Walking With Christ

2 Corinthians 11:16
I repeat, let no one think me foolish. But even if you do, accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little.(ESV)

Paul is in the middle of writing a scathing letter to the Corinthians to warn them about false apostles. Essentially, the people of Corinth were being deceived by the flashy credentials of new “apostles”. These false apostles would boast about the great things they had done, the spiritual experiences they had, and the authority they claimed through these. Most of them were doing this to build themselves up to gain power or money. The subtle ways they would twist the gospel would lead the people astray.

Paul, in stark contrast to Saul, really did not like boasting and bragging. He was quick to say that anything good that came from his life was because of the glory and goodness of God. Saul, before he became Paul, was prideful in his ability to persecute Christians. He used his extensive knowledge of the Torah as a weapon against what he viewed as a threat to pure Judaism. He felt it was his mission to eliminate the followers of Christ, and he was really pretty good at his mission.

In this verse Paul is saying, “Only fools boast. If you want boasting then let me be a fool and boast.” He would go on to describe the many ways he suffered in order to bring the gospel to them. He said that this was the only thing worth bragging about because it showed the provision and promise of the gospel in action. He was constantly under threat of death, and, yet God kept him alive and kept using him.

2 Corinthians 11:30
If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.(ESV)

I see a lot of false apostles rising today to build up their kingdoms and pad their bank accounts. This isn’t to say that there are no people worth following today. This is simply to say that the problem of false teachers has existed from the very beginning. It literally goes all the way back to Cain wanting to do things his own way instead of actually having the relationship with God and a desire to please Him.

Remember this, if a relationship only exists to support one party or the other then it is not a healthy relationship. If the relationship seems imbalanced like that then we owe it to ourselves to spend a little time seeking truth and wisdom.