Are we beginning to praise ourselves again? Are we like others, who need to bring you letters of recommendation, or who ask you to write such letters on their behalf? Surely not! The only letter of recommendation we need is you yourselves. Your lives are a letter written in our hearts; everyone can read it and recognise our good work among you.”
2 Corinthians 3:1-2 NLT
Men and women in certain professions must meet certain academic and vocational standards to be qualified to do the job required. A UK doctor, for example, has to complete a five-year medical degree followed by two years of foundational training. There is then the opportunity to specialise in a particular area of medicine. An accountant needs to meet a minimum educational standard, usually a degree, followed by on-the-job training, additional exams, and achieving chartered status following a further period of relevant employment. But for Paul, there seems to be a problem because, in the eyes of the Corinthian believers, many of whom he had brought to Christ through his preaching and Gospel messages, his credibility and “fitness to practice” seem to have lapsed. So Paul, rather tongue-in-cheek, asked them if he needed to polish up and resubmit his CV to be able to visit them again.
It must have been the case that, because of a gap in contact between Paul and the believers in Corinth, or because other preachers and teachers had taken his place, the church had veered away from the foundations Paul had planted a few years before. So, a bit sarcastically, Paul asked whether he needed to bring “letters of recommendation” when he came to visit them. How did it come to this? Well, if we read his previous letter and even his previous chapter in 2 Corinthians, we can see that there were practises going on in Corinth that Paul, and Jesus Himself, didn’t approve of. For example, there was the man accused of sleeping with his stepmother, a practice that seemed to have been condoned by at least some of the congregation. And Paul reminded the Corinthians, “You see, we are not like the many hucksters who preach for personal profit. We preach the word of God with sincerity and with Christ’s authority, knowing that God is watching us” (2 Corinthians 2:17). Paul was an uncompromising preacher of the Gospel message, the Good News about Jesus, and all that He had done for both Jews and Gentiles.
“A good tree produces good fruit,
and a bad tree produces bad fruit“
How do we pilgrims respond when a new preacher steps up to the pulpit in our churches? It depends on the denomination or movement to which we belong. The pulpit of the church of which I am a member is carefully guarded by the leadership because it is their duty to protect the flock from error. I can remember some years ago, when I was in an independent church, a visit by a recommended speaker who was to be the keynote preacher at a weekend conference. The leadership of my church didn’t personally know the man, but he came highly recommended by people they knew. However, it quickly became clear that he did not meet the standard set by the recommendations. A salutary lesson and one that I have never forgotten. Jesus said, “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. … Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions” Matthew 7:15-17, 20). Paul warned Timothy about teachers who preach a message that is not the Word of God. 2 Timothy 4:3-4, “For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths”. Perhaps this had already happened at Corinth, with the congregation having appointed men who preached what they wanted to hear.
We pilgrims, however, can check out what we are taught from the pulpit against the Scriptures, the Bible that we know and love. Of particular concern to us are teachings that don’t check out with the actual Word God has given us through His Holy Spirit-inspired Biblical writers. If a new or different interpretation of a Bible verse is mentioned, even in passing, then alarm bells must ring in our minds and spirits. I remember some years ago, a respected teacher of the Word made a comment about marriage that seemed to indicate, from what he said, that more than one wife would be acceptable in certain circumstances. The church’s leadership issued a corrective statement the following Sunday, and the teacher from the previous week wasn’t seen again.
But Paul, the Paul we know and love from his letters, should never have needed letters of recommendation. He reminded the Corinthians that the only recommendation required was the witness of their lives lived out God’s way, in accordance with what he had preached to them right from the beginning. What did the unbelievers in Corinth see in the lives of the Christians there? Were they no different to the rest of the Greek society, practising the same immoral lifestyles? Or were they distinct men and women of God, full of the Holy Spirit, and witnessing a Jesus who had come to save the human race? In our society, the same questions apply. Back to that old cynical question – “If I were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict me?” Sadly, I’m sure the answer for many would be “No”. Paul wanted to return to Corinth and find a people on fire for God and adhering to the purity of the Gospel. But if Jesus came today, would He find a people with the same spirit? Or would He find an anaemic church hunkered down, ineffective, and not living His way? Worth a thought?
Dear Heavenly Father. Please forgive us for our sins and lack of diligence in following Your ways. Kindle again the dying embers that exist in the hearts of many in this nation, and bring revival to Your church. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 