2 Corinthians - Lesson 6B

• This morning, we return to the book or the letter of 2 Corinthians. When we last left off, we only made it through verse 1 of Chapter 6. So, as I often do, I want to back up and re-read the previous verse, or verses, as a segway into today’s teaching.

  • And here’s what Paul wrote:

2 Cor. 6:1 And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain.

• Last time we were together, we talked specifically about what it meant to ‘Receive the Grace of God in vain’, and without going back over all of what was said, the core of what Paul meant was we should never take for granted the Salvation that God has given us. And we all know this to be the case, but the question is, why? Why does it happen?

  • It happens when our memory fades, when we begin to just go through the motions of church. More specifically, when we fail to do our part; essentially fail to do the work of the ministry. Fail to pray every day, fail to study on our own (And by the way, devotionals will not substitute for your own study of God’s word). Devotionals are okay for a fill-in, problem is, devotionals do not contain the power to bring salvation or sanctification into someone’s life. Only God’s Word can do that.

  • Nothing wrong with reading a devotional, as long as you know the author is a solid bible teacher. But even at that, it’s supplemental to your time spent in God’s word. And so, when our Spiritual Disciplines begin to wane, when you fail to pray and study correctly on your own, you find yourself in a place where you take your salvation in vain. It’s just that simple.

  • You can’t make a profession of faith (join the team), and never participate. Christianity is a team sport, and it requires your involvement. And so, Paul says never take the grace of God in vain. And then he says, moving into verse 2:

2 Cor. 6:2 for He says,
“AT A FAVORABLE TIME, I LISTENED TO YOU,
AND ON A DAY OF SALVATION, I HELPED YOU.”
Behold, now is “A FAVORABLE TIME,” behold, now is “A DAY OF SALVATION”.

• As with most of what Paul wrote, he wrote with a sense of urgency, especially as it related to salvation, because he knew time was running out.

  • And so, he recites a quote from Isaiah 49:8 in an effort to stress the importance of responding immediately. He says, at a ‘favorable time’ I listened to you, and on a day of salvation I helped you, and behold, now is ‘a favorable time’. Behold, now is ‘a day of salvation’.

  • In the context of the prophet Isaiah’s quote, God was addressing His servant Isaiah (whom the nations despised). God was making a promise through Isaiah, promising an eventual vindication and urging him to restore his people.

    • The parallel of Paul’s quote of Isaiah and the Corinthian Church’s ministry is obvious. Rather than squabbling among themselves over Paul, the readers needed to get on with the work that God had given them to do. Which then leads Paul to say this in verse 3. And let me say, verse 3 really ties back to verse 1 as it relates to becoming vain in our salvation. This is what he said:

2 Cor. 6:3 giving no reason for taking offense in anything, so that the ministry will not be discredited,

• What Paul was saying to this church (and by extension to the church of today) was, be cognitive and aware of your actions. People are watching! Give no reason for anyone to take offense in anything you do, so that the ministry will not be discredited.

  • This concept is a simple one, yet it seems to be one that Christians of today seem to ignore or completely miss altogether, and that is, we can cause people to stumble through our witness. As I have told you many times, our witness is not simply what we say, but how we act.

    • Paul said, never give any cause for others to stumble. That’s what he means when he says, ‘giving no reason for taking offense in anything’. And why? Because they didn’t want their ministry to be discredited.

  • Now obviously, we cannot prevent all criticism of our ministry, because there will always be some who take offense without good reason. But regardless, we should always do everything we can to make sure that we do not give anyone cause for justifiable criticism.

• Let me say, I believe Paul’s words are more applicable today. Maybe more than they have ever been. You see, in so many ways, most of which they don’t even think about, the church has completely absolved itself of any responsibility of offending the outside world. Meaning, Christians today very rarely think about their actions as it relates to having an effect on the outside world. 

  • And what’s interesting is, the offensiveness of the Church is often directly related back to what Paul said in verse 1. Which was what?

  • “Taking the grace of God in vain”. In other words, when we begin taking God’s grace for granted. Which is what? Taking for granted what God has done for you, it automatically causes something to begin to well up inside an individual; a thing called pride.

    • One precipitates the other. Pride is the opposite of humility, and humility is what takes hold when we don’t take God’s grace for granted. The increasing or decreasing of humility all revolves around your daily discipline of prayer and spending time in God’s word. I digress, but you get the point. Moving on.

• Next, Paul gives us some insight into what it’s like to be a part of the original prosperity gospel. If you don’t know what the prosperity gospel is, it’s the gospel that says if you join God’s team, if you make a profession of faith, your life will prosper in every way. Mainly, earthly ways, especially financially.

  • Now when I say this is the original prosperity gospel, you guys probably think I am joking. I’m actually not. In these verses you will read about the prosperity gospel, but it’s prosperity according to God’s word, brought to us through the eyes of Paul. It’s still prosperity; just not the way many of today’s Churches describe it.

    • Let’s see what Paul says about his and the other’s lives as Apostles as it relates to their prosperity. We begin with verse 4-9:

2 Cor. 6:4 but in everything commending ourselves as servants of God, (so they are servants of God),

• He says - But in everything commending ourselves as servants of God in much endurance, in afflictions, in hardships, in difficulties,

2 Cor. 6:5 in beatings, in imprisonments, in mob attacks, in labors, in sleeplessness, in hunger,
2 Cor. 6:6 in purity, in knowledge, in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in genuine love,
2 Cor. 6:7 in the word of truth, and in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left,
2 Cor. 6:8 by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true;
2 Cor. 6:9 as unknown and yet well known, as dying and yet behold, we are alive; as punished and yet not put to death,
2 Cor. 6:10 as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing and yet possessing all things.

• Once again, a whole lot being said here, and a whole lot being relayed to you and me. Paul says, we commend ourselves as servants of God in much.

  • Endurance

  • Afflictions,

  • Hardships,

  • Difficulties,

  • Sleeplessness,

  • And hunger

    • Paul says they commend themselves in much endurance. The word endurance here by the way, is the Greek word hupnmone (hoop-om-on-ay). Its usage would be that of endurance, steadfastness, patiently-waiting for.

  • 5281 hypomonḗ (from 5259 /hypó, "under" and 3306 /ménō, "remain, endure") – properly, remaining under, endurance; steadfastness, especially as God enables the believer to "remain (endure) under" the challenges He allots in life.

• What Paul is saying is that God gives them the strength to endure, to wait, to endure the challenges of life. And because they endure (because no one could endure what they have endured without the strength of God), they stand as proof of, or in line with, God.

  • In other words, because of what we have endured, and the fact that they are still standing firm in their faith, still servants of God, this alone is proof that they are who they say they are. And this is interesting when you stop to think about it, especially in light of how the church of today or Christians of today view their faith. Follow me here for just a minute.

    • Today, when something good happens to us, most of us say praise the Lord or we are so blessed, but when something bad happens what do we usually say? O no! O my! That’s so bad. I’m sorry. Let’s pray. Let’s ask God to fix it.

  • But according to Paul’s own words, it’s the trials of life that bring the greatest testimony. Not prosperity as the world views prosperity. As believers we still receive prosperity, but it’s a different type of prosperity. It’s God’s prosperity. It’s a prosperity that comes from within. From knowing that you are Serving Him, and despite all circumstances, and let me say, I don’t know of one place in scripture where something ‘good’ happens; worldly good; possessions or stuff; and that event or situation is tied directly to a positive testimony or witness for God.

    • Based on what many churches are teaching today, you would think that would be the case, but it’s actually the opposite of that, which is not surprising, because with God it’s always right the opposite of what we think. God’s own word proves that point. For example, in His own words.

    • The First will be last and the last will be first, and the greatest of these on earth will be least of these in Heaven. It’s all reversed, and we see it here once again in Paul’s writing. They endure because God makes them endure, and all for the sake of the testimony or the witness they project.

• Now in light of this information, I think this should cause us to pause and reflect. Pause and reflect and ask ourselves the question, ‘does our life in any way resemble what Paul is trying to convey’? In other words, would the world look at us today and say, ‘wow, look at all that you have endured, and in spite of all that they are still standing with God?

  • You see, this is the powerful testimony that Paul and the other Apostles conveyed to the world, and in some respects, it’s the most powerful testimony they could convey. The difficulties of life that you and I endure deliver our greatest testimony to the world around us.

    • And so, when we look at Paul’s own life and his testimony to this Church, we would say the greater the difficulty, hardship, trial, and pain, the greater the testimony. And just exactly how bad was their hardship, trial, and pain?

  • Well, let’s look one more time.

    • Sleeplessness

    • Hunger

    • Beatings

    • Imprisonment

    • Mob Attacks

    • Labor

  • Pretty bad, isn’t it? But what’s interesting is after Paul describes their hardships and difficulties, he immediately shifts gears and says not only are we servants of God in the bad things, but we also are servants of God in the good things as well. As a matter of fact, these bad things have precipitated (given way to) these good things. Look at what he says, starting with verse 4 and moving forward into verse 6 one more time.

2 Cor. 6:4 but in everything commending ourselves as servants of God,
2 Cor. 6:5 in beatings, in imprisonments, in mob attacks, in labors, in sleeplessness, in hunger,

• And then the shift, where he says,

2 Cor. 6:6 in purity, in knowledge, in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in genuine love,
2 Cor. 6:7 in the word of truth, and in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left, 

• Verse 5 gives us what we would consider the bad stuff. All that they have endured. But after mentioning the bad stuff, straight away, he shifts and says this in Verse 6,

2 Cor. 6:6 in purity, in knowledge, in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in genuine love,
2 Cor. 6:7 in the word of truth, and in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left, 

• In other words, in all things we still stand as servants of God. In how we are treated and in how we respond. Even in our purity, our moral standing, our knowledge; specifically, our understanding of God (who He is) (His plans for creation, which includes us and our lives), even in our patience, we are patient because of Him and because of all we have endured.

  • And in our kindness. This kindness reflects a generous and sympathetic disposition, and it manifests itself in good deeds or actions. And then he says, all this is manifest through and by the Holy Spirit. And finally, he mentions two words - genuine love. In genuine love. What is genuine love?

  • It’s a love that is not:

    • 505 anypókritos (an adjective, derived from alpha-privative 1 /A "not" and 5271 /hypokrínomai, "to act as a hypocrite") – properly, not a phony ("put on"), it’s sincere - and free from hidden agendas (selfish motives) – literally, "without hypocrisy" (unfeigned).

  • Another way to say it would be, in all things, whether bad or good, we are true blue and pure servants of God. And, what a message for all Christian men and women listening today. If you are saved, then grow and mature in Him so that you can be more than just a Christian in name only. Grow and mature so that you don’t discredit God’s ministry.

• And then finally, Paul says something that might seem insignificant, but it kind of binds all this together, and that is they are genuine in the word of truth, and in the power of God, by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left. A reference to “The word of truth” here is more than likely a reference to truthful speech, or perhaps the message of truth.

  • Meaning, the message they are bringing, which is obviously everything they speak about, but certainly the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In other words, Paul is letting this church know through this letter that when he speaks, he speaks in truth.

  • By the way, you can still sense the frustration in Paul’s words. Of him having to continue his defense of himself and the other Apostles. To get a better understanding of what he is saying, it’s kind of like telling someone the truth, but you sense they don’t believe you. Have you ever had that happen?

    • Well, that would be the sense of what he is saying, and there is nothing more frustrating than speaking truth and the people you are speaking it to act as if they don’t believe you. Which is particularly true in Paul’s case, where he is speaking truth to a church he founded. A church he hasn’t visited for a while, and now he finds himself in the position of having to defend himself. That would be pretty frustrating.

    • Next, after saying they are servants in the word of truth, he mentions the “power of God by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left”. Dr. Thomas Constable describes Paul’s reference to the power of God along with these weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left in this way. He stated the following:

  • Paul described some of the conditions under which he ministered and some of the methods he used.

    • Weapons may refer to the sword of the Spirit (the Word of God) and the shield of faith (cf. Rom. 6:13; Eph. 6:11-17; 1 Thess. 5:8). The right hand normally attacked with a sword, and the left hand defended with a shield. However, these are weapons of righteousness, which are the spiritual weapons that God supplies.

• Having said that, another possibility, which is not necessarily mutually exclusive, is that weapons of righteousness may refer to the weapons that come from doing right, personal integrity. Righteousness often refers to right conduct in the New Testament. The right hand and the left may then be a figurative expression (merism) for all acts.

  • Matthew Henry suggested that temptations on the right might refer to prosperity, and temptations on the left to adversity.[291]. He said, "We stand in need of the grace of God to arm us against the temptations of honor on the one hand, so as to bear good report without pride, and of dishonor on the other hand, so as to bear reproaches without recrimination."

  • Before moving on, I would like to mention at least two things about verse 7. Number 1 - if you are a believer, you have access to the power of God through the Holy Spirit that lives inside you. This may seem cliché, and the term has been somewhat hijacked by many in the charismatic movement.

    • So often, the term has been used as if there is some ‘superpower’ the Christian can access, and although it is supernatural, it’s not something you summon supernaturally. In other words, it’s not hidden, just waiting for you to learn how to access the power. For all you Star Wars fans, it’s not like learning how to harness the force.

    • The power that God gives us comes through the knowledge and understanding of Him, which then gives way to confidence. A confidence that then gives us a “Peace that Passes all Understanding”. And they only way you can access that confidence is by intimately knowing Him. Specifically knowing that He has got you. That He is with you. That no matter what, good or bad, God is working all things to His Glory.

• I love the way the Psalmist says it in the 23rd Psalm

A Psalm of David.
Psalm 23:1 The LORD is my shepherd,
            I shall not want.
Psalm 23:2  He makes me lie down in green pastures;
            He leads me beside quiet waters.
Psalm 23:3  He restores my soul;
            He guides me in the paths of righteousness
            For His name’s sake.
Psalm 23:4  Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
            I fear no evil, for You are with me;
            Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Psalm 23:5  You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
            You have anointed my head with oil;
            My cup overflows.
Psalm 23:6  Surely goodness and loving kindness will follow me all the days of my life,
            And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

• King David eloquently describes what is the true Power of God. These words personify the very essence of what I Paul is trying to convey, and that is, God is totally Sovereign and in control of everything. Which includes your life and all the circumstances surrounding it. There simply cannot be a greater power than the power that comes from knowing. Knowing that the creator of the universe has got you!

  • That applies whether you can see what’s happening or not.

    • Now, I am not saying there aren’t other intangibles that apply to the power of God, but they all manifest themselves through the knowledge and understanding of who He is and where you stand with Him. And as previously stated, when all this comes full circle in your life, it yields confidence.

• Moving on, Paul finishes this section with verses 8-10, and here is what he said:

2 Cor. 6:8 by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true; 
2 Cor. 6:9 as unknown yet well-known, as dying yet behold, we live; as punished yet not put to death, 
2 Cor. 6:10 as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing yet possessing all things.

• Once again, Paul continues contrasting words and situations and circumstances as it relates to their commitment to God, as servants of the Lord. He says,

  • By Glory and Dishonor

  • By Evil report and Good Report

  • Regarded as deceivers and yet true

  • As unknown yet well-known

  • As dying yet behold, we live as punished yet not put to death

  • As sorrowful yet always rejoicing

  • As poor yet making many rich

  • As having nothing yet possessing all things

• Now, I am going to close here this morning, but before I do I want to clarify part of what Paul is saying. When Paul says by glory and dishonor, or by evil report and good report, he is simply saying, regardless of what’s being said and regardless of human opinion, whether good or bad, we stand as servants of God.

  • And we are who we say we are! And no matter our situation, we remain. Which once again, is a great word for us to hear and understand. Our faith should never waiver, or blow in the wind, no matter our plight. We must stand on what we know to be true, and once again, you can’t do that unless you are confident.

    • One of my primary jobs as a ‘Pastor Teacher’ is to help eliminate the confusion in the mind of the believer, and I would tell you that this has never been needed more than it is today for the Church of the 21st century. For the most part, most people who claim to be Christian don’t not know what they believe. They just simply are. They’re here, and in many cases, their faith is nothing more than a footnote. A ‘good idea’.

    • But it has no roots, no depth. The picture that Paul paints here is a picture we must embrace, and the question for the day is, how do we get to this place? To a place in which we say whether rich or poor, good or bad, sickness or good health, death or life, God you are my rock and my refuge. You are my provider.

  • And yea, though I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, I will fear no evil. For thy rod and they staff they comfort me!

  • Knowledge - Knowledge - Understanding - Understanding

• Which leads to confidence, and this all comes by way of knowing God more intimately through His Word. This is the essence of what Paul is relaying in these verses, and his message, and supposed to be our message is, we are servants of God, and we stand no matter our circumstances or situations.

  • Amen.

  • Next week, I will touch a little bit more on these same verses, more specifically as it relates to clearing up Paul’s confusing contrast of words, where he says, deceivers and yet true.