If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. 32 At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, 33 but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.
You may have felt the need to defend yourself against an undeserved attack in the past. It seems you cannot rest until your good name is restored. The recent Johnny Depp trial is an example. Paul’s second letter to the church in Corinth is another. We can see here that some in Corinth accused Paul of lying about his experience in Damascus after his conversion. Paul boasted in Christ and defended his apostleship less for his personal self worth than to show the authority of Jesus who called him to ministry. This is a lesson for all of us.
Pastors are notorious for defending themselves and the worth of their ministry against accusations. It is a fruitless task. Let us defend Christ and his call on our lives. Let us boast in our weakness which makes Jesus look even better in the eyes of the world. Like Paul recounting the Damascus story, let us tell the story of dramatic rescue and escape in order to lift high the name of Jesus, not our own. The next time you feel the need to defend yourself or boast, picture Jesus on trial before Pilate. This will help us to rely on the Father for patience through the trial of character assassination, knowing…
The assassinated will live again.
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church