2 Corinthians 11 Devotional

Guarding a Simple Devotion

“I am afraid, however, that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may be led astray from your simple and pure devotion to Christ.”2 Corinthians 11:3 (BSB)

Paul feels a godly jealousy for the Corinthians. He promised them to Christ like a bride to one husband, and he fears that, just as the serpent deceived Eve, their minds will be led away from sincere and pure devotion to Christ (11:2-3). Others have arrived preaching a different Jesus, a different spirit and a different gospel, and the church has tolerated it (11:4). Paul calls them false apostles, servants of one who poses as an angel of light (11:13-15).

So Paul reluctantly boasts, but not of successes. He lists lashes, beatings, a stoning, shipwrecks, hunger, cold, danger on every road, and the daily pressure of caring for the churches (11:23-28). He ends with being lowered in a basket to escape arrest (11:32-33). If he must boast, it will be about what shows his weakness (11:30). The true servant of Christ bears the shape of the cross, not polish or power. The real Jesus is the one Paul first preached, and devotion to him is worth guarding against more impressive voices.

To think about: What voices most easily pull your attention away from simple devotion to Christ, and how can you guard that devotion this week?