[8] through honour and dishonour, through slander and praise. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; [9] as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed;
2 Corinthians 6:8-9
On June 22, 1750, Jonathan Edwards lost his job. After twenty-four years of ministry at the church in Northampton, Massachusetts, twenty-one of which as senior pastor, America’s greatest pastor and theologian was dismissed by an overwhelming vote of the membership. I still can’t believe this, he had led the church in one of the greatest revivals in history and they as a church had seen extraordinary manifestations of God.
And Edwards’ response? After enduring years of theological arguments, bitter opposition, horrible slander, and malicious gossip, one might have expected him either to have wallowed in self-pity or to have lashed out in angry recriminations. Not so Edwards. One observer described his reaction in these memorable words:
“That faithful witness received the shock, unshaken. I never saw the least symptoms of displeasure in his countenance the whole week, but he appeared like a man of God, whose happiness was out of the reach of his enemies and whose treasure was not only a future but a present good, overbalancing all imaginable ills of life, even to the astonishment of many who could not be at rest without his dismission” (dismissal)
Jonathan Edwards. A New Biography by Iain Murray.
Edwards was a pastor, a pioneer, theologian, evangelist, revivalist, and a man after God’s own heart. He had much in common with the apostle Paul. Something was at work in both men that elevated their happiness beyond the grasp of even the most vicious of their enemies. Their treasure was not only a future but a present good, overbalancing all imaginable ills of life.
Nowhere does Paul say it with greater clarity than here in 2 Corinthians 6, as he describes a ministry and a life characterised by great endurance in the midst of afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labours, sleepless nights, and hunger (verses 4-5). He responded to such trials with purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, love, and truth, all in the power of God through the Holy Spirit (verses 6-7).
The paradox of Paul’s experience is nothing short of amazing and profound:
through honour and dishonour, through slander and praise. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; [9] as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed;
2 Corinthians 6:8-9
Let’s look together at these paradoxical pairs.
We love it when others hold us in high regard or honour. A good reputation is easy to live with but dishonour is something else. When people hold opinions of us shaped by misinformation and unjustified criticism, we either respond in kind or take up a defensive posture. All too often our emotions fluctuate with our public opinion poll. We’re high when the numbers giving praise are high. When the polls go down so do we.
Paul was neither puffed up by praise nor thrown by slander. He could enjoy public affirmation without becoming dependent upon it and not thrown off track by lack of affirmation. This is stunning when we consider the consistent and intense defamation he endured at Corinth. He was often criticised, denounced, accused of being fickle and self serving, arrogant, having worldly ambition and lacking ability and eloquence (See 2 Corinthians for more evidence).
He was treated as an imposter and yet was true. Paul is in good company here, as Jesus himself was regarded as a deceiver by his enemies (John 7:12; Matthew 27:63). Yet his calling was true (Galatians 1:1 and 15-16) his message authentic (2 Corinthians 4:2 and 6:7) and he repeatedly spoke the truth (2 Corinthians 11:31, Romans 9:1, Galatians 1:20, I Timothy 2:7).
What does Paul mean in saying he was unknown, and yet well known?
Some say this refers to views of Paul held outside the church (he’s an unknown quantity, insignificant, uncelebrated, easily ignored) versus inside the church (respected and acknowledged).
He might have meant, you, the Corinthian church think this of me, but God thinks like this about me. It maybe that some recognised his apostolic gift and others did not.
My view is, yes, he was largely unknown to the World, a nobody if you like. Yet God knew him, loved him, and cherished him as a good and faithful son. “ The Lord knows those who are his” Paul wrote to a young Timothy. (2 Timothy 2:19). Others may forget who I am, says Paul, but the Lord Jesus has written down my name in the Lamb’s book of life (Philippians 4:3)!
Paul was constantly exposed to life-threatening circumstances, so writes “as dying and yet we live” (Acts 14:19-20). He and his co-workers were punished but not killed, knowing that “all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” ( Hebrews 12:11).
What has to happen to us to make such a life possible? How does one attain to this perspective? Is there a formula? A magical trick? A prayer to pray? A book to read? A conference to attend? What accounts for the presence of joy rather than bitterness in Paul’s heart? How was he able to keep to being content in every and any situation?
Let’s go back to the quote from the biography of Jonathan Edwards. His “treasure was not only a future but a present good, overbalancing all imaginable ills of life.” Something was of such immeasurable value that Edwards happily let go of all things that gave him security on Earth. There was something he prized above the praise of men. The root of his dependency on the accolades of others was broken by his delight in a far surpassing pleasure.
Edwards (like Paul) was captivated by a treasure so radiant that he was blinded to the light of the Worlds treasure. Its glorious light rendered him deaf to the slander of his enemies. He had experienced a joy so satisfying and a pleasure so all-consuming that “all imaginable ills of life” dwindled in their capacity to embitter or enslave. The treasure, quite simply, was and is Christ.
Help me Lord to be like this!
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