2 Corinthians 11:5-9

⁵I do not think I am in the least inferior to those “super-apostles.” ⁶I may indeed be untrained as a speaker, but I do have knowledge. We have made this perfectly clear to you in every way. ⁷Was it a sin for me to lower myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God to you free of charge? ⁸I robbed other churches by receiving support from them so as to serve you. ⁹And when I was with you and needed something, I was not a burden to anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied what I needed. I have kept myself from being a burden to you in any way, and will continue to do so.

School

Why should children attend school? To get education in preparation for brighter career. Why should we prepare for brighter career? We want to contribute for the betterment of the society. Why should we contribute for the betterment of the society? We do not want to become burden to society.

It’s better place to live if everyone collaborates for city improvement.

Together, let’s reflect on what the Lord commanded in Jeremiah 29:7. ⁷Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.

Millions of immigrants leave their country of origin to find a greener pasture. Since we want a greener pasture, we should regularly pray that our city, province and country prosper. If our city prospers, we also prosper. If the city has sufficient budget for snow clearing, we drive with peace.

If the city prospers, the government may provide better health care and much advanced hospital facilities. If the city prospers, the government can provide better assistance to people in need. Prosperity makes our life easier, and we can focus on sharing the good news of salvation in Christ.

Being rich or poor is not about how much money you’ve got in the bank. Rich people are not concerned much about finances. They are more anxious about career success. They want to be the greatest in their field. Expect that when you excel in your career, financial success will follow. It declares in Proverbs 22:29 (ICB) ²⁹Do you see a man skilled in his work?
That man will work for kings. He won’t have to work for ordinary people.

Kings have power and people who have money would always choose to employ the most skilled person. If you have sufficient budget, you would like to buy the best house you can afford. Beautiful houses are designed by the best architects and not just ordinary elementary pupil who can draw.

Observe what Pharaoh king of Egypt told Joseph in Genesis 47:5-6, ⁵Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you, ⁶and the land of Egypt is before you; settle your father and your brothers in the best part of the land. Let them live in Goshen. And if you know of any among them with special ability, put them in charge of my own livestock.”

The brothers of Joseph told Pharaoh that they were shepherds. Pharaoh understood that they were skilled on taking care of livestock. He told Joseph to choose among his siblings the one with special ability, why?

Special ability implies excellence at work and not just anyone who understands the work. Pharaoh wanted the best and most skillful and not just ordinary mediocre worker. God wants us to pray for city prosperity so that we may prosper also. God wants us to be skillful and excel and not just simply mediocre person as testimony of his transformative grace in our life.

If we live better, that should speak louder than just recitation of faith.

1. Speak

⁵I do not think I am in the least inferior to those “super-apostles.”

⁶I may indeed be untrained as a speaker, but I do have knowledge. We have made this perfectly clear to you in every way.

Those super-apostles may have great numbers of followers. Apostle Paul testified that he was not trained as speaker. But, he emphasized that he is knowledgeable of the gospel. Previously, he reminded the Corinthians that their work among them is something they can boast about.

Apostle Paul reminded the Corinthians about their eagerness to help. He had been boasting about it to the Macedonians. He talked about their enthusiastic readiness to give. He mentioned in 2 Corinthians 9:12-14.

¹²This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. ¹³Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. ¹⁴And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you.

Flood

Whenever I learn about flooding anywhere around the world, I’m also reminded that few weeks before we came to Canada, our city was flooded. Our apartment was flooded. It was not very funny experience. So we thank God for anyone who supported us so that we experience better situation.

I believe that recipients are thankful and praise God for generous support even if it is anonymously sent. God has already prepared rewards for every goodness that cause people to praise and thank him. It says in Ephesians 5:8-10, ⁸For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light ⁹for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth ¹⁰and find out what pleases the Lord.

Many children want to succeed and excel just to please their parents.

As children of God, we also want to please God our Father. He gave us the Scripture to know what pleases him. We don’t want to waste our efforts. We want that everything we do may bring glory to God, why? God blesses us when we obey him. It is redundant to say obedient believer. Why? We can only obey God when we believe him. Nevertheless, it’s emphasis.

Grocery

Few months ago, we’re paying our grocery at a self-service station. The machine was very slow processing our payment, but we patiently wait. Suddenly, a staff in the store came and punched her ID and personal code at the machine. My payment process was cancelled, and I felt bad about it.

I asked the staff what happened but she ignored what I was asking. Instead, she told us to proceed and pay the groceries. The store staff may have good intention to help but her good deeds did not make me thankful.

Similarly, we do our best effort to bring glory to God. But if we do not know what God wants us to specifically do, we wasted our best effort, if the Lord won’t appreciate it. So, we must pray to be filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit teaches, guides and reminds what God wants us to do.

Together, let’s reflect on what it reminds us in Colossians 1:9-10.

⁹Continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, ¹⁰so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God. 

Bearing fruit suggests frequent good work. Growing implies increase without stopping in the knowledge of God. We should aspire for excellence that God designed for us. And, mediocrity is never a good option for us.

Apostle Paul testified that he did not receive support from the church of Corinth, why? He exemplified to them about relying upon God’s grace. We rely more upon God’s grace as we grow deeper in our knowledge of God. Anyway, Paul found support from other churches outside Corinth.

2. Support

⁷Was it a sin for me to lower myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God to you free of charge? ⁸I robbed other churches by receiving support from them so as to serve you.

Most of the Corinthians were rich. They were considered to be more privileged materially because Corinth was located in the financial district.

Interestingly, Apostle Paul didn’t desire to receive financial support from Corinth. He preached the gospel to them free of charge. Possibly, the Holy Spirit instilled in the heart of Apostle Paul not to receive support from the Corinthian church. He may not understood at that time, but when so-called “super-apostles” came to Corinth, they expected to receive salary.

Apostle Paul explained about support in 1 Corinthians 9:11-14.

¹¹If we have sown spiritual seed among you, is it too much if we reap a material harvest from you? ¹²If others have this right of support from you, shouldn’t we have it all the more? But we did not use this right. On the contrary, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ.

¹³Don’t you know that those who serve in the temple get their food from the temple, and that those who serve at the altar share in what is offered on the altar? ¹⁴In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel.

Giving salary to preachers is also practice of faith in the Lord. Since the amount of salary of preachers is proposed by church leaders, should the salary of preachers exhibit appreciation to Lord’s messenger? God must have given Apostle Paul the desire not to require salary from Corinth. And, God inspired also other churches to support him. So, whether the church gives salary increase to preacher or not, it is the Lord’s approval.

The Lord instructed in Exodus 28:1-2, ¹Have Aaron your brother brought to you from among the Israelites, along with his sons Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, so they may serve me as priests. ²Make sacred garments for your brother Aaron to give him dignity and honor.

The Lord wants his spiritual leaders to have dignity and honor. God preferred his spiritual leaders to wear sacred garments and not just trendy shorts and jeans. Spirituality and outfit of spiritual leader are not separate issues. Aaron and his sons served as priests, but God instructed Moses to have skilled workers prepared for the sacred garment of priests of God.

Did Aaron and his sons have other livelihood? All things they needed to serve as priests of the Lord was supplied by the Israelites. How? The tithes and offerings to the Lord were given to the priests for their supply.

3. Supply

⁹And when I was with you and needed something, I was not a burden to anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied what I needed. I have kept myself from being a burden to you in any way, and will continue to do so.

Apostle Paul never asked the Corinthians to supply for his financial or material needs. At that time, the Philippians and Thessalonians supported their mission ministry. Actually, Apostle Paul worked also as tentmaker when he met the couple Priscilla and Aquila who also came to Corinth.

Reflect on what it narrated in Acts 18:1-3, ¹Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. ²There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them, ³and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.

Tentmaker is interpreted as working for secular to support mission work. There are pastors who serve parttime in the ministry because there’s no sufficient support from the church. Parttime or fulltime ministry, the Lord would supply for the needs of his servants. Actually, tentmaking is fun.

Mission

Our mission experiences as family were adventurously fantastic. We had teaching jobs to support family needs. At the same time, we spent free time sharing and telling the good news of salvation in Christ to contacts. If I were to retire as pastor, I wish that I could return to the mission field again. I heard God calling me also when he called Abram in Genesis 12:1-3,

¹The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. ²I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. ³I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

When we were in East Asia, I sensed a desire to remain in mission for extended time. It was sad to leave the mission field but I was searching where I can serve God without time limit, and he brought us here. The Lord gave me peace to leave my country to come here as our mission point.

The celebration of the Lord’s Supper reminds us to proclaim the gospel of Christ, testify for our adventure with him, and make disciples of all nations until he returns and takes us into heaven for all eternity.

God may have called to you join fulltime or parttime mission ministry. What is it that hinders you to respond to his calling? Pray for convincing confirmation and firm confidence that he will supply all your practical needs.

If the Lord gave his most precious son Jesus Christ for us to be saved from eternal torture, he would certainly provide for us to serve him.

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