II Corinthians 10:13 But we will not boast of things without our measure, but according to the measure of the rule which God hath distributed to us, a measure to reach even unto you.
14 For we stretch not ourselves beyond our measure, as though we reached not unto you: for we are come as far as to you also in preaching the gospel of Christ:
15 Not boasting of things without our measure, that is, of other men’s labours; but having hope, when your faith is increased, that we shall be enlarged by you according to our rule abundantly,
16 To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast in another man’s line of things made ready to our hand.
17 But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
18 For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth.
There are people who like to boast of what they can do. When they are given the opportunity to prove themselves, they fall short of what they claimed to be able to do.
Paul was not an idle boaster. In fact he did not boast of himself. He spoke of the gifts that God had given him. Jesus stated:
John 15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
The lost do not believe that. Psychology tries to improve the “self-esteem/pride” of man. Man has too much pride already. Lost people are often fishing for a compliment. They want others to brag them up. They love to be flattered. True saints want to meet God’s approval. It is God’s well done that is important.
Paul spoke Truth. God made him what he was. He took a corrupt, wicked self-loving, God-hating Pharisee and broke him and made him a new creature in Christ. Paul became a great apostle, because he surrendered to God’s will for him. He was willing to stand up and be counted for Christ. In our text, he also noted that God had granted the saints in Corinth the ability to also stand out in the crowd. He had equipped them to be different, to go against the current, and in step with the Lord.
In verse 14 Paul answered the Jews who believed he was out of bounds in what he was doing. Paul was not going beyond what God wanted of him. He was just being a faithful servant of the Lord. Paul was simply being obedient to God’s call upon his life. The Corinthians needed to hear the truth. They needed to address their sins. Some of them took offence to that rebuke. However, as they considered what was said, they knew Paul was right and they had been wrong. The Judaizers came there to try to interfere with the Lord’s work, but they did not succeed.
In verse 15 Paul reminded them that he was not boasting of what others had done. He was not taking credit for something he had not done. He did not need to take credit for what others had done. He often reminded people that his work was done in the power of God. He had nothing to boast of in himself.
Paul hoped that as the Corinthian saints grew, they would realize that it was the apostle Paul’s faithfulness to God on their behalf, that had brought about the needed changes in their lives. He rejoiced in seeing them grow.
In verse 16 we see that Paul had a desire to move on and be a blessing elsewhere. He knew the importance of the Gospel and he wanted to see others benefit from the good news as well.
The Judaizers tried to come and take away the truth and make the saints look to them for blessings. The fact was that there were no blessings to be had by following false teachers. The same is true today. Most religious people are content to follow false teachers. They think they really have something. The false teachers know how to play with the emotions of the hearers. They know how to scratch their itching ears.
Jeremiah 5:31 The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?
We see that false teachers have been around a long time. Sadly, most people love to listen to false teachers. They love to listen to politicians lie to them. They love to hear some false teacher talk of the miracles they have seen done and the people that have been changed, but the changes are all made in the flesh.
Jesus wants His disciples to bear fruit that remains. Jesus is not interested in hype. The noise and the outward actions are empty and worthless. I heard of some people who had been talking of the “privilege” they had of going to a Gaither homecoming meeting recently. That is nothing to brag about. That is something to be ashamed of. To think that they lacked discernment and refuse to understand the ecumenical nature of that group. It is not just a matter of different Christians loving different genres of music. No, there is music that honours God and there is music that honours the flesh. Most of what is called “Christian” music today is designed to honour the flesh.
Paul wanted people to glory in the Lord, not in the flesh. Whether it is music or preaching or teaching, everything needs to be done to glorify God. We do not glorify God just because we say we do. Cain tried that and it did not work. We need to look into God’s Word and follow His way if we want to glorify Him.
In verse 18 we are further reminded that the person who needs to boast of himself is not approved. The one that is approved is the one whom the Lord commendeth. In order to be commended of the Lord, we need to know Him first of all and then we need to do things His way. He is to be glorified. His way is the way of blessing. His way brings lasting blessings to those who will receive what is done. Be sure you are truly being blessed in what you involve yourself in. Don’t settle for empty fluff.
We have a poplar tree in our yard that is shedding its seeds right now. We have much white fluff on our lawn. It does not just go on our lawn, but the neighbours also get it. God designed that tree to multiply itself with that method of spreading its seed. The seed itself is small. The white fluff will be there for a short time and then be gone.
We need to be sure we lay hold on the true seed which is the Word of God. The preachers and teachers need to be careful to preach the truth and not get bogged down in fluff. We do not need the wind to carry the fluff. The Bible warns of the “wind of doctrine”. We need sound doctrine that has weight and that has substance. God’s Word is the only sound doctrine.
Pastor Bartel