The Call for Introspection and Change

⁵Examine and test and evaluate your own selves to see whether you are holding to your faith and showing the proper fruits of it. Test and prove yourselves [^[a]not Christ]. Do you not yourselves realize and know [thoroughly by an ever-increasing experience] that Jesus Christ is in you--unless you are [counterfeits] disapproved on trial and rejected?
    ⁶But I hope you will recognize and know that we are not disapproved on trial and rejected. 2 Cor. 13:5, 6 AMP)

Paul is not questioning whether the Corinthians are true believers in Christ, by the time this epistle was written, Paul knew the Corinthians quite well. Paul’s admonishment here is to search within to insure that the life we are living is reflective of our professed faith. Anytime there is a test or examination, there is a master sheet by which the test will be graded. This master sheet will be the standard of perfection by which all others will be measured. In the walk of Christianity, the only true standard is God’s infallible Word. We must place our lives juxtaposed to the principles and values prescribed by Biblical mandate to measure our progress toward spiritual maturity and divine destiny.
When you use the Word of God as the barometer through which the dynamics of your life are measured and evaluated, you gain a transpicuous and apprehensible knowledge of your NET-WORTH. I use the term net-worth as opposed to self-worth because self-worth, especially in today’s social climate, can too easily be distorted. Too many times, people assess their worth by their things, jobs and accomplishments. They are identified through external traits. Whereas a person’s net-worth is who they are once all of the external assets are stripped away. When the bank accounts, prestigious appointments, clothes, jewelry, etc. have been set aside; who are you? This is the true you. When there are no things, no titles, no celebrated accomplishments, who are you? Your net-worth is the part of your being that cannot be changed by the barometric pressures of this life. Your net-worth is the determinate factor in assessing your capacity for Christ like character.
Our net-worth is a major focus in our development as Christian men because it is the course of our significance as it pertains to our relationship with Christ. Knowing our worth establishes a sense of responsibility and direction. It allows us to be stable in unstable circumstances. Our net-worth is the starting point for ur spiritual growth. Our net-worth is where the absolute standard of God’s W is applied. There is a need for change in every man; a spiritual, emotional, and intellectual metamorphosis in which we become more and more like Christ (Rom 8:29; Cor. 3:18)


Bishop Rick Wallace