BOASTING IN WEAKNESS:

2 Corinthians 11:16-33

2 Corinthians 11:16–33 (ESV)

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. 17 What I am saying with this boastful confidence, I say not as the Lord would but as a fool. 18 Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast. 19 For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves! 20 For you bear it if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face. 21 To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that!

But whatever anyone else dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast of that. 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?

30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. 32 At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, 33 but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.

We can all agree that we have been around someone who exudes arrogance. Arrogant people have a way making any and everything about themselves, without a drop of compassion for the needs of others. In every instance, they make sure that something is said or done to benefit themselves. This form of behavior most like stems from their own insecurities, and their desire to have someone tell them that they are great, and this ideology has made its way into the church as we now see.

Their so called “success” is based on how much money is made, how many satellite campuses you have acquired, how many people attend your church, who can yell and scream the loudest, and whoever can tickle the most ears. Success is based on how big the preachers home is, how many New York Times Best Sellers they have, how many movies are produced, how many planes, cars, the money they make, or the big wigs the associate with. They sound fancy and knowledgeable, but they don’t Joshua from Jeremiah, or Habbakuk for Hebrews, and they have the audacity to refute the truth in defense of their watered-down messages.

In 2 Timothy 3:1-7 Paul says

1 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. 6 For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, 7 always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.

It is a crying shame that the reason why these people boast in their accomplishments and successes because they want to get something from you. They believe if they can make themselves out to be something that they are not and they plan on the fact that the masses will be foolish enough to give them exactly what they desire. We usually attribute these actions to politicians, but you will find more than your fair share of these charlatans in the church. Pastor Michael mentioned some of these men and women last week. In 2 Corinthians, we have seen how Paul dealt with these people who thought they were the “spiritual elite,” with their “Gospel plus” doctrine, meaning that they forced upon rules, rituals, and customs, making it a works-based Gospel instead of the Gospel of grace. These men were claiming to be apostles of Christ who had come from Jerusalem, bragging and boasting about their tremendous achievements in the name of Jesus. As a result, the Corinthians were in danger of following their false teaching, rather than listen to a true apostle, such as Paul, who had a genuine heart to see them walking on the righteous path that leads to eternal life.

These elitest made the masses believe that they were someone that they were not, and that their teaching was superior to Paul’s. These people had come to Corinth as “so called” traveling teachers, but they were only interested in what they could get, and who they could use, by trying to validate themselves as true teachers, and trying to discredit Paul. In today’s church, not much has changed; these people will flash their money, affluence, and popularity to make you think that because of what they have, they are the blessed ones, and those who preach the truth and don’t have these things are not a blessed as they are, to discredit the ones who stand in truth. Remember, back in 2 Corinthians 11:14 Paul says,

14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.

I. BOASTING as a FOOL: (16-21a) 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. 17 What I am saying with this boastful confidence, I say not as the Lord would but as a fool. 18 Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast. 19 For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves! 20 For you bear it if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advanta e of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face. 21 To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that!

Paul continuously reminds the Corinthians that he is acting foolishly only to make a point. Paul’s earlier discussion of foolishness and wisdom was to show how seriously He took this charge. He, by no means thought of himself as a fool, but he understood that following divine wisdom made him look like a fool to many. For this reason, he asks the Corinthians to show him the same patience they would show a foolish man ( he says “receive me just as you would a fool.” ) You see, there are times that you will have to get in the mud with the pigs in order that the name of the Lord will be glorified. Of course, Paul did not want these people to think of him as a fool, but for the fact that some already made that conclusion, he decided to act like one, by showing a little arrogance of his own by boasting about himself. But he boasted in what these so-called super apostles could not, which is the fact that he truly suffered for Christ’s sake. We, who believe in the power of the Gospel are deemed foolish to the world; that is why many whom we come in contact with reject us, argue with us, and try to destroy our resolve. But remember what our Lord said in John 15:18-25

John 15:18–25 (ESV)

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. Whoever hates me hates my Father also. If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin, but now they have seen and hated both me and my Father. But the word that is written in their Law must be fulfilled: ‘They hated me without a cause.’ And Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:18–19 (ESV)

For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,

and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”

Now, let’s return to why Paul deemed it necessary to boast. Paul believed that by boasting about who he was and what he endured, he would convince the church at Corinth they need to show genuine discernment of who they allowed to lead them. He made the suggestion that they were wise, but their so-called wisdom meant that they put up with fools who took advantage of them being new in the faith. It may look like these men had legitimate ministries, and they pretended to be shepherds of their flock, but the false gospel that they preached made their “so-called leadership” a detriment to the spiritual well-being of the Corinthian church. Paul was trying to get through to the church at Corinth that they acted foolishly by accepting these false teachers as their leaders. These men masqueraded as blessings, but their false teaching was actually abusive.

To this day, we still have a lot of fake gospel preachers who pretend to be blessings, but are doing nothing but causing heartache and hell to those who listen to them. As pastor said last week, it us up to us to stand in defense of the Gospel! We are to warn others who are under the teaching of the wicked men and women, who use the Gospel as a gateway to obtain their desires, but in turn are leading millions straight to hell. In 1 Peter 5:1–5 , the apostle says “1 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. 5 Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

II. Boasting in the Resume (22-23) 2 Corinthians 11:22-23

2 Corinthians 11:22–23 (ESV)

22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death.

These false teachers made a big deal, being prideful of their Jewish ancestry. They claimed to be full-blooded Hebrews, descended from Israel, and of the seed of Abraham. They still were under the delusion that by being part of this ancestry gave them special privilege and favor in the sight of God. The failed to comprehend that God’s original people, Israel, had now been set aside by God because of their rejection of Jesus Christ. These men failed to realize that in the eyes of God, there was now no difference between Jew and Gentile: all were sinners, all needed to be saved through faith in Christ, and Christ alone. Their lineage did not give them special privilege over Paul, since he too was a Hebrew, an Israelite, and of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. You see, the claimed to be God’s servants by what they professed, but the apostle Paul was a servant in devotion, labor, and suffering. Paul could never forget that he was a follower of the “Suffering Savior.” He realized that the servant was not above his Master, and a true apostle could not expect better treatment in the world than His Master has received.

As followers of Christ, we need to come to realization that we are called to suffer! I am specifically talking suffer for the Gospel, suffering the cause of Christ! We are called to suffer because our Savior suffered, we suffer because the world hates us, and they hate us because they belong to he God of this world. We called to suffer to bear one another’s burdens. We are not in this fight alone, we have a God-ordained purpose to look out for one another, exhort, and encourage one another. Paul says in Galatians 6:2 “2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

III. Boast in Suffering: (24-29)

Lets take a look at all that Paul suffered for the sake of the Gospel; to magnify the mighty name of Christ...

Five times I received at the hands of the Jews e the forty lashes less one… The 39 lashes would had been administered in the Jewish synagogues as a severe punishment, most likely for blasphemy. Imagine, on five different occasions, getting your skin and flesh rip apart as the flagrum whip pierced the skin. Imagine, after those five whippings, which come to the total of 195 lashes. Think about the scars left from those beatings, but Paul did not relent in his mission to preach the Gospel.

Three times beaten with rods… In the ancient world, a beating with rods was a horrible, ugly form of torture. A strong man would bind the victims arm tightly around his body, incapacitating the victim’s ability to mover in much the same way as a straitjacket would do. Then while the victim’s upper chest and head still lay on the ground, his legs would be pulled up into the air. Now, at this point, a man with a huge rod, normally made of metal, would begin whacking the bottom the victim’s feet. He would wack and wack and wack until the feet of the victim was bleeding, broken, and maimed. At times this beating was so severe that the victim would afterward never would be able to walk again.

Paul was stoned.... Stoning or lapidation is a method of capital punishment where a group throws stones at a person until victim dies from blunt force trauma.

Three times shipwrecked....

Adrift at sea....

On frequent journeys....

Danger from robbers...

Dangers from my own people… Sometimes those people we care about or are considered family may be the greatest hindrances to our spiritual growth and well-being.

Danger at sea...

Danger from false brothers.... There are people out there who are under the leadership of the false brothers. We have a God-given duty to warn them!

In toil and hardship....

Many a sleepness night...

In hunger and thrist... Often without food....

In cold and exposure....

Daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches… In all that he went through, his worries, his anxiety was not for himself, but of the well-being of the church! How many of us can honestly say that!

After all of this, Paul faith and perseverance was unwavered. But we, as Christians in America, turn tail and run when someone calls us a “bible thumper”! We get cussed at or called names and we give in and compromise so we won’t get our feelings hurt!

We need to understand that this life comes with suffering; but right now, I am specifically talking about suffering for Christ’s sake, suffering because who you put your faith in and who you serve! The church in America is spoiled; we have not had to deal will true suffering, so when any opposition comes, we act cowardly, because we can’t take the heat! Well I have news for you, ITS GOING TO GET MUCH WORSE! PERSECUTION IS RAMPING UP IN OUR COUNTRY, AND WE MUST BE ARMED FOR BATTLEY, AND READ TO TAKE ONE FOR THE TEAM! Jesus told Paul that he would endure suffering for His sake. In Acts 9:16 the Lord said “16 For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” SUFFERING COMES WITH THE TERRITORY!

IV. Boasting in Weakness (29-33) 2 Corinthians 11:29-33 (ESV)

Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?

If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.

Paul was not confident in himself, he was confident because the Lord knew his heart, the Lord knew his commitment to preaching the Gospel, the Lord knew that Paul would willingly except punishments, and difficult times because his eyes were on the prize, and he was willing to endure it all because Christ was his strength.

This is what Paul meant in Philippians 4:13 “13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

We can only boast about our need for the Savior to protect and sustain us. Any things else is just rubbish.