Thursday, February 12, 2026
Scripture Readings
- Primary Reading: 2 Corinthians 11
Key Verse
2 Corinthians 11:17 — “That which I speak, I speak it not after the Lord, but as it were foolishly, in this confidence of boasting.”
Devotional Thought
Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 11 land with unsettling force because they ask us to examine whom we trust and why. The Corinthians had welcomed impressive teachers who brought “another Jesus,” “another spirit,” and “another gospel” (vv. 3–4). These false apostles looked like the real thing—Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light (v. 14)—but they were devouring the flock. Paul, by contrast, had preached freely, refusing to be a burden (vv. 7–9). His credentials were not polished rhetoric but scars: five times forty lashes save one, three beatings with rods, a stoning, three shipwrecks, a night and a day in the deep (vv. 24–25). He escaped Damascus by being let down through a window in a basket (v. 33). This is not the résumé we would write for a hero.
Yet Paul’s jealousy was godly, not petty. He pictured the church as a chaste virgin espoused to one husband, Christ (v. 2), and he feared the serpent’s subtlety would corrupt their minds from “the simplicity that is in Christ” (v. 3). That simplicity is not naivety; it is single-hearted devotion. In February, when winter lingers and routines can feel dull, we are tempted to trade the plain gospel for something more exciting—a charismatic personality, a promise of health and wealth, a version of Jesus that costs nothing and demands nothing. Paul warns that such teachers bring bondage, not freedom (v. 20).
Notice what Paul boasts in: weakness. “If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities” (v. 30). The world measures worth by platform, applause, and influence. Paul measures it by endurance in love. He carried “the care of all the churches” daily (v. 28); he asked, “Who is weak, and I am not weak?” (v. 29). That is the heart of a true shepherd—not the one who takes from the sheep, but the one who spends himself for them.
So this passage asks us to test what we are following. Is our faith still anchored in the simple, sufficient Christ of Scripture, or has it quietly drifted toward whatever dazzles? And it asks whether we love people enough to bear cost for them, as Paul did—freely, patiently, without needing to be impressive. The gospel has never needed our polish. It needs our fidelity.
Reflection
- Where in your life have you been drawn toward a version of Jesus that is more impressive or convenient than the one Paul preached—and what would returning to “the simplicity that is in Christ” look like this week?
- Paul boasted in his weaknesses and labors rather than his gifts. What would it mean for you to measure your faithfulness by endurance in love rather than by recognition or results?
Prayer
Lord Jesus, You are the one Husband to whom we are espoused, and we confess that our hearts wander. Forgive us for trading the plain, sufficient gospel for what dazzles and demands little. Guard our minds from the serpent’s subtlety, and keep us anchored in the simplicity that is in You. Give us discernment to recognize false teachers, however bright their light, and courage to follow the narrow way. Teach us, like Paul, to glory in weakness, to labor without needing applause, and to carry the care of Your people with tender, costly love. Amen.