Authority is for Service

Sunday, November 9, 2025

Start with Application Testimony

[Give people an opportunity to share a testimony from last week’s exhortation]

Last week’s exhortation: Make a new friend in another church and expect the Lord to show you a piece of a larger picture.

INTRO

We are going verse-by-verse, in a topical study through I & II Corinthians

Current Topic: Leadership - What it looks like to have authority under Christ

So far in our study of 1 & 2 Corinthians, we have covered the topics of being in Christ Alone, Living by the Spirit, Becoming Mature, and Church Relationship.

We are now entering the 5th and final topic in this series, which is Leadership.

While not everyone is called to lead a group or organization, every one of us will lead in some way, whether as a parent, a mentor, or in our place of employment. Therefore, the principles we will see in this last series are applicable for all of us.

In today’s lesson we’re going to see that God gives us positions of authority for the benefit of others, rather than the advancement of our own vision, dreams, or agendas.

An important piece of background for these last chapters of 2 Corinthians is that after Paul had planted the church in Corinth and then left to continue on his missionary journey, other so-called “Apostles” had come to Corinth to preach the Gospel in exchange for money and offerings. These people were very gifted speakers and drew large crowds, but their motivations were self-serving and greedy. The Corinthians were so enamored with well-spoken, well-credentialed people that they wrongly associated those things with godly, reliable leadership.

READ

2 Corinthians 10 CSB

1 Now I, Paul, myself, appeal to you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ—I who am humble among you in person but bold toward you when absent. 2 I beg you that when I am present I will not need to be bold with the confidence by which I plan to challenge certain people who think we are living according to the flesh. 3 For although we live in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh, 4 since the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments 5 and every proud thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ. 6 And we are ready to punish any disobedience, once your obedience is complete. 7 Look at what is obvious. If anyone is confident that he belongs to Christ, let him remind himself of this: Just as he belongs to Christ, so do we. 8 For if I boast a little too much about our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for tearing you down, I will not be put to shame. 9 I don’t want to seem as though I am trying to terrify you with my letters. 10 For it is said, “His letters are weighty and powerful, but his physical presence is weak and his public speaking amounts to nothing.” 11 Let such a person consider this: What we are in our letters, when we are absent, we will also be in our actions when we are present. 12 For we don’t dare classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. But in measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves to themselves, they lack understanding. 13 We, however, will not boast beyond measure but according to the measure of the area of ministry that God has assigned to us, which reaches even to you. 14 For we are not overextending ourselves, as if we had not reached you, since we have come to you with the gospel of Christ. 15 We are not boasting beyond measure about other people’s labors. On the contrary, we have the hope that as your faith increases, our area of ministry will be greatly enlarged, 16 so that we may preach the gospel to the regions beyond you without boasting about what has already been done in someone else’s area of ministry. 17 So let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord. 18 For it is not the one commending himself who is approved, but the one the Lord commends.

EXAMINE

#1 | Leaders must lead by the power of the Spirit - not their own power or ego

2 Corinthians 10:3–4 “For although we live in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh, 4 since the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds...”

While God may gift leaders with natural traits, abilities, and personalities that are effective in leadership, these alone are not enough to do what is required of a leader in the church.

Relying on ones own ability, and treating the Holy Spirit as the back-up when all else fails, is a common error that a lot of leaders make.

Leaders are often called upon to “go to war” spiritually, on behalf of those they lead because the authority God gave them is equal to the responsibility He lays on them. (Hebrews 13:17)

Any leader trying to take on those fights with their own abilities and talents, will be overburdened, ineffective, and ultimately fail.

Keep in mind that this kind of “warfare” doesn’t always look like fighting or confrontation - it often looks like faithfulness, presence in suffering, and resilience through pain and setback.

#2 | The power and authority God gives to leaders is to empower them to serve God’s people

2 Corinthians 10:8–9 “For if I boast a little too much about our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for tearing you down, I will not be put to shame. 9 I don’t want to seem as though I am trying to terrify you with my letters.”

In the Kingdom of God, being in leadership means you follow the example of Jesus, going lower and not higher. (Luke 22:25-27; John 13:14-16)

A leader must never be serving their own dreams or desires, nor using the people they lead merely to serve their own ministry ambitions. (Romans 15:1-3; John 6:38)

Paul didn’t shy away from owning the authority God had given Him, but Paul was equally clear on why God had given it to him.

The authority God gives to leaders in the church must always have the end result of making people healthier, stronger, and more mature in Christ.

Godly authority is never abusive - abusive authority is actually demonic. (John 10:10)

#3 | Leaders must aim for God’s approval in their leadership, rather than seeking it through fame or comparison

2 Corinthians 10:12, 18 “...we don’t dare classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. But in measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves to themselves, they lack understanding... For it is not the one commending himself who is approved, but the one the Lord commends.”

One of the most common pitfalls in leadership is seeking the approval of others for validation (or our own expectations of ourselves).

This inevitably leads to serving the expectations of others and leads leaders away from obedience to Christ.

At the end of the day, the only one who needs to be happy with a leader’s performance is God. (Galatians 1:10)

If God is happy with it, then that means it was the kind of leadership everyone really needed, whether they realized it or not.

At the same time, we don’t want to be deaf to the people around us. Remember, God often speaks to us through one another.

So a leader must be discerning and attentive to the Lord and to the feedback of his/her peers and the people they lead. (Eph 4:15-16)

REFLECT

Let’s take a moment to pray

Ask the Holy Spirit to guide our attention and lead our conversation, helping us see and understand what He wants us to apply in our lives.

APPLY

Process the passage together with these questions:

[Allow the conversation to go where people take it - we want people to feel the liberty to explore the topics of the passage that stand out to them. Select the questions from below that you think are right for the conversation, or add your own. Questions should be focused, yet open-ended. Wherever the conversation goes, help your group “land the plane” on the core idea of the lesson when you wrap up.]

Paul says his authority is for "building you up" (v. 8); what does that look like in practice?

Why is it so dangerous for a leader to measure themselves by comparing themselves to others (v. 12)?

What is the practical difference between seeking God's approval and seeking human approval (v. 18)?

Where we want to “land the plane”

God gives every believer influence, and He calls us to use it differently than the world does. True Christian leadership isn't about advancing our own agenda, relying on our own talents, or comparing ourselves to others. We must use whatever authority we have for its one true purpose: to build others up and help them mature in Christ. Ultimately, our success as leaders isn't measured by human applause but by hearing the Lord say, "Well done."

Exhortation for the Week

Reexamine the way you use whatever authority or influence God has given you - it it to serve others or your own interests?

FOOTNOTES

The “Weapons of Warfare?” The weapons of the world are learning, personal influence, impressive credentials (1 Cor. 1:26), rhetorical polish (1 Cor. 2:1), and the like. These things Paul had discounted and discarded (Phil. 3:4–8). He did not wage war as the world does or use their weapons. The weapons Paul used were the proclaimed Word of God and prayer (Eph. 6:17–18), weapons with divine power. In dependence on God (1 Cor. 2:4–5) these weapons, frail by worldly standards, are able to demolish the arguments and every pretension of the gospel’s foes. Neither the god of this Age (2 Cor. 4:4) nor his henchmen (11:15) could oppose the knowledge (or power) of God on which Paul relied. No thought (noēma; cf. 2:11), including those of his opponents, is beyond the reach of the One who “catches the wise in their craftiness” and “knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile” (1 Cor. 3:19–20; cf. Job 5:13; Ps. 94:11). The object of Paul’s warfare was to make people obedient. Paul was not interested in making them subject to himself or any other man after the manner of the world (cf. 2 Cor. 1:24; 11:20; Luke 22:25). David K. Lowery, “2 Corinthians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 576.

Paul punishing “any disobedience?” His approach to this particular confrontation in Corinth was twofold. First, it was necessary that the Corinthian church express their subjection to Christ by demonstrating loyalty to His representative Paul (5:20; cf. 7:15). In this way their obedience would be complete. Second, when Paul was sure they had repudiated his opponents (cf. 6:14–18), he could then deal directly with the false apostles, knowing that the church supported him. He was ready to punish their acts of disobedience to Christ. The word “punish” (ekdikēsai) could more forcefully be translated “avenge” (cf. 1 Cor. 3:17). In other contexts it describes the wrath of God directed against the enemies of His people (Num. 31:2; Deut. 32:43; Rev. 19:2). David K. Lowery, “2 Corinthians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 576–577.