The Preacher's Confidence

2 Corinthians 3:5-6a KJV

Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;

Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament ...

Paul used the word "sufficient" to speak of his confidence in the ministry. He was sure of God's calling and was therefore sure of God's enabling. He had no question whether or not his ministry, challenged and challenging as it was, was a demonstration of the power of God.

I note what I see as the progression of Paul's thought concerning this sufficiency:

He claimed no personal sufficiency

He did not base his confidence on his background, training or natural abilities. Paul was confident but not because of these.

He claimed his sufficiency as coming from God

No personal skill could compare to this. These many centuries later scholars attribute Paul's successes sometimes to his training or other . Paul did not.

Yet he claimed sufficiency

Though Paul did not believe he was personally up to the task, he did believe he was up to the task because of God's enabling. No preacher, called of God, no matter how challenging his ministry may be or how criticized he might be or how little he might seem to accomplish, should lack confidence that He has exactly the right ability to accomplish what God has called him to do.