Saturday 27th May
Read 2 Corinthians 10:13-16
“We, however, will not boast beyond proper limits, but will confine our boasting to the sphere of service God himself has assigned to us, a sphere that also includes you. 14 We are not going too far in our boasting, as would be the case if we had not come to you, for we did get as far as you with the gospel of Christ. 15 Neither do we go beyond our limits by boasting of work done by others. Our hope is that, as your faith continues to grow, our sphere of activity among you will greatly expand, 16 so that we can preach the gospel in the regions beyond you. For we do not want to boast about work already done in someone else’s territory.” (NIVUK)
Are you a multi-tasker? Or perhaps the better question is ‘Do you think you are a multi-tasker’? No-one really successfully does it according to the psychologists, they just focus on one task for vanishingly brief periods of time before focussing on the next one…
One suspects Paul is not an advocate of multi-tasking. He knows precisely what he was called to do and does it single-mindedly. He was called to proclaim the gospel, plant and build churches and ensure they grow. If he does that single job well, then the gospel itself will spread and grow from there.
Paul was given a task. He will not take credit from others for completing that task – he does the work himself (with lots of willing co-workers with whom he happily shares ‘credit’). Is that an example we should follow? Should we concentrate on what we have been tasked with and not be distracted by seeking credit in areas for which we are not responsible? It is harder to do than it seems.
“‘His master replied, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!”” (Matthew 25:23) (NIVUK)
Imagine if Jesus had not been as single-minded about the cross? Where would we be?
