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Speaker 3Okay this morning in this icebox we call home. I mean, and I just look just looking at you guys, I'm I'm really thankful to be a church family with you. I'm glad to be with you. I'm glad that we share Jesus in common. Amen?
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You with me there? And really, that's that's that's why we're here. We're here to meet with the Lord, give him adoration, praise, learn from him, be in his presence, hang out with him, grow in faith. And, what do you say we we kick this thing off by standing up and and singing?
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Speaker 2Alright. Lord of all creation. Water, earth, and sky. The heavens are your tabernacle. Glory to the Lord
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Speaker 3Early in the morning, we'll give him praise.
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Speaker 2I will celebrate the light. And as I stumble in the darkness, I will call your name by night. God of wonders beyond our galaxy. You are holy,
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Speaker 1Amen. Y'all can have a seat. Got a few announcements this morning, not many but a few. There are announcements in your bulletin every week. We keep on printing that thing.
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So, keep on reading it, alright? They're they're in there. There's no children's church day or Zoom next Sunday, January 10. First Friday fellowship. Now, this is something that ladies did years ago.
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They started this and then it's caught back on and so we've been doing it but the first Friday fellowship, if you're keeping score, first Friday was last Friday. I'm not announcing what happened last Friday. I'm announcing what didn't happen last Friday. We're doing it the second Friday this month only. So, first Friday fellowship will be this Friday even though that's the second Friday.
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Is that confusing enough for y'all? Alright, Monday nights is happening again. Monday, meal music and a message. Where are you gonna be this week?
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Speaker 3Philippians 2 and it's Pat Lexo. Bring a little sun. Go night.
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Speaker 1Alright. Sounds good. For all other announcements, check your bulletin. I think that that's it. Really?
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Is that it? Fantastic. Alright. Would you stand up and greet one another and the band will bring you back together with a song. Happy New Year.
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Speaker 3Alright. Let's sing the faithfulness of God.
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Speaker 2Pardon for sin, peace that endureth. Pardon for sin and the peace that endureth. Thine own dear presence
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Speaker 3Amen. Isn't that so true? I mean, when you think about it, God really is. He's faithful. He's faithful.
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He is he he not only just the the things that he provides for us physically, but think about all the spiritual blessings that come from knowing Jesus. You know, when you're struggling, you're having a hard time, and the presence of God is overwhelming and comforting, It's just good. It really is good. Part of the I'm singing an old hymn here. Holy, holy, holy.
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But in the chorus, from the cradle to the cross, God with us. For this broken world you love, God with us. You gave up your only son, God with us, so that all the world would know, God with us. Alright, we'll sing. Holy, holy, holy.
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Speaker 2Merciful and mighty, kindred in rebursons, blessed. From the
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Speaker 3cradle to the cross.
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Speaker 2From the cradle to the cross. God with us. God with us. For this broken world you love. God with that all world know our God with us.
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Holy holy Lord Almighty. From the cradle. From the cradle to the cross. God with us. God wins us.
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God
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Speaker 3with You gave on your own son. God with us. God
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Speaker 2with with us. So that old world know my God with us.
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Speaker 3Amen. Those lyrics weren't on the screen, were they? Were you kinda wondering, hey, Carl, where are you going with that song? But the word spoke, didn't they? I mean, it really is.
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God, we are we are grateful. We're grateful. We're we're coming to you as as worshipers, as broken people, and that's why he came. And grateful that you you draw us to yourself. You redeem us.
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You give us new life. You plant your spirit in us. You take out this heart of stone, and you give us a a soft, fleshy, heart, spirit that's moldable and shapeable. I pray that you would continue to sanctify us and make us more like your son, and, we're just reflecting right now and singing of of of your greatness. Amen.
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Speaker 2Alright. Water, you turned into wine. Alright. Into the darkness you shine. Into the darkness you shine.
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Out of the ashes we rise. There's none like you. Again. Our God is greater. Our God is greater.
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Our God is stronger. God, you are higher than any other. Our God is healer. Awesome in power. Our God, our God.
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Sing that
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Speaker 3Amen. You all can be seated. I'll invite the the frontline team to come forward here as we participate in the the worship of giving and you know, let me just pray on this. God, we are, we thank you for a new day. Thank you that your mercies are made new every day.
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We thank you that indeed you are with us. We thank you that you're mighty and strong and not just back then but right now. I thank you God for drawing people to yourself and for changing and transforming lives. That's what you are in the business of doing, and I pray that these gifts given, would just be another expression of our our worship, our adoration, our praise toward you. And, would you use these gifts to, further your kingdom?
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And I really mean that. I really mean that. There are many people right here in Jackson and to the ends of the world that have no idea what a great God you are and how wonderful you are and how merciful you are and how good you are. And would you use these gifts to reach those people? Would you use people to reach people?
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Would you use your spirit to reach these people? In Christ's name. Amen.
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Speaker 1So, how are y'all this morning? Fantastic. Good. I I am coming to the end of second Corinthians, and I'm I'm kinda lamenting that just a little bit. I tried to break it up into two or three more messages, but each attempt to break it up didn't really work for me.
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So I feel like the context, it's a little bit long. There's a half a chapter and then a whole chapter, but I think that we need it to roll on through this. So, it's one last loving defense, I'll say, from Paul. He's defending the gospel message. A lot of people read this as he's just defending himself but we'll try to see.
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He's he's trying to defend just the good old gospel way and an edgy and what I see is kind of a parental warning and I'll try to point that out as we go and then the beautiful benediction will just save and that'll be your benediction as you as we leave out of here but I think that we're just going to use Paul's words this morning for that benediction. So, second Corinthians twelve fourteen through thirteen fourteen. I didn't even look up to see how long we've been studying this. Seven, eight months probably feels like. How long?
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Somebody says two years? No. Not that long but we're going into Romans next. So, hey. Anyway, second Corinthians twelve fourteen through thirteen fourteen and I'm going to start in Jeremiah.
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So, here we go. This makes perfect sense, doesn't it? Just read, I'm going to read this straight through and take what you will out of it and then listen to the rest of what Paul has to say. Jeremiah twenty four one through three. Well, I'm going to go one through 10 but this is, after Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon had taken into exile from Jerusalem, Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, together with the officials of Judah, the craftsman, and the metal workers, and they brought them into Babylon.
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The Lord showed me. This Jeremiah speaking. The Lord showed me this vision. Behold, two baskets of figs placed before the temple of the Lord. One basket had very good figs like first ripe figs, first fruits but the other basket had very bad figs.
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So bad that they could not be eaten and the Lord said to me, what do you see, Jeremiah? And I said, figs. The good figs, very good, and the bad figs, very bad, so bad that they cannot be eaten. Then, the word of the Lord came to me. This is Jeremiah speaking.
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Thus, says the Lord, the God of Israel. Like these good figs, so I will regard. I will regard. I will treat them this way. So, I'll regard as good the exiles from Judah whom I have sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans.
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I'll set my eyes on them for good and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up and I will not tear them down. I will plant them and not pluck them up. I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord and they shall be my people and I will be their God. For they shall return to me with their whole heart.
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But thus says the Lord, like the bad figs that are so bad, they cannot be eaten, so will I treat Zedekiah, the king of Judah, his officials, the remnant of Jerusalem, who remains in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt. I will make them a horror for evil in the in the Hebrew. It's horror for evil. It's not just a horror, but I will make them a horror for evil to all the kingdoms of the earth to be a reproach, a byword, a taunt, and a curse in all the places where I shall drive them and I will send sword, famine, and pestilence upon them until they shall be utterly destroyed from the land that I gave to them and their fathers. Now, Jeremiah, you know, is a prophetic book, not a pathetic book.
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It's a prophetic book and Jeremiah was the weeping prophet. We call him the weeping prophet because he had forty years of faithful ministry to God and saw almost no fruit whatsoever. He would deliver the message that the Lord gave and the people would ignore it and not pay any attention to it whatsoever and then they'd suffer because of it because they didn't pay any attention. In fact, you know, they wrapped it around a rock, threw it in the river one time. Jeremiah goes back to God and says, but they wrapped it around a rock and they threw it the river and he says, yes, write this down.
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He gives him exactly the same message. He keeps on doing it. Forty years, same messages, and they're like this. It's a promise of God that he is gonna prosper. Those who turn their hearts to him and that there will be judgement for those who don't.
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So, that's where we're starting today because I think Paul references it at least twice in this text. And we'll go from there to second Corinthians twelve fourteen. Here for the third time, I'm ready to come to you and I will not be a burden for I seek not what is yours but you. Do you get that? So, last week, we're talking about how people, well, let's go ahead forwards and just see where he says it.
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I seek not what is yours but you. He knows that the super apostles are trying to undercut his message and trying to undercut him as the messenger They're trying to sweep his legs up from under him by saying that he's greedy and he's sneaky, and he'll get into that in a minute. But he's saying, I'm not seeking what is yours. I'm not coming after your money. I'm coming after you.
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I really love you. For children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. Does that make sense? You get that? The the parents don't inherit from the children, right?
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The children inherit from the parents normally, and he's saying, I am the father figure for this congregation, for you people. I'm the planter, if you wanna use an agricultural metaphor, but I'm the father of this church. I'm the one who saw you come to life. God is the head, but he says, for children are not obligated to save up for their parents. This is where I get that parental thing in a few minutes, we'll get back to that.
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But he's treating them like a father would his children. And I'm not seeking what's yours, I'm not trying to gain off of you, I just want you, your heart. For children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. I will most gladly spend and be spent. Everything that I have, he says, I will spend and be spent for your souls.
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But you, I'm looking for you, not what you have, but you, your heart, your souls. If I love you more, Paul says, am I to be loved less? Now, the other guys had been taking from them and had been manipulating the situation, undercutting Paul's message, and receiving from them. Paul chose not to receive any pay while he was in Corinth. Now, he was being supported by churches in Macedonia, Philippi, and different different places but he was not receiving anything from them because he knew where they place value.
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It was a rich place. Money was very very important and he knew that if he went in there and accepted funds for it, that that would be the charge. Well, it was the charge and he wasn't even doing it. Does that make sense? Are you with me?
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If I love you more, am I to be loved less? The other guys are saying, don't trust him. Don't believe him. Don't trust him. Don't believe him.
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But granting that I myself did not burden you while I was there and he spent eighteen months there the first time and he spent a mournful visit the second time. He's preparing for his third visit to him right now. Granting that I, myself, did not burden you. Would you agree with that? People granting, I did not burden you.
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Most people would have said, well, no, while you were here, no, I know you you work for your living. You did tents. You're building with Priscilla and Aquila. You weren't, you wouldn't accept anything from us. Granting that I myself did not burden you.
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I was crafty. You say, or the other guys say, and got the better of you by deceit. Now, crafty and deceit being in the same sentence reminds me of something we had just a chapter ago. Second Corinthians eleven three, Paul is telling the same people but I'm afraid that just as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and the purity of devotion to Christ. That's Paul's whole message right there.
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And he's now being accused of being crafty himself and he's not. Did I take advantage of you through any of those who I sent to you? This is his defense. Remember I said we're having a defense then a parental warning and then a benediction. Did I take advantage of you through any of those who I sent to you?
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The grammar on this one, if it's not clear in English, in Greek, it very, very much is clear. No, I did not. You have to say no to that. You know I didn't take advantage of you. I urge Titus to go.
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I felt like God was needing somebody there and Titus accepted the call from God, from me. I urge Titus to go and I sent another. He'd already mentioned a fairly famous brother, some preacher, somebody, pastor. He sent with Titus. I urged Titus to go and I sent the brother with him.
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Did Titus take advantage of you? Now, they love Titus and he knows that. Titus is there with Paul and Macedonia when he's writing this. He's just gotten a good report back from Titus and he says, did Titus take advantage of you? And in Greek, no.
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He didn't. There's no way Titus didn't take advantage of you. Y'all know that. So, he's building a case here. Did we not act in the same spirit?
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Now, they both have the same spirit. We all know as Christians with our good theology. We know that when you are a Christian, you have the Holy Spirit. So, did we act in the same spirit? Paul and Titus.
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Yes. Obvious in the Greek, he expects a yes response. Did we not take the same exact steps? If we're following the footsteps of our master, will we take the same steps? He and Titus, yes, he did.
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So he's building a case, that's his defense. But he goes from there to say it's not just a defense of me, This is the next thing he gets to. Have you been thinking a whole along? This whole time, people. Have you been thinking while you're reading this in your church?
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Have you been thinking that this whole letter was me that we have been defending ourselves to you? Can you hear the, to you? Really? I'm not defending myself to you. I'm not I'm not trying to defend myself to you.
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It's in the sight of God that we've been speaking in Christ. Everything that I've been saying is in the sight of God. I'm saying it in sincerity. I'm saying it before you because I feel like it's good for you. It's not because I'm lording it over you.
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I really feel like it's good for you. It's for your upbuilding. Beloved, now remember that from Jeremiah, he said, I'm going to take these people and I'm going to do it for their upbuilding and not to tear them down but to build them up. It's in the sight of God that we have been speaking in Christ and all of your upbuilding. Beloved, he's still loving him, right?
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Now, this tone in the last three chapters, last four chapters, ten, eleven, twelve, and thirteen has been pretty harsh especially when compared to chapters one through nine where he's pretty meek and mild, gentle, and loving the whole time but still here that he's dripping with love for these people. He cares about him. He knows who they are. He's been with them for, like I said, eighteen months the first time. Who knows how long the mournful visit was, a few weeks?
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And it broke his heart when he was there for the mournful visit. Now, he's gotten a good report back from Titus but he's pretty sure that there's still meddlers and still troublemakers, super apostles, people who would divide. And so he says, I'm saying all this not to defend myself, but I'm really saying it before Christ for your upbuilding. To deny the messenger of God in this case, especially now, there are lot of people who purport to be messengers of God, who don't carry the message of God. And that's what Paul is saying right now.
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But to deny him as God's messenger is to deny the message. He doesn't have anything else. He doesn't have any other agenda except for the message of the cross. Jesus Christ will give to whoever will accept it. His perfect righteousness.
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He lived out on earth. He will give that to you if you will humble yourself before him. That's Paul's message. Everywhere he goes, he starts in the synagogue and then he goes from there. And he does this for your upbuilding.
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He he really does it for you. And then he goes into, for I fear. We don't hear Paul talk about fearing stuff very often. He runs into some pretty horrible situations and he goes right on into him knowing but he he says that he fears here. For I fear that perhaps, maybe, I'm not quite sure about this but perhaps, when I come, I may not find you as I wish and that you may not find me as you wish.
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That perhaps there may be quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder. All of those things he's mentioned to him before in first Corinthians. Every single one of those. He's mentioned them lightly in second Corinthians and this is what he's fearing and if you want to see sin in second Corinthians, here it is. These are the things that he does not want to be happening.
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He wants to find it different than this. So, there's your list, people. The parental warning. I I think it's interesting that Paul says that he sets it up as he's he sees them as a parent with their children. He's giving everything that he can to them And then he says, I think when I come back there to your room, I'm afraid that I might see that the bed's not made.
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Do you hear that? Can you hear him saying, I'm afraid when I get there, things are gonna be a miss. You're just gonna have the toy stuffed under the bed. They're not gonna be where they go. But he's intimating this to them from a distance before he comes.
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He's given them the parental warning, right? He's saying ahead of time. So, parental warning. I love this, Simon Kistemacher's commentary says, this is a syntactical parallel that stresses the negative. And he's talking about this, I may find you not as I wish.
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I'm afraid that I might find your bedroom not in order. And I'm afraid when that happens, you will not find me as you wish, loving, gracious, benevolent, for all to see. So for teenagers, here you go. I may find you not as I wish and that will make me angry. You may find me not as you wish and that will make you either sad or confused or surprised or whatever those other two mean.
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For I fear that perhaps and he's not saying that this is definitely the case. From Titus's report, things are going well but Paul knows that it's always it's always there. There's always something there and there are some in there that are pushing for the wrong thing. Now, I've said for a long time, we don't know exactly whether they are Judaizers who want them to be legalist or whether they are people who want for them to just have complete license to do whatever they want to do. But Paul is preaching that good old gospel way.
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It's a balance. What's Paul afraid he will find? Quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, disorder. Now those things are not the list that we typically think of when somebody says sin, are they? I mean, they ought to be because those are the ones we're probably most of us are more prone to than the biggies these days.
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I won't even say what they are. Quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, disorder. Conceit is interesting because he just had. Remember last week, he said, the thorn in the flesh had been given him so that he would not become conceited. God was going to keep him humble by that thorn in the flesh.
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That's what he's afraid he will find. I fear that when I come again and he's preparing for the third visit, I'm coming back there. Right? I'm coming back. I'm gonna see you.
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I'm giving you warning. I fear that when I come again, my God may humble me before you because for nine chapters people, I've been telling you how it was. I I've been encouraging you. I know that you're believers. I saw you accept accept him.
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I saw you growing in Christ. I know how it is but I fear when I come back there that my God may humble me before you and that I may have to mourn over many of those who sinned earlier. Now, we know in first Corinthians, oh my goodness, it was all the biggie, the biggie sins, homosexuality, adultery, incest, all kinds of crazy stuff was happening and I fear that when I come again, my God may humble me before you and I may have to mourn over many of those who sinned earlier and have not repented. That's where it goes right there. Have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and sensuality.
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So we've got this list of the ones that we're probably mostly more prone to. Although these, we're human beings and we're prone to these two. So Paul's given us two quick lists right now. But unrepentance is the main thing that he's afraid he might see. So in 1321, unrepentance from impurity, sexual immorality, sensuality.
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I'm afraid when I come back there, it's gonna be filthy. He's telling them ahead of time. Now, I will point out this half practice right there that is habitually in the past. That was the normal pattern of your life for the time. Before you met Christ, that was a normal pattern of your life and I saw how you accepted him and that he gave you a new heart.
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He renewed your mind. You repented but it's it's kind of easy to slide back over into that place. And so that's what he's saying. I'm afraid when I come back there, I'm going to find that you've backslidden And that's gonna be heartbreaking. I'm gonna mourn that loss because I know the goodness of the gospel.
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And I know that you like that better than your sin. Okay, so edgy. I feel like Paul's a little bit edgy, and here he's going to get a little bit more edgy, it seems. Tense, nervous, or irritable, edgy. Anxious, apprehensive, uneasy, unsettled.
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Now, typically, I don't think of Paul this way. I generally think of think of Paul as being loving now that I'm a pastor. I think of him as being very loving because he's trying to help people avoid the things that hurt people. When he gets to this portion in 13, he says, alright. Now, this is the third time I'm coming to you.
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Do you get that? He's he's saying, I'm coming down there. I'm coming back. I'm walking down the hall now. I'm coming towards your room.
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This is the third time I'm coming to you. I've been there once. I know how you were. I've been there the second time. My goodness, it was terrible.
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You remember that, don't you? Every charge must be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. Now, this is the this is the gospel of grace guy, Paul and he's quoting Deuteronomy nineteen sixteen to him. Alright, I'm coming back there and dog on it. It's going to be objective.
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Every charge is going to have two or three witnesses have to establish it. I warned those who sinned before and all the others too in the midst of the assembly. And I warned them now while I'm absent. I'm doing this right now in this letter. I'm giving you warning.
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Don't say I didn't tell you. Just as I did when present on my second visit, that if I come again, I will not spare them. This is it. The line. This is it.
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Now, Paul, let's use agricultural metaphor for a while. Paul is the one who planted this church and he saw his God's crops but God's given the increase but Paul is seeing the crops come up, okay? Paul did the planning. God's given the increase and Paul looks at him and he sees a blight on the crops. He sees noxious weed around here if you want to call it that.
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He sees something that's happening and he is heartbroken over it. He says, if I come again, I'm gonna do some pruning or I'm gonna do some weeding. I'm gonna get them out of there. Now, I have the authority to do that. I'm the I'm the father in this situation.
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I have the authority to do that. I've got God's good old gospel message and if there are people who are distorting that, they need to be uprooted and out of there. So, when I come again, I'm not going to spare them. This is harsh from Paul but it's straight up. According to Jeremiah, God's either going to prosper him or he's going to utterly destroy them and so Paul is acting as his messenger just like Jeremiah.
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Since you seek proof that Christ is speaking in me, he is not weak in dealing with you. He is going to either deal with you. He's not weak. He's not going say, well, okay. I guess it's alright.
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You know, the room's dirty. It's okay. It's fine. You'll be okay. I'll clean it up for you.
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Nope. He's saying, I'm going to be powerful in you. I'm going to help you but I'm helping you by giving this warning. Now, do it people. Pay attention.
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For he was crucified in weakness but he lives by the power of God. We are also weak in him. Paul's been boasting about his weaknesses for several couple of chapters now. For we also are weak in him but in dealing with you, we will live with him by the power of God. So, we're going to take the authority that he's given people and we're going to clean house.
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We're going to do this. You do it ahead of time. Get right. The next verse is quoted a lot. You see this a lot.
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I've I've seen it a lot lately. Examine yourselves to see whether you're in the faith. You do the scan yourself. My mom did this all the time. No, you go back there and you tell me whether it's ready.
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I'm not gonna come back there and point out the little things. You go back there and you check it out yourself. And when you think it's ready, then you come get me. Examine yourselves to see whether you're in the faith. Test yourselves.
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Self examination is a part of the Christian life. You have to go through it. Self examination. Now, some of the super apostles and some of the theologians around at the time were questioning Paul on finer points of how does Christ do this? The same thing that theologians still fight over today.
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They're judging whether or not a certain Christology or a certain theology is right or correct or if Paul has articulated it properly, they're arguing equivalent over details and Paul is asking them right here. He says, don't be testing him. Turn it around. Don't test his standards. Don't look at that and judge from yourself.
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You're the created being, not the creator. He's the creator. He is the one that's gonna be judging ultimately you. So you judge yourselves. He's given you the standards.
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I've given you the standards. Paul says, examine yourselves to see whether you're in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize about this that Jesus Christ lives in you? You can access this.
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The Holy Spirit is in you. Jesus Christ is in you. He's alive. He will help you. If you'll just humble yourself, people.
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Humble yourself and he will show you. Or do you not realize this about you that Christ Jesus is in you? That one's a positive too. That demands a positive response in Greek. So, he believes that these people, the by and large, the Corinthian church are Christians.
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This is not to cast doubt on your faith. This is the way that I've heard it most used lately where people are saying, Now test yourselves just to see whether you're in the faith. You might not be a Christian. You may not be a Christian at all. You might think you're saved, but you're not saved.
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Oh my goodness. Christ's power to save is there for everyone who calls out for it. Or do you not realize this about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you, Christian? He's given you the power. He's given you the power.
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You can access this. You can with his power clean up your life. You can do it. I'm asking you to do it before I get there. I don't want for it to be another mournful visit.
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I wanna get there and enjoy Christ together. Unless indeed you fail to meet the test. Now, this is where I say that to have the roles reversed where you're sitting in judgment over God or Christology or theology or Paul, and just instead of God being the one that's sitting here trembling, remove the roles, consider him the judge, reverse the roles. And then you're sitting there trembling before him and saying, God have mercy on me, a sinner. I will do whatever you direct me to do.
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Thank you for giving me the power to clean my life. I want my will in line with yours. Before I didn't even know what it was. You've given me the power. You'll give this to me unless indeed you fail to meet the test.
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If you're sitting in judgment over God, over theology, over the messenger that's bringing the message of the cross, you're failing to meet the test. A posture of humility is what's required before God. That's what Paul is asking for. I hope you'll find out that we have not failed the test. Paul is confident.
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So I kept these two verses together because some people say, with this verse, how in the world could you ever have any assurance at all? What is the test? I don't even know what the test is. Turn to first John, it's like two pages long. He's got four or five tests in there.
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Do you love the brothers and sisters in Christ? Do you walk in the light? Do you hide your evil deeds and pretend to be good? I hope you'll find out that we have not failed the test. So Paul has blessed assurance right here.
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And we can have that blessed assurance too if our attitude is that of humility before God. Does that make sense? Are you with me? Is this a sobering message for anybody? Me too.
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But we pray to God that you may not do wrong. Yeah, I don't want you, I mean, I don't want you sinning. But remember last week I actually said this, I said, honestly, I'm not concerned about what you do. I'm concerned about who you are. If you're in Christ, then you and Christ will clean your life up and what you do will change based on who you are.
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Doing follows being. He's talking about doing now but we pray to God that you may not do wrong but that's not so that we may appear to have met the test. That's not to authenticate my message necessarily. It's not to make me look good because you're, you know, morally upright. That's not to make me look good, Paul but not that we may appear to have met the test but that you may do what is right.
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Actually, do what is right. It's not about fear of God. It's not about fear of man. It's about actually doing what's right. Even though we may have seemed to fail the test.
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I don't care how it makes us look is what Paul's saying. Do you get that? Doesn't matter to me what I look like in the equation. I see some confused looks. It doesn't matter to me how it makes me look.
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I just want y'all to be who you are in Christ and therefore do what it is that you would do as a child of God. Do you get that? All right. For anything, we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong.
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Your restoration is what we pray for. Now, this little thing, we couldn't get out of here without one Greek word. Katartissus is a perfecting or a making fit. Restoration is actually really good. The other place where it's used in the New Testament is when the disciples were mending their nets.
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They were restoring them to the place where they actually worked. They did what they were supposed to do when they are restoring. Perfecting is scary. Anytime we hear perfection, it's kinda scary. We're like, moral perfection.
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Oh my goodness. But it's talking about your restoration. That's what we pray for. Making it fit for God's work. Your restoration is what we always pray for.
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It's interesting though that this is one of those things where Paul is saying, you restoring yourselves. Wow. It's with the power of God certainly but it's you restoring yourself. You do take part in this process. He's asking him to take part in the process.
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Do it. Do what you can. In humility and God will help you. For this reason, I write these things while I'm away from you that when I come, I may not have to be severe in my use of authority that the Lord has given me. He's saying, I'm going to do it.
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I've got my switches. No, I'm sorry, belt. No, no, I'm sorry. I I will do what I have to do when I get there. I'll weed the garden when I have to but I'd rather that you just, those of you who are Christians, the majority of you, who are Christians, silence these people who are getting away from the truth of the gospel.
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The authority that the Lord has given me, why did God give him the authority for building up and not for tearing down? He wants to build up the church. Now, he's willing to tear down those other guys because that's not the church. And to weed them out and to pull them off to the side, as God says, utterly destroyed, burned up. He's willing to go through and make those distinctions if he has to, but he's given them every possible chance to straighten up, to lean into God, to trust God, and let him work.
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Are you with me? Do you get that? Is that it? Let's go back to Jeremiah for a minute. Jeremiah 20 four:six-seven says, I will set This is God speaking.
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Think about this, this is the Lord. Think about Jesus saying this. Now I will set my eyes on them for good. Christian, Christ has set his eye on you for good. For good.
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And I will bring them back into this land, backslidden Christian. I'll bring you back into the center of the good old gospel road. Legalistic Christian, I'll bring you back into the center of the good old gospel way. I will build them up and not tear them down. I will plant them, says the Lord and not pluck them up.
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I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord. And they shall be my people and I will be their God. For they shall return to me with their whole heart. It is absolutely open for you to humble yourself before the Lord, come to him and he will take you. And he will save you.
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And he'll help you clean yourself up. Alright, I think that's it. I know it's not time yet but it's it. Would y'all stand with us and we're going to sing blessed assurance? I could go on and on about the blessed assurance.
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Don't use this verse to tear down somebody or to inject doubt into a life of someone who's already before the Lord humbly quivering before him.
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Speaker 2This is our story and it's our song. And this is my story and this is my song, praising my savior all the day long. And this is my story, this is my song, raising my
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Speaker 1Amen. Alright. Now, I've got a four verse benediction. I want you to think about this for a second. This is the way Paul closes out second Corinthians.
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So, he's been broadcasting the gospel message the whole time and here at the end, he does focus on judgement. I am a mercy guy. I've already told you, if I'm in a ditch, it's the mercy Ditch, not the judgment Ditch. I know that. If you wanna talk about this, the invitation is not just walk the aisle, meet me here for five minutes on Sunday.
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My door's open and y'all are welcome to come in and talk about whatever. I'm gonna have a merciful slant. If you need a kick in the behind, I've got people to send you to, alright? I'm serious. I'm dead serious.
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So, Paul, a four four verse benediction to close. It's from second Corinthians 11 through 14. Rejoice. Rejoice. Be happy about it.
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God loves you. He has set his eye upon you for good. Aim for restoration. Amen. That's your aim.
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Look for the end. Aim for restoration. Comfort one another. Agree with one another. Unity.
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There it is. Again, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. You're on your own.
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No, I'm just kidding. Greet one another with a holy kiss. Be, you should show the affection that you have for one another. That's what he said. All the saints greet you.
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Think about the church triumphant. All the believers around the world in the most far reaching places. All of those saints greet you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, the triune formula right there, God, father, son, and Holy Spirit. Be with you all.
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Amen. Amen.
