What was said long ago of Esther can be said of all believers: “And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14). We each have a role to play in the Kingdom, and we each have a sphere of influence that others do not have. As I have often said, we all have family, friends, neighbours, workmates and classmates that are unique to us. So each one of us has a key role to play in reaching such people and having an impact on them.
Let me further emphasise this. When something is repeated a number of times in a short biblical passage, it is worth paying attention to it. Of course all of Scripture should be paid attention to, but when repetition occurs three times in six verses, it is vital that we see what is being said and why. I refer here to 2 Corinthians 10:13-18 which says this:
But we will not boast beyond limits, but will boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us, to reach even to you. For we are not overextending ourselves, as though we did not reach you. For we were the first to come all the way to you with the gospel of Christ. We do not boast beyond limit in the labors of others. But our hope is that as your faith increases, our area of influence among you may be greatly enlarged, so that we may preach the gospel in lands beyond you, without boasting of work already done in another’s area of influence. “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.
I love this thought of a unique “area of influence” – one that God has “assigned to us”. It goes along with what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 12 about how we are all different members in the body of Christ with differing gifts and ministries. While the immediate context of the 2 Cor. 10 passage has to do with the work of evangelism, church planting and discipleship, what Paul said there can have wider application.
Let me first note that I have used the ESV here. Different translations have different ways of expressing the term being discussed. Here are a few:
NIV – “sphere of service”
NASB – “domain”
HCSB – “area of ministry””
NLT – “area of authority”
All are appropriate translations. But I like this notion of having an area of influence. And I see it tying in with another passage: “For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers” (Acts 13:36). If the former text speaks of place, the latter one speaks of time.
We each have a time and a place that God has allotted to us. The question is, are we using this wisely and for his glory? It will forever be incomprehensible – at least to me – that God chooses to work in and through us. He does not need us, and he could get the job done all on his own.
But he chooses to use us weak and broken vessels (also found in 2 Corinthians – see 4:7) to spread the gospel, establish churches and build disciples. Amazing! So I have been placed here at this time and in this place to help do the work of the Kingdom. So are you.
We are not here by accident. And as Francis Schaeffer put it, there are “no little people”. We all have a job to do. We all have a role to play. We all have a contribution to make. But we dare not boast in any of this. As Paul said in verses 17-18, “‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’ For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.”
In his expository commentary, Trent Casto says this about this portion of Scripture:
The adversaries of the apostle measure the value and effectiveness of their ministry against one another as though they were the standard. But other ministries, ministers, and churches are never the proper measure. The question is not “How does our ministry compare to others?” but “Are we doing what we are called to do in the area of influence that God has given to us?”…
We are in different areas, ministering to different people, and doing so in different circumstances. The primary area of influence for a church should be right in its own community….
While Paul’s chief aim is to be faithful in the area of influence that he has been assigned by God, he does want to see this area expand – a holy ambition. His hope is that as the Corinthians grow in their faith, they may be of help to him and expanding his ministry beyond those regions.
He continues:
Paul does not want to boast in anyone else’s work, or even in his own work, but only in what the Lord has done through him. Commending himself means nothing; neither does the false apostles’ self-commendation. It is the Lord’s commendation that matters. As Hodge writes, “Instead of comforting ourselves with our own high estimate of our attainments and efficiency, or allowing ourselves to be inflated by the applause of men, we should be satisfied with nothing short of divine approbation.” What we long to hear are the words “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21, 23).
How can we have a ministry that God commends and thus be confident of his approbation? The text from which Paul draws the quote in Second Corinthians 10:17 is Jeremiah 9:23-24. . . . A ministry that God commends is not rooted in our strengths, even compared to others. Rather, a ministry that God commends reflects a true understanding and knowledge of God….
We do not have to be highly talented to earn God’s approbation. We do not have to be exceptionally gifted to have a ministry that God commends. We just need to know him and serve him accordingly.
With all this in mind, let me finish on a more personal note, although it has to do with something else found in 2 Corinthians 10. I have long found myself relating to what some critics had said of the Apostle Paul in verses 9-10: “I do not want to appear to be frightening you with my letters. For they say, ‘His letters are weighty and strong, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech of no account’.”
I am not saying that I am on a par with the great Apostle. But I can feel the same about my own ministry. I can write OK, and it is one of the main things I do. But I do not see myself as a great speaker or having a great public presence. I am not telegenic or photogenic for example, yet God has had me speak in so many places on so many occasions.
So I need to keep saying that any good that I am doing for the Kingdom must of course be attributed to God. As long as the Lord commends me, and as long as I am faithful in my allotted field of influence, that is enough. God gets all the credit for any successes. All that I must keep doing is remain faithful.
