1 Corinthians 9:1-2, "Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not you my workmanship in the Lord? 2 If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you, for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord."
After Paul left Corinth, the Christians there began to argue about him. Many of them became Christians later, so they had not known Paul. It seemed difficult for them to accept Paul’s authority. They felt that a genuine apostle should be impressive. He should demand his rights. But Paul had behaved in a humble manner. He cared about other people more than he cared about himself.
The word ‘apostle’ originally meant someone whom an important person had sent to carry out an important task. In the Bible, it means someone whom God has sent to declare his good news. It mattered very much to the Christians in Corinth whether God was guiding someone by his Holy Spirit.
Paul did not pretend that God had sent him as an apostle to all people (Galatians 2:7-8). And Paul had not known Christ during his life on earth. But Paul insisted that Christ had sent him, like the other apostles, to declare God’s message. (See Mark 3:13-19, Acts 22:17-21 and 1 Corinthians 15:8).
Dear God, Help me to care about others more than myself and if it is Your will, to bring others to You.
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