The true measure of a person is not what they have acquired or achieved but what they have had to endure, struggle through, and suffer in their lives to fulfil God’s purposes and assignment for their lives.

John Piper writes in “The Roots of Endurance,” “I have found myself in conversation with Christians for whom it is simply a given that you do not put yourself or your family at risk. The commitment to safety and comfort is an unquestioned absolute. The demands of being a Christian in the twenty-first century will probably prove to be a rude awakening for such folks. Since we have not embraced the Calvary road voluntarily, God may simply catapult us onto it as he did the home-loving saints in Acts 11:19: “Those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word.’  …Being a Christian should mean that our trajectory is toward need, regardless of danger and discomfort and stress. In other words, Christians characteristically will make life choices that involve putting themselves and their families at temporal risk while enjoying eternal security.”

Recently, I read a book by my friend, Dean Merrill, entitled ‘Strong to the End.’ “When David and Alicia Lloyd opened a children’s home in Haiti, they had no idea how their hearts would soar, humbled by the way God was expanding and blessing the ministry. And they had no idea how much it would cost—their son, his young wife, and their dear friend. Strong to the End tells the story of Davy, Natalie, and Judes—their lives, dreams, love, faith, and deaths.” It’s the testimony of a missionary couple in their early twenties who gave their lives for the needy in Haiti and were killed by gang violence.

Paul has been addressing the threat of false teachers who deceive and lead people away from the truth found in the gospel of Jesus. In defence of his ministry to keep the Corinthians from rejecting him and the true message of the gospel, he begins to explain what he has endured. In essence, he explains the cost of being an effective disciple maker. Paul is going to focus on the price he had paid to be an apostle of Jesus Christ. What does this mean for us today? What cost will we have to pay?