"Winning the Spiritual War with Gods Weapons" | 2 Corinthians 10 | Pastor Israel

Two Corinthians chapter 10, please.

If you haven't turned there already, I'm going to be reading

out of the new King James Version tonight.

The title of the message, Winning the spiritual war with

God's weapons. Imagine with me for a moment

some fictitious world, some fictitious realm, that you are

the general of an army. The enemy that you're up against

is armed with swords and Shields, and you come out with

tanks and rockets and machine guns.

You think it's pretty much a given I'm going to win this

battle, right? Well, I begin with this because

as I've often quoted A fellow called AW Tozer, he's a

theologian. He said this, that the Christian

life is not a playground, it is a battleground.

And so for this battle, what we scripturally, the Bible tells us

have at our disposal is the equivalent of the capacity to

bring a gun to a knife fight or of the illustration that I've

just commenced with. Whether you're a new believer or

a seasoned St tonight, a servant of God for for many, many years

or or just beginning your journey with Christ, then you've

likely already felt the sting of spiritual conflict, of

opposition, of obstacles, of all sorts of things.

Maybe an unexplained discouragement.

It might be some sort of senseless conflict where you

just can't seem to figure out what the cause or the reason for

it is. It might be some accusations

that have come against you that just shake your confidence and

get you doubting and questioning things that you maybe took for

granted. And these, what the Bible

indicates to us are not random, that they're part of a spiritual

war. That is for your heart, that is

for your mind, that is for your soul.

For the Bible tells us that we wrestle not against flesh and

blood. And what we read tonight in this

battle in verses 3 and 4, you can jump ahead to there in

second Corinthians chapter 10 is this Paul talks about says, for

2 Corinthians 10 · chapter mention

though we walk in the flesh, that though we're human beings,

though we're wrapped up in these bodies, we do not war according

to the flesh. There's something greater beyond

just the physical, what we can see.

And then he says verse 4 for the weapons of our warfare are not

carnal means they're not the way that the world might deal with

conflict and handle them, but they are mighty in God pulling

down our strongholds. We'll explain this.

So the idea is that we have these spiritual weapons in the

conflict, in the obstacles in the opposition that we encounter

as believers that hold divine power to tear down strongholds.

That's the reality of the Christian life, whether or not

you know it to be true. That is what the Bible tells us

and what we need to believe and to understand tonight.

And in Second Corinthians chapter 10, when we find

2 Corinthians 10 · chapter mention

ourselves as we're going expositionally through this

book, the apostle Paul is in a battle.

He's on a battleground. He's defending his Apostolic

credentials as a person that has been called by God to be God's

representative to the Gentiles in this area of, of Greece that

wraps around into Asia Minor as we know it in the 1st century

Roman Empire. And these false teachers have

crept into the church in Corinth.

And they're attacking the character of Paul the apostle,

trying to illegitimize his ministry to, to claim certain

things about him that are fictitious, that are untrue.

And they've even attacked what what we'll read tonight, his

appearance. Now that's pretty low.

When you start to challenge, well, you're ugly and use that

as a means to kind of counteract and diminish someone's capacity.

They've certainly been challenging his calling as an

apostle. So they mocked him and they say

in verse 10, you can jump ahead there that his letters, So his

writings, the the epistles, the words that he sends to us,

they're weighty. Oh man, they, they sound brave,

they sound strong, but get him in person and he's unimpressive.

He just melts, He folds, he reveals himself to be just a

weakling in person and he's speaking amounts to nothing

effectively is their claim. So, oh, he can, he's a keyboard

warrior, we might call it today. He can type some strong words,

but getting him, getting him in person, boy, when Paul gets

here, this is what the the false teachers in Corinth were saying,

get him, get him in person. And he's he's none of what he's

presented in his writings. And some of what he wrote in

First Corinthians was pretty heavy, wasn't it?

We might have, if we're typing it, used all capitals and

exclamation marks after some of the things that Paul had written

to them previously. And yet, how is it that Paul is

going to counteract these challenges?

How would you, if people laid certain accusations against you,

certain things that you knew weren't to be true, how might

you retaliate? How might you respond?

What Paul does we're going to see in this chapter is that he

does not use worldly tactics or fleshly bravado, right?

I'll roll up my sleeves and I'll show them who's boss.

Instead, he arms himself with God's weapons.

He's bringing guns to a knife fight, and he's showing us how

to fight and to win the spiritual battles that we face

in and through this. So that's where we're going to

Orient our thoughts as we move through this chapter around 3:00

aspects. And these are that when counted

with hostility, when counted with with opposition, with

obstacles, whether known or not, you are in a spiritual conflict.

Here's what you can do #1 embrace Christ's character and

#2 employ God's weapons. Make sure that you're armed with

a gun for a knife fight. And then thirdly, we exalt, we

elevate God's approval what God says about us as opposed to what

others humanity might say man's words.

So let's dive into this chapter and learn how to be battle ready

for the glory of God. Let's have a look first couple

of verses at our first point out of second Corinthians chapter

2 Corinthians 10 · chapter mention

10, he says, now I Paul myself, I'm pleading with you.

So the idea behind this as we begin is often when Paul would

have his epistles written, he would dictate to a secretary

that would handwrite on a scroll for him.

And now it's as if in these words, Paul says here, give me

the pen. Let me write this down and this

is how serious what I'm about to say is.

I want to make sure that I get this right that nothing's

missed. And so he says, now I pull

myself and pleading with you by the meekness and gentleness of

Christ. That's odd.

I remember he's in a in a conflict.

There's hostility. Wouldn't you think that he'd

appealed to the majesty, the might, the power of resurrected

Jesus who sits on the throne victorious, and yet he says, I

appeal to you by the meekness and gentleness of Jesus Christ,

and then Speaking of himself, who in presence and lowly among

you, but being absent and bold toward you.

But I beg you, verse 2, that when I'm present, I may not be

bold with that confidence by which I intend to be bold to

some. In other words, there's some

that will need to hear some heavy words from me, namely

these false teachers, but but not the church collectively.

I'd rather be tender and gentle and meek and lowly.

And this in this last little bit here, Speaking of the false

teachers who think of us as if we walked according to the

flesh. So I'm above that.

Let's have a look at this. When when encountering conflict,

opposition in the battle that is the Christian life, we must

embrace Christ's character. A fellow called Skip Heitzig in

his sermon out of this passage uses the following following

allegorical story and I'll recount it to you So so there's

this one congregation of church and the church leadership

confessed that it's having problems with a family in the

church known as the Tate family. The Tates were giving them all

sorts of grief, he says, all sorts of problems.

There was the old man dictate he wants to run everything while

the Uncle Roe rotate tries to change everything.

Their sister AG named Agitate, stirs up plenty of trouble with

help from her husband. Irritate whenever there's new

projects in the church. Hesitate and his wife Vegetate

want to wait around till next year.

And then there's Aunt Imitate, who wants her church to be like

all the other churches. Devastate provides the voice of

doom, while Potentate wants to be the big shot.

And of course, there's the black sheep of the family, Amputate,

who has completely cut himself off from the church.

I think we've met Tate's before. You don't need to be in churches

for very long to encounter individuals and personalities

like this, right? I think just about every leader

in, in every Christian endeavour or, or ministry has at some

point met the entire Tate family or certainly members thereof.

And that's OK. I think that just proves that

we're human beings, that we're imperfect, that we're, we're

saved by grace. But that's what happens when you

get a bunch of people that are imperfect collected and gathered

together, right? Well, well, Paul had his

problems in the Church of Corinth.

I think the Tate family was well represented in the opposition.

Paul had started the church in Corinth.

He was the founder. He'd laid the foundation, and

he'd stayed there for a period of 18 months.

And then he left and went on to a city called Ephesus.

And when he left the church, it was fairly stable.

It was flourishing. It was growing in what he had

nurtured. But then along came people who

took advantage of the fact that Paul was no longer present,

started to sow seeds of discord, stir up trouble about Paul,

particularly given that he wasn't present to defend

himself. And so Paul begins this chapter

now with a very personal appeal. And he says, by the meekness and

gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you.

I Paul, who am timid when face to face with you, but bold when

away. And what he's doing in that tail

end of that verse there is he's using the very accusations and

there's kind of a bit of holy sarcasm that comes through in

Paul's writing here. They're claiming that I'm all

false bravado, that I'm all words with pen to paper, but but

nothing in present in in person. So he uses those words.

His critics in current that accused him of being weak in

person, bold in his letters, mistaking his humility then for

cowardice and weakness. And what Paul does here in these

verses that we read is he models a response for you and I of

meekness and the gentleness that we see in Jesus Christ.

And so whenever you're attacked, what's the best response?

Respond like Jesus. And that's such a key for you

and I in every facet and aspect of our lives.

When you don't know what to do, how am I to respond in this?

Think this, respond like Jesus, respond like Jesus?

This is what Paul does here. Now normally in his writings, as

I hinted at and reading the verses, Paul would refer to

Jesus Christ in his magnified, glorified, resurrected state,

exalted, and the position of power that he holds seated at

the right hand of the Father. That's common in Paul's writing,

but every now and then, as he does so here, very rarely in

Paul's writing he would refer to Jesus in his earthly status.

And this is one of those places, these verses here he focuses on

the meekness and the gentleness of Jesus here meekness.

Don't mistake it for weakness. It's out of the Greek word

prowess, which again does not mean weakness, but it means this

power that is under control. And the best picture or

illustration of that is like a wild stallion, strong, almost

like a racehorse picture that has been tamed and is now able

to be fit for the masters youth with that bit and that bridle.

So that that power is still present, but it's harnessed for

a particular purpose. That is, meekness and gentleness

reflects humility before others, prioritising the needs of others

over self. And so Paul's choice in

responding here to these accusations is to be Christ like

in manner and attributes in reaction to this criticism that

he's encountering. And it's a very deliberate

strategy, intentional by Paul here.

You see, he knew that spiritual battles aren't won by flexing

personal strength or out shouting opponents.

That seems to be the way in the world in which we live.

People win arguments, don't they?

They say the same thing, and if that doesn't work, then they

just get louder and shout and shout and shout.

It's like you've done nothing to enhance your argument, but you

just think increasing the volumes going to win this now

for you. Instead, victory comes by

reflecting the character of Christ who himself was

misunderstood as weak, wasn't he, and yet displayed divine

power through humility. Jesus said Matthew Chapter 11

Matthew 11:29

verse 29. He said learn of me, learn from

me. He said, for I am what gentle

and lowly and Paul reminds us then in essence in his response

as we unpack this chapter and that is this you and I, we're

not responsible for how others treat us.

Here's what we are responsible for is how their treatment

affects us. And so by embracing Christ's

meekness and gentleness, here's what we do.

We align ourselves with God's strength.

So when you face criticism and opposition or spiritual attack

and you will face it, whether it's a Co worker undermining

you, a family member questioning or challenging your faith, or

maybe even inner doubts whispering lies in your mind,

choose to respond like Christ instead of lashing out in anger

or defending yourself with pride.

Pause and ask, how would Jesus handle this?

How would Jesus handle this situation?

Consider the Tate family story again.

We've all met the Tates in our lives, those who provoke us or

or challenge us in many ways. And and when they strike, don't

fight fire with fire. Embrace Christ's character.

Practise meekness by getting your eyes off yourself and on to

God. Show gentleness by considering

others needs even when they're unkind.

For example, if you're tempted. And here's the natural reaction

to argue with someone, with a friend who maybe misunderstands

your intentions. Again, pause and pray.

God give me wisdom. Help me here to know how to

respond in this situation. And respond then with the God

given kindness and graciousness that he will provide for you and

to you in that moment. This doesn't mean that you're

weak. This doesn't mean that you're a

doormat. It means that you're trusting

God's power to work through your humility and in your next

conflict, commit to reflecting Christ's meekness and

gentleness. Then watch how God uses it to

diffuse tension and to advance His Kingdom.

That's what Paul lays as a foundation for us tonight as we

move forward now and see specifically him building on

this, his attitude is I'm going to respond with the gentleness

and meekness of Christ. But then now here's the weapons

that I'm to employ that are gods.

I'm going to bring a gun to a knife fight.

I'm going to see that God's going to supernaturally empower

me and you in such situations. In verse 3 to 6.

So he says, for though we walk in the flesh, verse 3, we do not

war according to the flesh. That's not to be our strategy.

Verse 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, not like

everybody else's, not like the ways of the world's, but mighty

in God for pulling down strongholds.

And what are these strongholds? Verse 5, casting down arguments.

And we live in a day and age where people will like to argue

and particularly against Christianity and what the Bible

teaches. So we need to know how to pull

down these strongholds of arguments.

Verse 5 and every high thing that exalts itself against the

knowledge of God. You don't believe that Bible

nonsense, do you? And all that God bothering

stuff. I mean, haven't we evolved and

progressed as a society beyond that sky fairy nonsense of this

God stuff that you believe in and those sorts of things?

That is people who exalt themselves against the knowledge

of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience

of Christ and being ready verse 6, to punish all disobedience

when your obedience is fulfilled.

So here's the heart of of the text here in this verse 3.

Though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world

does. The weapons we fight with are

not the weapons of the world. They have divine power to pull

down strongholds, he says. Again, the war, the conflict is

a spiritual 10. It might present with human

beings, with words that we've heard in this physical world in

which we live. Again, strongholds here are

intellectual and spiritual kind of defences that oppose the

knowledge of God, arguments, philosophies, false pretences

that come against us. The false teachers in Corinth

were using these and, and they were using worldly tactics to

challenge and to criticise Paul. There was intimidation.

There was eloquence of speech. I mean, the Greeks were big on

that. They exalted appearance, bit

like our society does. If you're good looking, then

there's going to be a following that's going to enhance your

reputation. And they challenged and used all

of these things to undermine Paul.

Paul refuses to fight on their terms.

And Paul could have and you know, I think many of us might

have been tempted to respond to such accusations in such manner.

Paul could have gone on a a real flashy marketing campaign

against these guys, could have hired APR team, right?

Do you guys hear what they're saying about me?

And currently we need to just, you know, put a think tape

together and, and come about how we're going to handle and deal

with these accusations. Let's start putting out some

social media posts that just sort of present me more

favourably. Maybe I can employ a few Tik

Tokers a bit to just kind of, you know, create some buzz

around me, Paul. And certainly I'll hire some

good lawyers and, and get them to take care of the legal sides

of things for me. Maybe, maybe we can get a few

people interviewed on TV and they could ring up the Talkback

radio and say a few nice things about me.

That'll work. That's how we'd respond,

wouldn't it? That's how the day and age in

which we live, people respond to all similar sorts of things.

But that's not what Paul does. Instead, he employs, he says,

spiritual weapons that have divine power to tear down

strongholds, to cast down arguments, and to bring every

thought into captivity in verse 5.

So what are these weapons? How can we bring a gun to a

knife fight? Scripturally, we see plenty

through, but let me specify a few that aren't necessarily out

of this text. But what we see saturated

through the scriptures, the key ones are obvious.

The word of God, what the Bible says, a prayer and fasting,

worship, holy, pure living, the name of Jesus, that at the name

of Jesus every knee will bow, every tongue confess.

These are all rooted in dependence upon God.

For instance, if we're thinking about how it is that Jesus

responded to opposition, Jesus himself used Scripture to defeat

Satan's temptation in the wilderness, as we read in Luke

Luke 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4. And you remember the recount,

right, that Jesus had been driven out into the wilderness

by the Holy Spirit. And for 40 days and 40 nights he

fasted. And at the end of that fasting,

when he was weak physically, that's when Satan the accuser

came. And Satan did what Satan does.

He twisted. He manipulated what the

Scripture says. If you're God, then you're so

hungry, but you've got the power of God, then why don't you take

the stones here before you and turn them into bread?

If you're God, He took Him to see all of the kingdoms of the

world. Then if you would but fall down

and worship me, then I'll give you these kingdoms of the world.

You don't need to go to the cross.

If you're God, He took him to the high point of the temple and

the Bible says it well, if you were to fall, then the very

angels would come and and rescue you.

Why don't you test that Jesus in each and every occasion?

What did Jesus respond? It is written.

It is written and it seemed like that Jesus was meditating, had

been thinking about the book of Deuteronomy because that's what

he quotes in each of those 3 occasions.

It is written in reference to Deuteronomy.

So there's a thing for you and I the the weapons of our warfare

are to bring the word of God. Let me give you another example.

Second Chronicles chapter 20, the king of Judea, a fellow

2 Chronicles 20 · chapter mention

called Jehoshaphat, has this whole army of the Moabites and

Ammonites come up against him. You know what the instruction is

and and what happens to win this battle, this victory.

And it sounds so weird to us. And it's not that he disliked

the musicians and the singers, but he had all of the

worshippers out in front of the army in opposition to the

Moabites and the Ammonites in their battle array.

Let's send out the band, the worship team.

But rather that's what it was, was to to have them worship God

as a means of coming against the enemy and and God miraculously

intervened. Read the story Second Chronicles

2 Chronicles 20 · chapter mention

chapter 20 of how it was that without a single sword being

drawn, the battle was won. As worshippers praise was given

unto God Almighty. Or we can think of a similar

battle, Joshua and the Battle of Jericho that when the strategy

was given, you know, you could imagine all of his captains and

all of his military leaders when Joshua declared, here's how

we're going to come up against Jericho.

You're kidding. It's never going to work.

March around, March around, March around.

And then on the 7th day 7 times and we'll, we'll blow the

trumpets and the walls will come tumbling down and we'll win.

You've lost it, Josh. That's exactly what happened

right in Mark Chapter 9. Father brought his demon

Mark 9 · chapter mention

possessed son to the disciples to try and have him prayed for

and set free from the demon possession.

The disciples no amount of effort and energy on their part

could deliver. And then Jesus came and arrived

onto the scene and he cast out the demon and and the boy was

restored back to full health, health.

And the disciples come up to Jesus afterward and they'd had

capacity, but before to perform miracles.

And they said, Jesus, how come we couldn't do it on this

occasion? What did Jesus say?

Mark Chapter 9 this time could not come out, but by what?

Mark 9 · chapter mention

Prayer and fasting now specifically here, what is the

weapon that is employed by Paul in this verse 5, taking every

thought captive. Oh man, isn't that where the

biggest battle happens in our lives in our minds, in our

thoughts and our minds run away with us about what he said about

what she said about what they're thinking and what did they

really mean by that? And reading between the lines of

words and and body language in our minds, just do a number on

us. And there's this battleground

that's going on, the battle of the mind.

When criticism, when conflict comes and things are said

against you, you can't control again that.

But here's what you can do is you can control what you think

about that, about what goes in your mind.

And here's how you do it. Romans chapter 12, We renew our

Romans 12 · chapter mention

mind, we transform our mind. It says we choose to believe

God's word over the words of men.

Isn't that the biggest battle that we face?

I think it is in the Western world in particular, the battle

in our mind spiritually. So Paul's point is clear.

His spiritual battles require spiritual weapons.

The strongholds, whether they be prideful addictions, maybe world

views or deceptive arguments, these can only be demolished by

God's powerful weapons. So again, you're in a spiritual

battle, a conflict each and every day, whether you realise

it or not, and spiritual attacks will come against you and

they'll manifest in many unexplained ways.

Maybe you're just agitated. Why am I, why am I upset?

Why am I frustrated about this? It could be discouragement,

could be increased periods of temptation, whatever the case

might be, and maybe you're struggling with a persistent

sin, toxic thought pattern, or or a worldview that you're

starting to buy into that clashes with your faith and your

belief in the scriptures. Don't fight these battles with

worldly weapons like anger, manipulation, or self reliance.

Instead, employ God's weapons. Start with the Word of God.

Read it and read it daily, not just at church on a Sunday so

that you're able to discern the truth from lies as Ephesians 6

Ephesians 6:17

verse 17 says. And then when doubts creep in,

when, when people will try to manipulate things and in your

understanding of stuff like Satan did with Jesus, you're

able to respond. It is written, No, this is what

the Bible says. This is what God has revealed

and declared in His Word. I've read it, I know it, I

believe it, it's true and allow that to transform your mind.

Next, commit to prayer, commit to fasting.

Maybe there's a period where you need to just really diligently

seek the Lord as Jesus said in Mark 929.

Some battles require prayer and fasting for breakthrough worship

2 is a weapon, man. Haven't you found that sometimes

emotionally, as we're feeling certain things that that

worshipping God, putting on some music and and actually singing

in your car in your room here in a church service as the tears

begin to to stream down your face, as your heart is

transformed, as your mind begins to reflect and think now God's

in charge, God's in control, he is sovereign, he is Lord.

I'm going to trust him and your attitude has changed.

Praise shifts your focus to God's power and then live a holy

and submitted life. Here's something that we often

quote out of James, right? Resist the devil and he will

flee. You know what the other part of

that is? Submit to God.

We must be living lives that are submitted unto God and then

resist the devil and he'll flee from you.

So let me give you a practical example.

If you're battling anxiety, don't just rely on self help

books, Google searches, ChatGPT, or venting to friends.

Open your Bible, Open your Bible to Philippians chapter 4, verse

Philippians 4:6

6 and 7. Be anxious for nothing, but in

all things, through prayer and supplication, make your request

known unto God, and the peace of God that surpasses all

understanding will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus

our Lord. Pray fervently.

Lord, help me with this battle, with this struggle.

Worship through song, praise him, believe and trust what

Jesus said over your fears. And these weapons have divine

power. The scripture says for us

tonight to tear down these strongholds in your mind and in

your heart. So maybe this week, identify one

spiritual battle that you're facing and commit to using the

weapons of God daily in encountering this, employ God's

weapons. Then lastly, let's finish with

this. Exalt God's approval.

There's a lot here, but in essence, what he's declaring

from verses 7 through to 18 is that here's what these guys are

saying, here's what these guys are doing.

I don't care what they're saying or doing.

Paul says what I do care about is what God thinks of me.

Here's what I do care about is God's approval, and he exalts

God's approval. Verse 7.

Do you look at things according to the outward appearance?

If anyone is convinced in himself that he is Christ, let

him again consider this in himself, that just as he is

Christ, Even so we are Christ. Or even if I should boast

somewhat more about our authority, which the Lord gave

us for edification, and not for your destruction, I shall not be

ashamed lest I seem to terrify you by letters. 4 Here's what

they were saying against him, his letters.

They say a weighty and powerful. Verse 10.

But his bodily presence is weak, his speech contemptible.

Let such a person consider this verse 11.

That what we are in Word by letters when we are absent, such

we will also be indeed when we're present.

So they're wrong. Simple verse 12.

For we dare not class ourselves or compare ourselves with those

who commend themselves. Now here's what they were doing,

the false teachers in verse 12. They were measuring and

comparing themselves against one another.

But they measuring themselves by themselves and comparing

themselves amongst themselves are not wise.

We, however, will not boast beyond measure, verse 13.

But within the limits of the sphere which God appointed us,

sphere which especially includes you.

He knew that He had been called by God to be the apostle to the

Gentiles, a sphere that included them.

This is what He's reminding them of here in these verses.

For we are not overextending ourselves, verse 14, as though

our authority did not extend to you.

For it was to you that we came with the gospel of Christ.

In other words, let me remind you how the church in Corinth

started, verse 15, not boasting of things beyond measure, that

is, in other men's labours. Nobody else came in.

We didn't build on that, but we started it.

We laboured, we endeavoured, we presented the gospel.

Now these guys have come in and they're just trying to take

advantage of other people's hard work.

We shall be greatly enlarged by you in our sphere to preach the

gospel, verse 16, in the regions beyond you.

And not to boast in another man's sphere of accomplishment,

but he who glorifies, let him glory in the Lord.

Verse 18 For not he who commends himself as approved, but whom

the Lord commends. It's about what God says.

Now I've been around Christian circles for for decades and and

I've heard Christians say some pretty mean things and some

wicked things even about others, but I think this takes the cake

in verse 10, Paul, you're ugly. That's what they were in essence

saying about his bodily presence is weak.

And that word weak. There is not just in the way

where we think of it with respect to strength, but that

his visage, his outward appearance, his exterior had

nothing appealing about it. There's some records that are

extra biblical, so they're not in the biblical record.

We've got no physical description of Paul, just like

we have no physical description of Jesus.

But what we do have are some some records that are believable

that describe Paul as being quite short in stature, A

receding hairline, bawling, kind of hooked nose and bowed legs.

And some even build on that and suggest that his voice was quite

whiny. And so there might have been

some merit to what they were saying about Paul, but isn't

that a low blow to try and discredit someone's message by

attacking their appearance? And then if if Paul valued what

other people thought about him, he'd be devastated.

But he doesn't. He values what God thinks about

him. He didn't value what others

thought about him, so he wasn't devastated.

Instead, he exalted God's approval over any approval of

men and, and may that be what you and I glean and understand

from that. Again, Paul's critics were

judging his appearance in verse 10, though very appearance

oriented, it seems, Certainly in Greek culture, there was this

celebration of a great archery, archery skills and eloquence and

charisma over substance of argument, necessarily a bit

similar to today when people buy into what celebrities say just

because they're kind of good looking.

Paul, however, refuses to compare himself with the others,

just as though comparing themselves with one another.

He writes verse 18 for not he who commends himself as

approved, but whom the Lord commends.

And then verse 17, he quotes the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah

and emphasises this, that true boasting.

If you want to boast about anything, it's both in this

knowing and glorifying God, not in human accolades.

And again, the critics of Paul were comparing themselves one

with another, measuring, posturing, preening.

You kind of picture what colour of individuals these guys were

typically almost like a bunch of school kids bragging about

themselves and how good they are.

Yet they haven't even graduated year 2 or achieved anything or

accomplished anything of worth. And then they have the nerve to

criticise Paul. Paul, the great pioneering

missionary, the Pharisee of Pharisees who knew the Bible

inside and out, who'd been called by Jesus Christ, the

chosen apostle to the Gentiles. His approach, his his mode of

operation was to go where nobody else had gone.

So he wasn't building on anyone other's foundation, impinging on

their work and to always give glory to God, unlike these poses

in Corinth who are all about themselves.

And so Paul's confidence came from the calling that he knew

God had given to him. Here's what God has called me

to. And I'm I'm not accountable to

what these poses, these pretenders, these false teachers

might say or or might not say about me.

My approval comes from God. It's not about my appearance.

It's not about my popularity. It's about my faithfulness to

God. And he knew that God had

appointed him as an apostle. That's what he mentions in

verses 13 through to 15. And while these false teachers

were boasting all about their so called credentials, Paul reminds

them of the work that it started in Corinth and who had started

it. And so this focus all through it

keeps Paul grounded amidst the criticism and the comparison

that he's receiving. Now, you and I do.

We not live in a culture obsessed with appearances,

social media likes, polished images, AI generated stuff,

charismatic personalities. And this creeps into the church

and into ministries and into our observations of what constitutes

a successful ministry of God or not.

And we're we're always looking at the perfectly curated lives

of people, what's presented, but we're never seeing behind the

scenes in reality. But you know what God sees

behind the scenes. Do you remember the story of

Samuel in the Old Testament choosing the next king of

Israel? The nation had chosen the

previous king in Saul because he was head and shoulders above the

rest. And then Samuel comes to this

fellow called Jesse's house in Bethlehem, and Jesse's sons

presented before Samuel. And Samuel starts looking at

appearances, the lab, the first son comes through and he's

handsome and he's strong. He's a strapping lad.

And Samuel says surely this is the king because it's no, no,

no. And on through the sons of Jesse

until exhausting all that were present.

Samuel sort of says, is there another one perhaps?

Oh yeah, there's the runt of the litter, David, He's out tending

the sheep and didn't even think to invite him.

Go and get him. Sure enough, the point is this,

that as God said to Samuel, man looks at the outward appearance,

but what the Lord looks at the heart.

And so the Corinthians, the church here, they were tempted

to judge by externals. Certainly that's what the false

teachers were doing, and in our day and age, we're tempted to do

the similar. How a church looks, or how a

leader speaks, or how many followers they may or may not

have. And we shouldn't do that.

Instead, exalt God's approval. And in your life, exalt God's

approval. Don't measure your worth by

Instagram likes or by others opinions.

Live for the audience of 1. And who is that audience of 1?

Well, we're not comparing ourselves to others as they were

doing. We're we're wanting to know who

and what does God think of me? It's my identity in him.

If you're a parent, don't compare your kids to others.

If you're a student, don't measure your success by your

peers achievements. Focus on what God has called you

to practically ask yourself. Am I living for God's well done

or for human praise? And I'm I am I devastated when

when others don't give me that praise?

Am I am I devastated when others say negative things about me?

And when you face criticism or attempted to compare, pray Lord,

let me seek your approval alone. So again tonight, the Christian

life is not a playground, it's a battleground.

But you don't have to fight this battle unarmed, and you don't

have to even use the weapons of the world in which we live.

Two Corinthians chapter 10 tonight shows us how to be

battle ready. Embrace Christ's character by

responding with meekness and gentleness, even under attack.

Employ God's weapons, the word prayer.

Worship holy living power of Jesus name to demolish

strongholds, exalt, prioritise, seek God's approval, live for

He's well done rather than any human praise.

Imagine the impact if we actually live this way because

the spiritual war is very real. But how often are we bringing

carnal weapons to the battle unarmed or a knife to a knife

fight, when what we have is the capacity to bring a gun to a

knife fight? As Paul reminds us, God's

weapons have divine power to demolish strongholds.

So Church, this week, step into the battleground, not with fear

or with worldly tactics, but with the confidence of soldiers

equipped by God. Commit maybe to 1 action.

Step out of this. Maybe it's responding with

meekness and a conflict. Certainly praying daily against

a stronghold or surrendering your need for approval of what

others say about you. Whatever it is, trust God's

weapons and that they will lead, as He has said in His Word, to

the victory that He promises.