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What the Bible says about Accomplishments
(From Forerunner Commentary)

1 Corinthians 10:11-13

The high-achievers of this world have many of the same run-of-the-mill problems that everybody experiences. Going to the moon did not change the kind of person that Neil Armstrong would have been anywhere: withdrawn and enigmatic, a puzzling person who just wanted to be alone, as he was described.

It is the same with others. Their fame, the fortune, the academic and professional accomplishments have not proved to be an advantage to help them avoid the very kinds of things that trouble us, so all of their accomplishments, their fame, and their money are not the solutions. They have these things, yet they face the same kinds of problems. In most cases, they cannot meet them well. So, having more brains, money, ease, and fame has not insulated them from divorce, withdrawn and alienated children, emotional breakdowns, and health problems.

By "common," used here in verse 13, God means that the problems are nothing exceptional. They are not beyond the powers of endurance. The word translated "taken" or "overtaken" adds to our understanding of the kind of problem. It is written in the perfect tense and indicates a lasting condition—something one has to deal with every day, a chronic problem. It just does not go away.

"Escape" indicates a way out of a defile, a tight spot, as if surrounded. The word "temptation" is one of the more interesting ones in this whole series of verses because, interestingly, it indicates something designed and unavoidable. It suggests a trial that could become a temptation—something that has been designed and is unavoidable rather than being merely a difficult happenstance, such as a "time and chance" occurrence. It is a test such as a teacher would give. One cannot avoid tests when a student in school.

Overall, because God is faithful, it shows that we can successfully meet our difficulties in life, so there is a great deal of assurance here for those whom God has called. It leaves those He has not called out of this assurance. Life is difficult, but being a high-achiever in this world does not guarantee that one will escape difficulty.

The lessons of the Feast of Pentecost have a great deal to do with pointing us in the right direction to enable us to endure and overcome these lasting, chronic problems common to mankind.

John W. Ritenbaugh
Rejoice in What We Are (2011)

2 Timothy 4:6-7

Paul was ready to pass the mantle on to young men like Timothy and Titus, to take care of the churches in the Gentile world. The apostle looked back on his life and saw what he had accomplished. He had done a great work for God. He had gone from persecuting the church to being its greatest champion in preaching the gospel throughout the Gentile world.

He realized that he had done the best that he could. And look what he did! He penned fourteen books of the Bible, founded who knows how many churches, and caused the conversion of many people. He looked back and said, "I've lived a full life. I've finished the task that God set for me. I have no regrets for the life I've lived since conversion."

He surely regretted what he had done before conversion, but that was past. Those acts had been forgiven, and he had proceeded on to the great things that God had in mind for him. He would not rage against God or accuse Him of treating him unfairly, although he had been beaten and flogged many times for the gospel's sake. He had been stoned and left for dead, nearly drowned in the sea, and suffered hunger and thirst—the many "perils of Paul." But they meant nothing to him at this point. He had no regrets. His life had been lived to the fullest for God. He did not complain that he deserved better, that he should go to his rest in peace. He asked for nothing. He was content.

The antidote to presumptuousness can be whittled down to the attitude of contentment, which Paul displayed. If one is content, he is not presumptuous. A contented person is satisfied with his position, with what life has dealt him, his lot in life. He is happy where God has put him and does not ask for more, but he is willing to fulfill his task to the best of his abilities.

He is not always striving to get ahead, to be the leader, or to have so many things. To the contented man, that is not how life should be lived. He is not out to receive notoriety or fame. He does not seek the respect of everyone. He does not necessarily desire to be recognized for all his accomplishments or even need to be accepted all the time. A person who is truly content is never presumptuous.

Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Countering Presumptuousness


 




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