Deception in the Church

2 Corinthians 10:7-18

v.7 Paul is going to establish the validity of his apostleship. At the same time, he is calling into question the validity of the false teachers. Paul says “Look at what is before your eyes.”

The false teachers trusted that they belonged to Christ. At the same time, however, Paul believed that he was Christ’s. One thing was certain, both could not be correct. In order to determine who was telling the truth the Corinthians needed to look at the lives of both Paul and the false teachers and discern who was truly in Christ.

This verse raises an interesting question. Can a person who is not saved believe that they are saved? Let’s look at some truths about false prophets:

Deut. 13:1-3

God may allow us to be tested by false teachers.

False prophets may do miraculous things.

False prophets will lead us away from the truth.

Jeremiah 14:14

They are deceived themselves.

John 16:1-3

They think their service is noble.

Church members may be deceived into thinking they are saved when they are not.

Matthew 7:21-23

They are orthodox. “Lord, Lord”

They are active.

They are convinced. “Have we not”

1 Corinthians 6:9-11

Those living in a pattern of sinful behavior should not trust in their church membership to save them.

We should not trust teachers who give assurance despite a sinful lifestyle.

Ephesians 5:5-6, 2 Timothy 3:13

We conclude from Scripture that both teachers and church members in general can be deceived. Therefore, we cannot conclude that a person knows Christ simply by their profession of faith. We must look at the fruit in their life.

There are two very general ways we may determine the reality of a person’s profession.

First of all we must look at the belief system of the person.

* The Deity of Christ is an essential doctrine. Christ is God. If you do not believe this then you are not worshipping the One True God. That is to break the first and great commandment (John 1:1, Matthew 2:37-38).

* The gospel must be believed (1 Cor. 15:1-4, 2 Thess. 1:8).

* Trust must be in Christ alone for salvation (Romans 3:20-24, Ephesians 2:8-9).

Secondly we must look at the character of the person.

* Repentance is necessary for salvation (Acts 2:38, 3:19).

* Obedience follows salvation (Matt. 7:21, 24, Luke 6:46, 13:26-27, James 1:22, 2:14,19)

* Perseverance accompanies salvation. (Matt. 13:18-23, 1 John 5:4, 18, Phill. 1:6)

Paul wants the Corinthians to know that anyone can claim to know Christ. Mature believers discern the real from the counterfeit by examining the content of a person’s belief system as well as the character of that person. As we look at these two elements we can usually come to the right conclusion when considering the validity of a person’s profession.

v.8 It was necessary for Paul to speak of his apostolic authority in order that he would not be put to shame. Paul was a humble man. He would not, however, allow the church to be destroyed by the false teachers in the name of humility. Paul’s purpose was to edify the church. That is why God gave him the authority he had. True men of God build the church up. False teachers bring destruction into it. False teachers are characterized by division and confusion. A false teacher does not even have to be a pastor. It could be a deacon, Sunday school teacher, or any lay person within the body. Regardless of who they are, they accomplish the same thing. They bring turmoil to a church. Any person within a body teaching contrary to the Word of God is inviting destruction upon the church.

v.9 By this time the Corinthians were used to Paul communicating to them through letters. As we saw earlier the false teachers had charged him with being bold in his letters but humble in person (10:1). Paul assured them that his intention was not to threaten them through his letters. Paul did not want the Corinthians to obey him because they were scared of him. He was not using his authority to black mail them into submission. Paul loved the Corinthians, and he wanted what was best for them. False teachers are just the opposite. They rule by intimidation. They break the will of their followers. Paul led by love and trusted God for the results.

v.10 The false teachers did acknowledge the greatness of Paul’s writings. They were “weighty and strong.” These two words describe the depth and ability of Paul’s writings. His writings were deep and powerful because they were inspired by God. They had the power to change lives.

Their problem with Paul seemed to lie in Paul’s appearance.

His bodily presence is weak. Paul did not look like a preacher. He didn’t have the perfect hair and the cheesy smile. He was not charismatic and attractive. The world has an idea of how preachers should look. Certain preachers gain followings simply because of their appearance and personality. Paul did not.

His speech is of no account. This has nothing to do with the content of his message. It spoke of his delivery. In other words, he was not an eloquent speaker. Many preachers are measured by their delivery instead of their content. Content is far more important than delivery. Paul’s preaching was simple but true. He was not easy to listen to. Eutychus fell asleep while he preached (Acts 20:9). Paul had a successful ministry not because he was a great speaker but because he had a powerful message (1 Cor. 2:1-5). The world measures the value of a preacher on his eloquence. God measure the value of a preacher by his message.

v.11 Paul wanted the false teachers to know that he was the same person at all times. The Paul who wrote the letters that were weighty and powerful was the same Paul they saw in the pulpit. Paul may have seemed weak in person. They should realize that he is powerful, however. His writings were not full of empty promises or fabricated righteousness. If he needed to, he would remove the false teachers in person as his letters implied. They should not be fooled by Paul’s appearance. He was a very powerful man.

v.12 Paul refused to stoop to the same level of the false teachers. Paul was not about to go around praising himself. The false teachers had a standard of greatness that they invented themselves. According to that standard some people were good preachers and some were bad. These false teachers compared themselves with one another to see who the best was. Paul did not want to be involved in their childish activity. Their actions were foolish.

The believer knows that humanity is not judged by the standards of man. Our example is the Lord Jesus. No one meets up to his standard. Therefore, we remain eternally humble. If we were measured by the standard of our fellow man we would have nothing to worry about. We would be proud as the false teachers are. The greatest preacher in the world is nothing more than a sinner in the eyes of God.

v.13 False teachers have no problem with fabricating things about themselves for personal gain. Paul would only boast about the truth. He did not attempt to impress the Corinthians with a false resume. Paul was content in the ministry God had given him. That ministry included going to the Corinthians with the gospel. To the false teachers Paul’s work may have been unimpressive. In the end Paul’s work would endure and make a lasting impression to the entire world.

v.14 When Paul says “we are not overextending ourselves” he means that he did not go beyond the calling God gave him. God called Paul to start the work in Corinth. He was the first to bring the gospel to the city (1 Cor. 4:15). Paul belonged in Corinth. If Paul had not ministered to the Corinthians he would have been in disobedience. The false teachers on the other hand were not called to Corinth. They had overextended themselves.

v.15 Paul did not boast in the accomplishments of other men. The false teachers were intruding on the work of Paul. They showed up after the church was founded. They made themselves teachers and took credit for the existence of the church.

Paul’s hope was that the Corinthian church would contribute to the furtherance of the gospel. Paul’s influence would grow more rapidly if the Corinthian church was vibrant and healthy. It was his intention to get the church to that point. The increasing of the Corinthian’s faith refers to the spiritual growth Paul wanted to see in the church. Healthy churches are an important part of spreading the gospel. From within healthy churches finances, disciples, missionaries, church plants, and other things arise.

v.16 Paul wanted the gospel to go beyond Corinth. He wanted them to be involved in taking the gospel to places it had never been. Paul did not want to boast in the work someone else had done as the false teachers were doing. He wanted to blaze a new trail.

v.17 Paul was determined to boast only in the Lord. He recognized that if he accomplished anything for God it was only because God was working through him. As Paul saw churches erected in places where the gospel had never been proclaimed he could only give glory to God. No other preacher or even he could take credit for that.

v.18 The false teachers were accustomed to getting praise from men. As well, they bragged on themselves. In the end Paul said that this really didn’t matter. What matters is who the Lord praises. Every one of us will have to stand before the Lord one day. He will either commend us or condemn us (Matthew 25:21-30). Those who have faithfully proclaimed the true gospel will be commended. Those who reject the truth will be condemned. In the end that is what really matters. Paul did not seek to be praised among men. He sought to please the Lord.

Thoughts To Consider

1. Merely professing the Lord does not mean that you possess the Lord.

2. Division in the church is a result of false teaching.

3. The ability to speak well is not necessarily a spiritual empowerment from God.

4. It is the sinful nature of man that encourages him to measure his own morality by the morality of those viler than he.

5. Never accumulate the commendations of man in exchange for the commendation of God.