OVERVIEW:
The grace of giving (chapters 8-9); Paul defends his ministry (chapter 10); the false religious system (chapter 11); Paul’s final defense to the Corinthians (chapter 12); Paul’s final appeal to the Corinthians (chapter 13).
HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:
Today’s reading provides the clearest and most complete principles on giving in the entire New Testament (chapters 8-9). The Corinthians had committed to supplying funds to help the church in Jerusalem, but at the time of the writing of this letter, had not yet followed through on their commitment. Paul writes to exhort them to fulfill their promise, and in the process, is used of God to lay out the New Testament pattern for giving. Note some of the principles gleaned from these two chapters:
- It is the grace of God that allows us to give sacrificially. (8:1-3)
- Giving should result from us having already first given ourselves to the Lord. (8:5)
- By God’s grace, we shouldn’t just give, but abound in giving! (8:7)
- Giving is the proof of the sincerity of our love. (8:8)
- Jesus Christ is the ultimate picture of giving. (8:9)
- We should be a generous giver. (9:6)
- We should purpose in our hearts to give the amount the Lord wants us to give. (9:7)
- We should give cheerfully. (9:7) (In other words, we should give, not because we have to, but because we want to!)
We also find one of the simplest biblical explanations of God’s grace in 8:9, that we could express in these terms:
- G—God’s
- R—Riches
- A—At
- C—Christ’s
- E—Expense
The ultimate gift is the grace that God has bestowed upon us. Perhaps grace is best understood by comparing it to justice and mercy.
- JUSTICE is God giving us WHAT we deserve.
- MERCY is God NOT giving us what we deserve.
- GRACE is God giving us what we DID NOT deserve.
As we move into the last section of the book (chapters 10-13), Paul begins to challenge the rebels in the church that were questioning his AUTHORITY, as well as the false teachers (“Judaizers”) that had infiltrated the church and were attacking Paul’s GOSPEL. In addressing these problems, Paul teaches us two significant lessons concerning the warfare we face as believers (10:3-5):
- Our battle is not with PEOPLE, but with the spiritual POWERS that are often at work THROUGH people. (See also Ephesians 6:12)
- We cannot win in this SPIRITUAL WARFARE using CARNAL WEAPONS. (10:4)
As we come into chapter 11, Paul talks further about the spiritual powers that were working through the human false teachers in the 1st century in Corinth. Note that it is the same spiritual powers that are working through the human false teachers in the 21st century! Paul tells us in 11:15 that they are actually “Satan’s ministers”! Don’t miss that! Satan has “ministers”! Contrary to how easily we might think it would be to recognize them, Paul tells us that in the same way that Satan transforms himself into an “angel of light”, his ministers likewise transform themselves as “ministers of righteousness”. (11:13-15) In other words, they live impeccable lives, present a good, godly demeanor, and even use “Christian” terminology as they present their message!
Back in verse 4 of this chapter, Paul says that they preach “Jesus”… they preach the “gospel”… and they preach about receiving the “spirit”. The only problem is, it’s not the Jesus of the Bible but “ANOTHER Jesus”! It isn’t the gospel that Paul preached but it’s “ANOTHER gospel”! It isn’t the “HOLY Spirit” but “ANOTHER Spirit”! (11:4) Just as Paul was admonishing the Corinthians, we must wise up! We must be discerning! As John urged us in 1st John 4:1, “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because MANY false prophets are gone out into the world.”
As Paul comes to the end of this epistle, he makes his final defense of his apostleship in chapter 12, through the vision God gave to him of the third heaven. The experience was so unbelievably incredible, God not only forbade him to write about it but felt it necessary to give Paul “a thorn in the flesh” to keep him humble!
By the time Paul gets to his final appeal to the Corinthians in chapter 13, he has not only very calculatedly opened his very soul to them, but has provided a thorough explanation of his ministry, giving detailed answers to all of their accusations and objections, as well as confirming his deep affection and love for them. In this closing section, Paul pleads with the Corinthians to make sure that his third visit to them was not laden with drama (for him or for them!) like the previous visit had been.