It seems that the "super-apostles" who were leading the Corinthians astray were doing by parading their intellectual credentials to be considered trustworthy leaders. They were commending themselves to thne Corinthians for their "wisdom" (10:12), their trained speaking ability (11:6) and their heritage (11:22ff). In response Paul could perfectly well have advanced his own education as evidence of his own qualification for leadership, but he doesn't. He advances his sufferings in the service of Christ (11:23ff), his weakness (12:5), divine revelation (12:1ff) and apostolic miracles (12:12ff).
Read moreAfflictions & Comfort; 2 Cor 1:1-11
God practically pours in his love, care and deliverance when Christians are proclaiming Jesus bravely and suffering for doing so
Read moreIs Christianity Blind to Suffering?
Those who know me know how difficult I find doing apologetic talks on suffering and evil. There are no subjects that I find myself more inadequate before. I feel very disabled when speaking on horror from a position of Western security and comparative comfort.
Read moreWhere Does Suffering Come From? Heb 12:4-11
How can a loving God do this to those he loves? Doesn't that indicate lack of love? Doesn't that make him experientially indistinguishable from Satan?
Read moreWhat is Faith?; Heb 11:1-12:3 part 1
How do we cling on in such circumstances? The writer's answer is "by faith." Faith is a word with a low currency today. "People of faith" is used on the TV to simply mean "belonging to a world religion," a definition so broad as to make the word practically useless. When the Bible uses it, it means something much more precise: faith in God's promises, trust in God's revealed true truth, acting on the evidences of what God has done in the world and in our lives, putting all our eggs in one basket - namely believing with security that God is real and has sent his son to atone for our sins and bring us to God. That's Christian faith. It isn't vague, nebulous or intangible. It isn't wish fulfilment or make-believe. It isn't "If I can just kid my brain to believe something that isn't true then maybe some magic will happen." It is neither irrational nor a mere intellectual appreciation of some facts we find incontrovertible.
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