The eloquent speech and the so-called "gospel" preached by the super-apostles (Frank Matera)

In his commentary on 2 Corinthians, Frank Matera says some really great things about the passage in 11:1-4. Here are two quotes. (I will highlight a few things in blue.)

"What Paul means by ‘another Jesus’ is problematic, since he never explicitly explains how the teaching of the intruders differs from the gospel he preaches. Consequently, one must be careful not to read too much into this statement by suggesting, for example, that the intruders espoused a ‘heretical’ Christology. It is more likely that the real conflict between Paul and the intruders concerned issues of ministerial style and jurisdiction, which in Paul’s perspective cannot be separated from the gospel, since they reflect one’s view of Christ. As Paul will show in his foolish boasting, there is an intimate connection between the way in which one exercises apostolic ministry and the gospel message that one preaches. For example, because suffering, hardship, and weakness are such integral parts of his ministry, the gospel that he preaches necessarily focuses on the paradox of the cross and the crucified Christ who manifests God’s power through weakness. Conversely, because Paul’s gospel focuses on the cross and the crucified Christ, he understands suffering, hardship, and weakness as integral parts of his apostolic ministry. If, in contrast, the intruding apostles focused attention on their powerful deeds, eloquent speech, and ecstatic experiences, it is unlikely that the cross of the crucified Christ played as central a role in their preaching. Conversely, if their preaching was concerned first an foremost with the power of the pneumatic Lord, they would have been more inclined to boast of the outward manifestations of that power in their own ministry. Understood in this way, Paul is quite correct when he accuses the intruders of preaching ‘another Jesus.’" (pages 243-4)

"Although an outsider might view these approaches to ministry merely as different ways of preaching the same gospel, it is clear that Paul did not, since there can be no other gospel (Gal 1:7). Just as there is an inseparable relation between the minster of the gospel and the gospel that is preached, so there is an intimate relation between the 'Jesus' that is preached and the 'Spirit' and the 'gospel' that is received. In accepting the preaching of the intruders, the Corinthians have experienced a different Spirit, but in Paul's view it is not the authentic Spirit of Jesus. Likewise they have received another gospel, but since there is only one gospel, it is not the gospel that he preached." (page 244)

The paradox of weakness and power (Frank Matera)

Yesterday I discussed briefly something about the paradoxes in the gospel and cited from Frank Matera's  commentary on 2 Corinthians. Today I want to continue to talk about the paradox of weakness and power.

I think it is fair to say that many (though not all) Christians in the West today are in (relatively speaking) position of economic and social power. In Melbourne, Australia, for example, there are (as far as I can tell) more churches in the more affluent eastern suburbs than in the west. The churches in the east are generally much larger than those in the west (with exceptions, of course). As I speak with pastors and theological students about power - especially socioeconomic power - the discussion is often dominated by whether power is in and of itself sinful, and hence whether it is wrong to possess economic power. The answer is of course that power is not in and of itself sinful, nor is it wrong to own property, cars, etc. But as I think of Paul's life and ministry, the issue the apostle is interested in is more about living a cross-shaped life. That is, Paul focuses not so much on whether we should have economic power but whether we embody Christ's way of life.

Here are two further quotes from Matera's commentary.

"Affliction and suffering, then, are essential components of apostolic ministry, since they are the apostle's participation in the dying and death of Jesus, without which there can be no sharing in his resurrection. They are not to be sought in and for themselves, but they will occur in the life of those who authentically preach the gospel. Rather than conceal his apostolic hardships, Paul gladly embraces them as the marks of his apostleship (4:7-12; 6:4-10; 11:21b-33; 12:10)." (page 14)

"In and through this weakness, God manifested his power, so that Paul can also write, 'but he lives by reason of the power of God' (13:4). The fundamental paradox of weakness and power then is rooted in Christ's death, which has been made possible by the incarnation. Embracing this paradox in his life, Paul boasts in his own weaknesses (11:30; 12:9), aware that Christ's 'power is made perfect in weakness' (12:9). This is not to say that power is weakness. Rather, in a manner that can be understood only in light of the paradox of the cross, power comes to its perfection in and through weakness. Because the Corinthians did not grasp this paradox, they could not appreciate Paul's apostolic ministry among them and the new covenant community that he established in their midst." (pages 14-15)

The life that Paul chooses to live is of course counter-cultural, both then (in the Roman Empire) and now.

Gospel paradoxes (Frank J Matera)

In his commentary on 2 Corinthians, Frank J Matera has the following to say about the paradoxes of the gospel.

"The Corinthians did not appreciate Paul's new covenant ministry and their status as a people of the new covenant, in large measure because they did not grasp the paradoxical nature of the gospel Paul preached to them. In their view, Paul's afflictions and sufferings were signs of weakness that were unworthy of an apostle of Jesus Christ. Accordingly, when other preachers arrived at Corinth who appeared more powerful and eloquent many of the Corinthians sided with them and criticized Paul. Although the conflict between Paul and the Corinthians was undoubtedly multifaceted, it was ultimately rooted in the inability or the refusal of the Corinthians to embrace the paradoxical nature of the gospel that Paul had already discussed in 1 Cor 1-4. In 2 Corinthians Paul develops this paradox in relation to his apostolic sufferings and weaknesses." (page 14)

I have been wondering whether Christians today rely on the "powerful and eloquent" preachers/teachers too much. We like to listen to them because they are such effective communicators and their lives and ministries seem to be (so-called) "incredibly amazing". I think this is problematic. The apostle Paul, on the other hand, boasts about his weakness, through which God's power manifests. It is not about his success and power, but God's resurrection power working through the apostle's suffering and death.

Something for us to ponder...

What the ministry of reconciliation requires - 2 Corinthians (Capes, Reeves and Richards)

In their Rediscovering Paul, Capes, Reeves and Richards, provide us with some great stuff about 2 Corinthians (pages 160-1). I will highlight a few things in blue.

"According to Paul, his converts had failed to recognize what the ministry of reconciliation required. It meant 'carrying in the body the death of Jesus' (2 Cor 4:10), and 'walk[ing] by faith, not by sight' (2 Cor 5:7), 'regard[ing] no one from a human point of view' (2 Cor 5:16) and living as 'having nothing, and yet possessing everything' (2 Cor 6:10). In other words, it meant living like Jesus ('though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich,' 2 Cor 8:9), and emulating Paul ('as servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way; through great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments,' 2 Cor 6:4-5). The Corinthians needed to learn what it meant to become living sacrifices for the welfare of others. This is why the paradox of Christian existence is the leading motif or 2 Corinthians: 'for whenever I am weak, then I am strong' (2 Cor 12:10). The strength-in-weakness theme pervades the entire letter in a variety of apparent contradictions, including joy in suffering, generosity in poverty and life in death. For Paul the theological basis for this paradox is the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. In weakness and suffering Jesus descended into death; in power and joy God raised him from the dead. Therefore, weakness is strength, death is life, and humiliation is glory."

Reflection: Some thoughts about power

Here is a recent reflection.

The notion that power is in and of itself not evil and that we can have power as long as we use it properly sounds good (and indeed is quite right). But the problem is that when we are in a position of power we can hardly understand what it is like to be powerless. (Or if we have experienced powerlessness before, we can quite easily forget about what it is like if we now have a lot of power.) This in turn means that we probably don't know how to use power properly. Paul's resolve to boast in his weakness in 2 Corinthians has much to say to us today.

Weakness as true mark of Paul's apostleship - An example for Christian leaders to follow

I am reading Barry D Smith's Paul's Seven Explanations of the Suffering of the Righteous (New York: Peter Lang, 2002). Here are some good quotes about 2 Corinthians.

Paul would argue that he is not naturally weak; rather, God has made him weak by means of this "thorn in the flesh." (p 167)

In his view, God intentionally humiliated him in this way in order to give him a much-needed sense of the need of reliance on another power. (p 168)

The confession of his inherent incapacity is a pre-condition of the ingression of the power of Christ. The pedagogical effect of his "thorn in the flesh," therefore, is invaluable to Paul's apostolic ministry; his affliction prevents his entering into a state of illusory and unfruitful self-confidence, which would cut him off from the power of Christ. (pp 168-9)

Nothing succeeds like success in breeding self-confidence; self-confidence would not be self-confidence unless the self-confident one is convinced of the sufficiency of his innate abilities. According to Paul, however, there is no place in the apostolic ministry for self-confidence for reasons already stated. So when Paul experiences success in his ministry as the apostle to the gentiles, God strategically forestalls the natural movement to self-confidence occasioned by his success by enforced weakness, as well as by "insults, hardships, persecutions and difficulties." (p 169)

Thus, suffering functions to counterbalance the effects of success by reminding Paul that his success has not come from himself, but only through the power of Christ. As a result, he is in a position to appropriate that other power. This is the pedagogical benefit of suffering. (pp 169-70)

The apostles seem always to be on the verge of being overwhelmed by the suffering resultant from their commonness and fragility, and thereby of being rendered ineffectual, but are never actually overcome. It is this model of apostleship that Paul's residual opposition Corinthians find objectionable. they cannot fathom how men who are constantly teetering on the brink of personal collapse can be genuine apostles.

All human beings offer nothing to God. In Paul's view, the realization that this is the human condition is the single qualification for being an apostle. (p 174)