is no growth because there is no life. What is so common is becoming more and more like the world. Those who are honest know that the majority of churches today do not resemble what they were even ten years ago. The further back you go, the more you see the drastic devolution that has taken place. That is not of God. That is a clear indicator that there is no life there. The world is in charge, not God.
That was not Paul’s testimony. If you read the first three chapters of the book of the Revelation, you see Jesus addressing seven local churches near the end of the first century. He pointed out where each one was at and where they needed to be. Sadly not one of those churches listened to Jesus’ words there. None of them exists today. They all fell by the wayside.
It is important for us to take God seriously and submit to His authority. That is the way of blessing. We do not make numbers the test of sincerity. We make God’s Word the test of sincerity.
Pastor Bartel