“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” (Galatians 6:14)
Paul had a group at Corinth that claimed to be “of” him (1 Cor. 1:12). He deemed this faction as carnal as any of the other cliques (1 Cor. 3:4). He understood that men love to follow men, identify with men, glory in men. At one time he was interested in the adulation men give men. But after he got saved he declared that he was crucified with Christ. What glory belongs to a crucified man? He is the object of shame, derision, and contempt.
There was no beauty in the crucified Jesus that men should desire Him. (Isa. 53:2) Men do not see as God sees; they judge after the outward appearance. For the most part, Paul did not make the grade with the majority at Corinth. His “bodily presence (was) weak, and his speech contemptible.” (2 Cor. 10:10) He was not much to look at, listen to, or rally around. He was not unaware of how he was viewed either. To a friend he called himself “Paul the aged.” (Philemon 1:9)
In hindsight, we esteem Paul as the greatest believer that ever lived, yet in his own day he was reproached and despised. Is this not the way it is with every faithful disciple of Christ? It is rarely God’s will for His servants to be honored while they live. Jesus spoke to His contemporaries: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.” (Matt. 23:29,30)
If it is popularity you are after, you should not become a follower of Christ. None of His servants are destined for applause in the here and now. In this life, they are called to a cross. Glory and honor and immortality come later.