“In everything we do, we show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles and hardships and calamities of every kind. We have been beaten, been put in prison, faced angry mobs, worked to exhaustion, endured sleepless nights, and gone without food. We prove ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by the Holy Spirit within us, and by our sincere love.”
2 Corinthians 6:4-6 NLT
Paul the Apostle gives us a powerful portrait of authentic Christian ministry. But it is not a picture that correlates well with modern, worldly ideas of success. True servants of God are recognised not by comfort, applause, or influence, but by endurance, character, and purity of heart. Paul wrote that he and his colleagues “patiently endure” things that would have destroyed many lesser people. How convinced are we of our mission in life to put up with the things that Paul did? Look at the pressures he endured. Beatings, imprisonment, exhaustion, sleeplessness, and hunger were listed in our verses today, but there are many others in his list of persecutions. How was Paul able to endure such things? How far would we have got if we were one of Paul’s colleagues?
In 2 Timothy 4:10a Paul wrote, “Demas has deserted me because he loves the things of this life and has gone to Thessalonica. …” and I suspect we would have been hot on his heels, had we been facing into the situations that Paul seemed to attract. Jesus said to His disciples, “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Paul experienced “many trials and sorrows” on steroids, but he was prepared to endure such a life because of His Lord, Jesus. Paul wrote, “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!” (Philippians 3:10-11). So Paul declared that “true ministry” is not delivered in an absence of suffering but faithfulness in it. We pilgrims have not, and will not, be guaranteed a trouble-free life, but those producing the fruit of endurance are those who faithfully stay the course and don’t abandon the ship at the first hint of a storm. It may mean we have to make decisions that reduce our employment opportunities. It may mean that we have to live somewhere other than our preferred postcode. It may even mean we have to walk away from a relationship because it was becoming toxic to our fellowship with God. The troubles we have to endure may not be of the physical variety experienced by Paul, but we have to persevere in them anyway.
Paul continued to write, “We prove ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by the Holy Spirit within us, and by our sincere love”. Taking these qualities in Paul in turn, we firstly consider “purity”. This is living a life of integrity in all we do, in the public things and the hidden things. Psalm 24:3-4, “Who may climb the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure, who do not worship idols and never tell lies”. Paul’s next quality is “understanding”. This is having spiritual discernment and wisdom. James 1:5, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking”. Some situations require us to be patient and kind. But in all of this, regardless of any hardship we might experience, we must persevere, enduring what comes our way. So, when criticised, do we respond with kindness? Or if we are misunderstood, do we act with patience? And a big one – if under pressure, does purity remain?
Paul finished verse 6 of our reading today with “by the Holy Spirit within us, and by our sincere love”. In his own strength, Paul would have been unable to survive the hardships. But within Him lived the Holy Spirit, empowering him to bridge the gap between God and man through his love for both. We remember what Jesus experienced, and yet He didn’t lash out when He was abused. He loved people with the love of God, even asking forgiveness for those who hammered the nails home. Paul wrote, “Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good” (Romans 12:9). He was a living example of doing just that.
We pilgrims may face workplace opposition or family misunderstandings, but how do we respond? Everything within us may want to walk away, but there is a higher goal at stake. Often, people are looking to see whether our faith is genuine and able to withstand the opposition we face. Is our love for another person able to press through the bad stuff to finally find the good in them? “He who is within us is greater than he who is in the world”, is a great verse to remember when the going gets tough.
Father God. Please help us when troubles come our way. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 