SSL - 2 Cor. 4:5-18
Prayers & Announcements
Last Week: In 2. Cor. 1:3-14, we heard Paul talk about how God "comforts" us during times of suffering and He uses it to equip us to comfort others during their times of suffering. The three main points of practical application were: 1. When Paul says God comforts us "in all our affliction" (v. 4), it means if we hold fast to God, He will comfort us in every affliction we go through. Even when your suffering is the consequence of your own sin, God will draw near to comfort you if you allow Him in by seeking His presence. 2. God does this not only for us to experience His love and help, but expects us as Christians, in turn, to minister that same help to those who need God's comfort. Thus, God comforts us, by His grace, to equip us to help others who are suffering. This is at the heart of the Gospel. 3. Suffering for Christ is something every Christian encounters as Christ lives in us. 1 Pet. 4:13-14 states, "but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you." This reminds us that Christ lives in us, and we are the current expression of His kingdom, a big responsibility. If we are suffering for Christ (in this fallen word), we must be doing something right-do you agree?
This Week: We move forward to 2 Cor. 4:5-18. The theme of this lesson is Do Not Lose Heart.
Our mission field is tough. We not only live in a fallen world but live in a nation in which our religious liberty-most especially our freedom to evangelize the lost-seems to be facing increasing opposition. Paul has the answer to this for us: When God calls us to serve Him in Christian ministry-and everyone in this class, and indeed, in this church, is called by God-He also gives us the strength necessary for us to persevere in the face of hardship and even persecution. Do Not Lose Heart.
Read 2 Cor. 4:5-6 - We Preach Jesus Christ as Lord
5 For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
v. 5: "For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus' sake" - When Paul uses the pronoun "we," he is referring to himself and his missionary team. He makes two strong points in this statement: (1) The subject of his preaching is "Christ Jesus as Lord," not himself. He is unimportant. (2) He identifies himself as a "bond-servant" for Jesus' sake." The Greek world used here for bond-servant, doulos, means involuntary servitude, a slave in effect. Added to that, he's bound not only to Christ in service but also to them, the Corinthians, and can't-under any circumstance-leave it. In saying this, Paul is most likely defending himself against opponents in Corinth who are telling church members that Paul's motives are self-serving.
v. 6: "For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ" - We aren't sure which OT Scripture Paul is alluding to here, either Gen. 1:3, "Let there be light," or Isa. 9:2, "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light..." In any case, light and darkness are both used in the OT and NT as metaphors for good and evil, order and chaos, truth and untruth, etc. Paul's point is that God's light has "shone in our hearts." This is spiritual light. While Paul witnessed this on person on the Damascus road, every Christian believer receives the light of God's glory-inwardly-when he or she accepts Jesus as Savior. And we, in turn, impart this light to others when we share the Gospel. So Paul is reminding the Corinthians that they also have this light in them.
Read 2 Cor. 4:7-12 - Treasure in Earthen (Clay) Vessels
7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; 8 we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. 11 For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So death works in us, but life in you.
v. 7a: "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels" - In Paul's day, earthen vessels, made of clay, were the most common containers for carrying water and other goods. Most of the vessels were plain, humble containers, but they all had a life-giving function of gathering and transporting water and foodstuffs to thirsty and hungry people. In that sense, the earthen vessels are a proper metaphor for a Christian who gathers and carries the spiritual water of the Gospel to parched souls. At the same time, these clay vessels are real fragile and typically didn't last very long, and that respect, form a good metaphor for the brief span of a human life. Here's the point: we have only a few decades or more (if we're fortunate) to proclaim the Gospel, thus, the church, if none follow us in faith, is always one generation from extinction. Have you ever thought about it that way?
v. 7b: "so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves" - You might ask: if these vessels are so weak and so short-lived, why does God put such a priceless treasure-the Gospel-in them? So that the greatness of the power contained in the vessels would come from God, not us. Given the ordinariness of the vessels themselves, it would be evident to anyone who had eyes to see that the work was being done by the spirit of God, not the power of the vessel itself. What does this tell us? The earthen vessels may be fragile and short-lived, but they contain the power to bring profound glory to God. We are those vessels.
vv. 8-9: "we areafflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;" - Look at the verbs Paul used to describe his life experience in ministry: afflicted (thlibō = pressed from outside), perplexed (aporeō = being at one's end), persecuted (diōkō = pursued and driven away). Paul's life was really hard. Yet, look at the verbs he uses in juxtaposition to these: not crushed, not despairing, not forsaken, not destroyed. Paul's knew his life was hard because of his devotion to Jesus Christ, but even more importantly, he knew the power and victory of Jesus in his life because he continually found himself in situations where only that power and victory would see him through. Paul's opponents in Corinth claimed that all of Paul's adversities indicated that he didn't have God's approval. But Paul wouldn't be put off by these critics; it was actually the reverse of what they were saying: All the sufferings he lists above are confirmation of his authentic apostleship. And he ends it by saying that, despite every type of obstacle thrown it him, he is "not destroyed."
v. 10: "always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body" - In this verse, Paul carries the argument a step further. His sufferings not only authenticate his apostleship, but they also add up to a participation in the death of the Lord Jesus: Jesus suffered on the cross, and Paul has also suffered; therefore, some of Jesus' sufferings are revealed in Paul's body-the scars from being stoned, the stripes from being flogged, and from other trials (jail, being in stocks, starved, etc.)-is evidence that he has suffered sacrificially like Christ.
v. 11: "For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh" - Here, Paul is saying that he's always being given over by God to death for Jesus' sake so that the power of the resurrection life of Jesus might be seen in the weakness of his mortal body. This was proven and shown over and over by Paul's ability to endure severe adversity during the powerful spread of the Gospel.
v. 12: "So death works in us, but life in you." Paul now says that his sufferings and 'death' (figurative) serve a Godly purpose, even as Jesus' suffering and death served a Godly purpose. Paul has given of himself and endured so that the Corinthians and believers in other churches he founded might have life. In explaining it this way, Paul is saying that his suffering and endurance will bring about this same resurrection life in the Corinthians, so they, too, will learn to trust God in adversity.
Read 2 Cor. 4:13-15 - We Believe, And Therefore We Speak/Do Not Lose Heart
13 But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, "I BELIEVED, THEREFORE I SPOKE," we also believe, therefore we also speak, 14 knowing that He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and will present us with you.15 For all things are for your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God. 16 Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. 17 For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, 18 while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
Note: In this next group of verses we see Paul dealing with his opposition in Corinth. A particular group, known as the hyperlian apostolon or "arrogant apostles" have challenged both Paul's credentials and authority. They say that his letters are well done, but his bodily presence is weak and his speech is despised.
V. 13: "But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, "I BELIEVED, THEREFORE I SPOKE," we also believe, therefore we also speak" - Using the phrase,"I BELIEVED, THEREFORE I SPOKE," Paul is alluding to Ps. 116:1-2, written by David. From this context, "spirit of faith," does not refer to the Holy Spirit, but the same kind of spiritual courage shown by David when his life was under threat of death. Just as the Psalmist's faith enabled him to speak, so also Paul's faith enabled him to speak-and defend himself-against his opponents. Although Paul's reference to Ps. 116 is considered to be somewhat obscure, its meaning would have been clear to the Jewish members of the Corinthian church.
v.14: "knowing that He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and will present us with you" - Because Paul saw the risen Christ in person on the Damascus road, he absolutely knows that Jesus' resurrection is real. Having witnessed this, Paul can believe that God will likewise raise him and the Corinthian Christians from the dead. Parsitano, the Greek word for "stand near," implies that God will stand near him and the Corinthians in the resurrection and that they will all see each other again in the kingdom of God.
v. 15: "For all things arefor your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God" - The "all things" Paul refers to are (1) the sacrifice of Christ on the cross and (2) Paul's ministry, his sufferings, and his opposition.
Using the phrase "grace which is spreading," Paul identifies the main purpose of his ministry in Corinth: that the grace Paul experienced personally will be multiplied through the many believers at Corinth and elsewhere, and the multiplication of this grace will abound to the glory of God, which is Paul's ultimate purpose, his reason for being.
v. 16: "Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day" - One of my favorite sayings of Paul. In defense of his "weak bodily presence," Paul draws a distinction between the outward and inward man, ergo, I might not be much to look at, but God is renewing my inner self every day. At a higher level, Paul is expressing the contrast of his life of suffering in the present age-his outer self-to the moral and spiritual transformation of his life into the image of Jesus Christ-his inner self.
vv. 17-18: "For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,18 while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal." - In these last two verses, we see Paul shift from the temporal (earthly life) to the eternal. Paul contrasts the temporary nature of his afflictions, which he terms as "light," with the eternal nature of the great glory he has begun to experience and which he expects to continue all the way through this life and into the next-to him the suffering seems light because it's being offset by the weight of the glory to come. In v. 18, he contrasts the seen and unseen-temporal and eternal. Paul is aying that he isn't focused on the things seen-his sufferings and all of the shortcomings of the present age; but looks with expectation to the things unseen-the full restoration of all things at the resurrection to come along with the fulfillment of God's purpose in history. Practically speaking, this is the ability to perceive the future through "eyes of faith." Faith can remove our anxiety toward the future because it can give us the "assurance of things hoped for, [and] the conviction of things not seen." Heb. 11:1
APPLICATION:
1. When God calls us to serve in Christian ministry, He also gives us the strength needed for us to persevere in the face of hardship and even persecution. Although our physical bodies deteriorate as we age, we should never lose heart (v. 16) because God is renewing our inner selves every day.
2. As human vessels, we Christians are weak and short-lived, but we contain a mighty power-sharing the Gospel-to bring profound glory to God. On the flip side, if we, as the body of Christ, don't use this power to produce followers in faith, the church is one generation away from extinction.
4. The main purpose of our Christian ministry, whatever form it may take, is that the grace we experience as individuals will be multiplied through many others who believe. The multiplication of our grace will keep adding to God's glory, which is our ultimate reason for being.
3. Like Paul, the real focus of our lives shouldn't be on the here and now-the hardships we endure to serve Christ in a fallen world-but on the eternal things to come-the full restoration of ourselves at the resurrection and the fulfillment of God's purpose in history. On a practical level, this is our ability to perceive the future through "eyes of faith." Faith can remove our anxiety toward the future because it can give us the "assurance of things hoped for, [and] the conviction of things not seen." Heb. 11:1
