Paul has been exhorting the Corinthians not to view anyone from a worldly point of view. He isn’t just concerned with their view of him though. He is concerned about their view overall. If they are viewing him from a worldly point of view, then it could be that they are still worldly. Becoming a Christian, he has pointed out, involves becoming a new creation and viewing everything and everyone differently. What is commendable in the world is not the same as what is commendable to God. Paul then goes on to list the things that commend a person in God’s sight. What follows is a list of characteristics that focuses on character rather than skills and achievements. What commends a person in God’s sight is the ability to journey through the undulations of life’s experiences with perseverance and integrity. Remember, Paul has suffered some grievous setbacks, and his opponents saw these as disqualifying him. But success is not what commends a person in God’s sight. What is more commendable to God is how we respond to failure. It isn’t strength and skill in overcoming our circumstances that commends us, it is the willingness to recognise our weakness and be dependent on God. What commends us is not that we make people love us, but that we continue to love those who hate us. If you want to please God with your life, then pursue the things that he is pleased with.
Receive God’s love and respond by living today in a way that will please him.
Read 2 Corinthians 6:1-13
