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Ambassador Baptist Church
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   You Are Here: Bridge / Galley / Pastor's Pen / Pathways Through Paul
Pathways Through Paul Daily Devotional
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Pathways Through Paul
Daily Devotional

December 9
Click on verses for Full Scripture
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Today's Pathway:


 II Corinthians 10:12-18
  1. For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.
  2. But we will not boast of things without our measure, but according to the measure of the rule which God hath distributed to us, a measure to reach even unto you.
  3. For we stretch not ourselves beyond our measure, as though we reached not unto you: for we are come as far as to you also in preaching the gospel of Christ:
  4. Not boasting of things without our measure, that is, of other men's labours; but having hope, when your faith is increased, that we shall be enlarged by you according to our rule abundantly
  5. To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast in another man's line of things made ready to our hand.
  6. But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
  7. For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth.

His Majesty's Service

 In today's passage Paul opens with a touch of sarcasm. He states that he does not have the boldness ("dare") to compare himself with others that commend themselves. Those who commended themselves were the false teachers in Corinth. They saw themselves as being special and superior, and they were not afraid to exalt themselves in front of the church. There are two reasons why they felt that they could commend themselves. First, they established their own set of standards. They determined for themselves what goodness was, and then decided that they achieved that standard! They looked down on Paul because "his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible" (II Corinthians 10:10), at least as they compared him to the greatness that they saw themselves as possessing. Second, they compared themselves to each other. There is always someone that you can find who doesn't do things as well as you do. I remember coming home from school with a "C" on a test. When my mother asked me about it I told her about other kids in the class who got "D's", or even failed. Mom then asked, "Yes, but who got an "A"? I was happy to measure myself against those who got a poorer grade, but not with those who received a better one. These false teachers established their own standards of excellence, and then compared themselves to others who they believed did not measure up. Paul says that this is not a wise practice. Unfortunately, many Christians today do the very same thing. They establish their own set of requirements for spirituality, look at others who don't live up to those requirements, and then declare themselves to be spiritual giants who are in a right relationship with God. If that wasn't wise in Paul's day, it isn't wise today either!

 In verse 13 Paul states that the true standard is "the rule which God hath distributed to us". All that matters in an individual's life is that he accomplishes what God has set out for him to achieve. In verses 13-16 he writes that he is not going to brag about things that he had not done, but rather simply states that he has tried to do what God told him to do, which included taking the Gospel to Corinth. He adds that he is not going to take credit for what others had accomplished. Albert Barnes explains this passage this way,

"Paul says that he had not boldness, as they had, to boast of things beyond his actual attainments and influence: and, especially, that he was not disposed to enter into other men's labours; or to boast of things that had been done by the mere influence of his name, and beyond the proper limits of his personal exertions. He made no boast of having done anything where he had not been himself on the ground and laboured to secure the object. They had boasted of what had been done in Corinth as though it were really their work, although it had been done by Paul himself. It is probable that they boasted of what had been done by the mere influence of their name. They supposed that their reputation had gone abroad,and that their mere influence had had an important effect. Not so with Paul. He made no boast of anything but what God had enabled him to do by his evangelical labours, and by personal exertions. He claimed nothing that others had done as his own."

 Paul concludes this section by writing that all glory belongs to God, and that the only boasting ("glory") that any believer can offer is that God has allowed him to accomplish His will. The Psalmist wrote,

"Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory" (Psalm 115:1).
The false teachers in Corinth were taking credit for that which they had not accomplished and glorifying themselves. Paul states that God is the only One Who can commend someone and that God's opinion is the only one that matters. Therefore, all glory and honor must go to Him.

 Is God commending you, or are you simply commending yourself?

Pastor Mark J Montgomery

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1926 Babcock Blvd
Pittsburgh, PA 15209
(412)477-3210
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