The Best Kind of Cover Letter?

Image result for letter written on human hearts

 3 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? 2 You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. 3 You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

 I remember when I first starting interviewing for a job out of a college.  Two of the most important things when you went to look for a job was having a good resume, and a good cover letter.  Graduating college seniors took seminars on how to make themselves look really good on their resume and how to write a professional looking cover letter.  There was of course G.P.A., but also internships, volunteer experience and even hobbies and interests.  Bottom line was this was the first impression you made, and you needed to stand out.

 In Paul's day when ministers and prophets traveled to new towns it was good for them to have a letter of recommendation from other churches to validate their ministry.  Since there was no "Yelp" at this point, one needed word of mouth to verify one's trustworthiness.  Part of this was that false prophets began to proliferate.  

 Paul recommends a different kind of letter to the Corinthians today. He calls it a letter which is not written in ink but Holy Spirit.  It was a message not written on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts?  What does he mean by this?

 Paul is saying the measurement of any ministry is changed lives.  The key to changed lives is preaching the Word and then allowing the Holy Spirit to bring about spiritual transformation.  Paul realized it was not about him, but God working through him.  Though he had reason to boast about the spiritual fruit borne in the Corinthian church, he realized it would not be a good thing to focus on himself.  He needed to teach the church that it was about the Holy Spirit, not human personality or charismatic leaders.  The true validity of any ministry is changed lives.  We can be used by God in this effort as we are faithful to the gospel, but we can never take credit for the results. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Acts 22 - Paul Sees the Light

Image
6  “About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.   7  I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me,  ‘Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?’  8  “‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked.  “  ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth,  whom you are persecuting,’  he replied.   9  My companions saw the light,  but they did not understand the voice  of him who was speaking to me.  10  “‘What shall I do, Lord?’ I asked. “  ‘Get up,’  the Lord said,  ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do. This is the famous story of the apostle Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus.  Paul was going there to persecute Jewish Christians and throw them into prison and he meets Jesus is a spectacular way.  Not only is he blinded by a briliant light, but he hears the Lord's voice audibly.  And the Lord asks him, "Lord, Lord why a...
Read more

Hebrews 6 - Have You Graduated From Elementary School of Faith Yet?

Click Here to Read or Listen to Hebrews 6 6 Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, 2 instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And God permitting, we will do so. The author once again picks up with the theme of moving on to Christian maturity.  He teaches them to move on from the "elementary" teachings about Christ. What does he mean by that?  He gives clues by citing repentance, faith, cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, and teaching on the judgment and resurrection from the dead. We might call these the basics of the Christian faith. If you read through the Apostle's Creed, which our church confesses in our 8am service, it contains many of these core doctrines.  Click here to see the Apostle's Creed Written Around “When we consider the...
Read more

2 Timothy 4 - Fight the Good Fight! Finish the Race!

Click Here to Read or Listen to 2 Timothy 4 4 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. Paul gives a closing charge to Timothy. First of all, he is to preach the word. God's Word speaks to all situations and seasons. The Word of God will sometimes correct us. Our lives can get of out alignment with God's will as outlined in ...
Read more