BIG IDEA:
SOMETIMES GOSPEL MINISTRY INVOLVES YIELDING ONE’S RIGHT TO FINANCIAL SUPPORT
FOUR CONSIDERATIONS OF THE APOSTLE PAUL REGARDING PREACHING THE GOSPEL WITHOUT DEMANDING HIS RIGHT TO FINANCIAL SUPPORT
INTRODUCTION:
The immediate context has already established the right of those who preach the gospel (including the Apostle Paul) to receive appropriate material support for their labors. This point is no longer open for debate. Paul moves beyond that foundational truth to speak to his own personal strategy of offering the gospel without charge to those to whom he ministered. You do not find Paul making pleas for financial support. You do not see him making the deputation rounds to line up sufficient guaranteed support before stepping out into the ministry. You do not find Paul spending enormous amounts of money on fund-raising efforts – knowing that if he just turns the crank, a substantial amount of money will flow to his ministry. (This does not mean that he refused all gifts that were offered. Although often those funds went to the needs of others as well.) Instead, you see the ultimate type of self-sacrifice as Paul labors with his own hands in his tent making occupation to support himself and even others in the gospel ministry. Was it because Paul had some type of inner drive to fulfill his calling to be an excellent tent maker? Was it because he took some great satisfaction in spending tireless hours at that craft? Not at all – it was because Paul deemed self-support essential to his personal strategy of both earning him a better reward and establishing the integrity of his ministry and ensuring that the gospel would go forth without any unnecessary criticism. Paul knew that there was special reward for going the extra mile. (Illustration: at work we have a program that rewards employees for “Going the extra mile.”) What a remarkable example! Yet where do you hear this message preached? Where do you see this example emulated? You will search long and far to find anything comparable. This section which seems so foreign to our Christian ministry model deserves our extra study and meditation. Paul gives two reasons for preaching without pay: the first is covered in this paragraph. The second will be covered in vv. 19-23 – he wanted nothing to hinder the progress of the gospel through his ministry.
Robert Gundry: The boast gets spelled out in five explanatory sentences, each one beginning with “For” and supporting what immediately precedes.
- Why hasn’t Paul written to get material support? Because he’s determined that no one void his boast by persuading him to accept such support.
- Why that determination? Because by itself, proclaiming the gospel is nothing to boast about, whereas proclaiming it without taking remuneration is something to boast about.
- Why is only proclaiming the gospel nothing to boast about? Because Paul has to proclaim it. The “necessity” of proclaiming it has been “imposed” on him, so that he can take no credit for doing his job (see Galatians 1:15–16; Acts 9:15–16; 22:15, 21; 26:16–20).
- Why this necessity? Because failure to proclaim the gospel would bring him “woe.”
- And why woe? Because he’d lose the reward he’ll get if he proclaims the gospel willingly. “But if [I’m doing this] unwillingly, I’ve been entrusted with a managership” means that an unwilling proclamation of the gospel would reduce him to a slave who has been put in charge of household affairs but doesn’t get rewarded for doing his duty (compare Luke 17:7–10).
We expect Paul to answer his question, “What then is my reward?” in terms of something to be received at the Last Judgment. But no, he answers in terms of what he can boast about right now, that is, “proclaiming the gospel . . . free of charge,” with the result that he hasn’t “at all used” his “authority” to charge people for proclaiming “the gospel” to them. The ability to make this boast is reward enough, thank you.
Charles Hodge: That Paul preached the gospel willingly, that he esteemed it his highest joy and glory, is abundantly evident from his history and his writings [Rom. 1:5; 11:13; 15:15-16; 1 Cor. 15:9-10; Gal. 1:15-16; Eph. 3:8]. The difference, therefore here expressed between (ἑκών and ἄκων), willing and unwilling, is not the difference between cheerfully and reluctantly, but between optional and obligatory. He says he had a dispensation or stewardship (οἰκονοµίa) committed to him. These stewards (οἱκονόµοι) were commonly slaves. There is a great difference between what a slave does in obedience to a command, and what a man volunteers to do of his own accord. And this is the precise difference to which the apostle here refers. (An Exposition, 161–62)
Anthonoy Thiselton: Behind these verses stand two distinct issues. First, Paul is aware that if he accepts financial provision from Christians in Corinth, this will come mainly, if not entirely, from the wealthier members of the church, who constitute, or are linked with, “the strong.” They will become, in effect, his patrons, and he, their client. In the Greco-Roman culture of the day, “favors” are regarded as implying some reciprocal obligation. Hence, if Paul accepts their financial provision, they will expect “favored terms” from Paul in their claims about their position in the church, their relation with the weak, and their role in the “ordering” of the church, perhaps in terms of a hierarchy of status within the church. Such hostages to pastoral pressures would be unthinkable. Paul insists on being evenhanded or, when necessary, on giving particular attention and respect to the most vulnerable and fragile (cf. 12:22-24).
Second, Paul has his own special reason for wanting to pay his way. Overwhelmed by the generosity of God’s grace personally to him for his salvation and apostolic call (15:8-10), he longs to give to God some voluntary thank offering. But this cannot be his apostolic labor. For, in Paul’s personal perspective, this has been pressed upon him as a commission and obligation. God in Christ set Paul apart or “marked him out” (Greek aphorizō) from before birth, and “called” him to preach the gospel among the Gentiles (Gal. 1:15-16). Paul could no longer “kick against the goads” (Acts 9:5). Like one of the prophets constrained by “the burden of the Lord” and “appointed” to fulfill a commission (cf. Jer. 1:5, 10), he declares, Compulsion [Greek anankē] presses upon me; it is agony for me [Greek ouai gar moi estin, “woe to me”) if I do not proclaim the gospel (v. 16b).
How, then, could Paul choose to offer this service of proclamation as a freely given thank offering? In his own heart Paul cannot glory in his commission unless there is some way in which he can live out the “giving freely.” Hence to live by the labor of his own hands allows him that one point of Christ-like giving, in which he can glory. His own labor permits him to proclaim the gospel gratis, which is akin to going “the second mile.”
Paul’s “reward” (vv. 17-18) is not some external return that he receives in consequence of a personal sacrifice; it is the joy that this renunciation of rights gives him in and for its own sake. The act and its “reward” are linked by “internal grammar” like the delight of giving a gift to a loved one, not by external cause and effect. This “internal” grammar has a parallel in Isaiah, where “His reward is with him” means not that God brings an external reward, but that his very coming is itself “reward” (Isa. 40:10).
Richard Hays: After all this buildup, one would suppose that the logical conclusion would be for Paul to demand that the Corinthians ante up the money they rightfully ought to give him, but in fact, as he has already indicated, this is the exact opposite of his intention. Verse 15 is the dramatic climax and pivot-point of the chapter. Not only has Paul not made any use of these impressively attested rights, he would rather die than … than what? The sentence in the Greek sputters to a halt. Then Paul blurts that no one will deprive him of his “boast.” The meaning of this somewhat opaque statement is explained in the following highly compressed sentences (vv. 16–18). Despite all the impressive reasons for receiving support, including the command of the Lord, Paul will take no money because he cannot claim to be working voluntarily as an apostle. Therefore, unlike the sophists, he can receive no fees in payment for services rendered. His service is rendered to God, not willingly (!) but because he has been “entrusted with a commission.” The language here suggests once again the image of the slave as steward (cf. 4:1–4). Paul preaches because “necessity” (anagk ; NRSV “obligation”; cf. 7:26) has been laid upon him by God. (We might recall the image of Jeremiah, for whom the prophetic word is “something like a burning fire shut up in my bones,” Jer. 20:9.) He has no choice but to proclaim the gospel. Therefore, his “reward” is, paradoxically, to make the gospel available to others “free of charge” (v. 18; cf. his caustic description of other preachers as “peddlers of God’s Word,” 2 Cor. 2:17), thereby not making use of his rights.
I. (:15) PAUL’S COMMITMENT TO PREACH THE GOSPEL WITHOUT DEMANDING HIS RIGHT TO FINANCIAL SUPPORT
A. Testimony Regarding Paul’s Historical Practice
“But I have used none of these things.”
Note use of pronoun “I” in this section – Paul speaking of his own personal practice – not speaking for all of the apostles here.
Perfect Tense – Continues to be true for the Apostle Paul
Charles Hodge: the right of a recompense for labour, v.7; the right to an equivalent for benefits conferred, v.11; the right to be treated as other ministers were, v.12; the right to be dealt with according to the law of God in the Old Testament, and of Christ in the New.
B. Resolve to Maintain that Same Example of Self Support
- Not Lobbying for Financial Support
“And I am not writing these things that it may be done so in my case”
How very different from most of the ministry letters we receive.
- Extreme Importance Placed on Maintaining the Current Practice
“for it would be better for me to die than have any man make my boast an empty one.”
Paul is going to explain exactly what that boast of his was. Apparently this approach to finances in his ministry is not some minor issue, but a matter of highest priority.
David Garland: The sentence may be completed thus: “It is better for me rather to die than to live off the gospel.” Living off the gospel would mean death to his whole understanding of his prophetic calling and his reason for being. It would also entail slavery. Patterson (1982: 19) reminds us that the slave could have retained freedom by dying. By choosing to continue with physical life, the slave gives up freedom. Paul is free only as a slave of Christ (Rom. 1:1; Phil. 1:1), which necessitates that he be a slave of all.
Paul Gardner: When Paul speaks of his boast, therefore, he is making two points both here and in chapter 1.
- Firstly, Paul deliberately contrasts what he wants to boast in with what the elitists have been boasting in with their arrogant words and behavior. They have been boasting in outward wisdom and spiritual gifts. This sort of boasting is condemned in Jeremiah 9 and by Paul.
- Secondly, in expounding upon his own “boast,” which is in the Lord and in a God-centered grace revealed in Christ crucified, he points to his total dependence on Christ. Paul’s boast arises not from his brilliant gospel preaching or his wisdom but simply from his love for the one who had died for them.
II. (:16) PAUL’S OBLIGATION TO PREACH THE GOSPEL – IRREGARDLESS OF ANY FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS
A. Preaching By Itself (Fulfilling one’s calling) Carries No Special Reward
“For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of”
Mark Taylor: Paul explains and elaborates on the concept of “boasting” raised in 9:15. Whether or not he preaches the gospel has nothing to do with financial support but rather is wrapped up entirely in his apostolic calling. The gospel itself is grounds for boasting in the Lord (1:30–31), but in terms of preaching the gospel, like the prophets of old, Paul was under divine compulsion. He had no choice in the matter, expressed in Greek by two parallel conditional sentences: “If I preach, I have no reason to boast” and “Woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!” In other words, there is no reason for boasting if Paul preaches because he is compelled to do so. If he does not preach the gospel then he faces “the ultimate calamity.” Paul did not preach the gospel willingly for a reward. If he had a choice in the matter and chose to do it willingly, then he might merit a reward. Rather, Paul understood his calling as a stewardship that required faithfulness (9:17; cf. 4:1–5). This does not mean that Paul preached unwillingly, only that he wants to express in the clearest way possible the divine mandate that compelled him in ministry. His reward in preaching was to give up his rights inherent in the gospel and to preach without charge.
B. Preaching (for one so gifted and called) Constitutes an Obligation
“for I am under compulsion”
Gordon Fee: God had ordained such a destiny for him from birth and had revealed it to him in the event of the Damascus road (Gal. 1:15–16). From that time on, proclaiming Christ to the Gentiles was both his calling and his compulsion. He “had to” do it because God had so taken hold of him (cf. Phil. 3:12). Indeed the compulsion is so great that “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” Again, “woe is me” is not to be understood in terms of common parlance, as if he would experience some kind of inner distress if he were to fail to preach. Since this is his divinely appointed destiny, he thereby would stand under divine judgment if he were to fail to fulfill that destiny. His point is a simple one, which has nothing to do with “inner compulsion.” As in an earlier moment (4:1), Paul is reflecting once more on his “servanthood,” which for him meant “calling” and “joy,” not drudgery and head-hanging obedience. He cannot boast in the task of proclaiming the good news of Christ to the Gentiles because that is what he must do by divine design, an “obligation” he has gladly taken on as divine calling. Thus in Paul’s own self-understanding he is simultaneously Christ’s “slave” and Christ’s “freedman.
C. Failure to Fulfill One’s Calling Brings Judgment
“for woe is me if I do not preach the gospel.”
R.C.H. Lenski: Calamity, dire punishment from God would overtake Paul if he ceased to preach. This is surely astounding, and Paul intends that it shall be so.
III. (:17) PAUL’S STEWARDSHIP TO PREACH THE GOSPEL — IRREGARDLESS OF ANY FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS
A. Paul’s Preaching Ministry Was Not Initiated by His Choice
“For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward”
B. Paul’s Preaching Ministry Was Divinely Entrusted to Him as a Stewardship
“but if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me.”
John MacArthur: This does not indicate that Paul was unwilling to obey but that his will had no part in the call itself. Since it was God’s sovereign choice and call, he received not a “reward,” but a “stewardship” (a valuable responsibility or duty to be carefully managed).
R.C.H. Lenski: In order to understand Paul’s statement we should remember that the oikonomoi (4:1, 2) were slaves, whose masters simply gave certain goods or property into their hands to be administered in trust. The entire matter rested on the decision of the master to whom the slave in question belonged. The master did not ask: “Will you take this stewardship?” He only gave the order: “Take it!” The slave took it – woe to him if he was obstinate and refused! But when a slave, who had nothing to say in the matter, was put in charge of such a trust he had no claim to wages for administering this trust.
IV. (:18) PAUL’S STRATEGY TO PREACH THE GOSPEL WITHOUT DEMANDING HIS RIGHT TO FINANCIAL SUPPORT
Why then did Paul choose to minister in this mode of self-support? What was his motive? How did he feel that this approach would benefit his ministry?
A. The Motivation is for Special Reward, Special Boasting
“What then is my reward?”
Paul Gardner: Paul’s understanding of rewards is similar to what is taught in Matthew 6:1–6, 16. There Jesus distinguished between the intentionally self-flaunting acts of the hypocrites and the quiet works of the righteous. The former “receive” (ἀπέχουσιν, present tense) their “reward” (μισθός), while the Father “will reward” (ἀποδώσει, future tense) the righteous. Just as the “woe” of v. 16 looked forward to the future, so Paul now shows that he anticipates “reward” rather than judgment (see again vv. 24–27).
B. The Method Involves Not Demanding Financial Support
“That, when I preach the gospel, I may offer the gospel without charge”
R.C.H. Lenski: free of expense to the congregations concerned
Gordon Fee: Although Paul himself does not press the point here, his presenting the gospel “free of charge” also serves as a lived-out paradigm of the gospel itself—the “free” gospel that leads to their freedom from Satan’s oppression is thus freely given.
David Garland: The Corinthians may know that Paul receives support from churches elsewhere to help him expand his mission field into new territory (2 Cor. 11:8–9; Phil. 4:15). He may be making a fine distinction that he never receives help from the people where he is preaching the gospel but does accept help from those who wish to support him when he leaves their district (see Garland 1999: 98, 475–76).
C. The Mindset Involves Voluntarily Giving Up Certain Rights
“so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.”
R.C.H. Lenski: not to use at all – the negation of “not to use fully or completely” ??
Nothing said in this passage denies the legitimacy of these rights to financial support.