Paul
the apostle asked and answer his own questions addressed to the
church members in Corinth as he wrote, “Are
they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool ) I am more; in labors
more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in
deaths oft”,
and he added, “of
the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.” In
chapter
eleven and verse twenty-six of Second Corinthians, Paul listed a
number of “perils”
he endured for the sake of the “gospel”
where
we read:
In journeyings
often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine
own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in
perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false
brethren;
The verse begins,
“In
journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in
perils by mine own countrymen, ...”
Paul
began with the words, “in
journeyings”
which refers to “in travels” “often”
or “many times or frequently”,“in
perils”
which means “in dangers” “of
waters”
or “streams, rivers, torrents and floods”, “in
perils”
which means “in dangers” “of
robbers”
or “plunderers,
freebooters, brigands
”,
“in
perils”
which means “in dangers” “by
my own countrymen”
“which refers to “Paul's kindred, offspring and family. Paul not
only experienced “labors,
stripes, prisons, deaths and forty stripes save one”,
he was also in dangers including his “travels, floods, plunderers
and from his own family”.
The
verse continues, “...in
perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the
wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;”
Paul
added the words, “in
perils” which
means “in dangers” “by
the heathen”
or “multitudes, company, troop or swarm of tribes, nations and
people groups”, “in
perils”
which means “in dangers” “in
the city”
or “in the town in which one lives”, “in
perils”
which means “in dangers” “in
the wilderness”
which refers to “a
solitude, an uninhabited region or a waste
place”, “in
perils”
which means “in dangers” “in
the sea”
or “in
the sea in general or specifically
of the Mediterranean Sea or the Red Sea
”,
“in
perils”
which means “in dangers” “among
false brethren”
or
“ones
who ostentatiously profess to be a Christians but are destitute of
Christian knowledge and piety”.
Paul
continued his list of “troubles” with “ungodly people, his own
town, the uninhabited regions, in the sea and with false Christian
brothers”.
When
we meditate upon these words of
Paul, we discover how life was not easy for he and his companions.
They suffered while they shared the “gospel” of Jesus Christ, and
they endured “many perils”
because they dared to be an apostle of Him. Jesus Christ desires
workers who are willing to “suffer” for the sake of the gospel,
and though they endure “perils”
in this life, they continue, and their eternal rewards shall far
outweigh any troubles encountered on earth.
Next
time Paul
adds to his list as he tells the church members, “in
weariness and painfulness, in watchings often” and
more,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then,
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
No comments:
Post a Comment