Men should look upon us as servants of Mashiach,
as stewards of the mysteries of Elohei. And to sum it up the main requirement of
a steward is that he be found faithful. With me, it is a very small matter that
I should be judged by you, or tried before a human court. I do not even pass
judgment pf myself. For although my conscience does not reprove me for
anything, that does not mean that I am innocent. It is Adonai Yeshua that
judges me. Therefore, do not pass any premature judgments, but wait until
Yeshua comes back. He will throw light on what is now hidden in darkness, and He
will reveal the motives in men’s hearts. Every man will then receive from
Elohim Himself the praise that is his due.
Brethren, the reason why I have applied all
this to myself and Apollos is that you may profit by it, that you may learn
from us not to go beyond what the Scriptures permit, and that no one of you
should boast of one person in preference to another. After all, who makes one
superior to another? Or, what is it that you have that has not been given you?
So if you have received it s a gift, why do you boast as though you have earned
it?
Are you already satisfied? Have you already
become rich? Have you already taken possession of your kingdom without our
help? I surely could wish that you now occupied your thrones, and that we, too,
might reign with you. Indeed, it seems to me that Elohim has placed us Apostles
last and least among men, like men under sentence of death. Truly, we are a
spectacle of the whole creation, to Angels as well as men. For Mashiach’s sake
we are fools, but you are wise in Mashiach. We are weak, but you are strong.
You are held in honor, but we are in disrepute.
Up to the present moment, we have suffered
hunger and thirst. We are poorly clad. We have been abused and beaten. We have
no home. We have worked hard with our hands for a living. When men revile us, we
answer with a blessing; when they slander us, we just beg them to cease. We are
considered as worthless filth, the scum of the earth, to this very day.
No, I am not writing these things to make you
feel ashamed. Rather, I counsel you as my beloved children. Foe even if you had
ten thousand Christian teachers, you have only one father. It was I who became
your father in Yeshua Mashiach when I preached the Gospel to you. I plead with
you, therefore, to follow my example. It was for this reason that I sent you
Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in Adonai Yeshua, to remind you of my
walk in Mashiach Yeshua, which is the same as I preach everywhere in every
church.
Some among you seem to think that I am never
again going to visit you, and they have, therefore, become puffed up. But I am
coming to you again, and that very soon, Elohim willing. Then I shall find out,
not so much what these conceited ones say, as what they can do. For Elohei’s
Kingdom does not consist of mere words, but of deeds to match them. What is it
you wish? Would you rather see me come with a stick in hand, or with a loving,
gentle spirit?
No comments:
Post a Comment