OK, now that I’m caught up, a quick explanation. We are in the midst of a remodeling project and between other demands of work, home, painting, building shelves, moving boxes, etc., etc. I did really good to get my lesson done last week, much less update my blog. But I was getting enough feedback from folks who evidently read this that I wanted to go ahead and fill in the week.
Hopefully, back on track tomorrow morning.
Questions:
13. a. through his concern, as a parent: not wanting from them, but for them with a tough love allowing for disappointment
b. He wants the best for them and grieves that they may not be living the lives they should – still committed to sin
c. By pointing out Christ’s strength, not his own. By encouraging them to examine themselves. Not for proof of Paul, but for proof of Christ in them – for the truth
14. Too often we aim to be better than most, not perfection. We talk more than listen. We divide to show how we are better or more knowledgeable and we live with confrontation and division, not peace. Way better!
Closing Thoughts:
I love Paul’s response to the demand for proof of his authenticity. I’m reading and interesting book called Money Ball about how the advent of computers and statistics is changing the way baseball is managed, at least in some clubs. You might think at first that book is way in left field compared to what we are studying with Paul (get it: left field). But, here is the deal. Baseball has always had stats and teams paid attention to them. They paid attention to how fast someone could run a fifty yard dash. How fast someone could throw a fast ball. The players batting average or RBIs. But what the book talks about was a focus only on the stats that make a difference in correlation to the actual desired outcome: scoring more points than the other team.
Paul took the same approach. You want proof? OK, forget all the letters and credentials and degrees and measurements of height and who has the best hair. What is our real desired outcome? To see Christ in your life, saving you, changing you, making a difference. Did you get that? Good, then there you go.
But we do the same things in our churches. Our food ministry measures how many pounds of food we deliver, not how many people that has given us an opportunity to talk with about God. Our youth pastors are recognized for how many hours of service projects they coordinate, not how much of a difference they are making in teaching youth how to stay connected to the church and to serve from the heart. I work in management so I understand the purpose of objective measurements, but, like the Corinthians, I think we can get so focused on the measurements that we lose sight of the real desired outcome.
Questions:
10. Preface: keep in mind this was done as a lesson. They boast of how great and special they are. Paul boasts of his weakness and servitude. They boast of their eloquence and “looking the part”. Paul boasts of his scars and hardships.
11. 5×39 lashes (Deut 25:3): 3x beaten with rods Acts 16:22: Stoned Acts 14:19
b. 3xShipwrecked and spent day and night in open sea. In danger from bandits, the number of lashings and beatings
12. a. weakness provides strength – our goal is to lift people up by getting under them, not pulling them up from “above”
b. A thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, torment –
c. My weaknesses and imperfections are not because I am lacking or doing wrong, but because God’s grace is sufficient: power is made perfect in weakness. All for Christ’s sake
Closing thoughts:
I spent some time researching the 40-1 lashes. What an odd number I thought until I learned about Deut 25:3. See law said you were forbidden to lash someone more than 40 times. If you hit someone 41 times, it came back looking bad on you. Now, a prudent person would not want to risk that. Better to be one under than one over, just in case of a miscount. So began the tradition of 39 lashes. 13 on the left front, 13 on the left back and 13 on the right back.
But, let’s put this in perspective. This meant that on 5 seperate occassions Paul had been beaten with a whip, which would mean being chained. These were done by people who would violently rejecting both God’s message and His messenger. They were unabashedly rejecting Jesus, the son of God. But, they didn’t want to risk going over 40 lashes, because, you know, that might really make God mad.
This is not some angry crowd or individual with too much testosterone. These were planned, executed beating by a group of people who adored the law. Unfortunately they adored the law more than the God who gave it to them.
Finally: pay close attention to the visual image of 12a. If we are lifting people up, we are getting underneath them and having them climb up on our backs and shoulders. Not that we are reaching down from some high and mighty place to give them a hand up. Think about how that would change the face of local missions.
Questions:
6. a. Luke 4, Jesus uses scripture to combat temptation by satan in the desert. Luke 22:32, Simon sifted like wheat, “I have prayed for you” Luke 22:44 “being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling”
b. Prayer saved me during a time of very dark fear in the hospital. I had come out of heart surgery and my first night awake, the patients who had the same surgery on both sides of my room coded and died. I remember reciting every prayer I could think of, including the Hail Mary which for a born and raised Lutheran was quite the feat. As I have grown in God’s Word it has enabled me to teach and train others, particularly the young both in BSF, home and through other teaching and coaching.
7. a. Masquerading as an angel of light, as apostles of Christ. false and deceitful workmen. Masquerade as servants of righteousness.
b. cunning. lies, masquerades. the devil prowls like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour
8. a. Luke 4:1–2, 13: Jesus was tempted by devil in the desert
b. Luke 13:16: Jesus recognized Satan bound woman for 18 years
c. Luke 22:3: Satan entered Judas
d. Luke 22:31–32: Satan asked to sift Simon
e. John 8:44: Satan is a murderer and the father of lies – his native tongue
f. John 12:31; 14:30: judgment: prince of this world driven out
g. Revelation 12:9–11: the great dragon, accuser
h. Revelation 20:2: seized the dragon, satan, bound him for 1000 years
9. worldly jealousy is to covet what others possess. Godly jealously is to rightly desire what belongs to God and protect and preserve it as such.
End-Thoughts:
If you were Satan think about how you would do it. First, you would do everything you could to make the thought of satan either be childish or weird. Some made up tale. It is much better to work covertly, than to have people understand that you are a real threat. You would then get inside the church. Work your way into church leadership where possible. Be a false teacher that quotes from the bible, but, again, make the tough parts sound so silly and outdated.
You would work your way up from the bottom of the commandment list. You wouldn’t start with golden calves (although there are plenty to go around). But coveting, that is way down on the list, start there.
Don’t be fooled. Satan is absolutely real as are his servants. Christ recognized Satan as a real entity one who he interacted with and one who interacts directly with God. That does make him on par with God, but it does make him real and an inhabitant of the spiritual realm.
Summary:
Paul encourages the church in Corinth to experience grace. He points out the joy and grace the Macedonian church is receiving, despite extreme hardships. He sends Titus to help and encourage them to finish strong in what they started and committed.
Questions:
3. Macedonia (Northern Greece): Phillippi, Thessalonica and Berea – Planted in Paul’s 2nd Missionary Journey: 16:12 Lydia, then fortune-telling slave girl, jailhouse rock; 17 jealous jews seize Jason; 17:10 study day and night, many believed, Jews came from Thessalonica to run Paul out of town (to Athens)
4. a. from severe trial, overflowing joy; from extreme poverty welled up rich generosity. Gave as much as able even beyond pleading for the purpose of sharing in this service
b. Encouragement of grace, eager willingness. To test the sincerity of their love by comparing it with the earnestness of others (not view the “standard” as too low)
c. Managed rightly, both in the eyes of the Lord and also in the eyes of men
d. sowing and reaping are connected. God loves a cheerful giver. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion. Generosity results in thanksgiving to God. Not just helping others, but giving thanks to God. Grace
5. Adjust where my focus lies. I pay too much attention to money and not enough to grace: To do more to recognize God’s grace so that I give thanks to God in our giving, not for the funds but for His grace.
End-Notes:
I have to admit, this is a tough subject for me. Not because I don’t enjoy giving or see the need or see how it provides an avenue for God’s grace to enrich me in ways far more than money ever could. I’m just jaded because I have experienced church leaders parading out these verses only when it is the time of year for the annual pledge campaign. And, while we are on the subject – what a horrible name: campaign. I know it had a positive meaning at one point, but now it is more associated with politicians who are not know to be the most sincere or trustworthy during campaign season. I think too many churches turn members against cheerful giving when it is only discussed in light of the church receiving.
The important thing is that is not what Paul is saying. As I read these chapters for the tenth time I’m seeing more and more of Paul’s heart. The church in Corinth was living in financial prosperity. When this happens to us we begin to look all around us and start to believe things aren’t so bad. We compare our giving to others that we see. We compare our spending to others and what they purchase. Through all of it we lose sight of God’s grace. Not His grace that He has blessed us financially, but His grace that he has saved us from our sins. Paul was gravely concerned for the church in Corinth that they were falling into this trap of near sightedness. To open their eyes to the bigger picture he tells them about the church in Macedonia. But notice, this is not a guilt trip about how it is up to Corinth to save Macedonia. If anything it is the opposite. Look at the joy and grace these folks are experiencing. They do not see giving as a loss, but they are begging to give because they see the way God’s grace overflows to fill them up. Paul wants that same spirit and joy for the Corinthians. He is not sending Titus to be the collection agency. He is sending Titus as a third-base coach. You started out great, just a little way to go, let me help and encourage and coach you. Paul doesn’t want them to give so he can receive. He wants them to clean out their hearts so God can fill them up.
There are some great lessons here about giving. The example that Christ set of giving himself, stepping down from the throne to suffer and die in the flesh not for His gain but for ours. It was also important that “each man must decide in his heart how he should give.” The giving that God wants is a heart thing, not a head thing. You don’t crunch the numbers, you empty out your heart of worldly things so God can fill it with heavenly things. When you do that, it is cheerful – that’s the difference.
Summary:
Throughout the letter Paul has come along side this church of growing believers. Here he gives them more of a nudge than just counsel, to live singularly focused lives devoted to God.
In that same light, he expresses the joy that he feels in and through them and Titus. Paul has sacrificed his own joy and cravings and seeks furtherment of God’s kingdom. He gathers so much joy from the growth of others that anything for himself pails in comparison.
Questions:
13. a. 1.in great endurance; 2. in troubles, 3. hardships and 4. distresses; 5. in beatings, 6. imprisonments and 7. riots; in 8. hard work, 9. sleepless nights and 10. hunger;
b. 1. in purity, 2. understanding, 3. patience and 4. kindness; 5. in the Holy Spirit and 6. in sincere love; 7. in truthful speech and 8. in the power of God; 9. with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left;
c. 1. through glory and dishonor, 2. bad report and good report; 3. genuine, yet regarded as impostors; 4. known, yet regarded as unknown; 5. dying, and yet we live on; 6.beaten, and yet not killed; 7. sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; 8. poor, yet making many rich; 9. having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
d. Yes, but: I am not living a life “out there” as Paul did… little hardship, distress, no beatings, but developing in the spiritual characteristics and teaching others – Be more BOLD! But also follow God’s call for my life.
14. It is living a life subservient to the gospel and the growth of others. Joy is not found in self, well-being, etc., but in the growth and development of others
Summary:
What a great nudge/warning to the church. One we should strongly heed today. They faced the dilemma that many Christians struggle with today, compartmentalization. There was their God life and their business life. On the church side, they met, grew, communed, worshiped, etc. This was a community of like minded, although socially/economically disperse people. On the other hand was their business. They were in trade unions with non-believers. They ate with them, worked with them and were a part of this community. Paul isn’t telling them to sell all and become beggars, but he is saying (again) that your actions should tell you are being transformed. If you can’t tell who the chistians are, then maybe they just aren’t reflecting that much of God’s life (ouch!)
Joy. Paul has reached the point where his true passion is the growth of others, even to the detriment and destruction of his own body, rights and freedoms. But what an amazing joy it is.
Summary:
Using a tent analogy, Paul longs for his heavenly home. He also discusses the fully transformational state of salvation.
Questions
11. a. We groan in longing for transformation, spiritual and physical, to live forever in the presence of God
b. Most of the time – Yes
12. a. to restore, harmony, to make congruous, to account for
b. allowed us to be born again, not of Adam, but of Christ, a new creation
c. Yep
Conclusion:
Once you’ve tasted the “good stuff” you long for it. We will sometimes purchase milk from a local dairy. This is amazing milk, rich, high in fat content, chocolate flavored so it tastes just like melted ice-cream or root beer flavored to taste just like a float. After it, drinking normal skim milk is so pail in comparison (pail… a little dairy cow humor, there) that it just causes you to yearn for the good stuff. The revelation of our heavenly bodies in an eternal home in the presence of God should cause us to moan in comparison with every breath we take in this body.
Paul points out that we are not just hosed down and cleaned up. We are reborn – a new creation. Born into Christ not Adam.
Summary:
Paul begins with identifying how the Corinthian church represents him – they are his resume, his “letter of commendation”. Changed lives speak higher than scholarly works or degrees. He then provides a contrast between the old and new covenants, the one focused on death and paying the price of sin and the new where that sin has been paid and death defeated and we are transformed into God’s likeness anew.
With this he points out how amazing God is. This gift is not limited to kings, to vessels of hardened steel or jewel encrusted containers. But God flows out freely into jars of clay: every day vessels: everyone.
Questions:
7. a. Rom 7:6 Delivered from the law, died to what we held, to serve in the newness of the spirit
b. John 6:63, It is the spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words are spirit and are life
c. Ex 34:29 Moses veiled his face to shield Isrealites from God’s glory
d. John 1: 14 – The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen His glory
e. Matt 13:43 – Righteous will shine line the sun… He who has ears, let him hear
f. Holy Spirit 1 Peter 1:2 The sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit
8. The only way to see the whole truth of the scripture is to see Christ – without it we are veiled and unchanged.
9. a. blinded the minds of unbelievers
b. the gospel is veiled to them
c. Jesus through the Holy Spirit
d. Treasure in jars of clay – power is from God
e. Carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body
f. We who are alive are give over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body
g. Believe and speak – renewal of the heart
10. We carry the death (payment of sin) so that we can tell others of the resurrection (rise to glory): unseen is eternal
Conclusions:
4 key points to focus on.
1. “I’m not competent/confident/comfortable talking with others about Christ.” Have you ever heard someone say that? Have you ever said it yourself? I sure didn’t expect Paul to be saying it, too. But there it is: vs. 5 and 6. I’m not competent. It is only through Christ. Period.
2. We often think of Christianity in binary terms. Saved or not. In or out. But Paul talks in vs 17-18 about the transforming effects of the Holy Spirit. He talks of it as a continuing path, much like the growth in faith many of us experience, where we continue in glory to better reflect the glory of God in us.
3. vs 10+ talk about the privilege and duty to always remember. We have been invited into this family at great cost. And while we are to grow and love and live and enjoy the great feast and huge benefits of being brothers and sons, it is only through remembering the price that was paid (i.e., we did not earn or deserve it) that we have the ability to offer the gift to others. To get in and grow you must first have the price of admission paid (death), then you can be transformed (spirit).
4. Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen. Paul does such an amazing job of never looking down into the pit. Regardless of how deep a pit he is pulled into, his eyes remain sky-bound, focused on the eternal.
Summary:
A big chunk of scriptures. Paul is writing to Corinth again after having received the message from Titus that they took his last letter to heart and made substantive changes. This letter starts out as much more of a letter of encouragement than one of correction with more emphasis on the spirit and developing into a deeper and more reliant faith. Throughout, Paul also sets his own life and perils as living examples to the church.
Questions
3. a. The uprising of the idol makers
b. Disappointment: Titus wasn’t there (no news), Triumph: Doors were opened, and Joy: Paul was able to help spread the (fragrance) knowledge of God
4. God provides compassion and comfort so Paul can comfort others (it overflows). Paul can’t rely on himself. The pressures and trials are too great. He knows and does rely only on the gracious favor of God.
5. a. Anointed: To consecrate and make sacred. Sealed: to bind with authority, to mark with authenticity
b. Having believed, marked in him with a seal, the promise of the H/S. The anointing you received remains in you. His anointing teaches you about all things and that anointing is real, not counterfeit.
6. a. Because it requires a response. You cannot hear a truth and not react. You either accept it, reject it or ignore it (a form of rejection). Acceptance is new life. Rejection is accepting full judgment for sin and the penalty it requires (death).
b. With a co-worker. He is electing to reject the gospel because he has decided he is in a position to judge God. “I cannot believe in a God who…” The good news of salvation also carries the burden of accepting that God is God and supreme he is not.
Conclusion:
In verses 3 and 4 Paul gets into a lengthy dialogue on God as paraclete. From Wikipedia: Paraclete comes from the Koine Greek word παράκλητος (paráklētos, that can signify “one who consoles or comforts, one who encourages or uplifts; hence refreshes, and/or one who intercedes on our behalf as an advocate in court”).[1] The word for “Paraclete” is passive in form, and etymologically (originally) signified “called to one’s side”
This “coming along side” is a very important element of Paul’s continued ministry. Where before he was positioned as head/leader. He is now showing himself as coming along side the church, teaching, encouraging, uplifting. He encourages them to see his example.
Summary:
Paul addresses the core belief of Christianity – death and resurrection. The Corinthians probably faced many of the same skeptics that exist today – alive is alive, dead is dead, those are definitions. Some may have wanted a watered down believe – I really like the teachings, but I’m not on-board with the death and resurrection part.
But Paul helps explain that this the THE pivotal point of the faith of a Christian. If Christ didn’t die, then the price of sin wasn’t paid. If Christ wasn’t resurrected, then what hope do we have? If we have no hope of eternal life, then all else is moot.
Finally, Paul closes with housekeeping for the church. Primarily that they are to stay connected to the larger church, through tithing, through receiving ministers and teachers, and through diligence, labor and listening.
Questions:
12. a. (1) He appeared to Peter, (2) then to the 12, (3) then to 500 at the same time most still living, (4) then to James, (5) then to all apostles, (6) then to Paul
b. Christ died, He was buried, he was raised on the 3rd day all done in accordance with and in fulfillment of the scriptures
13. If Christ did not rise from the dead then no one else can (if God can’t…) For if Christ did not defeat death, then He did not pay the price of sin, then there is no salvation for mankind. From original sin all die, but Christ alone provides resurrection from that death. His reign is over all enemies, death is the last enemy
14. a. Christ (firstfruites), those who belong to him, then the end will come: He destroys all dominion, authority and power and hands all over to the kingdom of God the Father. Christ reigns until all enemies are defeated – the final is death.
b. there will be a physical resurrection, but as a new creation. We will not all die, but all will be transformed.
c. trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, we will be changed
15. Stand firm, let nothing move us. Prepare: give regularly (not just in response to urgency), give food and shelter to ministers, be on guard, stand firm in faith, be courageous, be strong, do everything in love, work, labor, listen to elders
Conclusion:
We can get so caught up in the trappings of Christianity and the church that we can lose sight of the core tenents of our faith. God sent his only son, a second Adam but this one of spirit onto woman rather than from dust. That son of God, Jesus, who was fully man and fully God, sinless, died and was buried (not brought back with CPR) in the tomb for 3 days. Then, of his own accord, without any person’s assistance, came back to life from the dead.
This is the stumbling block of non-believers. They can’t believe it could or would happen. Why would an eternal God choose this path. Why would a being who is the son of God, die?
But without this core element and faith and belief it in, there is no Christianity. There is no payment of sin, there is no eternal life.
You can decide if you want to wear a hat or not to church. You can have your own opinions about speaking in tongues. But if you don’t believe in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, then you are not a Christian. Period.
If you are – then, live like one. Love your brothers, help them, work, listen, pray, learn, do, serve, contribute, use your spiritual gifts.
The Notes are Good 