2 Corinthians 11:1-6

                                                                 2 Corinthians 11:1-6

I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me!  For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.  But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.  For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.  Indeed, I consider that I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles.  Even if I am unskilled in speaking, I am not so in knowledge; indeed, in every way we have made this plain to you in all things.

 

Satan is out to destroy the work of God in the hearts of men.  He will do all he can to prevent the Gospel from advancing amongst the nations and he will do all he can to distract people from the Gospel once it advances to a group of people.  Paul wants to do all he can to prevent this from happening in Corinth.  He points out several dangers to the body that are instructive to us.

 

THE DANGER OF DECEPTION: The Gospel transforms the heart of man and makes us holy and pure in the sight of God.  Paul reminds the church that he proclaimed the Gospel in Corinth to present them as a pure and holy bride for Christ.  This is the last thing that Satan wants so he went to work to deceive the church just as he did with Eve.  Satan is always seeking to doubt, distort, and destroy the word and work of God.  Paul laments that they had been drawn away from a pure devotion to God and were seeking their own independence and well-being.  We must always be careful not to allow our minds to be deceived by Satan’s tactics. 

 

THE DANGER OF DISTORTION: Paul delivered a clear message to the church about the Son of God, the Spirit of God, and the Gospel of God.  Other people came behind him to present alternative messages and views in all of these areas.  They denied that Jesus was the Son of God, denied the power of the Spirit and distorted the message of the Gospel.  Unfortunately, many and the church in Corinth were deceived by this false teaching.  To establish the truth takes long and difficult work.  It is amazing how quickly all that hard work can be torn down by the false teachings of evil men.

 

THE DANGER OF DIVISION: It is always a dangerous thing when people begin referring to themselves by certain titles.  Certainly, the title of “super apostle” would be completely un appropriate for anyone.  The reality is that only about a dozen people could legitimately refer to themselves as apostles.  However, none of them would take on the mantle of super apostle.  These false teachers were trying to present themselves as being more authoritative than Paul.  They mistook Paul’s lack of eloquence as a lack of authority.  They were mistaken.  We must never compare ourselves with other believers as this will only cause division and heartache.

 

APPLICATION: Strive to be holy before the Lord and a bride before her husband because of the work of Christ on our behalf.  Don’t fall under Satan’s deceptions.  Beware of the constant threat of false teachers and their desire to deceive people away from the truth of the Gospel.  Never make boasts about our position and what have accomplished.  All credit must always be given to the Lord.

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