2 Corinthians 1:12: “For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the Grace of God and supremely so toward you.”
Do you have compassion for people? Paul did in his ministry. Paul did so, he says, with “simplicity and godly sincerity.“ The word “sincere” comes from a Latin phrase meaning “without wax” – referring to the wax used to hide the cracks in defective pottery or statuary (sculpture).” Jon Courson’s Application Commentary New Testament. When a person has integrity and has a clear conscience, that person can be trusted because they have nothing to hide.
Paul’s conscience was clear before God. He defended himself to the Corinthians, in having to change his plans in not being able to visit them. But that did not silence the opposition against him. Paul explained to them that he was not fickle and was always reliable. The Corinthians had falsely accused Paul of being proud, self-serving, untrustworthy and many other derogatory critical accusations against his character and integrity. “Paul decided that another meeting with the Corinthians would only cause more pain for everyone so he decided to address the issues in a follow-up letter – sometimes called the lost letter. Even though Paul wrote “with many tears out of an extremely troubled and anguished heart “(2 Cor. 2:4), he was once again misunderstood and rebuffed.” Gene Getz. Paul examined his own heart and conscience before God and stated he could write with a guiltless conscience and sincerity. Paul kept his focus on the truth of God and stated: “It was God who kept us focused on him, uncompromised,” 2 Cor. 1:12-13 MSG.
We need to be real and have specific actions and discernment between what is right and wrong in daily living before others. Our efforts must be beyond reproach in our day to day relationships where God has placed us. Our integrity must speak for us, as it did for Paul (Acts 23:1), who lived his life before God in all good conscience (1 Cor. 15:9-10, 1 Tim. 1:12-17).
I attended a trade organization work meeting this week near LAX. The speaker was a woman that has her own specialized skincare. She showed pictures of how she grew her business with the help of the Miss Universe contestants recently using it and other Red Carpet events. This woman has now opened three skin med spas in the Los Angeles area, all using her skincare line. I did not know that she is reported as being not only an entrepreneur but is a Christian. During her talk, she put up on the screen the verse Malachi 3:9-10, which is the most quoted verse on tithing. She stated to the room of about 75 or more attendees that this is what she bases her life on and then gave an illustration from this verse to explain herself more fully, and then continued on in her informative lecture. I found in my gift bag each attendee was given, the instructional card for using the “Secret Gold” (everyone was given a face cleanser and this “Secret Gold”) it has a verse on the bottom of the card, which is Jeremiah 29:11. This woman was not afraid to be a godly light before a crowd of people and to give God the glory for helping her bring her dream to fruition. She used simplicity and godly sincerity in her talk. I later checked out her company name on the web and read a magazine interview about her. She quoted more scripture during the interview and states she is involved in church planting and evangelism ministries in the Philippines. The magazine writer even quoted her saying that she starts everything in her business with prayer. When she formulates a new product, she prays for it in every step in its process of coming to fruition. This woman planted some gospel seeds at this industry meeting. Because of this woman’s testimony, it allowed me to ask a colleague that had attended this meeting with me, what she thought about the verses this woman had on the screen during her talk and asked if she saw a verse from the Bible on the bottom of the instructional card for her skin glow product? God used that work incident for me to plant some additional spiritual seeds. This enabled me to put “Work Is Worship” into practice.
What significant relationship challenges are you facing with people in your workplace?
What significant relationship challenges are you facing with family?
Paul put it all together – “simplicity and godly sincerity” is the key to living out our faith wherever we go. It doesn’t require using great big and impressive theological or philosophical terminology in conversations. Sometimes a smile and a hug goes a long ways. Make it simple (your faith), real, be transparent, show a personal interest in others, and be reliable. That will promote trust in the people you come in contact with regularly. Then doors will open to share your faith when the opportunity arises with simplicity and godly sincerity.
Listen to Sanctus Real – Jesus Love You (Official Music Video) YouTube – July 12, 2019.