TODAY IN THE WORD
Essayists James and Kate Williams reflected on humor and Christians: “The best humor, seen among both believers and unbelievers, is redemptive in orientation. . . . In an argument, humor can gently or uproariously sweep away the sinful battlements built by pride, which desires always to be taken seriously.”

In our passage, Paul pleaded with the church in Corinth and used sarcasm and pointed humor to sweep away their foolish pride. We can identify parallels between Elijah’s taunts designed to provoke the Israelites to choose God and Paul’s sarcastic rhetoric intended to prod the Corinthians to identify with Christ.

First, just as Ahab had originally labeled Elijah as the troublemaker, the Corinthians had treated Paul as a fool. This church found itself enthralled by false apostles who used the latest and greatest rhetorical techniques to convince the Corinthians that they had a “new and improved” gospel. Paul was depicted as a bumpkin, in part because he didn’t demand a fee for his preaching services (see 2 Cor. 11:1-15).

Second, like Elijah had done with Ahab, Paul understood that his beloved church had inverted reality. To shock them into recognizing their dangerous error, he declared, “You gladly put up with fools since you are so wise!” (11:19)—and then proceeded to outline exactly what their so-called wisdom looked like: they embraced preachers who manipulated, abused, and exploited them! In contrast, Paul loved them.

The charge that Paul was an unworthy apostle because he had not taken their money sounds absurd: “I was never a burden to you? Forgive me this wrong!” (12:13). The pointed edge of Paul’s cry should have prompted the Corinthians to realize that they were wrong, not Paul.

Paul did not use sarcasm in this letter to score rhetorical points with the Corinthians or to demonstrate his superiority and put them in their place. Rather, he longed for the Corinthians to see the truth of their situation so that they would stand strong for Christ (see 12:20-21). By exposing their folly, he wanted to renew their faith.

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TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Sometimes someone we love embraces a lie and declares that it is truth. Our study yesterday and today can help us think about how to respond. We might need to use sarcasm to puncture the delusion and to provoke a return to reality.

But more importantly, like both Elijah and Paul, we must be willing to humble ourselves before God, and then seek the restoration of our loved one (see 2 Cor. 12:9-10, 19).

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