2 Corinthians 4:1 - Meaning and Application

In the previous chapter, Paul had been defending his ministry by pointing to the greatness of the gospel he preached. Now he turns to answer false teachers who accused the apostles of being dishonest workers. These critics also tried to turn people against them because of their sufferings. Paul explains how he and his companions understood their calling, and how they carried out their work as ministers of the gospel.

They were not proud or lazy because they held such a high office. Instead, the honor of their ministry pushed them to work harder. Since they had been given this ministry, they did not act as if they were above others. They did not live in ease, but were stirred up to do their duty well. Their steady work came from God’s mercy. The same mercy that gave them their apostleship also gave them strength to keep going. It is always God’s mercy and grace that helps faithful servants continue in their calling. The best people would soon grow weak under their burdens if God did not sustain them. The mercy that has helped us so far can also help us to the end.

Paul also insists that their work was sincere. They had given up “the hidden things of dishonesty,” meaning secret sins that cannot stand the light. Such things should bring shame when they are exposed. He says they did not work with craftiness or trickery. They were not acting behind a mask or using clever methods to hide bad motives under good words. Nor did they handle God’s word deceitfully. They did not twist the message to suit their own purposes or serve selfish goals.

Some think Paul is referring to the tricks used by cheaters in games or dishonest sellers in the marketplace, who mix bad goods with good ones. The apostles did nothing like that. They made the truth plain to every person’s conscience, speaking only what they truly believed. They wanted their hearers to face the truth for themselves and answer to God for it. They did all this in God’s sight, wanting to be approved both by God and by honest people. A firm hold on gospel truth will commend both ministers and believers. Sincerity and uprightness help preserve a good name among wise and good people.

Paul then answers an objection. Someone might ask, if the gospel is so true and plain, why do some people still remain unmoved by it? Paul says the fault is not in the gospel or in the preachers. Those to whom the gospel stays hidden are lost people, unless they are brought to faith. Christ came to save what was lost (Matthew 18:11), and the gospel is God’s means for saving such people. If the gospel does not bring them to salvation, they have no other hope. So when the gospel is hidden from them, that is both a sign of their ruin and a cause of it.

The reason is that “the god of this world” has blinded their minds (2 Corinthians 4:4). This is a name for the devil, the ruler of this present evil world, because many in the world honor him and follow his ways. God allows him real influence for a time, especially among those under his power. As the prince of darkness, he keeps people from seeing clearly. He increases their prejudice and keeps them in ignorance and error so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Christ’s purpose in the gospel is to reveal God to people clearly and gloriously. In Christ, as the image of God, we see God’s power, wisdom, grace, and mercy for salvation. The devil’s purpose is the opposite. When he cannot stop the gospel from being preached in the world, he works hard to keep it from reaching people’s hearts.

Paul then gives another proof of the apostles’ honesty. They preached Christ, not themselves. They did not present their own opinions, private ideas, passions, or prejudices as God’s truth. They were not trying to build their own status, wealth, or praise. Instead, they preached Christ Jesus as Lord. That was fitting, because they were his servants. Their task was to make their Master known as the Messiah, that is, the promised Christ, as Jesus, the only Savior of people, and as the rightful Lord. In doing so, they sought to honor him.

All Christian teaching centers on Christ. If we preach Christ, we are preaching everything we ought to preach. As for themselves, Paul says they preached that they were your servants for Jesus’ sake. That was not empty politeness. They truly meant that they were ready to do good for the spiritual and eternal welfare of believers, and they did it for Christ’s sake. They were not serving their own advantage, but following Christ’s example and seeking his glory. Ministers should not be proud and overbearing, acting as masters over God’s people. They are servants for the good of others’ souls. At the same time, they must not become the servants of people’s whims or sinful desires. If they try to please people in that way, they will not be servants of Christ (Galatians 1:10).

There was good reason for them to preach Christ. The gospel light gives us the knowledge of God’s glory, which shines in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4:6). The light of this Sun of righteousness is more glorious than the light God commanded to shine out of darkness. It is a pleasant thing to look at the sun in the sky, but it is even more pleasant and useful when the gospel shines in the heart.

Light was the first thing in the first creation, and it is also the first work in the new creation. The Spirit’s enlightenment is his first work in the soul. God’s grace creates such light in the soul that those who were once darkness are made light in the Lord (Ephesians 5:8).

There was also good reason why they should not preach themselves. They were only earthen vessels, things of little worth. This seems to point to the lamps Gideon’s soldiers carried in earthen pitchers (Judges 7:16). The treasure of gospel light and grace is placed in these weak vessels. Gospel ministers are frail people, subject to the same feelings and weaknesses as others. They are mortal, and they can soon be broken.

God has arranged it this way so that the weaker the vessels are, the more clearly his power is seen, and the more the treasure itself is valued. There is great power in the gospel of Christ to enlighten the mind, convict the conscience, turn the soul to God, and make the heart glad. But that power comes from God, its source, not from men, who are only instruments. So God must be glorified in everything.