2 Corinthians 11:1–15

In the light of the coming day, when the Lord will commend His servants, praising oneself in front of one's fellows appears to be nothing but folly. Paul admits this in the first verse of our chapter. He had been speaking about himself in the previous chapter, and he says more about himself in this one. But his whole aim was to assure the Corinthians that his apostolic mission was real and genuine. He pleads guilty to this "folly" and asks them to bear with him in it.

The apostle loved to spend himself in the service of Christ or the saints. He hated to say a word about himself even when the occasion called for it, at least when it might look like self-defence. His wisdom, and his joy, was to testify of Christ. To speak of himself even as His servant he counts "folly," however necessary. But it is part of the enemy's tactics to undermine, lower, and if possible destroy a true servant of the Lord... For can anything be more likely to frustrate testimony to Christ than to blacken the one who carries it, in his motives, ways, and aims?

You can see the point of this opening verse by looking back at verse 12 of the last chapter. He is about to do, in his own way, what he had there called unwise. For this deliberate act of folly he asks them to be patient with him, since glorying in the Lord left no proper room for self-commendation of any kind. So if he now seemed to contradict in practice the rule of life he had just set before them, let them remember this: it is to them, and for their sakes, that he exposes his weakness. They might well bear with him, for he was no willing actor. Their own readiness to believe the claims of his critics had forced him onto the stage.

It is humbling yet instructive to contrast the apostle's pain at having to speak like this with the all too obvious pleasure many a servant of Christ takes in personal stories. Such stories seem to have no aim but to prove his own cleverness at the expense of poor Mr. This or Mr. That, or the great sacrifices he has made for the truth, or the outstanding excellence of his own line of things in the testimony of Christ.

If it seems strange that Paul asks the Corinthians to bear with a little folly in him, let us still remember that it is God who inspires him to write as he does. Paul thought it folly to speak of himself and of his own labours for Christ, and would far rather have avoided it. But God required it here, and His inspiring it keeps it fully free from exaggeration or from exalting a man too highly... It is valuable for our day, when men exalt themselves and claim to be apostles or something like it. Measure such a claim against Paul's character, labour, and sufferings, and these modern claims will collapse in utter shame.

These chapters hold much that is of deep importance for all saints, and for all time. We gain greatly by having it given to us not as theory, but as actual practice, worked out between the apostle and some of his fellow believers.

Almost everyone speaks of jealousy as something evil; Scripture hardly ever does. It even speaks of a jealousy that comes from God. Paul can say to believers, "I feel a divine jealousy for you"… His love for Christ, and his love for the saints, made him jealous in case anyone or anything should come between them and Christ. He had no pity for anyone who used false teaching to lure the saints away from Christ.

The Jews treated betrothal as binding as marriage, and only a divorce could end it… Scripture also uses it as a picture of God's favour to Israel, His ancient people, in a future day, when He will "betroth" them to Himself for ever (Hosea 2:19-20). It pictures too where the church stands with Christ. Paul wrote to the believers at Corinth, "I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ" (2 Cor. 11:2). The conduct of the saints should be true to this betrothal.

As an ambassador of Christ he represented Christ. As God's effective messenger of grace he had betrothed the church at Corinth to the Lord, gathering from her lips a virgin confession of His saving name. He wanted to present her to the true Bridegroom on the coming day, still in the first, unchilled love of her betrothal. True gospel service presents to Christ what Christ will Himself present in glory to Himself… Notice that the apostle is not speaking here of individual believers, but of the whole company of the saved at Corinth.

"Chaste" means purity of body and blamelessness of life. It also carries the thought of something marked by awe, something very rare in the way this godless world runs. And it carries the thought of something costly, given up in sacrifice. If we want to bring joy to the heart of Christ, we must refuse the flesh.

The Song of Solomon does not go beyond the day of betrothal, but Paul points to the wedding day, when the betrothed one is presented to Christ as a pure virgin. What does he mean by a pure virgin? He means one who is true, one against whom not a breath of reproach could be raised. So he warns them: "I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ."

This is the destiny of the saints. They are loved, washed, sanctified, justified, with this close relationship to Christ in view. To the apostle that relationship was completely real and sure. It was not so to those who lowered the standard — the standard of future hope, of present separateness, and of conscious nearness to Christ in love and holiness. They lowered it by allowing themselves ease in this life, and links with the world in its aims and ways, its philosophy or even its religion… We are betrothed now to one husband, Christ Himself, and we are called to judge not only our conduct but our unsuitable thoughts and feelings.

Surely Revelation 12:9 and Revelation 20:1, together with 2 Corinthians 11:3, are enough to decide this question. Satan made use of that subtle animal, before it was reduced to its humiliating condition.

Verse 3 is very important, because it exposes the way the great adversary sets the trap for our feet. In 2 Corinthians 4 we were told how he blinds the minds of those who do not believe. Here we find that some have believed, so his blinding tactics have failed with them. Even so, he is still stubbornly active. He aims to deceive them, as he once deceived Eve. When he acts with cunning as the serpent, he is more dangerous than when he attacks as a roaring lion.

The enemy's approach was indeed subtle. It was to awaken distrust of God in Eve's heart. Could it be good to refuse man the fruit of any tree in the garden? Distrust of God opens the door to every sin.

Their minds at Corinth were beginning to be corrupted by someone who came with impressive claims in the flesh. Eve was not satisfied with what God had made her. She listened to the lie of the serpent when he offered her to become like God. In the same way, the Corinthians were not satisfied simply with what Christ had made them. They were seeking wisdom of the flesh.

The devil, in the form of a serpent, deceived Eve in a very subtle and crafty way. Step by step he corrupted her mind as to God, and led her to act apart from her husband and independently of him. He works in the same way today. He aims at diverting us from simplicity and from true subjection to Christ.

This expression means two things. First, a view of gospel truth so clear and unhindered that it convinces both heart and mind of its absolute excellence and perfection. Second, a faith strong and simple enough to set the believer knowingly in Christ, and so to separate him in heart and spirit from the world. Only those who look at Him with a single heart and eye have the assured and delighted sense of completeness in Christ. This is the believer's true excellence, and to cast him down from it is the constant effort of the enemy.

There were "false brothers" who not only made a Christian profession but claimed to be apostles... they came to the saints with such an impressive outward show that they appeared as angels of light and ministers of righteousness. These men used satanic subtlety. They perverted the truth by preaching "another Jesus," "another Spirit," and "another gospel."

The more Christ is a living person to the soul, the more that soul recognises the reality of Satan's work against it. The enemy is a real and active adversary who must be resisted. To feel nothing of his schemes is the awful sign of an unbelief, common and growing in the Christian world.

After all, it is not knowing Satan that keeps us aware of his schemes and able to spot them. It is keeping in God's presence... The moment we know a thing is of Satan, the temptation is over if we are walking with God... The devil has this character of subtlety, like the serpent, and not always open opposition. But the place of obedience to God will always upset him.

In those early times there were "false brothers." They claimed to be Christians, and even claimed to be apostles. Such were "false apostles" and "deceitful workers." Yet their outward show was so fine that they looked like angels of light and ministers of righteousness. With satanic subtlety these men perverted the truth by preaching "another Jesus," "another Spirit," and "another gospel" (v. 4).

In Eden the tempter contradicted what God said, and the same thing happens in the church... You have received a class of teachers and honoured them. They are clearly trying to turn your hearts away from us, and you are listening to their hints. But why this change of feeling towards the one who first led you to the truth? Have these men revealed to you a new and better gospel? Is the Jesus they speak of a different Lord from ours? Are you receiving from the newcomer a better Comforter than the One who first taught you to cry, Abba, Father? You know it is not so.

Both words occur in Galatians 1:6-7. Paul was astonished that the Galatians were so quickly changing to a different gospel, which was not another. Someone might think Paul was admitting there could be another gospel than the one he had preached to them. To stop that, he uses allos with an emphatic negative — "which is not another." He is saying flatly that there was no other gospel, and there could be no other. Compare 2 Corinthians 11:4.

The gospel is the essence of simplicity. It sets Christ before us as the One who expresses all that God has to say to us. He is also the One who has done the necessary work of redemption, and in whom we now stand before God. It brings us into complete subjection to Him. But Satan is a master of craft and subtlety. Using these men who opposed Paul, he did not deny outright the Christ whom Paul preached. Verse 4 is clear evidence of this. If they could have come with another gospel, announcing another Jesus and giving another spirit, there might have been something to say for them — especially if it had been an improvement on what the Corinthians had already received.

Every one of these blessings had come to them through the apostle and no one else. Yet they had thought little of him. At the same time they were ready to honour self-exalting men who had set themselves up to teach on his foundation. Those men praised the twelve apostles only to run Paul down.

In his ministry Paul wanted the affections of believers kept in pure loyalty to Christ. In 2 Corinthians 11 he is urgent about this, and warns the saints against any who came "preaching another Jesus." Later in the chapter he traces such speaking to the work of Satan. Satan always seeks to cloud the preciousness and glories of this incomparable Christ in the minds of His own.

The apostle loved to spend himself in the service of Christ or of the saints. He grudged a word about himself even when the occasion demanded it — at least when it might look like self-defence. His wisdom, like his joy, was to testify of Christ. To speak of himself even as His servant he counts "folly," however necessary. But it is part of the enemy's tactics to undermine, lower, and if possible destroy a true servant of the Lord. It is just as much his tactic to cry up those who serve their own appetites, and who deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting by fair speech and plausibility. Is there any better way to frustrate testimony to Christ than to blacken the one who carries it — his motives, his ways, his aims?

None of these blessings had come to them through any channel but the apostle. Yet they had thought little of him. They were ready to honour the self-exalting men who had set up to teach on his foundation, praising the twelve only to belittle Paul... They had had the fullest experience of the apostle in everything. In knowledge as in power they knew he was behind none, unless it were in the rhetoric of the schools which the Greek mind overvalued.

These false teachers wanted to undermine the Apostle's work. So they called his apostleship and service into question.

You have heard of the original apostles of the Lord. Those who keep praising them at my expense give them no honest praise; even so, you do well to honour their names and calling. I have already admitted in public that I am not worthy to be counted one of their company. Yet in power, in knowledge, or in effective grace, where have they surpassed me? ... And if knowledge is the test of true apostleship, who taught you what you now claim to know of God and of His things? Was it not I?

Paul was not in the least behind the chiefest apostles as to the truth God gave him. If he was a plain man in speech, there is no doubt that in the knowledge of the ways of God he surpassed others. And when he was among the Corinthians there was an honest transparency about him that they could not deny. He had shown himself plainly among them. They really had no excuse for accepting men who merely put on a show of superiority, so contrary to the openness of faith and love.

In Corinthians he is comparing himself with other apostles, but in Ephesians he has the glory of Christ in view, and he makes nothing of himself... In Judaism he was at the top; in Christianity he goes right to the bottom.

There are three statements in which he speaks of himself: chief of sinners; not fit to be called an apostle; and less than the least of all saints. He said all these things of himself, and it seems that the further he advanced in these glorious things, the less he thought of himself. I do not know of anything more likely to humble us than a grasp of the glory of Christ.

idiōtēs (from idios, "one's own") has a different meaning. It describes private persons, as distinct from officials or professionals, and so simple or untaught people… The word also occurs in 2 Corinthians 11:6. There Paul insists that though he may be simple, or untrained, in speech, he is not so in knowledge.

They ran down his person. "For his letters, they say, are weighty and powerful, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible" (10:10). He writes so much in this letter about his self-sacrifice, his zeal, his sincerity, his courage, his tireless service and his many sufferings because they had attacked and belittled him in all these things.

They had all had the fullest experience of the apostle in everything. In power and in knowledge alike, they knew he was behind no one — unless it was in the trained rhetoric of the schools, which the Greek mind overvalued.

But your new director says my speech is rude. I have admitted it — more than that, it is a chief badge and mark of that grace of God in which I make my boast. That grace makes the weakness of the earthen vessel a display of the excellence of the power that has filled and used it… If knowledge is a test of true apostleship, from whose lips, if not mine, did you learn what you now claim so surely to know of God and of His things?

The power that produces this effect in preaching is not natural eloquence, though God may use eloquence too, and it has its own place and effect. Apollos was a skilful speaker. Paul was not; as he tells us, he was rude of speech (Acts 18:24; 2 Cor. 11:6). But he spoke with a wisdom and power that were creative in their effect, for his words were not his own.

He may have been weak in bodily presence and contemptible in his power of speech — "rude in speech," as he says elsewhere. Yet he spoke with such agony of spirit that his "rude" words must have hit like a whirlwind. Multitudes were converted through them… We hear Gospel talks that are good, clear, sound, striking, intelligent, eloquent, sweet. But they achieve little, either in conversions or in stirring up the powers of darkness… The difference lies in the character and quality of the messengers.

These false teachers were trying to undermine the Apostle's work by calling his apostleship and service into question. He could say with truth that he was in no way behind the very chief apostles. He might be rude in speech, yet he had no lack of divine knowledge, for in everything he had made the truth plain to them.

There was neither secrecy nor trickery in what we did at Corinth. Our ways were open to the view of all, as we lived and walked with God, and in His sight. And we did not hold back from telling you anything you were ready to receive.

From verses 6 to 9 we gather that people had belittled the apostle. It was not only that his speech was not polished. It was also that he had taken no money from the Corinthians while he was among them. When he speaks of this, his language carries a note of irony. He had lowered himself to lift them up. Was this an offence, a sin? He had accepted help from other churches, especially those in Macedonia. He calls this robbing, or spoiling, them — still irony, of course.

I took no money from you when I brought you the good news. Some among you are clever enough to see in this a solid argument against the truth of my apostleship. A man truly worthy of that title, they will say, should think more of his official dignity. He should make the honour of his presence felt. Fees should back up authority. Christ's careless sheep should learn the value of sound doctrine from the price attached to their privilege of hearing true apostolic teaching!

As for me, I own myself in fault. I came in the name of Him who did not please Himself. In my simplicity I thought that love would reproduce itself, and that my lowering myself would dethrone your pride. I reckoned that in my unselfish labour you would have found an example to follow, rather than a cause of blame. So if I erred in this, I did it on purpose.

Low-minded men misunderstand and despise a humility and love they cannot match themselves. Some at Corinth bowed to position and money. They were blind to the apostle's grace in working with his own hands, or at least in taking no help from rich Corinth... The apostle was ready to preach the gospel everywhere, at any cost to himself. In some places he felt free and glad to receive — not only from people, but from churches that were walking with God in grace and humility. Where the world's spirit ruled, he held back and would take nothing... From the poor Macedonian brothers he received; from the wealthy Corinthians, nothing.

Was the offence perhaps in taking nothing from them and preaching the gospel freely, without money?... But why? Because he did not love them? God was his witness that this was not the case. He did it to take away the false teachers' boast of preaching for nothing. Then they could not say: we work free of charge, while the apostle takes money for his services.

Paul would not take a penny from the Corinthians. Yet he laid down the rule that people should support the Lord's servant. He laid that rule down for others and threw it away for himself. He worked and supported himself. He ministered the truth, but he kept the things of God far away from money.

Do you not see that the apostle Paul would not use the right to support that the gospel gave him? He would not let anyone take away that confident boast. He had the right, but he preferred to work with his own hands rather than be a burden... What a fearful decline from the whole spirit, and the letter too, of Christianity! What a complete change from the character of the gospel! Men of every kind now count as a stain, and a thing to blame, the very thing that was the apostle's boast.

But small-minded men misunderstand and despise a humility and love they are not capable of themselves. Some at Corinth bowed to position and money. They were blind to the apostle's grace in working with his own hands, or at least in taking no help from rich Corinth. "Did I commit sin in humbling myself that you might be exalted, because I announced the gospel of God to you free of charge? Other churches I spoiled, receiving hire for service towards you." ... From the poor believers in Macedonia he received; from the wealthy Corinthians nothing. What a contrast that is to the Christian world today!

"I robbed other churches, taking wages of them, to do you service." This strong expression is no exaggeration of the truth. Paul knew the natural temper of the people he is addressing here. He would not stir up feelings in them that might work against the free course of the gospel. So instead he had let too much weight fall on the grace of other believers. It is a low place these kingly Corinthians now have to fill. They alone were left out of the honour of supporting the apostle. That was a bitter dose, and good for their pride.

When Paul says (2 Cor. 11:8), "I robbed other churches, taking wages of them to do you service," he is clearly speaking in a figure, however absolute the wording. It does not refer to the ministry of the word as such. He had been servant of the Corinthians, and others had paid his wages.

He explains his true motive. "But what I am doing I will also do, in order to cut off the occasion of those who desire an occasion, so that in what they boast about they may be found just as we are." It is a cheap boast, where men have plenty and need no self-denying devotion. "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ."

At the same time he fully recognised our Lord's rule: "the labourer deserves his wages." Why then, someone may ask, did the apostle not make more use of it? On the one hand, this devoted servant would not claim his rights, for fear he should be misunderstood. On the other hand, some of his converts had only just been won back from the deepest darkness. He felt they needed an object lesson in him, of how to earn an honest living.

For special reasons he would take nothing from the believers at Corinth. He did take from other churches... But how different this is from what is called a paid ministry. Here was a man led by the Spirit to give his whole time to the Lord's work. The Lord would not let him be in want. He supplies what is lacking by putting it into the hearts of people or of churches to give to his needs.

If Paul were with us today, I wonder if there would be gatherings from whom he could not accept gifts?

From verses 6 to 9 we gather that people had belittled the Apostle. They did so partly because his speech was not polished, and partly because he had taken no money from the Corinthians while he was among them. When he refers to this, his language carries a touch of irony. He had humbled himself to lift them up. Was this an offence, a sin? He had accepted help from other churches, especially those in Macedonia. He calls this robbing, or plundering, them — again the language of irony, of course. He had done the Corinthians the greatest possible service, and it cost them nothing.

Paul knew the natural temper of the people he is now addressing. He did not want to stir up feelings among them that might work against the free course of the gospel. So he had allowed an undue pressure on the grace of other saints. These Corinthians, who acted like kings, now have a low place to fill. They found themselves shut out of the honour of supporting the apostle, and that must have been a bitter but healthy blow to their pride... If he came to them, he came at no expense to them. While among them, though he was in need, he would not tell them about his needs. He would live at the cost of others instead — people who could better appreciate his grace.

Later he was at the wealthy city of Corinth, far south of Macedonia, and in real need. It was saints from Macedonia who met that shortage: no doubt saints from Philippi, and perhaps also from Thessalonica and Berea.

The apostle was ready to preach the gospel everywhere at his own cost. In some places he felt free and happy to receive, not only from people but from churches, going on with God in grace and humility. Where the world's spirit ruled, he held back and would take nothing... From the poor Macedonian brothers he received; from the wealthy Corinthians nothing.

The apostle was called in an extraordinary way, and it was fitting that he should act in extraordinary grace. This is what he does. He made the gospel without cost to others, at all cost to himself. He did not use his right to a support for himself... It is the giving up of one's right for special reasons of grace.

We are meant to see how fitting this was in wealthy, trading Corinth. He would not have them think of the gospel as one of the goods they traded in. Money could not buy the priceless gift of God. They should not be able to think, even for a moment, that he was after anything of theirs. No, he sought only the people themselves. He sought them in the love of Christ, who was so rich, yet became poor for men, so that His poverty might make them rich.

It was his boast that he took nothing from them, since the brothers in Macedonia had supplied his needs... But why? Because he did not love them? God was his witness that this was not the case. It was to take away from these false teachers their boast of preaching for nothing. Then they could not say, "We work free of charge while the apostle receives money for his services."

"As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia." This aim matters so much to him that he stakes his faith on his resolve. Nor would he limit his purpose to the walls of Corinth. If there were other churches in Achaia, they must accept the same exemption for their sakes. His boast should be that they were his debtors right to the end. They would then be their own judges. Others might ask them, or they might ask themselves, how they had repaid the man who first brought them the good news of the grace of God.

The apostle was ready to preach the gospel everywhere, at any cost to himself. In some places he felt free and happy to receive support, not only from people but from assemblies walking with God in grace and humility. Where the world's spirit ruled, he held back and would take nothing. The general principle stayed in force: "the laborer deserves his wages." The Lord has commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel. The apostle laid down what is right. But in grace he could go beyond it, and he did — not using it for himself but for Christ, wherever His glory called for it. From the poor Macedonian believers he received; from the wealthy Corinthians nothing.

He states his rights only so that he may give them up. Many quote his words only so that they may insist on the very rights he gave up for the gospel's sake. There would be no grace, no moral beauty, in letting go of privileges you never had a right to. But once the right is clearly established, the grace that lets it go shows in full.

The resolve at the close of this passage sounds stern. At first it may seem out of keeping with the warm language of his love elsewhere in the letter. But there is no real contradiction; it was necessary, for love's very sake, to form the decision and hold to it. The enemies of truth had questioned whether his hands were clean, and whether his apostolic mission was valid. Corinthian believers had listened to the slander.

God knew that this was not because of any lack of love to them; in fact love was in it more than they realised.

His true motive he explains. What he does now, he will keep doing. In that way he cuts off the opening from those who want one, so that in the very thing they boast about, they may be found to be just like us. It is a cheap boast, where men have plenty and need no self-denying devotedness. Such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.

I took no money from you when I brought you the good news of the gospel. And some among you are clever enough to see in this a solid argument against the truth of my apostleship. One really worthy of that title, they will say, should have more regard for his official dignity... I came in the name of Him who did not please Himself. In my simplicity I thought that love would reproduce itself, and that my humbling of myself would break down your pride. I expected that in my unselfish labour you would have found an example to follow, not a cause for blame.

What he decided here, he did not decide in a fleshly way. And if their hearts were still too dull to weigh his motive and to justify him in his strange decision, God, whom he served, was the witness who approved him. If his action seemed unloving, they would learn in due time that love alone had driven him to act so.

God knew that this was not because of any lack of love to them: in fact there was more love in it than they realised. But he will keep doing as he has done, to cut off any opportunity from those who are looking for one. Some men were ready to accuse Paul of selfish motives about money the moment he accepted anything from the Corinthians. So he would give them not the slightest opening for it.

The apostle was ready to preach the gospel everywhere, at any cost to himself. In some places he felt free and happy to receive help — not only from people, but from churches that were walking with God in grace and humility. Where the world's spirit prevailed, he held back and would receive nothing. The general principle stood untouched: "the laborer deserves his wages"; "the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel." But the apostle, while laying down what is right, could and did go beyond it in grace, not using it for himself but for Christ wherever His glory called for it. From the poor Macedonian brothers he received; from the wealthy Corinthians nothing.

"And what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do" — a cheap boast where men have plenty and need no self-denying devotedness. "For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ."

The motive and reason for going on serving the ungrateful lies in the love itself, not in the people it serves. This is the very character of love, the divine nature. There is nothing self-seeking in it. If his motive is undivided, the most gifted servant will be quite content to be misunderstood and badly repaid as he carries out his service to the Church of God.

In the regions of Achaia, as long as this attitude remained, Paul had settled it: he would not give up this boasting that he received nothing from them. He does not hide his reasons. He shows clearly that they are right. God knew this was not from any lack of love for them: love was in it more than they realized. But he will keep on as he has, to "cut off occasion from them who desire occasion." Some were ready to accuse Paul of selfish motives about money the moment he took anything from the Corinthians. So he would give them not the slightest occasion for it.

There is a sternness of tone in the decision at the close of this passage. At first it may seem out of keeping with the warm language of his love elsewhere in the letter. But there is no real conflict. For love's own sake he had to make that decision and hold to it. The enemies of truth had questioned the purity of his hands and the validity of his apostolic mission, and Corinthian saints had listened to the slander. This plain work of Satan did not chill his eager zeal for them; it stirred it up. So it showed him how important it was to cut off occasion carefully from those who sought occasion.

Later there was another special reason why the apostle would not take money from the Corinthians. False teachers wanted to profit from Paul's work, and they pretended to work for nothing. Paul wanted to take away every occasion of influence from these evil men. They were not to claim something that was not just as true of him.

His true motive he explains. "But what I do I will also do that I may cut off the occasion of those desiring an occasion that wherein they boast they may be found even as we" — a cheap boast where men have plenty and need no self-denying devotedness. "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ."

In this course he keeps his true character as a minister of God, a witness and servant of the truth. To him, to live was Christ, and he would have the walk of these pretenders tested by the same rule. They boasted loudly, so he would know on what grounds. Was their boasting like his own, in the heart, or only on the lips? Had they come to Corinth as faithful and outstanding ministers of Christ? No — were they, with all their empty claims, ministers of Christ at all? The Corinthian saints were to know, for Paul would act so as to force his rivals to show their true character.

The apostle was ready to preach the gospel everywhere, whatever it cost him. In some places he felt free and glad to receive support, from people and from whole assemblies who walked with God in grace and humility. Where the spirit of the world ruled, he held back and would take nothing. The general principle stood: "the labourer deserves his wages"; "the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel." The apostle laid down what is right, yet in grace he could go beyond it, and did. He used the right not for himself but for Christ, wherever His glory called for it. From the poor Macedonian believers he received; from the wealthy Corinthians nothing.

We have to think about foes as well as friends, and they are quick to attack what condemns them. So let us seek to cut off occasion from those who seek occasion, so that even the enemy, whatever kind he is, may have no evil thing to say about us.

They were false apostles, because they had never been sent by the Lord as the true apostles were. They were workers, true enough. But they were deceitful workers, since they turned themselves into what they were not. In this they shared the character of the one they served, and their end will match their deceitful works.

His ironical concessions are now replaced by direct and unsparing denunciation. These grand and all too convincing pretenders are no true shepherds. They are wolves in sheep's clothing. The strength of his language matches the seriousness of the evil he is opposing. Unreal claims are lies by their very nature; and no lie is of the truth — they all have the same parent, the devil. In every attack on the truth there is a power at work below the surface, and it is the office of the Spirit of truth to uncover it and strip off its mask. That Spirit glorifies Jesus.

Complete wickedness can wear a religious dress. That is no wonder, since Satan himself takes the form of an angel of light, and his servants appear as ministers of righteousness. Notice the claims here: superior light and assumed righteousness. They are high, showy claims, but they leave out the cross of Christ, and so the pure grace of God. The whole thing becomes a hollow and deadly sham.

With Satan's own cunning, these men twisted the truth. They preached "another Jesus," "a different spirit," and "a different gospel" (v. 4). The Apostle also saw what was coming. If the churches put up with these evil workers, the Christian circle would lose its simple devotion to Christ. Believers' hearts would be pulled away from true loyalty to Christ. They would follow men who drew disciples after themselves to make themselves great (v. 20). So they pretended to be what they were not. They twisted the truth, corrupted the Christian profession, and lifted themselves up at the cost of others.

They tested the claim of some to be equal with the apostles. They tested it so well that every false claim showed up in the light of the signs that marked out the Lord's apostles (1 Cor. 9; 2 Cor. 11; 12). The word "tried" means tested, or put to the proof (2 Cor. 13:5; 1 John 4:1). "Have found them to be false." These men claimed apostolic office and authority on no ground at all. The test overturned that claim and branded the men themselves as liars — or, as Paul puts it, "false apostles."

The evil ways that soon produced a clergy class were already at work. That class did away even with any claim to gift from Christ, and leaned instead on the made-up claim of apostolic succession. Such men then opposed the apostle in person, as now they oppose his doctrine.

Our only hope of spotting these frauds is to look at what such movements actually do. Do the marks of the Word of God show up in their practice? If not, stay well away from them.

God is light, and Satan is His opposite; his power is the power of darkness, but his craft is the mimicry of light. To corrupt and destroy truth is his unceasing aim, and to do it he takes the form of the very thing he attacks. When Paul calls these false apostles "ministers of Satan," he describes them by the destructive nature of their influence in the church.

The Greek word is more often translated "minister" and "servant" than "deacon." It twice refers to Christ, Romans 15:8; Galatians 2:17. It is used of Paul and others, Colossians 1:7, 23, 25, and of magistrates, Romans 13:4. It is even used of Satan's agents, 2 Corinthians 11:15.

The God of holiness is holy in His ways; and His instruments must match this in character. The truth itself is holy; and those who make it known must do so in a way that shows in their own lives and ways. Satan is the great opposer of truth. He shows his full knowledge of this when, as Paul says, he is transformed for his purpose into an angel of light. "Therefore," he goes on, "it is no small thing if his ministers also are transformed as the ministers of righteousness." Even he sees that the ways must morally suit the end.

High, showy claims to personal holiness usually come from a certain kind of person. They offer to guide others in the way of peace, but they have no true knowledge of the grace of God themselves. They preach themselves and not the cross of Christ. So they deny God's righteousness while trying to set up their own.

Complete wickedness can be dressed in religious clothing. It is nothing to wonder at, since Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light, and his servants as ministers of righteousness. Notice, these are high, pretentious claims — superior light, and assumed righteousness. But they leave out the cross of Christ, and so the pure grace of God. The whole thing becomes a hollow and deadly sham.

They appear as ministers of Christ, but they do not preach Christ. The world wants entertainment, so these men take up the art of entertaining. Even starving souls are caught for a time. They are like Nero. When Rome was starving, he sent to Egypt for shiploads of sand for the arena instead of grain for the hungry people.

Satan, when he comes in as an angel of light, does not send out open evil-doers to recommend his teaching. On the other hand, an evil life may dishonour a preacher of real truth. But a true and needy soul tests the fruit of what is spoken for itself. Such a soul will surely find that the truth has its own witness to the heart and conscience, such as nothing but the truth can have.

They were false apostles, because they had never been sent by the Lord as the true apostles were. They were workers right enough, but deceitful ones, since they transformed themselves into what they were not. In this they shared the character of the one they served, and their end will match their deceitful works.

Copying their master, these false men covered up their evil with a show of good works, as if ministers of righteousness. These ministers of Satan stood against the true minister of Christ. In that we see the beginning of a vast system of corruption.