In 2 Corinthians 11, Paul continues to defend his ministry to the people of Corinth and others. He expresses his thoughts and feelings openly, and he painfully explains how he has endured hardships, and danger for the church people under his care. Through correspondence, Paul has become aware the church in Corinth has come under the influence of false teachers even from inside the church in Corinth. He wants his beloved church at Corinth to distinguish between those who follow Christ and those who disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. As a founder of the church and overseer of their faith, Paul gives the Corinth church instruction in discernment so they can consider the ideas and actions of the current false teachers from within in light of God’s truth and character as revealed through Jesus Christ. Paul uses himself and his own life as an illustration to the church and offers a willingness to be criticized if necessary so that Christ’s glory can triumph.
Just as then in the early church, so now 2000 years later, false teachers may operate within and outside the church and disguise themselves as followers of Christ. Paul admonishes us this is not uncommon and we need to be watchful. He reminds us that even Satan has disguised himself as an angel of light.
What are some ways according to Paul that we can discern true servant-leaders of Christ from others?
Paul tells us to examine the message: The false teachers preach a different Jesus or a different kind of gospel than the one we in the church have received from the Spirit. Each of us can relate to this instruction because we have heard messages that do not ring true with the message of the Gospel. Paul reminds us that a skilled, polished speaker does not equate to a true message being delivered.
Paul also tells us to examine our behavior resulting from the message: False teachers can “enslave us, take advantage of us, take control of everything, and slap us in the face.” Some extreme modern-day examples we have heard reported in the news are Jim Jones and his followers who committed suicide and poisoned their own children. Other examples have been televangelists who advised listeners to send money to the personal cause of the televangelist as a proof of faith or a guarantee of healing. More recently false teachings come today from the internet, media and popular opinion.
As Paul reminded the church then and us also, our examination of behavior should be ongoing: As then in the church at Corinth, so too now we need to study and understand the Gospel message in order to compare it to messages from false teachers so our faith is not turned away from God. We should continue to examine our lives and our behavior to determine if our actions have veered off from behavior that represents faith in Christ. We should also be prepared to explain the Gospel and our hope with its truth. According to 1 Peter 3:15-17, we, as believers, must always be ready to give an explanation for our hope and do so in a gentle and respectful way. Then if false leaders speak against us or our belief in the true gospel, they will see it lived out in our lives.