Paul's Final Days

Paul Responds to His Critics

“Are they  servants of Christ? I know I sound like a madman, but I have served him far more! I have worked harder, been put in prison more often, been whipped times without number, and faced death again and again. 24 Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. 26 I have traveled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not. 27 I have worked hard and long, enduring many sleepless nights. I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food. I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm. 28 Then, besides all this, I have the daily burden of my concern for all the churches. 29 Who is weak without my feeling that weakness? Who is led astray, and I do not burn with anger? 2 Corinthians 11:23-29(NLT)    


Why would anyone choose this kind of life for no pay, constant rejection, ridicule and very little to show for all for all of it?

Paul must have thought what he was doing was important, so important that he gave up the life of comfort, prestige, and power that he was headed for as young aspiring “prosecuting attorney”.

Everything that Paul records in today’s passage was experienced simply because he was absolutely convinced that everyone in the world needed to hear the Message that God in Jesus Christ has come to rescue the world. The destiny of every person hung in the balance.

How then do you and I reconcile our complacency with Paul’s urgency? How is it that I live without the urgency of Paul? If what Paul was teaching is true, how can I possibly live knowing that many around me are living their lives on a sinking ship, don’t know it, yet I have the same message to offer that Paul had?

Prayer
 
“Lord, give me passion, a deep concern for the salvation of others, and a willingness to do very, very uncomfortable things for the sake of the eternal destiny of  those around me. Amen”