22 Cor 12:1-10 • Beyond Sight

Review & Overview

1. Previous Study’s Review

In Chps.10-13: Paul deals with those who brought accusations against him because of his 1st letter that exposed their sins...

So far we’ve looked 3 accusations:

1. His Motive: you’re in the flesh...

2. His Authority: who do you think you are...

3. His Love: Paul you don’t love us... you don’t care for us... or you wouldn’t have written those things about us...

Paul answered this charge by comparing his love for them... to a father’s love for his children…

2. Current Study’s Overview

‌This brings us to chp.12: & the 4th accusation: Spiritual Experiences… They questioned his Spiritual Experiences: Read…

Here Paul turns from the Physical to the Spiritual… as he talks about his Spiritual Experiences in 3 ways:

1. Paul’s Vision vs. 1 - 6

2. Paul’s Vexation Vs. 7

3. Paul’s Victory Vs. 8-10

1. Paul’s Vision Vs. 1-6

1.1 Vs. 1

It was not profitable for him to boast about his physical experiences, so he turns to his spiritual experiences. he mentions 2 types of them:

Visions: visual, Paul had many of them: Acts 9:3-12 Jesus, & Ananias... 16:9 man of Macedonia... 18:10 in Corinth, Jesus said to stay there... 27:16 on the ship to Rome…

Revelations: audible Gal.1:12 Jesus taught him for 3 years... 2:1 after 14 years went to Jerusalem... Eph.3:1-3 special revelation about the Gentiles

Paul makes it very clear at the end of vs.1b these visions & revelations were of the Lord….

If we have visions or revelations we need to make sure they are of the Lord… not pepperoni pizza…

so how do we know if they’re of the Lord... they Line up with Scripture…

1 John 4:1 NKJV

1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

1 Thessalonians 5:21 NKJV

21 Test all things; hold fast what is good.

Acts 17:11 NKJV

11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.

1.2 Who Had The Experience Vs. 2a-3

Paul is speaking in the 3rd person: because he doesn’t want to draw attention to himself.

APPLICATION: Whenever we have a spiritual experience we should always draw attention to Jesus…not ourselves.

Paul wasn’t sure if the Lord transported his body or if it was just his mind regarding this experience...

It happened 14 years ago: Paul waited a long time before bringing it up to others… good thing…

Sometimes it’s good to just sit on things for a while before sharing them with others...

1.3 How He Got There Vs. 2b-4a

Caught Up: harpazo, 13, taken by force, violently snatched away… 1 Thes.4:16-17 caught up… rapture.

1 Thessalonians 4:16–17 NKJV

16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

Interesting contrast, 2 Cor.11:33 being let down in a basket… he was let down by man but caught up by God.

1.4 Where He Went Vs. 2c-4b

3rd Heaven: so there are 3 heavens…

1. Atmosphere: air above us…

2. Stellar Space: where there is no air…

3. Dwelling place of God…

It’s also called Paradise…

Revelation 2:7 NKJV

7 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” ’

Originally Paradise was in the center of the earth:

Matt.12:38 heart of the earth…

Eph.4:9 lower parts of earth.

When Jesus died on the cross He said in,

Luke 23:43 you’ll be with Me in Paradise… according to Luke 16: Paradise had two compartments… so what did Jesus do when He was there…

1 Peter 3:9 He preached to the spirits in prision who were formarly disobedient… then He fulfiled Psl.68:18 He lead captivity captive… He emptied Paradise & took them to the 3rd Heaven…

Psalm 68:18 NKJV

18 You have ascended on high, You have led captivity captive; You have received gifts among men, Even from the rebellious, That the Lord God might dwell there.

Ephesians 6:12 NKJV

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

1 Peter 3:18–20 NKJV

18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, 19 by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, 20 who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.

1.5 What He Heard Vs. 4c

I don’t know what he saw or heard… but whatever it was is was too glorious to mention…

Interesting people who claim to have visited heaven have written books, movies, appear on TV…

1.6 The Results it Produced (humility) Vs. 5-6

He wouldn’t boast of his Paradise experience… only his infirmities, 2 Cor.11:30, that is Humility…

2 Corinthians 11:30 NKJV

30 If I must boast, I will boast in the things which concern my infirmity.

When we have any kind of spirirual experience should really humble us…

James 4:6 NKJV

6 But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”

Psalm 138:6 NKJV

6 Though the Lord is on high, Yet He regards the lowly; But the proud He knows from afar.

Matthew 23:12 NKJV

12 And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

ENDING….