December 12 Click on verses for Full Scripture

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Today's Pathway: II Corinthians 11:10-15 As the truth of Christ is in me, no man shall stop me of this boasting in the regions of Achaia. Wherefore? because I love you not? God knoweth. But what I do, that I will do, that I may cut off occasion from them which desire occasion; that wherein they glory, they may be found even as we. For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

We finished yesterday with Paul writing about his decision to not accept any money from the Corinthians for his ministry with them. He did this so that no one there could ever accuse him of preaching simply for his own personal profit. He opens today's passage by stating that he has told the churches of Achaia about this, and he is not going to stop doing so. This "boasting" may seem inappropriate to us, but clearly it is not. I think there are probably three reasons why Paul does this. First, the fact that he would "preach for free" indicates that he is more concerned about others than he is about his own personal welfare. Bruce Barton wrote,

"Paul knew that the fact he hadn't taken any money from the Corinthians was the strongest rebuttal to the false teachers, for their whole purpose in preaching was to gather a following who would support them."

Paul points out in verse 11 that he made these decisions out of a love for the Corinthians. Apparently the false teachers were implying that Paul did not love them because he didn't take their money. This would be a ploy that those who oppose the Gospel would use. They twist the love of the one who is preaching the truth and turn it into something different in an attempt to discredit the messenger. Paul makes it clear that whatever people may say about him, God knows whether or not he loves the church there. In verse 12 he writes that he is going to keep on doing what he has been doing regardless of what others may say about him. He is doing this to expose the false apostles for what they really are. Bruce Barton added,

"Eventually, the Corinthians would wake up to the fact that these false teachers, unlike Paul, were more interested in the money of the Corinthians than in their spiritual welfare. It was Paul's consistent honesty and integrity that would silence his critics and answer their charges against him. These new preachers wanted to be recognized as apostles, but in reality, they could not be considered Paul's equals. They weren't willing to suffer, as Paul had, to present the gospel free of charge."

In verses 13-15 Paul exposes the false teachers further. He calls them "deceitful workers" because they are trying to appear as if they are true apostles of Christ. He writes that no one should be surprised by this for even Satan can appear as an angel of light. And if Satan can make himself look like he is a follower of God, it should not come as a shock that those who teach his lies should make themselves look like they are preaching true Biblical righteousness. We need to be aware of this truth today. There are many false teachers who can take a verse of Scripture and twist it to say something that it does not, and with their eloquence gain a following, often of people who should know better. We must have the Biblical discernment to be able to recognize truth from error, and not simply be swayed by the personality or powerful speaking of the individual. John wrote,

"but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world" (I John 4:1).