I Corinthians 4:16  Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.
17  For this cause have I sent unto you Timotheus, who is my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord, who shall bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ, as I teach every where in every church.
18  Now some are puffed up, as though I would not come to you.
19  But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord will, and will know, not the speech of them which are puffed up, but the power.
20  For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power.
21  What will ye? shall I come unto you with a rod, or in love, and in the spirit of meekness?

God directed the apostle Paul to encourage the saints to follow him. Isaiah 53:6 reminds us that we are like sheep. Jesus referred to us as sheep. Sheep need a leader. In a flock of sheep there will always be at least one sheep that will take the lead. The rest will follow that sheep. The leader among the sheep is not necessarily leading them in the right way. That is why sheep need a shepherd. The shepherd needs to be a good shepherd who cares more about the sheep than his own comfort. He will face sleepless nights at times as he protects those sheep. Jacob spoke of that as he rehearsed his care for his father-in-law’s sheep.
The Bible teaches us that Jesus Christ is the “chief Shepherd”. He laid down His life for the sheep. He did not just care about the Jews, but He cared about the entire world — Jews and Gentile. He came unto His own but His own received Him not. He spent 3+ years reaching out to His own people but in the end they cried out for His crucifixion. He chose 12 men to be apostles who would continue the spread of the Gospel after His ascension back to heaven. One of those men was a devil and Jesus knew that. He demonstrated how wicked the heart of man is. Judas was exposed to the same teaching the other 11 received. He saw the same miracles. He knew it was Jesus Who did the miracles. He knew it was Jesus Who taught with authority. He rejected it all for the sake of 30 pieces of silver. What a fool. His life ended in tragedy.
Yesterday we heard some further information of a religious group that gained some notoriety during the lockdowns. We have mentioned this group in the past. They were an unknown group to many until the lockdowns began. They defied government orders and faced fines and arrests. They gained the sympathy of too many people because most people do not have discernment when they choose a leader. This group exposed itself as a cult early on in its popularity. They have ‘apostles’ of which there truly are none today; they have women ‘preachers’ of which there are none today. These two things alone discredit them. The new information we received yesterday does not change anything in my mind. God’s Word is our authority. We do not need to know all the intricacies of a group to know if they are true or not. We need to examine a professing Christian in the light of God’s Word.
God is good and He exposes frauds quite readily, if we are listening to Him. God does not want us to be deceived and led astray. If we do not take God’s Word as our authority, we will be led astray. Paul was not an unknown to the Corinthians. They knew of him and he had already declared to them who he was. With that declaration, they had opportunity to examine him. They could not dispute that he was an apostle of Jesus Christ. He was directed by God to tell the saints to follow him.
In verse 17 he told them that he sent Timotheus to them in order to help them to know him. Timotheus was a beloved son to Paul. The apostle Paul was introduced to Timotheus in Acts 16. His mother was a Jewess and his father was a Greek. He learned that Timotheus had a godly grandmother and a godly mother. We read nothing encouraging about his grandfather or his father. Timotheus chose to listen and believe the teaching of his grandmother and his mother. He saw the benefit of knowing Christ in their lives. Paul ‘adopted’ Timotheus as a young man and took him along on his journeys. Timothy had the privilege of observing how a Christian man lives. Now Paul was sending him to Corinth to remind the saints of who Paul was and what he believed.
Paul reminded the readers that his ways were in Christ. Paul taught the same thing in every church. He was not a politician. His message was the same regardless of who he was speaking to. He did not have different doctrines depending on the wealth or the power of the readers.
In verse 18 he reminded the readers that some of them were puffed up. They assumed they could do as they pleased because Paul was not going to actually come and check up on them. It was not that they needed to fear Paul. They needed to understand that he was an apostle of Jesus Christ. Paul was not the authority. The Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of every true saint.
In verse 19 Paul reminded them that he was going to make the trip to Corinth shortly, if the Lord would direct him so. Paul was dependent upon God’s leadership in his life. He demonstrated that he was a true apostle of Jesus Christ. He took his orders from his Master. Jesus Christ was not just a figure head to Paul. He was the Lord of his life. When Paul would come, he would not come with dark glasses on. He would honestly observe what was going on. He was not interested in just hearing the puffed up men speak. He wanted to see the power behind their words. He wanted to see what their lives actually looked like.
There are hundreds of false teachers today. They are puffed up. We mentioned one group that is governed by puffed up men and women. They take the Bible and they claim their authority comes from God, but they openly defy God in their structural makeup. They do not operate in the power of God.
In verse 20, Paul reminded the readers that the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power. That is an important truth to note. There are so many religious groups that call themselves churches, but they lack the power of God. Their converts are just like the lost person who does not have any interest in God. You can find lost people who are quite generous. They talk of their ‘philanthropy’. They do that for self-recognition and for tax write offs. We have had people come to our church who have wanted to give to our work, but they wanted a tax receipt in order to give. We are not a registered charity. We do not belong to the corrupt government of Canada. We belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. Giving to the Lord’s Work is not for the purpose of getting a tax receipt. It is about laying up treasure in heaven.
When a person is truly saved, their life will be changed and it will be changing from that point forward. The changes will be in accordance with God’s Word. There have been many changes taking place in many churches over the years. Those changes have been dictated by the world, not by God. We can know the truth if we accept God’s Word as Truth. True doctrine is important.
In verse 21 Paul asked them to consider how they wanted him to come to them. Did they want someone who would rule with a rod or did they want someone who would come in love. The use of a rod can still be done with love, but it is not a pleasant way to come. Paul defined love with the words: “in the spirit of meekness.” Meekness is not weakness. Meekness if strength under God’s control. The Greek word translated as “meekness” in our text means “gentleness”. A Biblically meek person is not one who is a push over. He is someone who walks in the fear of the Lord and glorifies the Lord. The purpose of either way is the same. The rod uses force to enforce what is right. Meekness uses words and actions to enforce what is right.
God’s Word is absolute. God does not offer a smorgasbord of doctrines to choose from. The fighting over who to follow was not of God. It needed to stop. The immorality that they were guilty of needed to stop. They could stop it willingly or they could face more severe threats. We will see that yet in chapter 5.
The true child of God obeys God because the love of God indwells them. They may need some gentle persuasion at times. The fraudulent Christian will argue and dismiss the truth. He will try to justify his disobedience by reducing the Christian life to a statement of faith, with no consequential actions required. That is exactly what Paul is addressing here. Those who are saved will be changed because the kingdom of God is more than just words. It is power. The Word of God is powerful enough to bring conviction to the heart and when a person is saved, the Word of God will continue to work in the heart of the saint to make necessary changes to the heart and life of the saved person.
The saved person will understand the difference between law keeping as the means of salvation and walking in Christ’s righteousness.
Paul will have much more to say on this throughout this epistle. Keep reading and let God work His will in your heart. If you are not saved, then humble yourself and get saved. If you are saved, then don’t be carnal and fight against the truth. Submit to God’s will and be blessed.
Pastor Bartel