2 Corinthians 10:7-11

2 Corinthians 10:7-11  You are looking only on the surface of things. If anyone is confident that he belongs to Christ, he should consider again that we belong to Christ just as much as he.  For even if I boast somewhat freely about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up rather than pulling you down, I will not be ashamed of it.  I do not want to seem to be trying to frighten you with my letters.  For some say, “His letters are weighty and forceful, but in person he is unimpressive and his speaking amounts to nothing.”  Such people should realize that what we are in our letters when we are absent, we will be in our actions when we are present. 

In the above passage Paul tells the wayward Corinthians that he has been given special authority in their lives, for he is their spiritual father on Earth.  Through his teachings, they were birthed.  He introduced them to God and made them aware of the message of Jesus Christ and him crucified.  With his position of apostleship, they should listen to his admonitions.  Mostly, he has been building them up in the Spirit, but now he feels he has to address some of the weaknesses in the church.  He will do that with love, but they should not mistake his love and his willingness to be merciful as a sign of weakness.  The Corinthians are basically claiming that they too are IN CHRIST, so what special authority does he have to speak into their lives.  Isn't Paul just as they are, a member in the body of Christ.  But Paul reminds them that God gave him authority in their lives and that he has suffered much to lead and to shepherd them in Christ.  He is telling them he will be strong in his words and ACTIONS when he meets with them next time.  He is challenging them to change their wayward ways or they will be judged harshly, even to the point of spiritual destitution, losing out in Christ.  

We also sometimes have to be harsher with wayward Christians than we would like to be.  We sometimes have to be cautionary signs, telling people that they are going the wrong way.  If they continue in sin, their lives will end up on the dump heap because sin reaps destruction and death, and sin leads to eternal damnation.  Rebellious Christians don't want hear that, for they figure they are just as smart as the person who is warning them.  They consider their credentials in Christ to be just as strong as the fellow Christian or elder who is warning them of the consequences of their sinful actions.  Sin, the taking back of one's own life from Christ, will not lead to eternal success; it leads to death, in this life and the life that is to come.  Paul is telling them he has the authority to inform them of that.  In Christ we also have the authority with a heart of love to tell a wayward Christian that his actions will lead to death.  We would be misguided if we failed to do so.  

There are two playing fields evident in our existence.  One is very short; it deals with everything seen and felt.  This playing field has an end.  It will never go on into eternity.  Most of humanity plays on this field.  Christians can play on this field if we want.  We might even find a lot of success in playing on it, BUT IT WILL END.  The other field is one of faith, God's field.  We can only play on his field through faith in God and his plan.  This field has no end; it goes on for eternity.  This field is one of self-sacrificing, laying down one's life.  Which playing field are you playing on?  Is it the one that has an end?  This field is the one of self: seeking what is good for me, a temporary high, a field of self-serving, self-justification.  THE OTHER PLAYING FIELD IS THE ONE PLAYED FOR OTHERS, DESIGNED BY GOD OUT OF LOVE.  On this field people look out for others, prefer others before themselves.  This field is played with the rules of love.  This field goes on forever.  It will never end for GOD IS LOVE.  

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails.  When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child.  When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.  Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.  Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.  And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.  (1 Corinthians (13:4-12)  WHICH FIELD ARE YOU PLAYING ON?  Your choice has eternal consequences.