& 4:1-11 review

Turning your Bibles, please, to 2 Corinthians. The first passage I want to look at is over in chapter 11, so turn to chapter 11. As we've been going through 2 Corinthians, the entire theme we've seen in 2 Corinthians is the very life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And we've seen that life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ as it's been lived out through the Apostle Paul. And the wonderful thing is, that life and ministry that has been lived out through the Apostle Paul, that very same life and very same ministry, the Lord Jesus Christ wants to live through you and me.

And how wonderful that is. And so the question is, do we want to be ministers of Christ? And I think the answer that everyone would say, yeah, I want to serve the Lord. I want to be a minister of Christ. Well, let's take a look in terms of how this ministry might look in your life or my life. We're going to take a look. as how it looked in Paul's life. So look down at verse 23. He says this, are they ministers of Christ? You want to be a minister of Christ? Are they ministers of Christ? Now he's talking about the false teachers that we've looked at. I speak as a fool. He's speaking foolishly and we've looked at the comparison as to why he's speaking foolishly. But he says, I am more. I am more of a minister of Christ.

In labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. Of the Jews five times received forty stripes, save one. Do you know always why in scripture it talks about forty stripes minus one or thirty-nine stripes? That's the maximum legal limit that the law prescribes, 40 stripes. So in order not to break the law, not to overstep the law, the one executing the punishment always counted to 39. And just to make sure that they didn't go past didn't go past 40. So that's why you see 40 stripes save one.

In verse 25, three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I suffered shipwreck, on night and the day I've been in the deep, in journeys often in perils of water, in perils of robbers, in perils in my own countrymen, imperils by the Gentiles, imperils in the city, imperils in the wilderness, imperils in the sea, imperils amongst false brethren, in worriness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness, beside those things that are without, that which comes upon me dearly, the care of the churches. Who is weak? And I am not weak who is offended, and I am not indignant. If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern my infirmities."

Now, interesting. You see the list. And think of your ministry. Is there any of these things in your ministry? Any of these trials and sufferings in your ministry? The point is, if we really truly want to be a minister of Christ, these are the things that may occur in our life. Don't be surprised. Don't be surprised that you're going to be rejected. And by the way, you will be rejected. Your ministry will be rejected.

But as you look at this list, as we read through this list, and Bob had gone through this sometime back in 1492. It's been a while since we've gone through this. But if you were to be going through some of these trials and circumstances, what would be your first reaction in terms of what God was doing in your life? Okay, why me? What have I done to deserve this? It's like, is he punishing me? Am I being chastised? I mean, any one of these things, wouldn't you interpret this as maybe the Lord chastising you, disciplining you? Boy, I mean, when you think of something, of a trial and suffering that comes into your life, isn't that the first thing you think about?

But we know that the Lord wasn't disciplining Paul. I just find it interesting that the Lord allows all kinds of trials and circumstances in our lives. And it's not so much that He's testing our faith, although every one of those trials and circumstances is a test in our faith, but that He's exercising and developing our faith. And that's one of the purposes of trials in our life. And as with Paul, when we hit a trial, when we hit these kinds of circumstances or suffering in our life, we see our utter weakness. And Paul saw his utter weakness. But we also see the sufficiency and strength of the Lord. So Paul could say, when I'm weak, then I'm The one purpose that our Father has in view in terms of the trials and the sufferings and the circumstances in allowing them in our lives, well, let me ask you this question. Why does He do that? Why are there these trials and suffering and circumstances in our life? I mean, does God have a purpose in them? Is there a purpose?

Well, in my life, that's what caused me to get to know Him better and to be able to trust Him truly to His promises and to grow in Him. I mean, it took a lot of trials in my life. Okay. to conform us to his image. Okay, to conform us to his image. And so, Bev, if I can rephrase what you said and tell me if I'm correct, is that you got to the end of Bev. You had to trust him. It came to Bev. It came to that. And then, as Sue is saying, is for God to conform us or to form the very person of Christ in us. Bob?

You know, I think that one thing that we can reflect on, too, is the fact that these testings of the faith really are not unique to us as believers. I mean, if you think about this, 1 Corinthians 10, 13, I think says, there hath no temptation or testing taken you, but such as is common to all men, right? I mean, everybody gets tested in the earthly existence, right?

But what's special for the believer is that there's a way to escape. And that truth is profoundly present because our citizenship is not here. And in a sense when we put things into an eternal perspective, actually that's what I'm going to be talking about next week for this light affliction. It has far more eternal and exceeding weight of glory. So the difference between the world being tested and us is we have a way to escape. And it's not desperation. It's the strength being made evident. in our weakness, right? And the escape is what?

Dependence on the Lord. Okay. And our faith. Okay. And the very character. Right? The very character of the Lord and God's grace. Jack? It keeps talking about this ministry there, and it occurred to me that that ministry is Our ministry is being an image bearer. Okay, you're jumping ahead. That's the reason Paul brought that up early on. That's very true, that's very true. Everybody thinks, well I've got a ministry. And so often they think, well you know I reached down on the street corner or something.

And in terms of what Jack says, you know, the Lord doesn't come to us and explain the reason why you're going through a trial. So he didn't come to Marilyn and say, Marilyn, here's the reason I'm going to put you in the hospital this week and you're going to have this angiogram. And he didn't. Did he? I don't think he did. And with George, he didn't come to you, George, and say, George, I'm taking you home and I'm going to explain why.

He doesn't come to us and explain the reason why, but he has a purpose in everything that he does, doesn't he? He has a purpose and that's to form Christ and that's to conform us to his very image. And that's his eternal purpose. Always think of God's eternal purpose. To declare, to reveal, to share his glory in everything he does. That's why he does it. And then in turn to be glorified through that. So that when we respond by faith, he's glorified. But it's only when we respond by faith. If we don't respond by faith, he's not glorified.

So the life and ministry of Christ as depicted in 2 Corinthians is manifested through us just as it was in Paul. So now I want you to turn over to 2 Corinthians chapter 4. as this has been an introduction to chapter 4. So we're going to look at the life and ministry through Paul in these 10 verses, which is also true of us. So I'll start reading from verse 1. I'll just read through it.

Therefore, seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not. but have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth, commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But if our gospel be hidden, it is hidden to them that are lost, in whom the God of this age has blinded the minds of them who believe not. lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us.

We are troubled on every side. And think now what we just read over in 2 Corinthians chapter 11. Think of the trials, think of the sufferings, and think of the perils and everything that Paul just talked about in chapter 11. And he says, We're troubled on every side, yet not distressed. We are perplexed, but not in despair. Persecuted, but not forsaken. Cast down, but not destroyed. Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus' purpose, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

Wow. Look at the ministry in verse 1. Seeing we have this ministry, what is this ministry? Jim went through this last week in chapter 3. So I'm going to cut to the chase here. The ministry that Jim went through is the ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life and in my life. and manifesting the very union that we have with Christ.

The union that we have in His death, in His burial, and His resurrection. And that union is called the New Covenant. It's a new binding together. We are bound with Christ, in His life. And I think that's the ministry of the New Covenant. And as it says in chapter 3, it's not of the letter, but of the Spirit. It's the ministry of righteousness. And as you go through that life is equated to righteousness. So when you talk about righteousness, you're talking about life. You're talking about the very life of our Lord Jesus Christ. And you can interchange the two. So the ministry is about righteousness, it's about life. The life of the Lord Jesus Christ is being lived through us.

Now, is there going to be rejection? in this ministry? You betcha! Expect rejection. Expect rejection. But look at verse 1. And look at the second part of verse 1. It says, as we have received mercy, in the rejection, in the ministry, we receive God's mercy, His compassion, whatever the reaction is to the ministry. In verse 2, I think you can divide into two parts.

In the first part, what the manifestation of the life of Christ is, and in the second part, what the manifestation of the life of the Lord Jesus Christ is not. So, first part, this is what the life looks like. But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth. commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. This is what the life of Christ is not. It's not walking in craftiness, not handling the Word of God deceitfully. So that's what it's not.

In verse 3 through 5, in terms of the gospel being hidden to those, now, here we have believers, you and me, And the Lord Jesus Christ is being manifested through us. His life is being manifested through us. Is that light? Is that light? Yeah, so that when somebody looks at us, if we're abiding in Christ and walking by faith, do they see light? Why? It's glory being manifested through us, that's what they see. Okay. Not our glory, it's His glory.

But how is the light shines under darkness? The darkness may feel judged and condemned, right? So the question is, how is that light perceived? Okay. Well, right, but is that the light of the Lord Jesus Christ through us? Is that the light that should be perceived in a judgmental and atmospheric condemnation? Is there a light that is brighter than that, that reveals God's glory?

Life and life are manifestations of the same thing. Okay, absolutely true. Not our righteousness. Right, but they see righteousness. What else do they see? They see the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. But what is that life? That's the thing, and what we pray is that The offense is not us, it actually is Christ. So our prayer is that they don't see us, but they see Him. So when they're seeing Him, what do they see?

His character. Okay, His character. His love. His grace. His glory. the totality of His glory. They see that. Now, so they see that. Does that mean that that's going to be an awakening to them, and they're going to embrace that? No. Maybe not, right? That's the very thing that's veiled, is that light. If they're perishing, it's veiled, they don't see the light. But do they see the glory? Do they see that glory? Let me ask, okay, Steve brings up a good point. They're perishing. Why are they perishing? Because of unbelief. Because of unbelief. They believe not. Okay, that's why they're perishing.

Is God's will, what's God's will? That they perish? Now, that they don't perish. So then, how could God's will be accomplished? By them seeing the light in life and responding how? By faith. So, here's the question. Can they see the light and respond by faith? Can an unbeliever see the light and respond by faith?

There is no other way, right? It has nothing to do with us. It has everything to do with the Holy Spirit. It has nothing to do with us. Okay. Now, some will say they're so depraved that they can't respond by faith. How would you respond to that? So will we. The problem you get into there is that faith becomes a gift. Absolutely. What did he say? Jim is saying, well the problem you get there is that faith becomes a gift.

So that in order to believe, God has to give you the gift of faith and has to regenerate you in order to, so you know, and so there's that whole system of theology, Bob. It's one of verse two, it indicates that each one of us are to commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. So it's interesting because that white that takes on a special character, it's not self-righteousness, it's not judgmental, it's in fact the way we present the truth of the gospel is in fact it needs to be acceptable in the sight of God. And then the second point very quickly is that in verse 4 it says, the God of this age has blinded the minds of them who believe in God, lest, lest the light of the glorious gospel Christ as the image of God should shine on them.

So let's take Bob's original question in terms of condemnation. In terms of the world, people around us, people in our sphere of influence, as we're walking by faith and abiding in Christ, and they see the very life, they see that life, is that life one of condemnation? Why? Why isn't it one of condemnation? What did Jesus Christ say when He came into the world? I haven't come to condemn the world, but to what? But to save the world. So it's not, right? It's not one of condemnation.

And it's one of light and life and they see His glory. Okay. So then the condemnation comes. as a result of their unbelief? Just kind of take that to the next step. If it's not condemnation, then where, how does it come in? Okay, Jim has a good question. And so where does the condemnation come in? And so as you go back to John, and when they see the light, It says, but men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. And so they agapied darkness rather than light. And so as a result comes condemnation. Well Jim, don't you think this to some extent reflects back on what you covered in chapter 3 and that the pebbles of stone in fact were condemning, were they not?

And so as we fall, as the unbeliever or even we as believers fall underneath a legal system, we're judged and condemned. I mean the principle of grace is fluid. It takes on a whole different physical form and spiritual form. So I think that that light is condemning, if in fact we're looking at it as a series of laws and regulations. Yes. And in fact, that's what the table of stone represented, correct? Absolutely. Yeah. Look at verse 7.

But we have this treasure. in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us." Question, what's the treasure? What's the earthen vessel? It says, we have, talking about you and me, we have this treasure in earthen vessels. So we have a treasure. What's the earthen vessel? Us? And in an earthen vessel, what's the characteristic characteristics of an earthen vessel? This is this is like a clay pot. What's the characteristics of a clay pot? If I were to hold a clay pot out here and let it go, it would break. It's very frail. Right. And and not necessarily very good looking to look at. But we have this treasure. And the value of the vessel is in the contents and not the vessel itself. So what's the contents in us? What's the contents? What's the contents? Sure, it's the very glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. And that's the content.

Just a thought occurred, when that thought is broken, then what's inside is revealed. Yeah. I don't know if that's significant or not, just a thought. Well, we have to come to that place of brokenness, that place where you made it that way to heal all, to Him, in order to overcome. similar to what Bev was saying in terms of reaching end of self, Vicki, right? And if you go back to 6, for God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, and when Jim went through this, he talked about that this was in the physical realm, but then in the very next part of the sentence you get into the spiritual realm has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of of Jesus Christ and so here we have this treasure we have the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ in this vessel and it illuminates it illuminates the hearts of men and and they see it, and they can either reject that light or accept that light.

Verse 8, and again remember thinking about what we read to start off with in 2 Corinthians chapter 11, were troubled on every side, yet not distressed, were perplexed, but not in despair, persecuted, but not forsaken, cast down, but not destroyed. When we went through that, it looked We showed a chart that looked like this. That being troubled or afflicted is the word philipsis in Greek and you feel pressed, you're feeling squeezed, you're feeling like in a vice, you feel that pressure. by the circumstances in life, you're perplexed, you're uncertain in terms of how to turn, or how to proceed. And being persecuted, and we've looked at the physical persecution that Paul went through, but we also looked at some of the, as he said, some of the mental persecution that he was going through, and some of the concerns that he was going through. And so we can be persecuted, being cast down, or struck down, and this is a feeling of being powerless in your life. That you've reached the end, or the Lord is getting you to reach the end, where He shows you that you ain't got it. You ain't got the power. You just don't. You don't have this efficiency in and of yourself. And that's a wonderful, wonderful, this is a wonderful place to be. Isn't it? I mean, I think, as I've said before, The Lord allows these things to happen. He appoints us, right? He appoints us to these things.

As an ambassador for Him, He appoints us to trials and to suffering. And that appointment is such like the president appointing an ambassador to some country. That ambassador represents who? He represents the country and he represents the sovereign, the one who's head of that country. We're appointed as ambassadors in trials. What country do we represent? Our citizenship is where? Above. So we represent the country that we come from in our citizenship, and we represent our sovereign, who is the Lord.

Okay. So, wonderful place to be. Now, the thing is, As we walk by faith, and we're abiding in Him, all of these things are happening in our life. But, this ain't happening. We're not distressed. We're not crushed. We don't feel this box being boxed in, and in total anguish. where we're biting our nails and we're in total anguish about the situation because of whatever circumstances there are in our life.

And we're not despairing, where we can't see a way through. One who's in despair cannot see a way through. And in fact, the only way, the only The only thing that a person is in total despair, the only thing that they see at the end of the rope is suicide. That is the result of despair.

We don't feel forsaken, that we're abandoned. And why not? Hebrews, what is the truth? God says he'll never forsake us. And it's a triple negative in the Greek. I'll never, never, never. It's the most emphatic way you can say something in the Greek. He will never, never, never forsake us, abandon us. Never. And we're not, as we walk by faith, and abiding in Him, we're not being destroyed, where we feel this loss or sense of well-being.

Okay, so, so the question, so let's, let's, that's verse 8 and 9, quickly. We've got to get to verse 10. Verse 10 says, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus. And look at the word that. Purpose clause. That. The life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. Does that mean? What does that mean? You look at this How are we always bearing about, in the body, in your body, in my body, the dying of the Lord Jesus?

Okay, being identified with His death, the cross. And so what happened What happened to that old man? Where is he? Dead and buried. Crucified with Christ. And this old man is within us, right? And this old man was crucified with Christ where? on the cross, right? So there was a union between the old man and the cross, right? The old man was put in union with the cross.

Positional or conditional? Positional. Will our old man ever be separated from the cross? If it's a position of truth, what can we say about positional truths? They are what? Eternal, right? And immutable, which means they never change. So if the old man is crucified with Christ, on that cross, that old man, that's eternally, right? Positionally.

That's true with unbelievers too then, right? Okay, Marilyn's question. Is that true with unbelievers? Sure. But they're not separated from the old man. That's right, they're not raised in an innocent life. But, but, but hold it. Is, is the, is the old man of unbelievers on that cross? Good question, Marilyn. Good question.

What can we say about unbelievers? What is on the cross with respect to unbelievers? Their sins. Plural, right? But when you get to Romans chapter 6, it's talking about The fact that we, believers, have been baptized, immersed, into His death, into His burial, into His resurrection. Is it talking about unbelievers? No, it's talking about believers. That only believers are baptized, united, into His death. So it's only believers that sin nature, who is crucified on the cross.

Good question. Excellent question. So now, what does it mean that we're bearing about in our body? Well, if the old man has been crucified with Christ, and that crucifixion is on the cross, we're bearing about in our body the sin nature, right? And bearing about is the word pharaoh, which means to carry. We're carrying wherever we go, the old man. Is he alive and well? Well, didn't we just say he was crucified? So how can we say he's alive and well? So he's alive and well, positionally he's crucified, he's united with that cross, but he's still alive and well.

The final judgment hasn't come yet with respect to the old man. So we can, by the way, and it's by faith, where the old man looks more attractive, than the new man, the old man looks more attractive than the Lord Jesus Christ. And we can abide there. And he's alive and well. And if you want to be angry, and if you want to be irritable, and if you want to be all of those things, boy, the old man says, come. So hopefully, what we've just done is summarizing this, bearing about in the body the dying of our Lord Jesus, where that sin nature, that self-life, is united with the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. But, that old man is still alive and well.

So this is positionally. But it goes on to say in verse 10, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus Christ, purpose close that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. Question, will the life of the Lord Jesus Christ always be made manifest in our body?

Okay. So positionally, yes. There's a no. But Jim was saying no, not positionally, but conditionally. So it's kind of a trick question when you ask questions like this, because you should come back and say, well, further delineate that question. Are you talking about Positionally or conditionally? But notice what the verse says. Might. It doesn't say will. Might. Is that position or condition? That's condition. So the death is positional, but whether the life is being manifested is conditional. What does it take What does it take for that life to be manifested conditionally?

Okay, rest. Okay, walking by faith. So here we have it all, walking by faith, and by faith in the fact that the old man is crucified, and that we reckon it, and we count that to be true, right? And so, just think of Paul, of anybody, yourself, going through any trial, any trial or circumstance that comes into your life.

Your first response is what? I don't want this. You're irritable, you're angry. I mean, the first response of the sin nature, because the thing is, the sin nature wants to be in control. And there are circumstances that happen in your life where you ain't got the control. And so what happens? The old man gets frustrated, very frustrated and angry. And so the only answer is by faith to say, reckon him dead. Lord, I died. I died. And by the way, Lord, that anger and the resentment and the envy and the jealousy, that's not who I am. Right? That is not who I am. I'm a new creation in Christ. And that's eternal. That's not who I am. Last one. That the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body, And so, as we reckon, by faith, that we are dead, that we don't need to respond to that old man, and we don't need to be a slave to the old man anymore. We're free.

And that we can live in newness. And in Romans chapter 6, verse 4, it talks about being raised in newness. And newness is a noun. We're raised in newness. And then the noun is modified by of life. And so the newness has to do with life. It's modified of life. So it talks about the source of that newness. It's a genitive of source. It talks about the source of the newness, and the source is life. We live in newness, and the source is life.

Guess whose life? His life. Okay? His life. So, the purpose, then, is that the life of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. So here's the purpose. Here, as we walk by faith, reckoning ourselves dead unto the sin nature, that Christ's life is manifested. And Bob will be going through this next week in verse 12. Is it verse 12? That says, death in us and life in you. Look at this. Death in us as we reckon ourselves dead. And what do people see? They see life. They don't see the death, they only see life. Death in us, life in you. They don't see the death, they just see the life.

Let's close. Your word is so wonderful, and we just thank you for it. And Lord, we will be spending an eternity just coming to know the Lord Jesus Christ. And we'll never fully know the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, ever, in all eternity. And we'll continue to learn. Father, how we just do thank you and we do thank you that for the wonderful privilege that we can be your vessel where the very glory of the Lord Jesus Christ can be manifested through us. And Father, again we just lift up to George and just pray that he be this vessel at this time and that others may see the Lord Jesus Christ through him and we just thank you that for yet his life because in her life we could see his life and we are ever so thankful and give you praise and honor and glory in Christ's name. Amen.