So You’re a Priest: Service through Weakness

Mother's Day!

This is part 29 of a sermon series through 2 Corinthians. We have only one more sermon in 2 Corinthians—the farewell—so this passage is the culmination of all of the points Paul has been trying to make.

2 Corinthians 13:1-10

v1 This will be my third visit to you. "Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses."

v2 I already gave you a warning when I was with you the second time. I now repeat it while absent: On my return I will not spare those who sinned earlier or any of the others,

v3 since you are demanding a test that Christ is speaking through me:

He is not weak in dealing with you,
BUT is powerful among you.

v4 For to be sure,

he was crucified in weakness,
BUT he lives by God's power.

Likewise,

we are weak in him,
BUT by God's power we’ll live with him to serve you.

v5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves.

Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—
unless, of course, you fail the test?
v6 AND I hope that you will know that
we have not failed the test.

v7 Now we pray to God that you will not do anything wrong:

Not that we may be shown to have passed the test
BUT that you will do what is right,
even though we may seem to have failed the test.

v8 For we cannot do anything against the truth,
BUT only for the truth.

v9 We are glad whenever we are weak
AND you are powerful;

and our prayer is for your perfection.

v10 This is why I write these things when I am absent, that when I come I may not have to be harsh in my use of authority—the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.

Commentary

I fiddled with the NIV translation a little bit. Three key word groups (test, weak, power) have been consistently translated in order to emphasis the points Paul is trying to make via the contrasts in this passage. Also, Greek has two words that can translate to English as "but": one is emphatic (and is translated as "BUT" here); the other is less emphatic (and is translated as "AND" here). Hence Paul’s closing comments contain at least seven pairs of contrasts:

the "BUT" contrasts set the 2nd statement in opposition to the 1st, while

the "AND" contrasts build upon the 1st statement in the 2nd statement.

v3 test. A test is the proof of quality. Tests at school prove whether students know the subject matter. Tests on an assembly line prove that the manufactured product works as it’s supposed to. Necessarily, tests involve stressing the thing being tested in order to prove its worth or character and to expose any defects.

v3-4 weak ... BUT ... power. The test of Christ’s power, the test of Christian character, ultimately seems to come to this: outwardly one appears weak, BUT inwardly there is power. We think of power in worldly terms—e.g. getting our own way. However, these three contrasts give hints as to the paradoxical nature of Christ’s power:

v3b: it is communal; the power is best seen not in the individual, but in the community

v4a: it is alive in the face of death

v4b: it is self-effacing; we live not in ourselves but in Christ; we live not for ourselves but for others.

v5-6 test ourselves. One cannot test oneself without some kind of answer sheet or checklist, yet Paul appears to give none. However, Paul’s entire letter is an exhortation for meekness: be willing to be thought weak in order to build up another.

v7 you will do what is right. Whether he appears weak or strong, Paul’s motive is changed lives.

v8 truth. God’s power is manifested in words that create, build up, & change lives—words of truth.

v9 weak ... AND ... power. The demonstration of God’s power in us is that we step back and allow God to develop his character within others.

v10 NOTE: There are several contrasting pairs in this verse as well. How many can you find?

Application

For all parents—mothers or fathers—a big fear is letting go. We fear that our children are not yet ready, e.g.:

they will not get it right,
they will get hurt,
they will lose their way,
they will blame us, or
they will die.

With each of these concerns—and with all the others we have for our children—there is an underlying fear about ourselves that we carry. For the above, we might say:

I will be embarrassed when they don’t get it right,
I will be hurt when I see them hurt,
I will never see them again if they get lost,
I won’t be forgiven for letting them go, and
I will be at fault when they die for letting them go too soon.

I ask you to see in Paul’s letter all of these accusations being hurled Paul’s way. Paul, the spiritual father of the Corinthians, is blamed: for being a poor leader; for being a hypocrite; for being weak; for letting them get hurt and lost; etc.

To be a parent is to be blamed. A parent’s job is to train a child to be able to live as an independent adult. Necessarily, when the child is young, the child is supervised all of the time. However, as a child gets older, the parent must step back and let the child take increasingly greater responsibility. This transfer of responsibility is a dance wherein both dancers wrestle for the right to lead. Toes are stepped on, struggles ensue; however, ultimately the parent must let the child learn how to lead.

To be a child is to blame. A child’s job is to learn how to discriminate the good from the bad, the pleasurable from the painful, the precious from the garbage. Necessarily, when the child is young, the child trusts the parent for guidance: "Don’t touch the oven: HOT!" However, as a child grows, one day the child is shocked to discover that the parent does not always know what is good; the child realizes that its conception of pleasure is at variance with the parent’s notions. At this point, everything the parent has taught the child is up for reconsideration; during this period, the parent cannot be considered anything short of a dottering old fool.

Paul says to the Corinthians that his priority is not appearances, but reproduction. Whether Paul appears to be a success or not, his concern is the spiritual life, new life, reproducing life in the church. Not that they would do what is right because Paul is around forcing them, but that they would bear fruit because of the Spirit of God at work in them. At some point, Paul needed to step back and let that new life develop.

My job as a pastor, our job as parents, our job as Christians is the same: regardless of whether we are esteemed or despised, whether we are an apparent success or a failure, our real success is measured by the lives we touch and the lives that live on when we are gone. At some point, those we care about the most need us to step back so they can grow to the next level. At some point, we need to take a chance and accept the trials that lie ahead, risking the illusion of a lack of failure that comes from avoidance of risk against the reality of success that comes from having our character (and the character of those we care about most) proven through trial.

Points to Ponder

Who are you trying to shelter from trials at this time? (It might be yourself, or it might be a loved one.)

What is your fear about going through these trails? Would you look like a failure? Would you have let others down? (Sometimes we have to grieve that things will never be the way we wish they would be.)

Can you trust that God can grow both you and the ones you love through trials? Could it be that God has something in store for you on the other side of your trials? (Can you, "Let go, and let God?")