1 Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.
2 In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy.
3 But to me it is a very small thing that I may be examined by you, or by any human court; in fact, I do not even examine myself.
4 For I am conscious of nothing against myself, yet I am not by this acquitted; but the one who examines me is the Lord. 1 Corinthians 4:1–4
If you were to write your own recommendation, you would want to put yourself in the best light. In Paul’s case, he wanted to boil it down to what would withstand the scrutiny of his master, to focus on only what the Lord was doing through him. He was a servant of Christ, meaning as the Greek word suggests, he was the Lord’s assistant, an under-rower, a subordinate. What he would be telling the Corinthians would be simply orders coming down from above. He was also charged as a steward with the responsibly of managing the mysteries of God in order to be found trustworthy.
The final verses of Romans explain the solemn charge given to him:
25 Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past, 26 but now is manifested, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations, leading to obedience of faith;27 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, be the glory forever. Amen. Romans 16:25–27
The question is, what responsibilities has God given me to manage, what mysteries? Since I’m old enough, it appears to love one woman and keep her encouraged, and to launch four children (arrows) into the world with as much knowledge of God as I could muster. This was more caught than taught, with the bar high enough for them to see a semblance of Jesus in me to model. The mysteries were the same as Paul’s, obeying and teaching the “elementary principles of the oracles of God” (Hebrews 5:12) as we walked through their early lives, and then to withstand scrutiny in the years to come.
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