THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST
BEYOND boundaries
2 Corinthians 10:12-18
A call for a sincere
commitment to preach the
Gospel of Christ!
2 CORINTHIANS 10:12-18 (NVI)
“12 We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend
themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare
themselves with themselves, they are not wise. 13 We, however, will not
boast beyond proper boundaries, but will confine our boasting to the sphere
of service God himself has assigned to us, a sphere that also includes
you. 14 We are not going too far in our boasting, as would be the case if we
had not come to you, for we did get as far as you with the Gospel of
Christ. 15 Neither do we go beyond our boundaries by boasting of work
done by others. Our hope is that, as your faith continues to grow, our
sphere of activity among you will greatly expand, 16 so that we can preach
the Gospel in the regions beyond you. For we do not want to boast about
work already done in someone else’s territory. 17 But, “Let the one who
boasts boast in the Lord.” 18 For it is not the one who commends
himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.”
“Go for souls and go for the worst.”
“Some men's ambition is art.
Some men's ambition is fame.
Some men's ambition is gold.
My ambition is the souls of men.”
--William Booth
Since the times of Jesus, throughout
the ministry of his disciples and
apostles, and up to our time, the
church itself and the religious leaders
often have stood in opposition to
sharing the Gospel of Christ.
“Do not be afraid; keep on speaking,
do not be silent. For I am with
you, and no one is going to attack
and harm you, because I have many
people in this city.” (Acts 18:9-10,NIV)
God loves all people and
wants to pour over them
his forgiveness and mercy.
Paul’s call to go “beyond” relates to the
continuous work of taking the Gospel to the
entire world. Paul’s words about preaching the
Gospel in “other places far beyond you” ( NLT)
reveal he was never satisfied with reserving the
message for the benefit of the Christian
community, including the religious leaders.
“Go and make disciples of all nations”
(Matthew 28:19); “Preach the Gospel to all
creation” (Mark 16:15); “Repentance for
the forgiveness of sins will be preached in
his [Jesus’] name” (Luke 24:47); “As the
Father has sent me, I am sending you”
(John 20:21); “You will be my witnesses [...]
to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
The spiritual secret of an abundant life
within the church is to "go beyond” the
ordinary, never accepting a routine and
inactive life in our role as
pastors, leaders and members.
What should we do, as
Christians when we face
opposition and obstacles to
preach the Gospel of
Christ?
As Christians, we must assume
three actions to “go beyond”
the boundaries and
fulfill the great commission.
1. WE MUST
CROSS OUR BOUNDARIES
TO PREACH
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST.
(v. 12-13)
Galatians 6:3-4 (NIV)
“If anyone thinks they are something when
they are not, they deceive themselves. Each
one should test their own actions. Then they
can take pride in themselves alone, without
comparing themselves to someone else.”
As with Paul’s experience,
What are those “boundaries” that prevent us
from fulfilling the great commission to
make disciples for Christ through
evangelism?
What are those boundaries that prevent us
from loving our neighbor?
Paul, just like Jesus, knew very well
that the accusations of those false
apostles would never prevent him
from spreading the truth of the
Gospel of Christ.
2 Timothy 4:2
“Preach the word; be prepared in season
and out of season; correct, rebuke and
encourage—with great patience and
careful instruction.”
When we compare ourselves with others we
may feel proud because we think we are better,
but when we measure ourselves against God’s
guidelines, it becomes obvious that we are not
good enough. Don’t worry about the
achievement of others; on the contrary, ask
yourself constantly,
"How does my life fit with what God wants? In
what way is my life comparable to Jesus Christ’s?
2. WE MUST EXTEND OUR
BORDERS TO SPREAD THE
GOSPEL OF CHRIST (v. 14-15)
Galatians 2:8
“For God, who was at work in Peter
as an apostle to the circumcised,
was also at work in me as an
apostle to the Gentiles.”
In order to extend our borders
spreading the Gospel of Christ, we
must leave aside all selfishness and
recognize and value the work
of everyone in the church.
Today the church seems to be
confined within its own borders,
ignoring that God gives us a
particular area of ministry
beyond, as was Corinth to Paul.
God has assigned each one of us to
a particular field/ area of ministry in a
given time.
“We are not going too far in our boasting, as
would be the case if we had not come to
you” (v. 14). Additionally, when God gives us
a particular field / area of ministry, we must
also finish the work in that territory.
The church and its leaders must
prevent falling in the “comfort zone”
within the ministry; on the contrary,
they must extend their borders with
the Gospel of Christ.
1 Chronicles 4:10 (NIV)
“Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, ‘Oh, that
you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let
your hand be with me, and keep me from harm
so that I will be free from pain.’ And God granted
his request.”
Let’s not wait for Satan to take the
lead to “go beyond” our borders
and to win the battle to destroy
God’s people.
There are two types of Christians:
Those who say “I can’t” and those who
say, “Why wouldn’t I be able to...?” Can
you enlarge your territory? Your territory
can be your family, your neighborhood,
your workplace, your ministry, your city,
your college or university, etc.
3. WE MUST EMBRACE
OTHERS WITH THE GOSPEL
OF CHRIST FOR HIS GLORY!
(v. 16-18)
God gave Paul a particular field of
ministry, which he completed, and
afterwards he moved on to “preach the
Gospel in the regions beyond” and to
embrace others with the good news of
salvation (v. 16).
While the false apostles
shrouded themselves with
their own arguments, Paul
was determined to continue
his work to embrace others.
Acts 19:21 (NIV)
“After all this had happened, Paul
decided to go to Jerusalem, passing
through Macedonia and Achaia. ‘After
I have been there,’ he said, ‘I must
visit Rome also.’”
It’s really easy to take the
Gospel of Christ where the
price of evangelism has
already been paid.
Romans 15:20 (NIV)
“It has always been my ambition to
preach the Gospel where Christ was not
known, so that I would not be building on
someone else’s foundation.”
When we do something right we want to
tell others in order to receive
recognition. But recognition is
dangerous, it can inflame our pride. It is
much better to seek God’s approval
before that of men. Then, when we are
taken into account, we are free to give
honor to God.
Jeremiah 9:24 (NIV)
“‘Let the one who boasts boast about
this: that they have the understanding to
know me, that I am the LORD, who
exercises kindness, justice and
righteousness on earth, for in these I
delight,’ declares the LORD. ”
BOUNDARIES TO EMBRACE OTHERS
WITH THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST BEYOND OUR REGIONS:
• The boundary of comfort and greed
• The boundary of compliance and routine
• The boundary of the past and the guilt
• The boundary of criticism and opposition
• The boundary of mistrust and fear of the unknown
• The boundary of prejudice
• The boundary of fear of failure
Romans 5:7-8 (NIV)
“Very rarely will anyone die for a
righteous person, though for a good
person someone might possibly dare to
die. But God demonstrates his own love
for us in this: While we were still sinners,
Christ died for us.”
Malachi 1:5 (NIV)
“You will see it with your own
eyes and say, ‘Great is
the Lord—even beyond the
borders of Israel!’”
Christians must assume three actions to
go beyond the boundaries and fulfill the
great commission to preach the Gospel
of Christ:
We must go beyond our boundaries,
we must extend our borders and we
must embrace others with the Gospel
of Christ for his glory!
1 Corinthians 3:5-9 (NVI)
“What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only
servants, through whom you came to believe—as the
Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the
seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it
grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who
waters is anything, but only God, who makes things
grow.8 The one who plants and the one who waters
have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded
according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers
in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.”
Romans 10:14-15 (NIV)
“How, then, can they call on the one they have
not believed in? And how can they believe in
the one of whom they have not heard? And how
can they hear without someone preaching to
them? 15 And how can anyone preach unless
they are sent? As it is written: ‘How beautiful
are the feet of those who bring good news!’”
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the
only reassuring response for the
anxious and restless heart.
Also, the beautiful truth of the Gospel
of Christ is that it changes
everything.
Let’s preach the Gospel of Christ
beyond boundaries.
The Holy Spirit makes the church
go “beyond boundaries.”
Amen.