Somewhere between his 2nd and 3rd missionary journey false teachers had entered the city of Corinth and had turned the hearts of the people against Paul
Launched a campaign seeking to undermine Paul’s ministry and to steal the flock in Corinth.
These false teachers had said a lot of things about Paul
You could put it this way: Paul didn’t measure up!
The question answered in this passage is what is the standard or basis by which we can determine whether Paul or we or anyone measures up?
7 You are looking at things as they are outwardly.
What OT event does this statement remind you of?
David and his brothers before Samuel.(1 Sam 16)
10 Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, "The LORD has not chosen these." 11 And Samuel said to Jesse, "Are these all the children ?" And he said, "There remains yet the youngest, and behold, he is tending the sheep." Then Samuel said to Jesse, "Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here."
We have a tendency to look on the outside:
We can see some pretty religious people and think they have it right.
We can hear those who know a lot of the Bible and think they understand God.
We can see some very committed people and think they are on track with God.
THOSE ARE NOT THE STANDARDS GOD MEASURES BY.
7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
A church may appear to have it right but Jesus’ message to the church in Laodicea shows that may not be true. We might think that things like good health, a strong bank account or an absence of problems, trials or persecution are an evidence of God’s blessing but the Bible says we would be wrong.
GOD SEES THE HEART and measures by it’s condition before Him.
THERE IS A WRONG WAY TO MEASURE A PERSON:
If anyone is confident in himself that he is Christ's, let him consider this again within himself, that just as he is Christ's, so also are we.
8 For even if I boast somewhat further about our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be put to shame, 9 for I do not wish to seem as if I would terrify you by my letters.
10 For they say, "His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible." 11 Let such a person consider this, that what we are in word by letters when absent, such persons we are also in deed when present.
Those in Corinth were evaluating Paul by a wrong standard which meant that they were most likely doing the same regarding themselves and the false teachers.
Paul could have boasted before them based upon the ‘authority’ that had been given to him by the Lord.
They were measuring Paul by the fact that his personal presence was different from how he had authoritatively written in his letters.
A second Century historical document – gives this physical description of Paul.
He was a a small man with bowed legs, who had bushy eyebrows, a bald head, and a hooked nose. It went on to say his back was stooped, his voice high-pitched, and his eyes ran constantly.
In Lystra unbelievers were so enamored with his message they thought he was the god – Hermes – great Orator but in Corinth they said he wasn’t as eloquent at Appollos
and there was that incident where Eutychus – fell asleep during a message fell out of the window and died
Paul is exhorting them to look past the container to the contents.
The false teachers had used these things as issues to attack Paul.
When I am in the pulpit and God has given me a message to share through His Word I am often very direct and confrontive regarding a truth. What if after the sermon was over that I walked over to you and continued being very direct and in your face about additional issues or elaborating more about the issue in the recent sermon. Somehow what is appropriate in one setting is not necessarily in another.
Someone who might be trying to undermine or replace my position here might start saying, ‘Look how he is one way in the pulpit and another way in personal discussions’.
The fact is that every servant of God needs to be wise enough to know when and where to be who and what for the sake of the Gospel.
The false teachers were using a wrong standard of evaluation even in how they measured themselves.
12 For we are not bold to class or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves; but when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding.
They looked side to side to determine value instead of looking up.
They measured themselves by themselves.
Do we often measure people by how they compare to ourselves?
How much do they do what I do? Believe what I believe? Act like I act? Say what I say? Give to what I give to? Sing what I sing? Worship how I worship?
Otherwise they are not as spiritual.
These false teachers were members of a mutual admiration society.
They made up their own standards for evaluation and made sure that it put them at the top. Anyone can establish criteria whereas they end up near the top of list.
We can always find someone worse than us when we make their sins the worst sins and our strengths the ones that matter the most.
THERE IS A RIGHT WAY TO MEASURE A PERSON:
13 But we will not boast beyond our measure, but within the measure of the sphere which God apportioned to us as a measure, to reach even as far as you.
Paul says there is a sphere of measure appointed by God for us to use:
God does not measure me by what I have done for Him or can do for Him but who I am before Him. When I serve Him He does not look at what I am doing but at the condition of my heart as I do it.
When I pray He is not listening as much to my words as He is hearing my heart.
In my many years as a pastor I have listened to many people sing musical specials. Men and women, children and teenagers and all sizes of groups singing all types of songs. Over a period of almost 30 years in the ministry, as well as the years as a church member, I have heard 1,000’s of people sing. Some of the people have had amazing voices and some have had obvious musical training. I can honestly say that it has never been those who have had the greatest musical training that have had the greatest impact upon me but those whose heart for God was most obvious.
One man at the smallest church I ever pastored has now passed away.
He and his wife taught at the local small school and he would sing a special about every 6 weeks. It was always the same song: God leads us along
“some through the waters, some through the flood, some through the fire, but all through the blood; Some through great sorrow, but God gives a song, In the night season and all the day long’.
14 For we are not overextending ourselves, as if we did not reach to you, for we were the first to come even as far as you in the gospel of Christ; 15 not boasting beyond our measure, that is, in other men's labors, but with the hope that as your faith grows, we will be, within our sphere, enlarged even more by you, 16 so as to preach the gospel even to the regions beyond you, and not to boast in what has been accomplished in the sphere of another.
Paul points out that it was because of a heart for God that He and others with him came to Corinth for Christ before anyone else did. Not only that but he and those with him also went beyond them to other regions for the same reason.
We can measure people by what their heart for God has led them to do that others have not done. Some people may have lots of appearance or verbage to impress but the question is ‘what has the condition of their heart led them to do for Christ’?
Are they sitting around doing little and saying a lot or are they actually breaking new ground for Christ reaching out to the lost and hurting as evidence that God has control of their heart.
The world is full of PRIDEFUL people who call themselves Christians.
The world is full of GREEDY people who call themselves Christians.
The world is full of JUDGEMENTAL people who call themselves Christians.
The world is full of UNCARING people who call themselves Christians.
The world is full of SELF-CENTERED people who call themselves Christians.
The kingdom of God is full of humble, selfless, caring, forgiving and other-centered people who reflect the true heart of God.
Warren Wiersbe – “It is possible to be too big to serve God, but you can never be too small!”
“In Paul’s day, his enemies in Corinth had so effectively read their Greco-Roman culture back into their Christianity that they interpreted the gospel in terms of their values.
They boasted in the preacher’s presence and bearing; they boasted in rhetorical eloquence; they flashed their resumés and endorsements and letters of commendation; they bragged of their large honorariums; they boasted of their connectedness that inferred greatness by association; and, they compared themselves with one another.” R Kent Hughes
Have we become guilty in our day of reading back our culture into our Christianity?
We live in a culture that strives for comfort, materialism, health, popularity and power over others. Have we incorporated these ideals into our Christian experience?
1) Do we worship a God who wants to constantly make our life easier?
2) Is the God we desire to serve the One Who wants us to be free of financial struggles and to have all the things we want?
Why do the biggest liars and most immoral or unchristian people drive such nice cars and live in such nice houses?
3) Does our God only want us to be highly thought of and respected by the people in our communities? Does God want His people popular or peculiar?
4) Does our God seek to make Christians the politically controlling element in the cultures they live in? Have the strongest believers developed out of cultures where they were the majority?
within our sphere…..so as to preach the gospel….and not to boast in what has been accomplished in the sphere of another.
The limits of the sphere may refers to the lanes that were allotted to runners in a race. The Corinthian Christians would recognize this because they loved races and held the famous Isthmian Games in Corinth. Paul is saying, “I’m running in my own lane and not in someone else’s.” Each of us has a lane to run in – appointed by God – A SPHERE OF influence We are to be ultimately judged by how we have run our own race: ‘run the race’ Too often we are criticizing the race of another instead of running our own as we should.
THERE IS A RIGHT PERSON TO GIVE A MEASURE OF:
17 But HE WHO BOASTS IS TO BOAST IN THE LORD. 18 For it is not he who commends himself that is approved, but he whom the Lord commends.
More than what we think of others or even ourselves the world needs to hear what we have to say about God.
More than what people think of us we need to be most concerned about what God thinks of us.
A young violin student was playing to a full concert hall. In the seats were fellow students and teachers as well as other people whom themselves played the violin. But also in the audience was the grandfather who loved this student and whom had help to raise her when her parents had been lost when she was very young. Her grandfather sat in the balcony proudly listening to his granddaughter as she played. When the concert was over, the crowd gave her applause but her eyes looked to balcony where the ultimate approval could be found. His response to her efforts mattered the most.
CONCLUSION:
Look out for those who use wrong standards to establish value regarding people and their service to God.
Know the right standard that God is measuring you by which is your heart.
Remember whose opinion of you and all things really matters. God is always watching and aware and His is the ultimate opinion that matters.
