On February 4, 2002, a few friends gathered in my home to begin a Bible study. It is difficult to believe that was 11 years ago! This blog is the product of that sown little seedling. What began as a study for a few friends has now grown, reaching many throughout the world. How amazing!
My prayer is for God to use this ministry to
reach at least one lost soul and create a hunger within that person so he/she
will accept Christ as his/her personal Savior. Furthermore, I pray for the
Christians who read this blog, that they will grow in their knowledge of the Word
and grow stronger as Christians so they can be an effective witness for Christ to
bring others into God’s family.
1Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this
ministry, we do not lose heart.
The ministry Paul is speaking of here is the
new covenant rather than the old covenant of the law.
2Rather, we have
renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort
the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend
ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God.
Paul is referring to the false teachers who invaded
the church in Corinth. He renounces their secret, shameful, and deceptive ways.
He’s reminding the Christians in Corinth he never deceived them or distorted
God’s message, but rather told them the plain and simple truth.
3And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those
who are perishing.
For those who have accepted Christ, the
message he taught them was easily understood. But for those who had not
accepted Christ, their minds couldn’t comprehend what he taught. Their minds
were ‘veiled’ as discussed in chapter 3. The unbeliever is blinded from the
light of the gospel. The fact that a blind man cannot see the sun doesn’t diminish
the brilliance of its light. The same is true with the gospel. Even if the
unbeliever cannot see the truth doesn’t make it untrue.
1 Corinthians 2:14 - The
person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit
of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they
are discerned only through the Spirit.
4The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers,
so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of
Christ, who is the image of God.
“The god of this age” refers to Satan. His
work is to deceive. The allure of money, power, and other pleasures blinds
people to the light of the gospel of Christ. All who reject Christ, preferring
their own pursuits, have unknowingly chosen to make Satan their god. Satan is
the unseen power behind all unbelief and ungodliness.
“This age” refers to the time prior to the
age of eternal life when Satan shall be purged along with anything that defiles
God’s creation.
5For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as
Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.
The false teachers had inflated egos, fixated
on their own self-importance. Paul explains he never felt important, but what
was important was his message of Christ. People must be introduced to Christ,
not us. We must be sure to tell people about what Christ has done, not brag
about what we’ve done or are doing in His name.
Being a follower of Christ means serving
others, even when they do not measure up to our expectations. Serving people
requires a sacrifice of time and personal desires. Paul willingly served the
Corinthian church even though they must have deeply disappointed him at times.
6For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”
made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of
God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.
“Let light shine out of darkness.” This is
what God said at the creation in Genesis 1:3, but it also pertains to Christians
because the darkness of sin is ousted by the light of the gospel.
“The light of the knowledge of God’s glory”
John 1:14 - The Word became
flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the
one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
The light shining in Paul’s heart is due to
the knowledge of the glory of God, which was shown to him through Christ who
came from the glorious presence of God in heaven itself.
Have you ever asked yourself, or maybe even
said out loud, “Why don’t more people respond to the gospel message and accept
Christ?” In asking this question, we’re assuming the message has been properly
presented to them.
Romans 10:12-17 - 12For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the
same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13for, “Everyone who calls on the
name of the Lord will be saved.” 14How, 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?
15And how can anyone preach
unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those
who bring good news!” 16But not all the Israelites accepted the good
news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?” 17Consequently, faith comes from
hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word about Christ.
For someone to respond to the gospel message,
THE WORD must be given in a clear and understandable manner; it must be bathed
in prayer; and the lives of those presenting the message must reflect what
they say. No one will trust or believe a hypocrite.
Even Paul struggled with this reality. He had
received this glorious ministry from the Lord, a message bringing life and
righteousness, liberty and glory. He
didn’t feel deserving of being the messenger, not only because he felt
inadequate as most of us do today, but because he had been a persecutor of
Christians prior to his transformation. But God had shown him mercy and
forgiven him, giving him this important task to teach others about Jesus.
It isn’t our past that portrays us, but our
present. We can be forgiven for past mistakes. God’s grace is sufficient. But
we cannot preach one thing while living another.
So many times we try to witness, yet we fall
short of knowing what to say. We walk
away thinking, “if only I had said this when he said that”.
Paul faced a lot of opposition and false
teachers, yet he never gave up. He continued to preach the gospel openly and
faithfully. He was never ashamed of how he preached.
He knew what he was talking about. His
information came straight from the Lord, yet even he was unable to convince a
lot of people. So we shouldn’t be discouraged when we fall short with our
limited knowledge. That’s not to say we shouldn’t strive to learn more so we
can be more confident in our attempts to spread the gospel, but we can’t let
our failures cause us to quit trying.
Salvation is an act of God, not of man. It is
our job to prayerfully and carefully present the gospel to lost souls. But we
can’t make them believe. God has to initiate the work of salvation.
Also, we must present God’s Word truthfully.
When we tell people about Christ, we must be careful not to distort the message
to please our audience. Remember, God is in that audience, listening to every
word we say.
7But we have this
treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and
not from us.
Clay jars were used to conceal precious
treasure because they were so ordinary they didn’t draw attention to themselves
and their precious contents. In the same way, our grandmothers used a tin can
to stash their extra cash. Paul is comparing himself to the clay jars. He sees
himself as plain and unworthy, and yet he has within him this wonderful
treasure of a message from God. Because he sees himself as unimportant and
frail, they can know the powerful message is from God and not from Paul.
1 Corinthians 1:26-29 - Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called.
Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not
many were of noble birth. 27
But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God
chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of
this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the
things that are, 29 so
that no one may boast before him.
Throughout the scriptures, God used the most
humble and meek people to deliver His messages. Even the disciples Christ chose
to follow Him were among the most undesirable men of that day. By using people
with little influence, God is making sure it is evident the power of the
message is from Him, not the messenger. The emphasis remains on God and what He
can do.
8We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed;
perplexed, but not in despair; 9persecuted, but
not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
Paul says although they are being bombarded
from all sides, it has not crushed their resolve. Although sometimes at a loss
for understanding, they are not hopeless. Although they are being persecuted,
they have not been abandoned by God. And although they’ve been knocked down,
they have not been knocked out.
So even when it appears Satan is winning the
battle, God is faithful and gives us strength to endure. All of our
humiliations and trials are opportunities for Christ to demonstrate his power
and presence through us.
10We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so
that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11For we who are alive are always being given over to death
for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. 12So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in
you.
Paul is saying because he has suffered many
hardships and been persecuted because of his preaching the gospel of Christ, he
shares in the suffering of Christ.
2 Corinthians 1:5 – For
just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort
abounds through Christ.
Romans 8:17 - Now if
we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if
indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
In verse 12, the “life is at work in you”
refers to Christ’s resurrection which is what the gospel message is all
about.
Suffering relates to salvation the same as
labor pains relates to the birth of a child. The Bible is full of stories where
the servant suffers, but souls are saved. So if you are being taunted or are suffering
because you are a Christian, remember it is through this that someone may come
to Christ.
13It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.”
Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and
therefore speak, 14because we know
that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with
Jesus and present us with you to himself. 15All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is
reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory
of God.
The quote in verse 13 is from the scripture
found in Psalm 116:10. True belief and faith leads to testimony, which is why
Paul tirelessly labored and traveled to take the gospel message to others.
As long as God has a job for you to do,
nothing can stop it from happening as long as you’re willing. Satan will try to
deter you from witnessing by using your weaknesses. But God can give us the
resolve to continue to be faithful and some will be saved because of it. Remember
the glory must go to God. It is HIS power that saves. We are a plain container in
which His treasure of The Word can be stored.
16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are
wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us
an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
Here Paul goes back to his original thought
started in verse 1. Because he knows all his suffering is for God’s glory, for
all the reasons he has written here, he will not be discouraged.
Paul had suffered a lot since his conversion,
beginning immediately after he accepted Christ and continuing for over thirty
years. They plotted to kill him in Damascus and in Jerusalem, drove him out of
Antioch, attempted to stone him in Iconium, stoned him and left him for dead in
Lystra, beat him with rods in Philippi and put him in stocks. In Thessalonica,
the Jews and others tried to mob him. They drove him out of Berea, plotted
against him in Corinth and almost killed him in Ephesus. Shortly after writing
the 2 Corinthians letter, they again plotted his death in Corinth, and they
would have killed him in Jerusalem if the Roman soldiers had not intervened.
Then he was imprisoned in Caesarea for two years, and two more in Rome. And
these are only the incidents that are recorded. There were probably many other
unrecorded beatings, imprisonments, shipwrecks, and attempts on his life.
In verse 16, he says his mortal body is “wasting
away” because of the hardships he has been through.
They are “being renewed” because of the
inextinguishable flame of the truth of the resurrection burning within them
giving them a cheerful heart. His
message here is the inward renewal of his soul through Christ overcomes the
outward destruction of his physical body due to the hardships he’s had to
endure, and ultimately will overcome even death itself. In the light of
eternity, the Christians difficulties, whatever they may be, diminish in
importance. By comparison, eternal glory is far greater than all the suffering
one might face in this life.
18So we fix our
eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is
temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
The experiences we face in this present life,
which often seem painful and puzzling, are what’s apparent to us as Christians.
But these are merely a temporary and fleeting phenomena. To continue fixating
our thoughts on these things would cause us to lose heart, or become depressed.
But if we keep focused on the unseen realities of eternity, we will obtain a
lasting peace. We need to be like athletes and focus on the finish line,
ignoring the discomfort as we strive to reach it. No matter what happens in
this life, we have the assurance of eternal life, when all suffering will end
and “all sorrow will flee away” as we’re told in Isaiah 35:10.
Have you ever wondered what you would do if
faced with the choice of dying for Christ or denying Him and keeping your life?
In today’s world, this question is becoming an increasing possibility. Look at
what happened at Columbine. The shooters asked the teen-age girl if she
believed in Jesus Christ and she firmly acknowledged she did and was
immediately shot to death. The possibility of facing death for our faith has
become a reality in our lives.
What is faith?
Hebrews 11:1, 26-27 - Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what
we do not see… 26 He
[Moses] regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the
treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not
fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.
The things of God may be invisible, but that doesn’t
mean they are any less real.
Hebrews 12:2-3 - fixing our eyes on
Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he
endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God. 3 Consider
him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary
and lose heart.
How can we encourage other Christians who are
confused or bogged down by the cares of this life?
Paul’s message is not to lose hope.
Problems and human limitations provide
several benefits:
1. They
remind us of Christ’s suffering for us;2. They keep us from pride;
3. They cause us to look beyond this brief life;
4. They prove our faith to others;
5. They give God the opportunity to demonstrate His power
So view your troubles as opportunities.
Knowing we will live forever with God in a
place without sin and suffering can help us live above the pain we face in this
life.
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