Antidote for False Teaching - 2 Corinthians 4-5

 2 Corinthians 5:11 (ESV)

The Ministry of Reconciliation

Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience.

Paul is writing to the church at Corinth, again, to continue to spur them onto to holiness, but also, regretfully, to defend his ministry.  There were false teachers who had entered the church and were attempting to diminish Paul’s influence on the church’s direction, but also demonize Paul himself.   All of this book is written with that theme in mind.   He has just finished, in chapter four, explaining to the church the reason for his ministry.  He is telling them that the god of this world has blinded the eyes of the unbeliever and it is his role, in the Body, to provide truth to make sure the Saints are not equally blinded.   That is the point of the above verse.  He does not want them lead astray to follow doctrine not based upon truth.  This is what motivates him.  He is motivated by the “fear of the Lord.”    We wants to “persuade” others to make sure they are not blinded by these false teachers.  Notice how differently this Greek word is translated in our English Bible:

Translated as persuade 22x, trust 8x, obey 7x, have confidence 6x, believe 3x, be confident 2x, misc 7x

The point Paul is trying to make is that he is going to go to any extreme to make sure they are not following false teaching, but rather the Gospel, has he first presented it them.   The antidote for false teaching is truth, motivated by the fear of the Lord.  

Kosmos or Ethnos? We Still Must Go! Mark 15-16

 Mark 16:14-15 (ESV)

The Great Commission

Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.

Each week, on my prayer list, I have a list of missionaries to pray for.  On one day, I pray for three missionaries.  One couple is in Bosnia, one is in Chile and one is in Kentucky, USA.   Metaphorically speaking that might cover the above text.  I love that day because it reminds me to be equally committed to my neck of the world.   We tend to like to go to our own people, but we don’t necessarily have as much enthusiasm, however, for those in other ethic groups.   It is interesting that Mark says go into all the world (Greek “kosmos” ... which means all the places of the world) but Matthew says go into all the nations. That is the Greek word, “ethnos,” which means “ethnic” groups.  Together we see that our role is to go to all places and speak to all types of races.   We are not just to talk to the people we are familiar with about the love of God through the sacrifice of Jesus.   Jonah had a problem with that.  He was a prophet to Israel and spoke to his people (2 Kings 14:25).  But, when he was asked to go to another part of the “kosmos” to speak to another “ethnos” of people, he refused.   Do we believe in the power of God to speak to people in our back yard, in the hills of Kentucky, the land of Chile and/or the nations like Bosnia?  That is the command.  

Behold, God is Great! Job 35-36

 Job 36:26-33 (ESV)

Behold, God is great, and we know him not;

the number of his years is unsearchable.

For he draws up the drops of water;

they distill his mist in rain,

which the skies pour down

and drop on mankind abundantly.

Can anyone understand the spreading of the clouds,

the thunderings of his pavilion?

Behold, he scatters his lightning about him

and covers the roots of the sea.

For by these he judges peoples;

he gives food in abundance.

He covers his hands with the lightning

and commands it to strike the mark.

Its crashing declares his presence;

the cattle also declare that he rises.

Behold, God is Great!!    There are times in God’s Word where the author of the text simply wants to extol and magnify God for the purpose of taking the eyes of the reader off one thing and onto a great thing.  This is one of those times.    Job has his eyes firmly fixed on the boils of his skin and the destruction of his life and family.   Most of us, if not all of us, would.   In times of great despair where else would the average person look.   Job’s three friends (Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar) were not much better.  They came to him and, also, looked that the sores on his body and the destitute on his face and not only didn’t change his perspective, but blamed him for the cause.  This new friend, Elihu, comes along and speaks a different truth to Job.  He is younger, admits he is not wiser, but offers Job a perspective the others simply missed.  Job is in a bad place and no fault of his own.  But, the others are pushing him to look at himself as cause and he, naturally, defends.   Elihu does not address Job’s challenges.  Elihu, especially in the above passage, simply tells Job about the greatness of God.  This will actually usher in to Job’s world the actual voice of God in the following chapters.   When men of God speak truth about God it allows the voice of God to be heard in the darkest of night.   Elihu will be used by God to change everything for Job.  He didn’t focus on Job, he brought Job’s eyes to the greatness and power and majesty of God.     

Nature of Mankind and the Remedy for Mankind - Psalms 51-53

 Psalms 51:5-6 (ESV)

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,

and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,

and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

I am full of iniquity but God wants truth!  My heart is full of sin since my conception but God wants to teach me wisdom in the secret places of my heart!   That is the dilemma of mankind.   We have what we are and we have what we ought to be.   In the above two verses, we have the description of our current state and we have the design of our intended being.  

God wants us to be holy.  That is why He provided His Son to make a way for that holiness.  Jesus Christ took on our sin and grave us His righteousness, to make sure the above two verses can become one plan and part of our lives.   We are full of corruption but God wants to remove the sin we received from birth (and validate as existing in our lives every day) by providing us “truth” on the inward parts.    David wrote another song that mirrors these two verses:

Psalms 15 (ESV)

Who Shall Dwell on Your Holy Hill?

A PSALM OF DAVID.

O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent?

Who shall dwell on your holy hill?

He who walks blamelessly and does what is right

and speaks truth in his heart;

who does not slander with his tongue

and does no evil to his neighbor,

nor takes up a reproach against his friend;

in whose eyes a vile person is despised,

but who honors those who fear the LORD;

who swears to his own hurt and does not change;

who does not put out his money at interest

and does not take a bribe against the innocent.

He who does these things shall never be moved.

That is the person who God delights in with blessings, honor and life.   But, that can’t happen without Jesus Christ’s providing the righteousness as He took our inward sin on the cross.   

Celebrating in the Spirit - 2 Samuel 5-9

 2 Samuel 6:20-23 (ESV)

And David returned to bless his household. But Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David and said, “How the king of Israel honored himself today, uncovering himself today before the eyes of his servants' female servants, as one of the vulgar fellows shamelessly uncovers himself!” And David said to Michal, “It was before the LORD, who chose me above your father and above all his house, to appoint me as prince over Israel, the people of the LORD—and I will celebrate before the LORD. I will make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased in your eyes. But by the female servants of whom you have spoken, by them I shall be held in honor.” And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child to the day of her death.

Apparently David’s celebration about bringing the Ark back to Jerusalem did not sit well with David’s wife, Michal.   As she observed out the window, she saw him “dancing before the Lord,” but interpreted it that David was flirting with the young females watching and possibly celebrating as well.   We have to understand, first, that the Ark returning to Jerusalem was the pinnacle of David’s life.  He will later want to build a house for it, a Temple.    David had just lost the life of one of his men, Uzziah, when he first attempted to bring the Ark to Jerusalem.   Michal did not share this enthusiasm and, instead, became resentful.  It would be a good guess that she resented that she was not the center of attention vs this Ark and the David’s fellow worshippers.   But, her suspicions were completely wrong.  David was in a state of worship.  Notice, however, how she mistook it for pleasure for David vs a sacrifice or praise.   This same thing happened in Acts 2 when the church was anointed with the Spirit.  Note:

Acts 2:12-13 (ESV)

And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”

Those observing the disciples thought they were drunk with wine.   This might be why Paul used that word picture to tell us what it looks like to be filled with the Spirit of God:

Ephesians 5:18 (ESV)

And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,

Apparently there is some likeness to the celebration in the Spirit and the being under control of pleasure and new wine.  Perhaps the outward appearance is the same, but the inward motivation is not.   One is indulgence in self-gratification.  The other is self-sacrifice in Spiritual indulgence.    David was truly in the Spirit and rejoicing in the hope that God was now with them in visual form via the Spirit of God.   This is the joy that came to David’s heart that came out in song and dance.   We don’t celebrate enough like this before God and His people.   We are so worried about the world’s view of our celebration we fail to say what David said to Michal:

It was before the LORD, who chose me above your father and above all his house, to appoint me as prince over Israel, the people of the LORD—and I will celebrate before the LORD. I will make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased in your eyes.

Blessings for Obedience - Exodus 17-20

 Exodus 19:1-6 (ESV)

Israel at Mount Sinai

On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. They set out from Rephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness. There Israel encamped before the mountain, while Moses went up to God. The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”

God wants to bless His people.   In the above verses we read about the nation of Israel and one of their early encounters with God.  God would speak to them both through Moses and, apparently, in auditable voice from the mountain.   In the above verses we read that God called to Moses “out of the Mountain.”  This must have been very strange to the people.  They could hear the voice, but see no one.  They could see the impact of God’s presence on the mountain.  Latter, at the end of this chapter, that will look like a storm with thunder and lighting and smoke.  The amazing part of the above verses is not how God chooses to communicate with the nation, but what He says to the nation. He gives them a promise that obedience equals blessings.   They agree to obey, but we know, based upon their long history that was not going to happen.   However, God still offers the convents with them.  God’s covenant with man has always been a covenant of obedience for obeying His Word.  Because He knows our sin and our failure to do so, He sent His son to obey His Word for us and now He writes that Word (that covenant) on our hearts through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  The nation of Israel could not obey and inherit the blessing.  We inherit the blessing through Christ and are given the power to obey through the Spirit. 

Hebrews 8:10-12 (ESV)

For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel

after those days, declares the Lord:

I will put my laws into their minds,

and write them on their hearts,

and I will be their God,

and they shall be my people.

And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor

and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’

for they shall all know me,

from the least of them to the greatest.

For I will be merciful toward their iniquities,

and I will remember their sins no more.”

Church Discipline - 2 Corinthians 1-3

2 Corinthians 1:23 - 2:1 (ESV)

But I call God to witness against me—it was to spare you that I refrained from coming again to Corinth. Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, for you stand firm in your faith.

For I made up my mind not to make another painful visit to you.

The two letters written to the church at Corinth are a great look into early church polity (how churches out to be governed and by who) and politics (how churches are actually governed and by who).   The Corinthian church was a political church, meaning they had many leaders leveraging their position to have authority over others.  Paul had begun the church on his second missionary journey.   Paul was, by all accounts the established leader of the church.  But, false prophets came into the church and not only preached against Christ, but also, against Paul.  Paul sent the first letter to correct them.  He then sent another letter (never actually discovered), referred to in 2 Corinthians 2:4.   Paul then writes 2 Corinthians (shouldn’t it be referred to as 3rd Corinthians in light of 2:4?).  In this letter he is attempting to defend himself and his ministry, while not defending himself.  He wants the fruit of his ministry to defend himself.  So, he is recalling to them his work among them.  

This all brings us to the above passage.  Paul would like to come to them again, but he wants them to have time to respond to this “severe letter” he wrote to them:

2 Corinthians 2:4 (ESV)

For I wrote to you out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to cause you pain but to let you know the abundant love that I have for you.

He does not want to lord over them his authority, but wants to give them time and space to respond to his letter and take the necessary correction, on their own, they should.  This teaches us much about Paul and how to correct the waywardness of others.   Paul wants to come to correct them face-to-face.  But, he also wants them to grow by grace and allow them to self-correct.  Of this passage note what one historian said:

(MacArthur New Testament Commentary Set (33 Vols.)) He knew that, as Augustine wrote, “As severity is ready to punish the faults which it may discover, so charity is reluctant to discover the faults which it must punish”

That should be how love for others manifests itself.  We know we have to have discipline and be severe about it (it is about the reputation of God).  But, we also know that we have to love about it, for love covers a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8).   So, it is important to let others hear the word of correction they need to hear and we are to communicate that to them.  But, it is equally true we need to give them time and space to take that correction and make the necessary changes in life to align again with the Word.   This is Paul’s demonstration of how to correct wayward believers in the Body of Christ.   He was righteous enough to address them, but he was gracious enough to allow them to change.   That is spiritual authority at its best.