Tag: humble

Categories
2 Corinthians

The marks of a true leader

2 Corinthians

As Paul compares himself with the false apostles that had crept into the Corinthian church, I think we see the marks of a true Christian leader, what he does, and doesn’t do.

A true leader shouldn’t have to boast.

That Paul did so was not so much a sign of his greatness as a leader, but a concession to the foolishness of the Corinthians, who were too easily impressed by the “credentials” of those preaching to them a false gospel.

Paul himself, time and again berated himself as a fool for having to stoop to these false teachers’ level just to win credibility with the Corinthians.

But under normal circumstances, this shouldn’t be. A true leader realizes that everything he has comes from Christ, and as a result leads with humility, not pride.

A true leader also doesn’t abuse the sheep, even when he must be stern with them because of their sin.

The false teachers on the other hand, enslaved, exploited, took advantage of and insulted the Corinthians.

Unfortunately, even today, you hear stories of pastors who abuse their positions. But according to Paul, a true leader in the church gently instructs and corrects those who wrongfully oppose him. (2 Timothy 2:25)

More, a true leader cares for the sheep. (2 Corinthians 11:28-29)

He sees those that are weak in faith and lifts them up. He sympathizes with their weaknesses just as Christ does as our great high priest. (Hebrews 4:15)

And when others cause his sheep to fall, he becomes indignant just as Christ does. (Mark 9:42)

Finally, a true leader is willing to endure hardship for the sake of the gospel.

He doesn’t insist on luxury and comfort for himself. Paul certainly didn’t, suffering persecution, danger, sleeplessness, hunger and thirst for the sake of the gospel. (2 Corinthians 11:23-27)

Those are the marks of a true leader.

Are you a leader in your church? As a pastor? As a Sunday school teacher? As a Bible study leader? Do these things describe you?

Categories
1 Corinthians

Proven faithful

1 Corinthians

The apostle James wrote,

Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. (James 3:1)

Those are pretty sobering words for me, because I am often put in that position of teacher. God has given me his Word and the gift to teach it as a trust, and as Paul says,

Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. (1 Corinthians 4:2)

The truth is, though, all of us have been entrusted with things from God. We’ve been entrusted with our resources, our gifts, and our talents. And God expects us to be faithful in our usage of them.

If we are not, he will hold us accountable.

And because he’s our judge, he is the one that we need to be most concerned with pleasing.

Not the pastors of the church. Not the people at church. Not anyone else around us. Only God.

If we get too concerned with the praises of man, we become susceptible to pride at their praise or compromise at their displeasure.

Because of this, we need to constantly be searching our hearts. Why do we do the things we do? Are we doing them for the right reasons?

I struggle with this all the time. To a degree, I fear what I will hear from Christ when I stand before him. What will he say to me?

Paul, even though he had a clear conscience, admits that even he wasn’t always sure of his motives. He said,

I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.

Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts.

At that time each will receive his praise from God. (1 Corinthians 4:3-5)

I think one of the main points he’s trying to get across here is to guard your heart from pride.

You may think that you’re doing the right things for the right reasons, but that doesn’t make it true.

As Jeremiah wrote,

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9)

The Lord responded to Jeremiah, saying,

I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve. (Jeremiah 17:10)

So whatever we do, let us constantly be searching our hearts, and asking the Lord to do the same. Let us ask that he reveal the motives of our hearts to us.

That will go a long way to not only keeping us humble, but also to keeping us faithful with the trust he has given us.

How about you? Are you being faithful with what God has entrusted to you?

Categories
Acts

A teachable heart

It is so easy sometimes to think we know it all. We come to church on Sunday, and hear the message, and as we do, we say, “I knew that.”

This is especially a problem for those who have been in church for a long time. I admit, I have been guilty of that kind of attitude more than once, and I still struggle with it sometimes.

Maybe the things we know are accurate. But that doesn’t mean that we no longer have things to learn.

Apollos was that way. Apparently, he knew about Jesus, and his knowledge was accurate to a point, but it was incomplete. And so Aquilla and Priscilla “explained to him the way of God more adequately.” (Acts 18:26)

I think the important thing was that Apollos was teachable. He didn’t shrug off their teaching, saying, “I already know it all.”

Rather, he drank it all in, and as a result, his ministry became more powerful. I’m also sure that his life became more fruitful as well.

How about you? You may be a mature Christian that knows much about scripture. But do you still have a teachable heart? Are you humble enough to admit you don’t know it all yet?

Only with that kind of heart, will we continue to grow as Christians and bear the fruit that God desires from us.