2 Corinthians 3:1 to 2 Corinthians 4:10. The Splendour of the Apostolic Ministry in Spite of its Outward Lowliness.
2 Corinthians 3:1-6. One of the charges laid against Paul had probably been that of overweening self-esteem, leading to a claim to greater authority than rightfully belonged to him. One of the means used by his enemies had been letters of introduction from high authorities, possibly apostles in Jerusalem. Was he not now displaying only too clearly the reasonableness of such a charge? Did he really need to justify himself, as by such letters others had done? Far from it. The church at Corinth was his sufficient testimonial. Its religious experience, recorded in the hearts of the converts there, was in fact Christ's own letter of commendation for Paul, the only one he required. His confidence, great as it is, is justified, for it lays hold on God through Christ as a channel. And even his confidence does not imply a claim to draw any conclusion, to form any judgment, on his own responsibility. His qualifications come wholly from God. It is He who has qualified him to be a minister of a new covenant. And the supreme distinction of this new covenant is that, being based not on written legislation but on the Spirit, it avoids the deadly consequences of the old covenant (Romans 7:11), and substitutes for them the life which the Spirit alone can create (Galatians 3:21).