Episode 2882 - Lesson 12 - Sunday Sep. 1 - Spiritual War

Spiritual WarRead 2 Corinthians 10:1-11. Paul's meekness in his dealings with the Corinthians was sometimes confused with weakness. What words or phrases in this passage reveal Paul's courage to deal with the problem of false teachers in Corinth?Paul begins 2 Corinthians 10 very personally: "Now I, Paul, make a personal appeal to you" (2 Cor. 10:1, HCSB). This shows how concerned Paul was about false teachings infiltrating the church. His words in 2 Corinthians 10:1 ironically refer to his opponents' accusation that he was a frightening bully when writing letters from a distance but a pitiful coward when dealing with people face to face (2 Cor. 10:10-11). He responds that what seemed to be weakness should be seen as powerful meekness and Christlike gentleness.False teachers must be faced with boldness and confidence (2 Cor. 10:2) but mingled with the gentleness of Christ (2 Cor. 10:1). Jesus once said, "I am gentle and humble in heart" (Matt. 11:29, NIV). However, Jesus also boldly confronted the money changers in the temple by overturning their tables and calling them robbers (Matt. 21:12-13). He also called the Pharisees hypocrites and whitewashed tombs right to their faces (Matt. 23:23-27). Like Jesus, Paul also knows that we are in a spiritual war that demands the use of God's whole armor (Eph. 6:12-17).Paul's language in 2 Corinthians 10 is military because lives are at stake (2 Cor. 10:3-6). This is not a mere human conflict but a divine battle for winning people to Christ. In that connection, every false argument and lofty opinion must be faced and demolished, based on the Word of God, so that every thought may be brought into captivity "to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5, NIV).In this spiritual warfare, Paul acts in the authority of Christ. This authority, however, aims at edification, not destruction (2 Cor. 10:8). It is easy for spiritual leaders to affirm that they are acting in the authority of God. Nevertheless, they must remember that their authority is given by Christ, and, like Him, they must be meek and humble in heart. Paul's claim of his Christ-given authority is due to his concern that the Corinthians were listening to the wrong people, thereby risking their loyalty to Christ.How can we be simultaneously gentle and bold when dealing with false teachers? Why must we be both?