A Joyful Servant Of God

You take your Bibles and open up to 2nd Corinthians chapter 1. We will continue on this morning.

Well, as we were saying, a little bit ago, we've had to make some changes this morning and it's been a reminder that we are not in control. Here I am not in control, you are not in control of what is going. On course, we are responsible for how we respond to things and how we respond to in circumstances and life changes. But we're not in control and it's something. I think often we eat, we have to be reminded of that. In our life, we're going to make plans. We're going to have things in mind. We're going to have intentions, and those are going to get turned sideways upside down or all together. Totally destroyed. And in those moments, we always have a choice and our choice is simple. We're either going to trust in the sovereignty and reliability of God and continue to walk with him in that or we're going to wrestle with that. And we're going to want to somehow bring things under our control and we're probably going to end up. If we go down that path, we're going to end up flustered and discontent.

That's what we always have before us, when difficulties come our way. And it's easy for things to come into our life, like a change of plans and and to threaten to steal our joy from us. Because in the moment, we're trying to make it, right. We're trying to trying to bring it back under our control and we're going to get flustered. Plans change. Let me come to 2nd Corinthians chapter 1. We're dealing with changed plans and the results of Paul having to change plans how he handled it and how other people handled it. What happened with the Apostle Paul is he had planned to visit the Corinthian Church, a couple of times on a trip, he was going to take, he laid it out for them. He said here's what I'm planning. Here's what I want to do and then things changed. The Lord intervened and his life in a different different circumstances came about and he had to make a change. And I think his perspective on that is he just simply rested in got enrolled with the change and said, okay will do it this way. And we'll move on with the Corinthians grabbed. Hold of his changed plans and turned it into an accusation. We talked about this already and our time and 1st Corinthians, excuse me, 2nd Corinthians chapter 1, they begin to build a case because his plans change and he didn't come when he said he was going to come some of the church. You were probably already frustrated with him began to use it as a way to question him. Well, he's not very reliable. He says, one thing does another. I hate when he says, yes. He means no. When he says, no, he means. Yes.

Know, if your plans change. And somebody begin to accuse you that way and say where you don't keep up your Bargains, you don't keep up your promises. You, you change your mind. You're like, you're fickle. That might steal your joy, right. If somebody came at you with that kind of a pointed finger and saying those things about you and we would probably tend toward anger and wanting to defend ourselves and and and and maybe go beyond that. But again, what we find with Paul hear it's really a testimony about he, he knew who he was in the Lord, his security, his faith was not dependent on what was going on and what everybody else was doing, he was able to rest in God when things changed, he was able to rest in God when people pointed the finger at him, wrongly and walk through it and patience, love kindness. And he continues in our passage to be an example of godliness lived out. And we're going to go walk through verses 15 through 24 this morning and there's so many things we can highlight In this passage. But what I called, it is a joyful servant of God. A joyful servant of God, that's who Paul remained in the light of changing circumstances and people problems. He remained joyful in the Lord and just kept the mentality of I'm here to serve God. I'm here to walk with him and I'm just going to keep doing that and he didn't let the waves of Life possum up to and fro everywhere. Steelers Joy, getting upset, getting flustered to where all you know, this is real, this is ridiculous. I'm done with you. I'm not doing that anymore. I don't have had enough of you and those kinds of things, right?

We're going to walk through this passage again. We're going to try to highlight three things here that that I see in the passage. The first thing we talked about is the sovereignty of God. I think Paul rested in the sovereignty of God. God is working. Providentially in the world, I can trust his work. I don't have to be the one in control here. Ested in the reliability of God. He's going to go into a series of statements about how how certain we are of God's promises. His word is always true. God is faithful, Jesus Christ is certain and he calls everyone to have that mentality. Know we can all trust in God, plans may change, but God does not change and you need to rest in that the reliability of God. And then I think through his own actions toward the Corinthians and what he says, we see the humility of God's people especially obviously within the Apostle. Paul humility. It's not about me, it's about Christ. And I'm just going to continue to preach Christ and they said that the end of this passage will get to it. I'm just here. To work with you towards your own Joy on fellow workers of your joy. He says, at the end of the chapter, that's I'm here to encourage you and bless you. That's all my aim is and he has to explain that with all the accusation was coming. His way. He had to take some time and explain this. Again, I don't know if I've ever been in a, quite a situation that he was, it where people were making just totally wrong accusation. But I've certainly had things kind of come my way that were on 100% true and I had to clarify and get contacts and give understanding and we see the Apostle continue to do that here. Listen to come to the passage here. Let's look as Paul begins to explain what happened. Look at verses 15 through 17. Are Paul rights. And in this confidence, I intended to come to you before that. You might have a second benefit to pass my way to you, to Macedonia to come again from Macedonia to you, and be helped by you on my way to Judea there. For, when I was planning, this did I do it lightly or the things I plan do? I plan according to the flesh. That with me, there should be yes. Yes, and no. No.

And he's simply communicating my plans changed and I think he's indicating some things are out of his hands now. Paul, He didn't plan things lightly as he says, and we're going to draw that a point here. Under the, the understanding of the sovereignty of God. And it's ultimately, God is in control. We are to seek God's will in making our plan, and that's what Paul did. He didn't make his plan slightly, he didn't just say what, what's easy I'm going to do that. I'm going to do what's most comfortable for. My flashy didn't do that. He had a heart to bless others and happen is back in 1st Corinthians. When he wrote the Epistle of 1st Corinthians to this church. He said he hoped to come to them and he laid out a little bit of a plan. He's going to go to Ephesus. He was going to come over to them and then he was going to go up north to Macedonia. He's so he was going to do a loop one way. But what happened is he he needed to do things differently. So he was going to end up looping the other way geographically speaking, he went to Macedonia and then to Corinth and anyway his plans changed and he made it one time and the time that he did go to them. He had to really kind of be firm with the truce of God that they were. Distorting and confusing with people in the life that they were living. And he had to deal with a lot of the issues again that he writes about 1st Corinthians. He, he calls it a sorrowful visit in this. So he had to go there and kind of be like, you know, kind of like the picture when the kids have been misbehaving and dad comes home, you know, that kind of a picture and Dad's going to, okay? Now you should have been doing that unless you're in trouble. Now Paul had to do that in his role as an apostle, not because he wanted to Lord over them or anything like that because he was an apostle. And this church was one that he found it. He wanted to bring these people back to the Simplicity of Christ back to righteous living and he spent so much time dealing with them and patience and love but he had to be firm with him. Well, you know, we all have that fleshly mechanism, if somebody kind of calls us out on something, or gives us some correction, you kind of, like, what are you talking to me about? And what about you, what about you? We want to let you know, that's what the flash does. The Flash is always ready for a fight, right? That's the flash. We're always ready to like, oh yeah, what about you? You think you're perfect. We kind of want to get into that kind of thing. We're getting an inside picture of this playing out right here. This book. He said, the guys you got to work on this or like what about you you change your plan as you said, one thing to another and you're a liar and you know that's what they're doing and he's like no that's not what I did. This is what happened and he's calming them down as it were you know he's just calmly addressing the issues. But he made his plans with the Lord and he didn't know everything that was going to happen and I ain't one thing I love about passages like this. As we tend to think back at like the Apostle, Paul one who receive Revelation from Heaven Christ, spoke to him directly and sometimes he didn't know what to do. You didn't have a road map in front of him. Now. Go right, to take the next left. Okay, go to that town. Say this and go to hell. God let him God gave him some direct Revelation. But Paul still had to follow God's leading in his life and make decisions with the Lord just like you and I do. That's how we work, right? None of us have experienced God speaking out of the heavens and saying, okay, here's what you're doing tomorrow and then a week from week for next week, is what we're doing. We don't get that one. Neither did, he neither did he? These guys had to walk by faith to, they had to make decisions and and then see if got overruled, those decisions are LED them a different way. They were in the same boat that we are. And that's what again we see. All that plane out here. But his intention is what we see in verse 15. He says I intended to come to you before that. You might have a second benefit. Paul's heart was to bless them, he had come wants to correct. He wanted to come again to really just bless them and build them up.

That was his heart and he decided to do that with the Lord. But some things that happened, some things had changed and he had it made it back yet the second time and that's they were making these accusations that he was unreliable because he hadn't come back the second time. But his heart was to bless Paul's life manifest in his Epistles was to pray about all things to take everything to the Lord. To seek the Lord's, will the Lord's Direction the spirit leading in his life. and then to take steps of faith and if the Lord changed the direction, OK, Google order in control, not me that's just, that's the simple things of the Christian Life and when it comes to decisions and things we just simply Seek the Lord's. Will pray. Make a decision. We take the next step, if something changes it changes. So what will walk with the Lord through it?

I think Paul always sought God's best. He did apply his spiritual wisdom as he walked with the Lord and understood what his mission was. He made plans in light of that to reflect what the goals were. But at the end of the day, he knew that. It wasn't he in control but God Until Paul knew how to trust God's will in changing plans. And that's our next point. We are to trust. God's will in changing our plans. God is in control. You'll proverbs 16:9. Pull that up here. Proverbs 16:9 says a man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.

That's what happened with Paul. He made a plan, God change that God directs his steps, a different route, and he hadn't made it back to Corinth for the second time, like, you wanted to

But that was no cause for them to make the accusation. He was a liar.

You can see in verse 17, the Corinthians were saying that his, you know, this this kind of funny wording about. Yes, yes and no. No, he says with me there should not be. Yes, yes and no, no, I'm what it seems like he's indicating is. Well, they were making the, the accusation. When you say yes, you may know when you say no, you mean, yes. And he's saying that's not true. I from my heart, I'm telling you what my intentions are and I plan to keep them, but God intervenes, that's just life. I'm not, I'm not God here and I kind of think there's this sort of sub theme in this passage that Paul's like I'm not the Holy Spirit here, I'm not God. You know, I'm is Apostle on this messenger but I'm not in control. I'm not the one that gets to tell everybody what to do, and I'm not even control my own life completely. I have to rely on God. it continues to come out through this book through this passage

and I think it just speaks to us. So we look at these first few verses of this section is we have to have the same attitude toward what's going on in life. And that attitude is simply Lord willing. We have to just assume the attitude. It's Lord willing. It's God's will not mine. I'm going to pray, I'm going to plan, but I need two underneath, all that needs to be as the Lord wills. And we see that in scripture, we see that in Paul's life.

We don't change plans because we're fickle sometime. We had to change plans because that's what's necessary because of how God's working and how God's leading we just have to have the Simplicity of thought that no it's it's according to the to the Lord's will. We're going to do that.

Kira at Berean Bible Institute recently. We were, we were planning a trip to Israel. We were going to go to Israel May of this year that were in 2023 and we've been planning it for I don't know, probably around eight months already announced it sometime back in the summer and you know, we were we you advertise the trip. We are going to have to pick 11 date or in Israel. We've done it once before with the Breen Bible society and then a group of us even went individually before that wants. So I've been able to be there once which I'm thankful for what we wanted to have the school host, another trip and give people the opportunity to to go there because it's something we really believe it is something. We think really is an encouraging thing to do. It, it does cost as all things do, but there's a really big benefit in. I mean, I was really benefited by my time there just to see what the landscape look like. See the archaeological sites and and just get a better idea of what scriptures communicating when you reading the New Testament. Everything and Just really it just really sort of enhances you are reading of scripture and a great way and so it's something that we really kind of excited about wanted to do we put the trip out there, where are marketing? It were advertising that we're talking to people about it and it just seemed like the registrations just kind of trickled in and we, we we we had to make a decision in January, you know, there's a certain date after that date. You be start to become more financially responsible. If you don't go, you start to have to put more money where your mouth is it. We all had to make a deposit but the more money would be at stake if we if we don't make a decision at the end of January. So that time came and we didn't quite have as many people as we wanted. This is a trip. We plan is the trip, we prayed about this trip, we lift it up to the Lord weekly, and talked about. And we came to the decision of like, I don't think this is what God wants us to do this time when I think he wants us to do this this time. So we we talked about it, we talked to the organization, we work through and we decided because of what our numbers were. You know what? Let's cancel this trip. We we sought out all their options, right? You know that that's just trying to be wise to get information and get understanding. We got all the information we could and we made a decision. We changed our plans. We decide we when we communicated this, to the people who had signed up and we are now going to go May of 2024, we put it out a whole nother Year. We're still planning to go, we rolled everything over to the next year and we were able to do that. And and some of the people signed up or going to do that with us. Some of the people were like well I can't do that. I got to pull out. Go do something else and we understand it. We just got to be honest with the people know, some of those people probably could have got mad at us, what, hey, you said you were going to do this and you change the night, and I put a little money on that. And we're just trying, to be honest. Look, this is what's going on and we don't feel. This is the right thing to do. We're going to do this instead. Here's here's option. Be here, is even an option C for you. But again, plans, change. This is how life is We're all walking through this with the Lord together and we have to trust that he's the one in control. He's the one in control. Sometimes that means changing plans. Is Paul goes on in the passage eat, he's indicating his plans changed. But they didn't mean he's a liar. It's basically what he saying his plans changed, but he also is saying the truth. I preach to you though that hasn't changed the word that I spoke to you about God, that's not that's not changed. And he kind of reviews some of the, the truths of the Christian Life that he talked to quintin's to help them. See that. Actually, he is characterized by speaking the truth because he's saying, wait a minute. You believe all these spiritual truths? Where'd you hear those from me to call me a liar? What about all these things? You believe that you say you stand for? I'm the one that taught you that. So he say that we are not characterized by lies were characterized by truth and he's just making another case as to why hey we're still trustworthy but plans change so that brings us the first 18 and we'll read verses 18 through 22. We're here we're going to focus on the reliability of God. We have the sovereignty of God and we all have to rest in that God is the one in control. And we have to leave him to be the one to direct our steps. Otherwise we're going to lose our joy, but we also have to remember that he is reliable. And the things that God has said in his word in the things he said to us and about us, they are true. And they are the foundational truths of the Christian Life and just because something happens in our life and we wonder what's God doing? We never want to doubt God. And his truth. And that's that's how Satan works at times, he wants to bring in circumstances. That put up this Veil between you and the truth that God has spoken is where you start to think? Is that really true? Is God really working all things too good. He is God really doing the things. He said is he going to keep his promises?

Let's read verses 18 through 22. But as God is faithful our word or message to you was not yes or no. For the Son of God. Jesus Christ, who was preached among you, by us, by me sylvanus and Timothy was not, yes or no, but in him was yes, for all the promises of God in him are. Yes. And in him, Amen, to the glory of God through us. Now, he who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God who also has sealed us and given us the spirit in our hearts, as a guarantee. There is an incredible amount of biblical truth has his past. It and I'm not going to walk through each one because I could be doing multiple messages is on these verses. But these are some Bedrock things about the Christian Life, the faithfulness of God, what Christ has done for us. The indwelling, Holy Spirit. I mean, just some huge huge truce here. But what polygon is saying is know, all the things I taught you about. God were. Yes they were amen. They were true. That's what we've been teaching you. We've been teaching you the truth. So why do you doubt us? Because our plans changed. Why do why are you, why are you doing this? And the real answer was no, because some of them had an axe to grind, they're just picking this as something to use. They're using it as a as a dart against him. It really wasn't. The issue is just something. They were grabbing onto to get back at the one that had offended them. By his, his correction and his his presence. I didn't like it didn't like what he did. But he takes the time to remind them know. I'm the one that taught you the truth, and that points us back to the fact that God is reliable. These things are about truth about God. They're not true about Paul, and that's sort of an inference in this part is like the Corinthians where to put their hope and Paul, or put their hope in Christ. And God, the one who is Sovereign, the one who always is true. And sometimes people have to be correct about that. There are certainly people of God, men of God that we probably hold in high esteem and do so rightfully so, but we never put our faith or hoping people. We can appreciate. People got as used but that's not where I Hope and Faith along that belongs to one alone and that's Jesus Christ. He is our hope, he's the one that's always true. Always faithful. He's the one that's working in our lives. So there's a little bit of a lesson here to, to never get. Never. Put your hoping, people will be careful that because, you know what, we all falter, we all fail in the flesh at times. Then if you put your hope in the person, you got to be let down at some point. Going to be let down. We have to be careful with that. I think we live in a culture of celebrity ISM. You know, where people like always looking at somebody like that's my hero. That's my person. That's the person I'm following. Well, it's a bad thing or you get positive role role models in life, but if you're really, if it gets to the point of adoration, which lot of people that does they start to have adoration for people rather than just admiration? But you know, what's going to happen? That person's going to fall that person's going to fall for that person's going to end up being a negative role model and then what does that do to the person that was looking at? That person as kind of Larger than Life and just ignoring them, it's going to let him down and they're going to be it's going to be a wake-up for one thing. But I think a lot of times Christians had to do that with people certain creatures, certain author, certain people. No, no no no no. We're all just instruments of God. We all need to be looking to Christ alone and knowing that again, he's The Sovereign one. He's the reliable one. He is the truth. And to keep that Focus.

We want to point out here though In this passage with verses 18 and 19. Is a godson gives us a certainty. He gives us certain to hear. Again, you can just see the Paul's Expressions. God is faithful. Our word or message to you was not yes or no. I think he's talking about what he preached to them when he says our word to you, because we, we decide to be faithful to God. Who is faithful. And we just preach to the truth as we understood it and we gave you the truth at you. Now, say you hold two. But he's pointing the finger at this, the faithfulness of God. It's him that we have to rely upon. He's the one that's reliable.

And then you see in verse 19, the Son of God, Jesus Christ to his priests among you, he's not, yes or no, but in him is, yes, in him is always, yes. He's the faithful. When he's the one you can always rely on. And Paul here mentions his companions sylvanius otherwise known as Silas and Timothy. These men were with Paul, when he ministered in Corinth in, in past times and listen to Corinthians knew these men. So, why Paul was the main target actually? They were probably speaking ill of all three of these men that all these men were liars, and unreliable, and tell you, one thing and do another.

But he says no, we preach the truth and that truth is in the person of Jesus Christ.

And I think it's Christians allowed times. Again it's easy to get focused so much on circumstances that we we we derive our joy from our circumstances are our hope. We we look to the circumstances to give us that Lyft or whatever. We start to rely on the things of this world to to do something in our heart to give us something that really only God can give to us. And again, I mean really that the story of humankind is one way to phrase. It is looking for joy in life everywhere, apart from God. That's kind of human history in a nutshell. I mean, starting in the Garden of Eden when they when you believe the lie about the Forbidden tree when Satan has said, you can be like gods. And what's that? That sounds nice in that moment. God wasn't enough anymore. I need something more than God, I need something more than what God had said his word. And she took it, right? And the rest is history. As they say, we have the whole story in the Bible, what happened? And every every day since then it's people looking for some kind of Joy purpose, fulfillment life and they're trying to do it apart from God. And what happens every time. Despair depression anger, frustration. Worst kinds of sin trying to fill the hole that's there that only Jesus Christ can fill.

That's the story of humanity, not relying upon God, but trying to rely on our own selves to find some kind of joy in life.

Nope. Alone, he is the one that's that, Paul preached in the one that Paul always scared people back toward. And again, we only that the only certain they were going to find in life is in what God has said, right? Again, plans changed relationship. Sometimes change our health changes, we go through new struggles, new challenges. And you could say that really nothing in life in our world, be like, nothing is certain right? Tomorrow is not certain 10 minutes from now is not certain.

But Christ is always certain and that's what Paul is trying to get across to them again is like, hey where your teachers, we spoke the truth. But don't you go put your faith in us like, we're something more than men. We're not, we're just your servants. You're certainly belongs with Jesus Christ and in him and only in him. Are you going to find what your heart is looking for?

Is Paul goes on. In this passage he gets the first when he talks about the all the promises of God in Jesus are yes in him. Amen. So is this again, Jesus is the truth, everything we told you about Christ, you know, he's true. You know, he hasn't failed you, you know, he hasn't let you down. That's what we preach to you. In verse 21, he starts to focus more on the spirit of God in this. This passage where he's really just building up who God is. He begins to talk about the spirit of getting verse 21. He says, now, he who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God who also has sealed us and given us the spirit in our hearts, as a guarantee.

And there's different points we can make on here. I think Paul's in one hand, he's saying we're ministers because of the spirit, not because of us. We're ministers because of God. We didn't, we didn't sign up for this guy. He's the one that established us with you, God's the one who gave us the Holy Spirit, the holy spirit's the one working in us, when we came to you, and we preach the truth and we managed to do that was the Holy Spirit working. That was all God doing that. That's one thing. But I think another thought that Paul maybe bring it out here is the unity we all have in the spirit. And that's the point. We're bringing out here that God's spirit gives us Unity God's spirit, gives us Unity. We all are on the same ground with the Lord. We all have the same access to God the Father. We all have the same savior in Jesus Christ. We have far more in common than our differences. I think Paul maybe saying to the Corinthians who were attacking him. And he may be indicating. We have too much in common for this to separate us and drive us apart from each other. This this, this foolish accusation misunderstanding. I think he's calling them back to a sort of, leveling the playing field, so they can rebuild their relationships and so forth. Sort of regroup and rebuild here. But it's because the Holy Spirit, we have things in common, we have a unity in Jesus Christ. We've all been established in Christ together. We're all in Christ. That's the position of the Christian that the Holy Spirit affects the moment, we trust Jesus Christ. As our savior, we are placed into the very person of Jesus Christ. One with him now and forever. And identified with him identify with his death Brown. Resurrection, we are in Christ.

And he says we've been anointed by God and I think the anointing here is the idea of the spirit that's been given to each one. The moment we trust Christ is our savior, the spirit of God comes in and dwells our spirit, our heart. He says, In this passage of spirit in your heart, the very center of your being is now occupied by the spirit of God.

Isn't that amazing like this? Think about that? How does the infinite spirit of God dwell in my spirit in my heart? It's just things that that that challenge our comprehension and understanding but throughs that echo through the pages of scripture here. but the idea of anointing, you know, that's what that's what the word Christ means or Messiah means the anointed one and it's the idea of a sort of like Chosen and enabled for Ministry. Jesus Christ was the great servant of God when he came into this world to die on our sins. Well we're all chosen Servants of God as members of the body of Christ as his people, he saves us and he gives us his life. But he also gives us his mission and Ministry that we share in. And now we're not just here to be together which is great. But we're here to work together. To take the gospel out to serve Christ in this world. It's God, who is in Maybelline all Ministry? So I think when Paul says, Hey, we've been established with you, and we've been anointed by God, God selected us, me and sylvanus and Timothy for this role. We didn't pick it. God picked us, and he's made us. He's put us into this rule. And we're just seeking to be faithful here. But I can every believer in Christ also is in that category. We've all been anointed by God Spirit which means we have the spirit. We are enabled for Ministry and we can go out with the gospel and that's comes out a little bit more in verse 22. He explains it more that we've been sealed by the spirit and he's in our hearts as a guarantee.

Here we see that idea of security in Christ, security Christ. The holy spirit of God in you and it says he steals youth permanent. It's permanent. He seals you, he's a guarantee. He's a guarantee of all the other blessing God has in store for you. Nothing's going to change it. You're now on this unchangeable pathway with you and the Lord. He's going to bring you home to him one day and nothing's going to change that. And let's read a verse that speaks to this as well in the book of Ephesians chapter 1 13 and 14 will pull it up on the screen here. Hear Paul wrote to the Ephesians something very similar where he said in him, that's Jesus. You also trusted. After you heard the word of Truth, The Gospel of your salvation. In whom also having believed you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of Promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the Redemption of the purchase position to the praise of his glory.

We all have the spirit in, everyone here, the stress of Christ as your savior, the spirit of God is in you. Jesus Christ as your lord, I ain't I'm not the one ceiling you are guaranteeing. You I'm not the one that leading you or no. One else here is. It's got himself. And again, we have that in common, we have that in common, the spirit of God is working at each one of us. you know, it's interesting because like, We all probably have family gathering, maybe family reunions and you know, living in the world. We live in a world where sin we know people that are sinners. So when you get family together, sometimes it's painful is different perspectives in in Persuasions and summer, not where you are even spiritually, they may be sort of hostile to your faith. And yet, every Christmas, you sit across the table. And maybe you listen to snide. Remarks are criticisms or whatever. The case is, maybe your family is not really like that, you know? But I, but I've seen plenty that are, you know, where it where people act out in the flesh a lot and people aren't even save, you know, it until you got all these relationships in your family and yet, Usually I mean sometimes people like white Al telling you that certainly out there but generally speaking people still will sit down with your family and kind of like Overlook The Faults and Overlook. All these are problems and just try to have a good time together, right sometime and I get it sometimes it doesn't work cuz it can get so hot, it doesn't work. But in general a lot of times we try to implement a certain loyalty to our family members and try to show some love and courtesy because we're bonded by Blood and we try to do that, it's kind of built into our culture and our social interactions but but it's also a good in biblical thing to do, right? As God tells us to honor our father and mother and two into really walk in love toward everyone. But yeah, a lot of times, the same courtesy, you might extend to your family. Sometimes people don't bring that to church where here you come to your spiritual family. And here were bonded by the spirit of God, and yet, it may be the smallest thing. It's a so upset that we're ready to act like these Corinthians and start calling somebody a liar, start getting in their face and start wanting to throw a fit and really, and I don't like you and I want you here and act out in the flash, right? I just, I just find it. So interesting that a lot of times even Christians will will work harder to get along with like, their third cousin, who's who's at the opposite end of the political spectrum, and not in the face, then they will their own brother or sister in Christ that believes almost everything you believe. Right? And have the same spirit and it supposed to rain, like we got everything in time and we we taught you. These things. We walked what we were with you, we taught you about this fear. We've all got this thing, you don't throw us away because my plans change that stupid, right? But you look in the mirror, sometimes I cycle. What kind of things have, I done? That's stupid towards other people. Maybe maybe let my flesh carry me away cuz somebody did something as an oversight and I took it personal I got upset. And maybe a little bit that dislike building in your heart toward a brother or sister in Christ, right?

Can you read a passage like this in your reminded a? Wait a minute. We're in this together. This is the spirit of God has bonded us. We're all children of God, most high Creator, and Sovereign of the universe. So, we can work things out. We can do it if we rely on him and that's what Paul's Town. These people we can work this out with the Lord. We can work this out. We can move, we can move forward stronger than ever before in the Lord because of what the spirit of God does.

As we move into the last couple of verses of our passage, we, we see Paul again he speaking to the sovereignty of God and like, plans changed. He speaking to the reliability of God in like, no, he's the one who gives us the truth that we believe. It's not about people to about God and when we as Christians are able to rest in God's sovereignty and God's reliability in our life, I think we can move to the next point, which is we can live in humility and we can be free in a sense. From all the different things that might rob us of our joy, where we feel like we have to control things and control people and and make people do things or get people to do things. All this kind of sense. No went when you see who got, is it set you free from all that you can just rest and who you are? Who God Made You are and just walk humbly before your God. It just serve people and that's what we see Paul do here. Look at verse 23. He says more over. I called God as witness against my soul that to spare you. I came no more to Corinth. To spare you. This is the first time he actually says, why he didn't come back. He said he didn't come back. He was going to, but he didn't and it was actually for their good. He spells it out before. God is actually for your own good. That I didn't come back. He didn't want to pull out the spiritual paddle again as it were. He didn't want to come back and have to correct and be firm and kind of like he wanted. He wanted to back off a little bit and give the Spirit Room to work in these people. But our Point here, what we see with Paul is that God gives us sensitivity to the needs of others. See, this is where the Christian Life does hinge upon the holy spirit leading and guiding you because sometimes you don't know what the best thing is. We just have to trust God to lead us and work. Sometimes we don't know what exactly to say or should I do that? Or should I do this? He's have to trust God with it and end in what comes tomorrow. Comes your heart. You just. Okay is for you and you and you and you deal with people but you have to trust God. And Paul had went to them to correct them. And now he had to travel to Macedonia to the north and he was getting a report that some of them were having a hard time with what he did there and that's why this epistle written Paul was hearing about all their grief and their sorrow about his previous visit when he kind of was firm handed. They didn't like that. Some of them didn't anyway.

It. So, he had the heat, you know, he's actually still making decisions with the Lord and thinking Like I told him already. What? What they, what God wants them to be doing, already, communicated. That do I go back there and do it all over again? It seems like the decision he came through was no, no. I said it, I gave him the truth. I'm going to let God work, I'll write the letter. I'll explain it. I'm not going to go back. I'm going to write and he's, he's actually, it seems like he's just being insensitive to where they are on the spiritual journey, they just being sensitive to people, you know. And sometimes I notice sometimes Christians, like they so want somebody to trust the gospel or so want somebody to come to church. This is almost on top of the person, all the time. Like I have you ever trust the Lord and I do trust him, or do you have you trust the Lord? And it's just like, we'll back off once in a while. Be sensitive to where this person is and listen to what they're saying and hear what they're saying, to see what their needs. Are there, just a sensitivity that God create sent us toward other people? That that is just so invaluable. I think it's the work of the spirit of God in us but Paul here, he didn't go back cuz he was being sensitive to where they were at and he believed it better to not come to spare them for now to not come back with the heavy hand. But two, I'm going to write this letter and I think sort of underlying that is. I'm going to let God work in you and let the spirit of God work in you. And that's where we all have to come with people. We have to we have to have that mentality that we want to minister to people that we have to let God be God. We have to let the spirit of God work on their heart. We can't affect their change their decisions and all that. We can certainly speak to be persuasive about Christ in about the Life of Christ that we have, but we certainly cannot force the issue with people. A lot of times when we do that, we actually drive people away if we're too forceful with everything. I think Paul is the difference between inviting people to Christ and walk alongside them and just forcing the issue all the time to where it where is always the issue he knew when to back off a little bit and give God room to work. and I think sometimes,