WHEN AN APOSTLE IS CONCERNED -- Tomorrow:
"Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me. For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him." (2 Corinthians 11:1-4)
Devotion 6 of 29
GODLY JEALOUSY
"For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy. . . "
Other versions read, "a Divine jealousy" (NRSV), "a jealousy which is of God" (DARBY), "with the jealousy of God" (NAB), "God's own jealousy" (NJB), "the jealousy of God Himself" (NLT), "with zeal of God" (YLT), "with the deep concern of God Himself" (LIVING), "with a jealousy from God" (IE), "with a godly eagerness and Divine jealousy" (AMPLIFIED), and "is the right sort of jealousy" (PHILLIPS).
The "jealousy" that has consumed Paul is actually the jealousy of God Himself – "godly jealousy." In this matter, he has become a "partaker of the Divine nature." You may recall that God has spoken concerning this aspect of His character. He is a jealous God.
1. "Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am A JEALOUS GOD, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me" (Ex 20:5).
2. "For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is A JEALOUS GOD" (Exodus 34:14).
3. "Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the LORD your God, which He made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the LORD thy God hath forbidden thee. For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even A JEALOUS GOD" (Deut 4:23-24).
4. "Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am A JEALOUS GOD, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me" (Deut 5:9).
5. "Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people which are round about you; (For the LORD thy God is A JEALOUS GOD among you) lest the anger of the LORD thy God be kindled against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the earth" (Deut 6:14-15).
6. "And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve the LORD: for He is an holy God; He is A JEALOUS GOD; He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins" (Josh 24:19).
7. "Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be JEALOUS for My holy name" (Ezek 39:25).
8. "Then will the LORD be JEALOUS for his land, and pity his people" (Joel 2:18).
9. "God is JEALOUS, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies" (Nahum 1:2).
10. "So the angel that communed with me said unto me, Cry thou, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I am JEALOUS for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great JEALOUSY" (Zech 1:14).
11. "Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great JEALOUSY, and I was JEALOUS for her with great fury" (Zech 8:2).
This "jealousy" has to do with two conditions. First, God's jealousy was aroused when His people prostituted their affections, giving them to other gods. Second, it flamed up when His people were abused or opposed by others. Now, both of these conditions had occurred in Corinth.
Some of the people in that congregation had turned their attention to "another Jesus," "another Spirit," and "another gospel" (11:4). They had been turned from the Christ with whom they had been united to a false Christ who allowed division. They were turned from the God who had sent Paul to them, to teachers who had come in their own name. They had given their hearts to those who were not sent forth by God. It was not something innocent! Paul was not content to see people be drawn to other lovers.
Also, intruders had come into the house of God and were placing wood, hay, and stubble upon the foundation that Paul had put in place. These were professing Christians whose hearts were not pure and devoted to the real Christ. They were also corrupting those who were already in Christ, allowing for the outbreak of all manner of carnality.
Thus Paul, who not only worked together with God (1 Cor 3:9), but fellowshipped with the Lord Jesus (1 Cor 1:9) rose up in defense of the work of the Lord. He would purge the offenders from the spiritual temple, like Jesus twice cleared them out of the Temple that was in Jerusalem (John 2:13-17; Mk 11:15-17). During the first of those occasions, the disciples, upon beholding the purging of the Temple, "remembered that it was written, The zeal of Thine house hath eaten Me up" (John 2:17).
In this text, we are beholding the zeal of God's house eating up Paul. This man, noted for his gentility, has been awakened like a sleeping giant. He will aggressively seek the retrieval of the Corinthians from the hands of the wicked imposters who had entered their gates.
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, raise up ministers who will be driven by a godly jealousy to do battle for the retrieval of those who have been led astray.