April 16, 2025
“An Affair with Vanity”
Pray over Message
Recap
- Continuing in 2 Corinthians
- Went through 1st Corinthians and on into 2nd. At this point, I feel like we’re getting to know the Corinthian church and Paul pretty well.
- Actually 4 letters that Paul wrote to the Corinthians
- Were the other 2 really “lost” – lol
All that aside – like I said we are continuing in 2 Corinthians. Tonight, we’ll be in Chapter 10 verses 7-18.
7Do you look at things according to the outward appearance? If anyone is
convinced in himself that he is Christ’s, let him again consider this in himself, that
just as he is Christ’s, even so we are Christ’s.
8For even if I should boast somewhat more about our authority, which the Lord
gave us for edification and not for your destruction, I shall not be ashamed –
9Lest I seem to terrify you by letters.
10”For his letters,” they say, “are weighty and powerful, but his bodily presence is
weak and his speech contemptible.”
11Let such a person consider this, that what we are in wordy by letters when we are
absent, such we will also be in deed when we are present.
12For we dare not class ourselves or compare ourselves with those who commend
themselves. But they, measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing
themselves among themselves, are not wise.
13We, however, will not boast beyond measure, but within the limits of the sphere
which God appointed us – a sphere which especially includes you.
14For we are not overextending ourselves (as though our authority did not extend to
you), for it was to you that we came with the gospel of Christ;
15Not boasting of things beyond measure, that is, in other men’s labors, but having
hope, that as your faith is increased, we shall be greatly enlarged by you in our
sphere,
16To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast in another man’s
sphere of accomplishment.
17But “he who glories, let him glory in the Lord”.
18For not he who commends himself is approved, but whom the Lord commends.
(NKJV)
So, a little backstory about what’s been going on the last few weeks…
- Chapters 8 and 9 were a lot about monetary giving – especially to the church in Jerusalem and the relief of the saints there who were suffering extreme persecution.
- Now, there’s a hard shift in Chapter 10 to once again addressing wayward thinking and behaviors.
- He’s addressing those in the church who have questioned his apostolic authority.
- It wasn’t everyone. In Chapter 7, he commended their “earnest desire, their mourning and their zeal for himself”. He rejoiced that their sorrow led to repentance.
- But there were a few – and how often is it just a few! – who were causing a ruckus.
2 Cor. 10:2 “But I beg you that when I am present I may not be bold with that
confidence by which I intended to be bold against SOME, who think of us as
if we walked according to the flesh”. (NKJV)
- How can they question his qualifications?
- He brought them the gospel and suddenly now they are the experts?!?!
- Like when non-Christians tell Christians they aren’t acting very Christian.
- Princess Bride – “you keep using that word. I don’t think it means what you think it means.”
Worldly people don’t know what it means to be a Christian and this vocal minority apparently didn’t know what it meant to be an apostle. And Paul needed to address it.
- A few disgruntled parishioners talking smack about leadership causes damage.
- Like a rock slowly eroded by running water. A small crack forms, water gets in and makes the crack bigger. Eventually, the rock will split open and be destroyed.
- Paul couldn’t let this behavior go unchecked.
In tonight’s passage, Paul addresses these people in a couple of areas where they had gotten off track – I believe because of their vanity.
2 Cor. 10:7 “You are looking [only] at the outward appearance of things..” (AMP)
- Only cared about how things looked and it impacted how they viewed authority (Paul’s), themselves and their relationships with others.
- They should’ve known better. They were Christians.
- They loved their carnal desires more (appearances, wisdom, accomplishments, status)
- They used these things as a standard to judge and elevate themselves.
- Cheating on Jesus with their pride
We are not that different today. We still tend to put too much emphasis on the outward appearances – how others look to us and how we look to them. We still tend to want to promote our accomplishments or showcase our intelligence or flaunt our status. It’s pretty natural. But if we’re not careful, those attitudes and behaviors will start to erode the foundation of our life – which should be our relationship with Christ.
Everything else in our lives should flow out of our love for Jesus and that we elevate Him rather than ourselves. When we get out of balance with where we rank compared to where He ranks, the impacts are far reaching – in the same way they were for the Corinthians. And the things that Paul wanted them to change about their lives are the same things that we should be willing to change about ours.
#1 – Submit to Authority
In verses 8-11 of tonight’s text, Paul addresses the authority that he’s been given by the Lord.
- Paul’s not on a power trip. He’s been given authority, and it would be better if they would just recognize it.
- Some didn’t – they saw Paul as weak, to be manipulated and pushed around. They saw him as a “keyboard warrior” – all bark and no bite.
2 Cor. 10:10 “For it is said, ‘His letters are weighty and powerful, but his physical
presence is weak and his public speaking amounts to nothing”. (CSB)
They are saying, “sure, you have a lot of boldness when you’re writing to us, but in person you’re not that impressive – so why should we submit to what you tell us?”. Again, they were only looking at the outward appearance as the qualification of leadership.
And I love that Paul hits right back at them.
2 Cor. 10:11 “Let such a person consider this: What we are in our letters, when we are
absent, we will also be in our actions when we are present”. (CSB)
- If you want the tough Paul, you’ll get him
- It would go better if they would just submit
- It will go better for us if we just submit as well.
Now “submitting to authority” is a pretty broad topic as there are many types of authorities we commonly encounter as we go through the course of our lives.
- Parental and Familial
- Educational
- Workplace
- Governmental and Legal
Paul isn’t talking about any of those. He’s talking about submitting to the spiritual authority that has been placed over us. Those who have been given charge over teaching, guiding and protecting us as we grow in our relationship with Christ. For us, that means our pastors. And not just Pastor Matt and Pastor Crystal, but all of our pastors here at FVC.
They all carry a heavy load and our job is help make that load as light as possible.
Heb. 13:17 “Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch
over your souls, and they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do
this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your
benefit”. (NLT)
- Message from September had the same verse. People like to point out the Pastors are accountable – but so are we!
- People get uncomfortable with “follow” and “submit”. It’s not about handing your life over. It’s about your heart condition towards them.
- Do you trust them? Believe that they have your best interests at heart? Do you see they exercise authority for your benefit?
The Corinthians Christians didn’t see that about Paul. In verse 8, he had to remind them that his authority came from God and that he was using it to edify the church and not destroy it. The same is true for our pastors. Everything they do is to build us up, not tear us down. And yet, some of y’all continue to push back against it.
- Grumble and complain, murmur, take up offense – put up barriers
- And then gripe about how you never get anything out of the preaching
It’s hard to hear from someone when they’re always having to yell through a wall.
It’s a simple issue of pride. You don’t submit and receive because you think you know more or know better. The Bible warns us against that.
1 Pet. 5:5 “…be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility for ‘God
resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble’”. (NKJV)
- That attitude is to your detriment
- Not submitting is an act of disobedience to God’s word
- Leads to conflict, disunity, lack of accountability, false teachings – and falling away
When it comes down to it, I think the ones who struggle with submitting to Godly authority are the same ones who haven’t fully submitted to God. The same one who haven’t fully surrendered to Jesus and given Him control over their lives.
- It doesn’t mean they aren’t saved – but people want a Savior and not a Lord
- Fix finances, provide healing, bring a spouse, etc.
- Good with eternal life if it doesn’t cost them too much
- No access to anger issues, gossip, lust, numb emotions, etc.
James 4:7 “Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you”.
(NKJV)
The truth is, there are some parts of our lives where we don’t want the devil to flee from us. We would rather hang on to our sin than submit to the will of God and do the hard work of crucifying our flesh.
Galatians 5:24 “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and
desires of their sinful nature to His cross and crucified them there”.
(NLT)
- How can we belong to Jesus if we don’t deal with worldly desires?
- Submitting to God makes it easier to submit to His appointed shepherds
- It wasn’t going well for the Corinthians and it won’t go well for us either
Don’t let your vanity keep you from fully submitting to the Lord and following the Godly leadership of those He’s placed in your life.
#2 – Stay in Your Lane (Kind Of)
Even though Paul was very direct about the fact that he had God-given authority and that he wasn’t shy about exercising that authority, he also realized that his authority within the Church was not unlimited. God had given him a sphere of influence and that sphere just so happened to include the church in Corinth.
2 Cor. 10:13-16 “We, however, will not boast beyond measure, but within the limits of
the sphere which God appointed us – a sphere which especially
includes you.
For we are not overextending ourselves (as though our authority did
not extend to you), for it was to you that we came with the gospel of
Christ;
Not boasting of things beyond measure, that is, in another man’s
labors, but having hope, that as your faith is increased, we shall be
greatly enlarged by you in our sphere,
To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not boast in
another man’s sphere of accomplishment”. (NKJV)
- Paul has authority in Corinth, but limited elsewhere
- He’s staying in his lane – which is something they would understand (Isthmian Games)
“Stay in your lane”. That’s some good advice for us too!
- That phrase gets tossed around a lot and the meaning gets twisted
- Salvation is personal, but we don’t live in a bubble
- It’s not about an individual race. More like a relay race
- There are other people IN your lane – you influence each other and how well you finish
These days, when people say, “stay in your lane”, what they really mean is “leave me alone – mind your own business”. And sometimes, that’s exactly what we should do. Sometimes we like to jump out of our lane, out our sphere of influence, and try to wield authority or influence where we probably shouldn’t.
- Social media debates – “correcting” people we don’t know
- It’s entertaining to read the comments, but often not a good look and does damage
Some of y’all think that being an online antagonist is a spiritual gift. It’s not. In fact, it goes against Biblical wisdom.
Prov. 26:17 “He who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own is like one who takes
a dog by the ears”. (NKJV)
- There are times when we should reel it back in and stay out of it
- With our closest relationships, keeping quiet can have a negative impact
Story of Kevin in Iowa
- Funny little story that didn’t impact much
- What if the stakes were higher – a missed flight perhaps
- Staying too much in our own lane because we want to mind our own business or because of how we’ll look is a form of pride
- What might our silence be costing someone else?
We are our brother’s keeper, and we have to look out for each other. Even if it means speaking an uncomfortable truth.
I saw a quote last week that I really liked. It said, “If you think having an uncomfortable conversation is hard, wait until you see the results of not having them”. Again, what could our silence be costing someone else – or ourselves. Will we be part of the collateral damage of someone else’s decisions or left picking up the pieces of their brokenness?
- Truth needs to be spoken the right way, at the right time, with the right intentions
- Use discernment and humility
Prov. 27:6 “Faithful are the wounds of a friend [who corrects out of LOVE and
CONCERN], but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful [because they
serve his hidden agenda]. (AMP)
Galatians 6:1 says that we need to restore people in a spirit of gentleness.
When we are willing to have uncomfortable conversations with the right motives, we might just keep someone from eternal destruction.
James 5:19-20 “My dear brothers and sisters, if someone among you wanders away
from the truth and is brought back,
You can be sure that whoever brings the sinner back from wandering
will save that person from death and bring about the forgiveness of
many sins. (NLT)
- It’s easier to speak up if there is a blatant path of destruction
- What if they are drifting just a little bit. A few degrees off course can lead to missing the destination by miles
Speaking up about the little things can be just as important as the big things.
Story of Brian’s Interruption
- His explanation made me feel some sort of way – loved!
- He cared enough to insert himself to help me “avoid the appearance of evil”
- I told him “thank you”. I didn’t get upset or indignant
And that’s the other side of this – probably the more important side of it. Maybe you’re the one that needs to speak into someone else’s life. But maybe you need to allow someone to speak into yours. What happens then?
- Does vanity rear it’s ugly head? Do you get offended and look for a “safe space”? Do you get angry and lash out or shut them out?
- Or graciously accept what is said and be thankful you are loved?
Prov. 27:17 “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend”. (NLT)
Iron can sharpen iron. Iron can’t sharpen a snowflake.
- Be ok with Godly people speaking into your life. Stop getting offended.
- Offense will keep you from the things of God. A loving correction will push you towards Him
- Help a friend see their blinds spots. Let them help you see yours.
- It might save your marriage, family, health, job – salvation
Don’t let vanity keep you out of heaven.
#3 – Don’t Boast in Yourself
1 Cor. 10:17-18: “But ‘he who glories, let him glory in the Lord’
For not he who commends himself is approved, but whom the Lord
commends”. (NKJV)
Here, Paul is quoting Jeremiah 9:23-24
Jer. 9:23-24 “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let
not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in
his riches.
But let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows
Me, that I am the LORD, exercising loving kindness, judgement and
righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight’, says the LORD”.
(NKJV)
- Paul brings everything back to Jesus. It’s about Him, not us. He gets the credit as we pursue Him
- The Corinthians struggled – their culture was industrialized and into arts, philosophy, intellectual prowess
- They seemed to still find their identity in these things
Paul actually quoted this same verse from Jeremiah back in 1 Corinthians 1:31 – and here he is, having to repeat himself. These guys were just not getting it.
- Hebrew (Jeremiah) – “to give a false appearance of being self-made”
- Greek (Paul) – “to have a vain display of one’s achievements or qualities”
And he is addressing their vanity. They went around “commending themselves” and “measuring themselves by themselves” and “comparing themselves among themselves”. They thought they were self-made and self-sustaining.
2 Cor. 3:5 “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from
ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God”. (NKJV)
- They refused to recognize what God had given them
- Once you start believing in your own abilities, those things become THE thing and you’ve got idols
James 4:16 “But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil”. (NKJV)
Prov. 16:5 “Everyone who is proud and arrogant in heart is disgusting and exceedingly
offensive to the LORD, be assured he will not go unpunished”. (AMP)
Being boastful, proud, arrogant is evil and the Lord detests that behavior. If that’s you, you would do well to repent and humble yourself before the Lord.
- I don’t know many blatantly boastful people
- I see a different type of boasting – by what we make important in our lives.
- It starts in our minds with our plans and goals. The seeds of pride are planted there
Christian liberty gives us the freedom to pursue many different things. But when we make those things so important that we will do anything to achieve or acquire them, then they have become the idols you boast about whether you realize it or not.
Col. 3:23 “Work willingly at whatever you do as though you were working for the
Lord rather than for people”. (NLT)
- I always took this to mean we should act like Jesus is our boss. How would I do my job if Jesus was signing my paycheck? Harder, better attitude, more integrity?
- We can get derailed here – “I’ll just work harder at what I want but say it’s for the Lord”
- If we “work for the Lord”, shouldn’t we be accomplishing the tasks He has given us and pursuing His plans?
Sometimes we pursue the desires we have and don’t even stop to consider whether or not they are what He has for us because they aren’t “bad” things. They aren’t immoral. They aren’t sin.
Sometimes we pursue them because we don’t want to take a closer look at our motives, so we come up with all kinds of excuses.
- Busyness – “Idol hands are the devil’s workshop”
- Fitness – “I’m taking care of the Lord’s temple”
- Money – “But I can tithe more and provide more for my family”
But many times, those pursuits take us away from what He really wants us to be doing. Pursuing Him, pursuing the lost, pursuing our families, pursuing peace and unity in our relationships. Unfortunately, those things don’t get the same recognition.
Money, service, physical appearance – those are the things that bring attention and accolades. And we pursue them for that reason, even if we don’t want to admit it. The truth is, we’re really good at lying to ourselves and wanting to find validation from others.
- “Look at what I’m sacrificing for my family” – expecting applause. But, “what am I sacrificing my family for?”
- “The Lord just has me in a season of busyness” – expecting a knowing nod and a pat on the back. But does He or did you put yourself there?
A self-imposed season quickly becomes a lifestyle.
We need to cast down all desires and ambitions that bring attention to ourselves. We should be pursuing God’s will for our lives, and He should get all the attention, all of the praise, for that. Don’t let your vanity steal from God’s glory.
Conclusion
- Men’s Advance conversation about tithing
- “It’s freeing when we no longer let money have control over our lives”
It’s the same thing when we get rid of pride in our lives. When we come to a place where we don’t have to know it all or be it all or do it all.
- Theres’s freedom in humility
- To submit the Lord and spiritual authority (don’t kick against the goads)
- To speak into someone’s life without getting puffed up (you ain’t better)
- To receive corrections without offense (just tell me what I need to do better)
- To pursue only the things the Lord has (seek ye first the Kingdom of God)\
Don’t cheat on Jesus with your vanity. Remove pride from your life and walk in the freedom of living a life fully committed to Him above all else.
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