2 Corinthians 10

2 Corinthians 10 … Beginning in 2 Corinthians 10, the letter takes on a new topic which is a defense of Paul’s ministry for Jesus Christ. Throughout the history of the Church, ministers of God’s Word have had to defend themselves for their faithful communication of the Gospel. There are numerous examples of choice servants of God being removed from their pulpits because of local opposition and (very often, secular) reactions. Jonathan Edwards was one example, but there are many.

Congregations do have a responsibility for discernment, but the ultimate arbiter of Truth is the Scriptures. Is what is being taught and preached consistent with the whole counsel of God? Even in the first century, there were those who watered down the Gospel or presented messages that people wanted to hear, and that’s the issue that 2 Corinthians 10 begins to address, as the Apostle presents a defense of his own ministry.

You’ll note that Paul wants to emulate the humility of Christ in his life and ministry, but will not compromise his mission which is to accurately present the Gospel and to hold ministries in the church accountable to the standard of obedience to Christ in every area of life. Whenever the bold teaching of Christ is diminished or substituted with human logic, we should suspect that we are seeing spiritual warfare, which is a scriptural concept that refers to satanic influences. The text (10:3-4) encourages the full armor of God for protection. Ephesians 6:10-17 will cover that in direct detail; you might want to glance there briefly to grasp the full importance of the subject here.