2 Corinthians 11:1-13:13
Acts 20:7-12
We finished Paul’s second letter to the church in Corinth. In his
closing, he defended his ministry against the false apostles who had descended
upon their congregation after Paul’s departure. “I fear that somehow you will
be led away from your pure and simple devotion to Christ, just as Eve was
deceived by the serpent. You seem to believe whatever anyone tells you, even if
they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach... I don’t think I am
inferior to these ‘super apostles’” (11:3-5).
Paul went on to boast about all that he had experienced and endured,
something that he hated doing. “Such bragging is not something the Lord wants,”
he wrote (v.17). “If I must
boast, I would rather boast about the things that show how weak I am” (v.30). He explained
that boasting causes people, including himself, to get “puffed up” or prideful,
and that pride leads to self-reliance and neglect of God. However, he
noticed that “to keep me from getting puffed up, I was given a thorn in the
flesh... to keep me from getting proud” (12:7).
While Paul did not like his “thorn,” whatever it was, he did notice
that it caused him to “beg the Lord to take it away” (v.8). In other words, his
trial caused him to turn his attention to the Lord and away from himself. Whatever the
difficult circumstance was, it moved him to rely upon God instead of his own
abilities. Therefore, Paul wrote, “Now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses,
so that the power of Christ may work through me. Since I know that it is all
for Christ’s good, I am quite content with my weaknesses and with insults,
hardships, persecutions, and calamities, for when I am weak, then I am strong”
(v.9, 10).
Daily Reflection
Webster defined boasting as “to brag, to exalt or magnify one’s self,
to make a display of one’s worth, property, or actions” (1828 Dictionary). Why is boasting
a waste of time? How does boasting appear in the eyes of others? What about in
the eyes of God?
What exactly does it look like to boast in your weaknesses?
We like it so much better when life goes smoothly, when everything
happens the way it’s supposed to happen, when things are good. However, what
does a bump-free life develop in you? Why is it better to rejoice in the bumps?
Are you praising God for your smooth road or for all of
the twists, turns, and bumps?
BiAY.org | Day 335 — 30 Days to Go
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