1I wish that you would bear with me in a little foolishness, but indeed you do bear with me. 2For I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy. For I promised you in marriage to one husband, that I might present you as a pure virgin to Christ. 3But I am afraid that somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve in his craftiness, so your minds might be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we didn’t preach, or if you receive a different spirit which you didn’t receive, or a different “good news” which you didn’t accept, you put up with that well enough. 5For I reckon that I am not at all behind the very best apostles. 6But though I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not unskilled in knowledge. No, in every way we have been revealed to you in all things.
7Or did I commit a sin in humbling myself that you might be exalted, because I preached to you God’s Good News free of charge? 8I robbed other assemblies, taking wages from them that I might serve you. 9When I was present with you and was in need, I wasn’t a burden on anyone, for the brothers, when they came from Macedonia, supplied the measure of my need. In everything I kept myself from being burdensome to you, and I will continue to do so. 10As the truth of Christ is in me, no one will stop me from this boasting in the regions of Achaia. 11Why? Because I don’t love you? God knows.
12But what I do, that I will continue to do, that I may cut off opportunity from those who desire an opportunity, that in which they boast, they may be recognized just like us. 13For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as Christ’s apostles. 14And no wonder, for even Satan masquerades as an angel of light. 15It is no great thing therefore if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.
16I say again, let no one think me foolish. But if so, yet receive me as foolish, that I also may boast a little. 17That which I speak, I don’t speak according to the Lord, but as in foolishness, in this confidence of boasting. 18Seeing that many boast after the flesh, I will also boast. 19For you bear with the foolish gladly, being wise. 20For you bear with a man if he brings you into bondage, if he devours you, if he takes you captive, if he exalts himself, or if he strikes you on the face. 21To my shame, I speak as though we had been weak. Yet in whatever way anyone is bold (I speak in foolishness), I am bold also. 22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they the offspring of Abraham? So am I. 23Are they servants of Christ? (I speak as one beside himself.) I am more so: in labors more abundantly, in prisons more abundantly, in stripes above measure, and in deaths often. 24Five times I received forty stripes minus one from the Jews. 25Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I suffered shipwreck. I have been a night and a day in the deep. 26I have been in travels often, perils of rivers, perils of robbers, perils from my countrymen, perils from the Gentiles, perils in the city, perils in the wilderness, perils in the sea, perils among false brothers; 27in labor and travail, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, and in cold and nakedness.
28Besides those things that are outside, there is that which presses on me daily: anxiety for all the assemblies. 29Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is caused to stumble, and I don’t burn with indignation?
30If I must boast, I will boast of the things that concern my weakness. 31The God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, he who is blessed forever more, knows that I don’t lie. 32In Damascus the governor under King Aretas guarded the Damascenes’ city, desiring to arrest me. 33I was let down in a basket through a window by the wall, and escaped his hands.
I wish that you would bear with me in a little foolishness, but indeed you do bear with me. 2 For I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy. For I promised you in marriage to one husband, that I might present you as a pure virgin to Christ. 3 But I am afraid that somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve in his craftiness, so your minds might be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
In this chapter, we have a look into the heart of Paul. He loves his congregation in Corinth. He has some fun with them in the first few verses, saying that he worked with them and prepped them to be like a virgin presented to the Bridegroom, Jesus. But somehow, they let themselves be tainted by the teaching of others. Someone came along and spoiled the good work and the sound teaching that he had given them. That’s what false teachers do. And what was the result? Their minds were pulled away from the “simplicity that is in Christ.” So, what is that simplicity? It is knowing that Jesus saved you, and He will walk with you and talk with you daily, directing your life in a significant way. What a joy! Someone came in and had stolen their joy.
Reader, once you are saved, Satan can never have your soul, but he can sure steal your joy. If allowed, he will whisper lies into your ear, and if you listen, you will see your joy go right out the window. He whispers things like, “You’re really doing a great job being a model Christian. You should be proud of yourself and how far you’ve come. You need to ensure that other Christians think exactly the same way you do. If they don’t, they’ve really gotten it wrong and YOU need to set them straight.” He persuades you by saying such things as, “just look at Jim and Betty. They sure need some help, and you’re the one to step in and set them right in some things.” All of your thinking becomes dominated by the criticism of others within your soul. You’ve set yourself up as a one-person jury to judge the behavior and beliefs of others. And then, if you are perceptive enough, you will realize that your joy has gone right out the window. Reader, if this is you, it’s time to come back home.
Confess your judgmental attitudes, and He is faithful and will forgive you of them. Get back to that “simplicity that is in Christ.” You’re not bad, you’re just a sinner, and you have forgotten the incredible power of the grace and love of Jesus. You’ve listened to the father of lies, who has told you that it’s all about you. Confess it and commit to moving on out of that place of condemnation and joylessness. Get back to walking daily with Him. It’s the best place to be. Don’t be deceived by craftiness that masquerades as spirituality. It is a lie and it is a trap. It will squeeze the joy out of you and out of everyone you come into contact with. Be part of the solution and not part of the problem.
Paul had sent a harsh word to the Corinthians, and afterwards, he wondered whether or not it was the right thing to do. His motive was to correct them lovingly. It wasn’t to make them grieve. They received his letter and they wept over their condition. Paul wrote it to bring them to repentance, and they received the news, making changes in their lives and in their church. When a believer is sorrowful about some sin in their life and they repent of it, it brings about life. It helps to draw them back into the will of God and into Christlike behavior. Because of his love for them and his prior visits, Paul had laid the foundation of a good relationship, and he had the standing to write such a letter.
When I was about forty years old, I moved to a new community. I had just suffered a terrible personal blow that resulted in the loss of a company which my wife and I had started and built. We were pushed out of the business by younger partners. It was a tremendous blow to both of us, but it had a particularly profound impact on me. Often, a man wrongfully looks to his work to find his value and worth, and his identity. It’s a long story and doesn’t need to be retold here, but it hurt my pride and affected my psyche. As I joined a small men’s group in my new community, I shared my wound, and frankly, it dominated my thoughts and much of my conversation. I was always talking about myself to try, I suppose, to convince myself and others that I had value and worth after letting some other guys get the best of me. One day, one of the brothers in the small group took me aside and said to me, “You just love talking about yourself.” OUCH! I grieved at those words. I didn’t consciously realize it, but my subconscious self knew it was true, and I was devastated. I had become one of those pitiful people who always have to have the better story or be at the center of the conversation. I needed correction, and this brother gently pointed out a wrong that needed to be corrected. He had listened to me for many hours, and he had earned the right to give me a harsh letter, wrapped up in some gentle words.
You may need a letter like this, or you may need to give one to someone. Make sure that if you do, you have spent the time with that person to lay a good foundation. Speak to them in gentle words that help them to see the error of their ways and give them a clear path to walk out of it. People often talk about themselves due to insecurity. They don’t think much of themselves, so they overcompensate by trying to build themselves up in the eyes of others. Old wounds affect us greatly. If you can’t get past them, they will affect what you think, do, and say. The enemy uses them to distort us and causes us to focus on ourselves. Be open to correction, and if you need to correct a brother or a sister, lay the foundation, and do so with the greatest of love. If you do, it can bring life back to them. Paul had done so with the Corinthians, and they received the news, changed their behavior, and rejoiced.
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