2 Corinthians 11:16-33

2 Corinthians 11:16-33

Paul's assault on the Uber Apostles is about to take a step to the next level. If the first 15 verses compared the Uber Apostles with Paul, now Paul is going to put himself out there to be compared to them. We need to reject the godless humanists idea that everyone is basically good and all they need is to be treated nice. When it comes to those who are wrecking the church, we need to realize that maybe they are as evil as the demons that prompt them. Paul is going to destroy them and take no prisoners. This is the only righteous thing to do in such circumstances.

The Corinthian affinity for high-sounding, well-educated egos is brought to play. Paul in effect says, “You are so smart it will not be difficult for you to understand a fool like me.” In verse 17 Paul says, “I am not saying what the Lord would.” This is often overcomplicated. All Paul is saying is that Jesus never boasted or bragged. Paul, however, to deal with these Uber Apostles, will employ just such a tactic. He is in advance disarming the “Jesus wouldn't do that” rebuttal. These Uber apostles were wicked to the core and had been abusing the church in five ways, which Paul outlined in verse 20. Paul admits to not being able or willing to abuse the Corinthians that way. If abuse takes strength, then Paul is weak. 

The uber-apostles made several claims of authority or right to rule the church. In this chapter, Paul will address and outshine them in two areas. Those areas are pedigree and sacrifice. Based on verse 22, we may surmise that the Uber apostles were a form of the Judaizers who were attempting to impose their current perversion of Old Testament law on the church. Paul states that if you want to appeal to ancestry for authority, he is Jewish all the way back to Abraham. Beware of the teacher that attempts to impress by means of his heritage. One’s heritage may be helpful, but it is never proof of authority.

The Uber Apostles also apparently had a tendency to appeal to their suffering and hardship to validate their authority. Beware of the teacher who plays the martyr role. It is hard to rebuff a person who appeals to their suffering and hardship. To do so seems to be heartless and cold; it seems to not be “nice.” Such a response tends to portray us as a persecutor and them as, once again, the victim all over again. Paul essentially says, Let's compare battle scars. In verses 23 through 27, Paul describes a record of abuse rarely matched in the history of the church. These verses deserve careful reading, attention, and meditation.

In verses 28 through 29, Paul moves from the external wounds to the hurts of his heart. Hard as the physical abuse was, Paul's heart was heavy for the church, and that unseen wound was perhaps the most painful. The phrase “who is led into temptation without my intense concern” is poorly translated. Literally it concludes with, “And I do not inwardly burn.” When Paul saw the church or a Christian drifting, he burned with indignation and sorrow. Paul expresses here his passion for the well-being of the church. Paul has not yet boasted of great things, only of weakness and indirectly of his love for Christ and the church.

“Lord, when it comes to caring for Your church give me great determination and courage. AMEN”

2 Corinthians 11.1-15

2 Corinthians 11.1-15

Paul is about to, forgive the phrase, put the hammer down on the false teachers. In this chapter he will do this in two ways. He will compare the false teachers to himself (in verses 1 through 15), then he will compare himself to the false teachers (in verses 16 through 33). Paul doesn't really want to do this, but this has been forced upon him because of the gravity of the situation. Nothing less than the souls of the Corinthians are at stake. The false teachers are preaching a different gospel, a perversion of the Gospel, which was no gospel at all. The false teachers, apparently, came claiming to be apostles like Paul but as a later, upgraded version. The term in verse 5, “eminent apostles” or “super apostles,” is literally “over” or “beyond” apostles. This is not a reference to the original twelve but a term for these false teachers. It may have been what they called themselves, or it may have been a sarcastic term Paul coined for this occasion. These self-proclaimed uber-apostles had three claims to fame, which were accusations against Paul. First they claimed Paul was not a good Greek orator. Where once the purpose of oratory was to communicate and convince, by this time in history it was nothing more than show and entertainment. The decline of oratory was so pronounced that substance and meaning had been replaced with theatrics and pomp. These uber-apostles produced a great show; Paul did not. He was unskilled as a showman who worked for effect. He was a fantastic preacher but not an entertainer. This was seen by the uber-apostles as a weakness but was in fact a strength.

As theatrical showmen, the uber-apostles were for hire. No actor acted without pay; no orator spoke without compensation. The rule of thumb was the bigger the pay, the greater the speaker. Paul's refusal to accept pay caused the uber-apostles to say or claim that this was proof of the low quality of Paul and his message. Paul knew that “he who pays the piper calls the tune.” The preacher who preaches for money is subject to adjusting his message to suit his paymasters. Paul would never compromise the message and held his heavenly dependence and earthly independence as a matter of core value, or even pride or boasting.

Paul makes a point that these uber-apostles operated with a thin veneer of respectability, but in reality they are false, deceitful, and disguised, just like their dark masters. And their end, like that of their dark masters, will be disastrous. Having compared the false teachers to himself, Paul now turns the tables.

“Lord, give me the wisdom to not be impressed by religious showmanship. AMEN”