The Outward And Inward Appearance Of Man

Verse number 12 and verse number 7 starts out with a question and this chapter and even much of the remaining chapters are going to come back to this question. Do you look on things after the outward appearance? Do you look on things after the outward appearance? Now, we're going to look at Paul's life, his outward appearance, and some of the things that Paul is struggling with from other people. One of the things being his apostleship, whether Paul is truly an apostle.

So he starts out with this question, do you look on things after the outward appearance? You might remember Jesus saying this, judge not according to appearance. And that's a whole sermon all together. We're not going to spend a lot of time on that.

But many ways in which the Lord teaches us that judging people on the basis of appearance, outward appearance, is not a accurate way of judging. Now, certainly you can gain some insight by looking at people and where they're at outwardly. But the outward judgments are not 100% accurate.

And that's the problem. The Lord, when He wants you to make a discernment or a judgment, He wants you to be spot-on every time, 100% of the time. And so oftentimes the scripture says that people outwardly appear righteous unto men.

They make an appearance and they do have an outward appearance. And so if you would judge based on outward appearance, there are times you would get it wrong. And so we're not to do that.

So verse 7 starts out here with, do you look on things after the outward appearance? Let's have a word of prayer and then we'll look at a couple of these verses. Lord, we acknowledge you again. Thank you so much for the word of God and that which sustains us, the bread, the manna from heaven that quickens us and gives us understanding and wisdom.

And Lord, may wisdom and understanding come to us here and may our lives be changed in some way by the renewing of our mind. Thank you for everyone who's here this morning. We pray for those who are not able to be with us, that wherever they're at, I believe some of them, some families are there with the Brookses, that you would bless them and that you administer grace to their hearts while they're separated from us here today.

So we look to you this morning. Teach us from your word. We pray in Jesus' name, amen.

Well, I'll give you a little background here, some foundation for our message. Paul has many, some at least, questioning his apostleship. And this is not something that is new.

In 1 Corinthians 9, in verse number 1, you don't have to turn there, let me read to you what it says here. He says, am I not an apostle? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? Are not ye my work in the Lord? If I be not an apostle, people are actually thinking maybe he isn't an apostle or they're accusing him of not being. If I be not an apostle unto others, yea, doubtless I am to you, for the seal of mine apostleship are you in the Lord.

And then in verse 3, he says this, my answer to them that do examine me is this, and he goes on and talks about some of the ways that prove that he's an apostle. So, my answer to them who examine me. So as Paul is writing this, we understand that there are people at Corinth who are really questioning whether or not Paul is truly an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And you know, it's easy for us to go to the Bible here and we got hindsight and we have good vision as we look back and we see the Word of God, we see the New Testament completed and we carry it around in this book here and we can understand, well, we see how Paul is an apostle, we see how others were an apostle, but back then they didn't have a Bible to carry around. Back then they didn't have the opportunity to look back and to see how everything worked out. And so, they're struggling trying to understand is Paul one of the apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ? Keep in mind, I guess we would probably struggle too because he was not one of the original twelve.

He was not a part of that original twelve and he was chosen as he said as one born out of due time and how the Lord brought him to that apostleship, you know, he had a testimony he shared all over the place, but, hey, Paul, you're not a part of that original twelve. And so, how do we know that you're an apostle? Of course, this letter is written to Corinth and Corinth is about 800 miles as the crow flies from Jerusalem and Judea. And so, these are people who have lived far away.

They've not been there in Jerusalem and Judea. They've not seen Jesus. They've not seen the apostles.

They're a distant people. And so much of what they've, they understand, they've heard and of course, they didn't have, you know, televisions and cell phones and things didn't travel, newspapers and magazines and all those things. So, you can have a little bit of maybe an understanding of how they could struggle with Paul's apostleship.

Second Corinthians, you can turn here, Second Corinthians chapter 12, just a chapter over here in verse number 11. This subject comes up here. Am I become a fool in glorying? You have compelled me for I ought to have been commended of you.

For in nothing am I behind the very chiefest apostles, though I be nothing. Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds. So, you get this idea that the church at Corinth is somewhat questioning Paul's apostleship.

And it's according to chapter, verse 7 there, do you look on things after the outward appearance? And Paul's going to address some of these things about how people were looking at him and they were looking at him not in a proper way. Okay, well, let me just throw this out. When I thought about apostles, I thought about 12 apostles.

There are 12 apostles, the apostles of the Lamb, and I, my personal feeling is there's only 12. You may have a different understanding of that, but I, in all of my studies and looking at this, see that there's 12 apostles. Ephesians chapter 4 says that the church was built on the foundation of the apostles.

Now when I built my house, I built a foundation. And after I built the foundation, I started to move up with the wood and the timbers and I finished, or I didn't finish it, the people who built it finished it. But once you lay the foundation with the chief cornerstone and with the stones and the blocks, you don't continue laying blocks and stones all the way up unless, of course, you live in Haiti and you build a cement structure, but the foundation was laid.

The foundation was laid. And that foundation was the foundation of the apostles and Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone of that foundation. And so I believe there are 12, and someone said this a couple of weeks ago about the 24 elders around the throne.

And I understand those 24 elders to be the 12 sons of Jacob, the 12 heads of the tribes, and then the 12 apostles, 24, 12 plus 12, 24. The elders, the fathers of the Jewish nation and the elders or the fathers of the New Testament church, 12 and 12, Old Testament and New Testament around the throne. Revelation chapter 21 kind of proves this here.

I'll read it to you. In Revelation 21 and verse 10, it says this. John is writing, and he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain and showed me that great city, the whole of Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God.

And her light was like unto a stone, most precious, even like a Jasper stone, clear as a crystal, and had a wall great and high. Now picture this city here, had a wall great and high and had 12 gates. And at the gates, 12 angels and names written thereon, which are the names of the 12 tribes of the children of Israel.

So here you have these 12 heads of the children of Israel on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had 12 foundations. And in them, the names of the 12 apostles of the land.

So this city that we're going to be living in, as you go around the city, you're going to find the names of the 12 heads of the tribes of Israel. And you're going to also see the names of the 12 apostles of the land on the foundations of that city. And so those are representing that 24.

As you go around that city, the walls and the foundations have those 24 names. So there's a contention. And Paul was trying to speak to those there at Corinth who are questioning, examining him about his apostleship.

There's something else going on here. Look at 2 Corinthians chapter 11, 2 Corinthians chapter 11 and verse 13, it says for such are false apostles, we'll get into this in a little bit, in a couple of weeks, for such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvels, for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

And so this next chapter, Paul's going to address this whole idea of false apostles. And that's not unusual. Anything that God does, the devil tries to counterfeit or bring false to confuse his people.

And so false apostles. So there's things going on in the church here at Corinth. There are people rising up saying, I'm an apostle.

Some are questioning whether Paul is truly an apostle. Should we listen to him? Does he have authority? And then there's something else here that's pretty big. That's mentioned here in 2 Corinthians chapter 10.

I want to read here, starting in verse number 9, it says, that I may not seem as if I would terrify you by letters, for his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful, but his bodily presence is weak and his speech is contemptible. Now Paul addresses here his, or what they say about him. He says, they say that my letters are weighty and powerful.

And yes, as we're reading and studying these letters, they are weighty and powerful, but they say his bodily presence is weak and his speech is contemptible. Now this gets back to verse 7. Do you look on things after the outward appearance? So I don't know what you think Paul looked like, but if he walked in the door here, I think what we would see is a man that's very thin, much like me, short, thin. And there's a number of things that when you look at him, you would say, ah, is this the apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ? This weakly man? And then we invite him to come up here and speak and his speech is contemptible, he says.

We ought to take encouragement from that. Paul was not an eloquent man like Apollos. His speech was contemptible and I looked that word up and it means something that's not highly esteemed.

In other words, we probably wouldn't be inviting him for the revival meetings. He was maybe a little more difficult to follow. His speech was contemptible.

And so when you look at him from an outward perspective, you see a weak, small individual. You see someone who doesn't speak that well. You would think that an apostle would have great oratorial abilities.

And people are questioning, you know, is this, is this an apostle? You know, Paul put Eutychus to sleep in Troas, as he said in the upper chamber, maybe he was boring to listen to. His speech here is contemptible. So Paul doesn't appear to be a part of an apostle.

That's why you don't judge a book by the cover, amen? And maybe if we judged him according to his appearance and we'd say, whoa, whoa, whoa, I don't think this guy is an apostle. I don't think God would have called someone like this, someone who is weak, someone who is small, someone who is not of high stature, someone who doesn't speak well. I'm sure there were other false apostles who were, you know, great speakers and great orators.

And here comes Paul. And there's a question. So Paul doesn't appear to be able to take the part of an apostle.

He's weak, say they. He's not like Peter. Now, Peter, I think was probably a, he was a fisherman out in the sun a lot, pulling in those fish.

And probably if you saw Peter come in, now there's, there's a guy right there that God is going to use as an apostle. You know, here's a guy like Peter who took out his sword and went after the one who came to deliver up Jesus and took his ear off, wanted to take his head off. You know, Peter was probably not some little weakling.

I know he wasn't a weakling because in John chapter 21, when they went out and caught those fish, it says that Peter went out and drew the fish to shore in that net, 153 fishes. And it says he brought them up by himself. Now, I'm sure he was excited he caught them, but you, you, you put 10 fish in a good sized cast net and try to bring that up out of the water.

But there's 153 and he says he's dragging them to the shore. So yeah, we can understand how God would use maybe someone like, like Peter, someone who is strong, someone who is tougher. And so here's, here stands Paul.

He's weak. And we're going to see something else about him. His speech is contemptible, but not only that, he's nearly blind.

He's nearly blind. Galatians chapter four, you don't have to turn there, but I think we talked about this a few weeks ago. Galatians chapter four, verse 13 says, and my temptation, which was in my flesh, you despise not, nor rejected, but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.

Where is then the blessedness you spake of? For I bear you record that if it had been possible, you would have plucked out your own eyes and given them to me. So he's writing to the church there and they realize, you know, he has infirmities. Paul recognizes this, like, like, you know, he's just like, like trying to read and they didn't have glasses back then and didn't have contact lenses and magnifying glasses perhaps.

And he's trying to, to read and to see, and they loved him so much. He says, I know that you would have plucked out your own eyes and given them to me. And so I, you know, I picture this, this man, picture someone coming in here that's just kind of five foot four and weakly and gets up here and can barely see, you know, and his speech is contemptible.

And then he says, I'm an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. And you say, I don't know about that. And that's what, what was happening.

And so that's why he starts out this in verse seven here in 2 Corinthians 10 with, Do you look on things after the outward appearance? Yes, we've heard his letters. There are powerful letters. There are strong letters.

But his bodily presence, in his presence, he's weak. His speech is contemptible and he can't see. He's basically blind.

That reminded me of the story of David being chosen as a king. You know, those seven sons were brought before Samuel and Eli was the oldest one. And Samuel thought, there's the guy.

There's the guy, tall, older, handsome, you know, and the whole nine yards. And the Lord says to Samuel, it's not him. Okay, well, probably this next one in line, the next oldest, he's a good looking guy and he's strong.

And no, it's not him either. And we go down through all seven of these. Finally, David's not even there.

And then in that context, we read those verses. Man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart. And so David is chosen and he'd probably been the last one that is chosen.

So I want to encourage you first of all here this morning that you don't have to be good looking. You don't have to be strong. You don't have to even see well.

You don't have to speak well. You know, some of you are maybe not really excited about getting up and taking part because, well, I don't speak the best. Well, you're right there with Paul.

You say, my speech is contemptible. Well, so is his. But, you know, that didn't hinder God from using him in a great and mighty way.

Amen. Yes, he's weak. Yes, he doesn't speak well.

Yes, he's nearly blind. But God would choose him as an apostle. I want to remind you that Jesus himself was not, you know, Hollywood makes him out to be some handsome, strong, but Jesus himself, Isaiah 53 says, he has no form nor comeliness.

And when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. In other words, he has no form. He has no, he's not a big, strong individual.

He has no comeliness. There is no handsomeness. There is no beauty about him.

It's not like, oh, wow, look at this guy. Certainly he's the son of God. But think about that.

God's only begotten son. God didn't put him in a handsome, strong body. And so there's hope for us.

Amen. By the way, let me just remind you, young men, young ladies, favor is deceitful and beauty is vain. But a woman that fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

Amen. Young men, don't look after the outward appearance. Amen.

Don't look after the outward appearance. Don't judge a person based upon the outward appearance. So don't look for a beautiful young lady.

Oh, you get a beautiful young lady after you look for someone who has a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God, a great price. Look for someone who is internally a beautiful person. And also, ladies, don't try to have an appearance.

Amen. Don't try to have an appearance. It's not about your appearance.

It's about your heart. And we're reminded of that there in Timothy and also in Peter when he talks about clothing and talks about hair, talks about jewelry. But those are in the context of don't beautify yourself with this, but beautify yourself internally with a meek and a quiet spirit.

I'm getting off the subject here, but I'd like you to turn back to 1 Corinthians. This is the first letter that he wrote. And right at the front of this, he tells us a little bit about these things.

In 1 Corinthians chapter 1, and I don't know, this is written to the church at Corinth. These are people who are Greeks, and they are probably lifted up in their own wisdom and their own philosophy and very proud people. But jumping in here in verse 26 of chapter 1, his first letter to them, he says this, For you see, you are calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.

But God had chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. And I have to think of Paul there, someone who was in the world's eyes as foolish. And even the church struggled with Paul here, the Corinthians, with Paul as truly an apostle.

This weak man, this man who couldn't barely see, this man whose speech is contemptible. God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. And God had chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty and the base things of the world.

You know the people who are just way down there, the base, the lower end. The base things of the world and the things which are despised has God chosen, yea, and the things which are not to bring to naught the things that are. And that's his purpose here, to take down the haughty, to take down the high, to take down those who seem to have everything outwardly in this present life that no flesh should glory in his presence.

And verse 31 says that according as it is written, he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. So God is looking for people like that, and maybe you sit here and you think, well, I never be able to be much, I'm not good looking, I'm not strong, I don't speak well, my speech is contemptible. I got some infirmities in my flesh, I can't see, I can't hear, I can't do a whole lot, but God is looking for people like that, amen.

He's looking for people who he can receive glory and not contend with them in their own glory. Now, that chapter here, chapter 1 ends with, he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. Turn back with me to 2 Corinthians, to chapter 10, I want you to see how this chapter ends also.

We're on the same subject here, 2 Corinthians chapter 10, verse 17 says, but he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth. And so, God is interested in getting glory and he uses individuals like the apostle who have a lot of need, who have a lot of infirmity, who have a lot of issues that are external, and so you don't have to, you know, doctor yourself up and try to cover all those things, you know, the Lord can use you.

Now, I want you to come down here to 2 Corinthians chapter 10, in verse number 12. These are bookends here for this passage, verse 7 talks about, do you look on things after the outward appearance? And then in verse 12, for we dare not make ourselves of the number or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves, but they measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves among themselves are not wise. Now, there's a lot of comparison going on here, you know, just like it was in 1 Corinthians.

I am of Paul, I am of Apollos, you know, we follow Apollos because he's an eloquent man. I am Peter, you know, Peter, he's strong and Peter is a good leader and Peter is all these other things and so even in the first letter, Paul is addressing, you know, why are you comparing Paul with Peter and with Apollos and some of you are running in this direction and some of you are running in that direction. You know, we like Paul because Paul, you follow Paul, you get mighty signs and wonders and our church is called the Mighty Signs and Wonders Church and we have all these things going on today, you know.

Measuring themselves by themselves, here's something I think we ought to talk about a little bit, measuring themselves by themselves, comparing themselves among themselves. You know what, I'm doing pretty good in this group I'm in. If I measure myself with the group, I'm doing pretty good but you all know that judgment is not based on how we do in relation to others, it has nothing to do with that, you know that? Well, I'm not as bad as Brother So-and-so, well, I'm not as evil as, I don't do those things that Brother So-and-so does so I must be all right.

No, comparing yourselves among yourselves, the Bible says you're not wise, if you're not wise, what are you? You're a fool. Judgment is going to be based on how you compare to the Lord Jesus Christ and over and over in the Bible we're told that be ye holy for I am holy. Your comparison ought to be with Him.

But you know, I find in church life a lot of people compare themselves among themselves and judge themselves based upon the measure that's in the group and you see this a lot in church life. We tend to be as humans, we try to soothe our conscience by comparing ourselves to those around us. I'm not as bad as Brother So-and-so, oh, that makes me feel better.

I'm not as bad. Those people who sit in jails, you hear them oftentimes say this, you know, they sit in the jail and maybe they're in there for theft, they say, well, I didn't murder someone, you know, I didn't rape anybody, you know, I'm not an adulterer. Yeah, that's human nature.

We can soothe our conscience by trying to compare ourselves with others who are worse than us. Classic example, and I've used this verse many times, but turn with me to Luke chapter 18 and the Lord gives us a good example of this in human nature. In Luke chapter 18, someone who compared himself among himself and then someone else who compared himself to the Lord.

And there was two different outcomes here. And if you want a good outcome, you need to make sure you're comparing yourself in the right way. Look at Luke chapter 18 and verse number nine.

And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others. Two men went up into the temple to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee that I am not as.

Now, some of you who teach English as is a comparison word. He's comparing himself to others. I thank you that I am not as other men are.

I mean, I'm not like these extortioners around here. Zacchaeus being one of them. I'm not like these unjust people.

I'm not like these adulterers or I'm not even like this, this wicked publican. And so in his heart, he is looking around. In his society and he's making comparisons.

I feel pretty good about myself because, look, this guy over here is an extortioner and I don't do that. This guy over here is an adulterer and I don't do that. And I'm not like this publican who's out getting taxes and robbing people.

I don't do that either. So I'm pretty good. I'm in a pretty good place.

And by the way, you can get in a pretty good place if you compare yourself with others, because you can always find people who are far worse than you. And soothe your conscience, comparing himself to others. You see this often with churches.

My church, our church, is not like those other churches. Oh, boy. Our church is not like those churches.

We compare ourselves, my family, my children. I would never do that. This family, we compare ourselves family to family, individual to individual, and churches to churches.

How much you hear that? Our church and your church. We do it this way. You notice here in verse number 11, it says, the Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself.

God, I thank thee that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. Do you notice that he's the one who picked out who he would compare himself to? Yeah, he picked him out. And then in verse 12, he justifies himself.

I fast twice in the week. I give tithes of all that I possess. And probably all these people he's comparing himself to, they don't fast and they don't tithe.

And so he's put himself in a pretty good position. I am better than these because here's what I do. And I've shared this with you before, but I believe he picked out fasting and tithing because if you look at the Jews, that's two big things that they were good at.

Fasting and tithing. They even tithed according to Jesus. They tithed mint and anise and cum and they tithed the miniscule things.

That was their badge for holiness. And they fasted. That's like the Muslims, they fast.

Every denomination has their fasting and tithing, don't they? This is always interesting. When you think about this verse here, what we do the best. Let me ask you this, what do we do the best? You know, it's generally a human nature that the thing that you do the best, that's what you evaluate everybody else on.

You compare yourselves to everybody on the basis of what we do the best. So our strengths are this, this and this, and that becomes the badge of holiness. And everybody else doesn't reach that level.

And so no doubt in the church at Corinth, there were people were saying, I prefer Paul. Mighty signs and wonders. I prefer Apollos.

He's an eloquent man. I prefer Peter. And so we have these comparisons, contentions.

We'll see that here in just a minute. So I've shared this before, but the Adventist, if you have an Adventist stand at the pulpit, you're going to get the Sabbath and the diet right up front. And that's the badge of holiness.

The Pentecostal will be the spiritual gifts and speaking in tongues. And you're not even saved unless you go there. You have the Mennonites and non-resistance and dress and the Baptist soul winning and King James versions.

And all these things are just like the Pharisee, fasting and tithing. But do you know why people do that in their heart? Let's keep reading. Look what it says.

Verse 14, I tell you this, this man went down to his house. We'll look at him in a minute. Justified rather than the other for everyone that exalts himself.

Everyone that exalts himself. You see, the Pharisee was trying to lift himself above everybody else. I'm better.

We're better than they are. In his heart, he has pride and he wants to attempt to elevate himself. I'm going to elevate myself above all of these people.

What happens when people try to elevate themselves up above others? The Bible says that all contention comes of what? Pride. And so you'll find, just like on the Lord's Supper there that night, the Passover, it says they met there and the disciples and what they were, they started arguing. Why? Because who would be the greatest? Who's the greatest? And they were back and forth.

Can you imagine that night? And that lifting myself up to be the greatest brought about contention. But I like verse 13. Here's the public and it says, and the public and standing afar off would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven.

But smote upon his breasts, saying, God, be merciful to me, a sinner. Now, who is he comparing himself to? Is he comparing himself amongst himself, themselves there? Or is he comparing himself to the Lord? God, be merciful to me, a sinner. The publican compared himself to God's standard.

And you know, if every one of us would keep that focus and stop comparing ourselves, in our churches, in our conferences, in our families, it would do a couple of things for us. First of all, it would eliminate strife. Because instead of trying to get up, up on each other and causing strife amongst us, we would be humbling ourselves and going to a lower place.

Of course, keeping in mind that I'm trying to be like Jesus and my focus is on that. And how many of you have got there yet? Raise your hand. Anybody's got there yet to be like him? And so that keeps us in a state of, Lord, I'm still short.

Lord, I need help. Lord, I need grace. And as you keep focusing on him and your pursuit of him and the perfect standard of holiness, all of a sudden people around you, you don't focus on them anymore.

You're focused on this. And you realize sometimes painfully that I've got a long way to go. And the scripture says, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.

And so as you keep your focus on him, you're not preoccupied with trying to compare yourself with others. And one thing that does for us is it keeps us humble. I have many needs.

I'm still short of where the Lord wants me to be. And that keeps the heart tender and soft. And it avoids criticism and being a critical, judgmental person.

Those kind of people are a dime a dozen because they're proud. They're trying to lift themselves up. I am not like this adulterer or this publican or all these people who are down there.

I, I do, I fast twice in a week. I give tithes of all that I possess. So the publican here compared himself to God.

And the Bible says we're not wise when we compare ourselves among ourselves or measure ourselves by ourselves. And throughout, uh, in different places in, in Corinth, there is some struggles. You know, Apollos is doing certain things.

And, and the people are trying to elevate him. And Paul's trying to help people to see that's not what we do. So whenever you hear these words, you know, our church is better.

Our family is better. I'm better. You should mark that out as someone who's got a proud heart.

A proud heart. And it's not wise. It's not a wise thing.

Back here in 2 Corinthians, it says in chapter 10 here, excuse me, chapter 10, verse 12. For we dare not make ourselves of the number or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves, but they measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves among themselves are not wise. Now we don't have the time here this morning, but these next six or seven verses, Paul's going to go in and talk about boasting without our measure.

In verse 13, he says, we will not boast of things without our measure. Verse 15, not boasting of things without our measure. He's going to talk about this idea of comparing one to another.

He says, I just boast about my work where I'm at. I don't compare myself to other people. And we'll talk about that from verse 13 down to verse 18.

But the bottom line is verse 17. But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. Let me ask you a question.

That Pharisee, as he's standing there saying, I'm not as other men. I do not act like this adulterer. I do not act like this publican.

I fast twice in a week. I give tithes of all that I possess. Who is he glorying in? Himself.

He's lifting himself up. He's glorying in himself. But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

Verse 18 says, for not he that commendeth himself, and that's what he was doing, is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth. And you know, Paul is there in Corinth, and he is not a good speaker. He's kind of a weakly individual.

He's half blind. And there's other apostles that are eloquent. Apollos, Peter.

And there's a lot of comparisons going on. And Paul is trying to address these things. So if you sit here this morning, and you don't have everything together, and maybe physically you're not of great stature, or you're not beautiful as far as young ladies, and you know, you don't have all these abilities and talents, and maybe you have some infirmities in your flesh, and you think, you know, what can I do? What can I do? Well, the apostle Paul is a good example for you.

Someone who is, as the scripture says, base, who is weak, and yet he surrendered himself to the Lord and became strong. And I don't know of anyone who affected the kingdom of God more than the apostle Paul did in yet all of his infirmity and his weakness. So my question to you here this morning is the same question that Paul asks, do you look on things after the outward appearance, or do you look on things from God's perspective? Man looks upon the outward appearance, but God looks upon the heart.

And I tell you, if we were here and we would see Paul's heart, and of course you see it, and Paul's going to talk about that. How much he suffered in this next chapter. How much he suffered for them.

How he didn't take any funds from that church, but he robbed other churches that he might supply their needs. How he lived a selfless life before them. He's going to say, that is the evidence of my apostleship.

Not that I'm strong like Peter or eloquent like Apollos. No, it's that I have laid my life down, as Jonah Debs shared this morning, for you. And so we'll look into that here in the next couple of chapters.

So let's take heart, especially you young people. And don't evaluate on the basis of appearance. Let's evaluate on that which is internal.

Okay, let's close and I'll open it up for anyone who'd like to share here this morning. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the encouragement of your word, and thinking of the apostle, and how he had such weakness and infirmity. Lord, yet as he said, when I am weak, then am I strong.

And yet he gloried in his infirmities, that the power of Christ could rest upon him. And Lord, may we also be encouraged today. May we get rid of the comparing one another, and comparing ourselves to others, and our church to others.

And may we compare ourselves to you, and how far we have yet to come. That our hearts could be tender, and that we could be humble in our approach. And so Lord, we pray your blessing on these words as they come to our hearts.

Lord, minister grace to each heart, in Jesus' name, amen.