Was Any of it Real?

It is a familiar Hollywood script-- girl falls for guy who is really a con man with some ulterior motive and using her to get at what he wants (the other Hollywood script is guy falls for girl, girl goes into hyper-sleep, but I digress) . Over the course of the movie you watch this guy you know to be a liar and a fraud manipulate the emotions of the poor gal, convincing her that he is "Mr. Right" until at last his skulduggery is revealed,and their "love" unmasked for a house of cards. Teary eyed our distressed maiden asks "Was any of it real? WAS ANY OF IT REAL!? (inarticulate sobbing)" She is going through the realization that her boyfriend's faulty character likely means the faulty nature of everything he represented to her. And so her world begins to crumble. If you wonder why I know so much about these sorts of movies...Corrin makes me watch them.

In Corinth, false teachers had infiltrated the church, and were endeavoring to undermine both the apostle Paul and the gospel he proclaimed. One tactic they employed was to slander the apostle's personal credibility, and therefore the credibility of the gospel. "Was any of it real?" they are asking. Here are two observations we can make from 2 Corinthians 1:12-24:

1. Paul recognizes that his reputation impacts the integrity of his witness for the gospel. The heart of the attack against Paul came from a statement Paul made to the church at the end of 1 Corinthians, that he intended to visit the Corinthian church soon for an extended stay.(1 Cor. 16:5-7) Yet Paul did not end up coming, for valid reasons that he will explain in the next chapter of 2 Corinthians. But the false teachers took advantage of this seeming duplicity, alleging that Paul was unfaithful to his word. Indeed, they argued, if Paul is not trustworthy in his personal promises, how can we trust the veracity of the gospel he proclaimed? It was a vicious attack, and a potentially damaging one. As Paul himself writes in just a few chapters, those who proclaim the gospel are "ambassadors for Christ" (2 Cor. 5:20), and an untrustworthy ambassador is, well, not to be trusted. "Was any of it real?" the false teachers delight in asking the Corinthians. We therefore have Paul not only explaining his merciful reason for choosing not to come to Corinth after all (2:1-4), but also denying in the most emphatic terms that he is dishonest or untrustworthy. "As surely as God is faithful" an unequivocal promissory statement, "our word to you has not been Yes and No." (1:18) Paul recognized the attack on his character was ultimately an attack on the gospel he preached, and so he defends his character as one worthy of trust. Have you ever considered how your reputation impacts your witness for Christ?

2. Paul reveals that the ultimate promise of God is found not in the word of man but in the person of Christ. The final surety and trustworthiness of the gospel did not depend solely on the word of the apostle Paul. Instead the validity of the gospel is supremely demonstrated in the person of Jesus Christ, God incarnate who dwelt among men, whose death, burial, resurrection, and ascension before many witnesses testified beyond all doubt to the salvation of God for mankind. Further, every promise of God, past, present, and future find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ.Therefore, Paul says powerfully "For all the promises of God find their Yes in [Christ]."(2 Cor. 1:19a) The promise of the prophets and the foreshadow of the law find their "yes" in Christ. The power of our redemption and reconciliation find their "yes" in Christ. Our inheritance through adoption and hope of glory find their "yes" in Christ! On this solid foundation rests the great and glorious gospel. Amen and amen!