Do you have a letter of recommendation? Ok, I know that is a strange question, but in a sense thats what Paul is talking about in 2 Corinthians 3:1-3. Listen to what he says to the Corinthians, 1) Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you? 2) You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men; 3) being manifested that you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. In Pauls case he was reminding the Corinthians of their past history. He had not come to them to make money or promote himself. His motives had been right and his character was clear. The Holy Spirit had worked through him to change lives. But he was up against a group of critics and false teachers that were trying to discredit him and his ministry and take over the church at Corinth. Paul returns to this theme in 2 Corinthians 10-12. In these three chapters he defends his own Apostleship and exposes the false teachers. I have discovered over the years that critics always come. They stand on the sidelines and throw stones at those working hard and being effective in ministry. Have you ever listened to a sports critic? Most of them couldnt carry a ball 40 yards themselves, but there they are mouthing off like an expert. The same thing often happens in ministry. Because the critic has no fruit of their own, they either discredit or try to steal from others. When they do take control, its not long before they hurt and ruin people or destroy an entire church. Beware of the loud and fruitless critic! God wants every Christian to bear fruit. He wants them to role up their sleeves and invite the Holy Spirit to work through them for the glory of God. He wants to write their resume so that it reads like the book of Acts. Dont waste your time criticizing others, get about the work God has entrusted to you! Whatever you do, dont waste your life on the sidelines. Get in the game! Join Gods team. Become a world changer!
Posted on: Mon, 08 Sep 2014 10:19:27 +0000
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