Paul's Concluding Warnings
Lessons From 2 Corinthians • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 4 viewsNotes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Greetings…
Today, we are finishing up our series through first and second Corinthians.
I hope you have gained even a portion of what I have from this study.
We are finishing up on the last chapter 2 Corinthians 13 wherein we find “Paul’s Concluding Warnings” concerning…
Charging One A Sinner
The Testing Of Faith
So, let’s dive right in by looking first at…
Charging One A Sinner
Charging One A Sinner
The Sin Must Be Established.
The Sin Must Be Established.
Before we dive headfirst into this I want to point out that when we are talking about “charging one a sinner” we are not discussing someone who is walking in the light.
There is no doubt that as Christians we will continually need Jesus’ blood to wash away our sins even when we are walking the light.
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
No, what Paul is talking about is establishing the fact that someone not only has sinned but has refused to repent.
Notice 2 Cor 13.1…
2 Corinthians 13:1 (ESV)
1 This is the third time I am coming to you. Every charge must be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.
Paul is only quoting Jesus in his discussion with his disciples about what to do if you have an unrepentant brother in Matthew 18:15-17.
Matthew 18:15–17 (ESV)
15 If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. 16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.
When as Christians we see our brother or sister sin we have responsibilities to them.
We must first go to them and confront their sin head on.
1 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.
We must then establish their sin with at least one and preferably two witnesses to their sin.
This is important when it comes to the “charging someone as an unrepentant sinner.”
This statement simply cannot be made if the sin itself has not be established by at least two and preferably three witnesses.
This has always been God’s expectation on such matters.
15 “A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.
13 So the Pharisees said to him, “You are bearing witness about yourself; your testimony is not true.” 14 Jesus answered, “Even if I do bear witness about myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am going. 15 You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.
16 Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me. 17 In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. 18 I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.”
19 Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses.
It is vital that we do not condemn someone of living in sin without being able to establish the charge through the evidence of two or three witnesses.
Far too many good brethren’s name have been drug through the mud without evidence.
However, if the witnesses come forward…
The Sin Must Be Dealt With.
The Sin Must Be Dealt With.
No one wants this part of it.
We all hope for the best and that our brother or sister that is living in sin will repent like many here in the church at Corinth had done.
The reality is however, that just like at Corinth not all will repent and come back to a faithful life in Christ.
This when the “power of God” must be observed by the congregation so there is a proper “fear of God.”
2 Corinthians 13:2–4 (ESV)
2 I warned those who sinned before and all the others, and I warn them now while absent, as I did when present on my second visit, that if I come again I will not spare them— 3 since you seek proof that Christ is speaking in me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. 4 For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live with him by the power of God.
If it comes down to it it is important that the church purge the sinful leaven from the lump.
Matthew 18:17–20 (ESV)
17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 18 Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19 Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.
7 Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
11 But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.
6 Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.
If the sinful life of a brother or sister in the local church is not dealt with it will eventually end up condemning the whole congregation.
6 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?
9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump.
Summary
Summary
Too many congregations suffer today unnecessarily because the shepherds or leadership of the church do not obey Paul’s warning here.
They refuse to charge the one whose sin has been established by two or three witnesses.
The second warning I wanting us to consider from our text is that of…
The Testing Of Faith
The Testing Of Faith
We Should Examine Our Own Faith.
We Should Examine Our Own Faith.
However, notice what Paul writes here in 2 Corinthians 13:5.
5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!
There are two points being made here that I want us to consider today.
First, it is possible for people to think they are Christians and not actually be a Christian.
We live in a time much like those in biblical times when you had a lot of people “proclaiming their faith” but having no evidence to back it up.
The number of people today that call themselves Christians and yet have no idea what the bible actually says about Christ, his word, judgment, or even his love in reality is staggering.
We all know people that will shout from the mountain top that they are Christians, but it is painfully obvious to anyone that has studied the bible they are not.
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
If one does not meat the test of being in Christ they are not Christians.
3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Secondly, Paul makes it clear that when one obeys the gospel by being immersed in water for the remission of sins i.e., is born again, they themselves could find themselves without Christ in their lives once more.
When a Christian, as we talked about just earlier, finds themselves living in sin they end up being “falling from grace i.e., salvation.”
Galatians 5:4 (NKJV)
4 You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.
There was a brother in Christ who could certainly be called a “thorn in the flesh.” He did not like any sermon that reproved and rebuked, and would let me know almost ever week. However, after I had left and he had help split the congregation, there came a time when I returned for a funeral. I honestly did not look forward to seeing this sinful man, but when he came up to me he took me aside and repented. He told me that even though it took him a long time to recognize, he began to realize he was the problem not everyone else.
My point of telling you this is that a Christian can “with all good conscience” be so hard headed and stiffnecked that they cannot see the sin being pointed out right in front of them.
When this happens there is no doubt that person has “left the faith” and “left God.”
Christ is no longer living with them because they have kicked God out.
Now, I’m not saying they are not “children of God” any longer but they certainly are not a Christian any longer or “Christ-like person.”
Now it is important for us to “test our faith” but it is important that…
We Should Examine Other’s Faith.
We Should Examine Other’s Faith.
Paul would continue to write…
2 Corinthians 13:7–8 (ESV)
7 But we pray to God that you may not do wrong—not that we may appear to have met the test, but that you may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed. 8 For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth.
2 Corinthians 13:9–10 (ESV)
9 For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. Your restoration is what we pray for. 10 For this reason I write these things while I am away from you, that when I come I may not have to be severe in my use of the authority that the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down.
Due to the whole “you can’t judge me generation” of my parents age there are whole swaths of people in the church that believe we are to simply to “mind our own business” and “leave other people’s business to themselves.”
And to some degree that most certainly can be the case but when it comes to the spiritual matters it most certainly cannot be the case.
Now it is right that we must remove the log from our eye before we help remove the speck from our brethren’s eye.
4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
However, each of us are responsible of helping the other get to heaven.
19 My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, 20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Summary
Summary
It is certainly true that I will only be able to answer for my sin and my righteousness in the Lord.
And that I will be judged based off of how I lived my life in faith.
It is certainly true however, that I will be judged for hindering some other’s chance at heaven.
9 But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.
Conclusion
Conclusion
As members of the Lord’s church here in Ramona, OK we have a responsibility to not just our own spiritual lives (Philippians 2:12), but also to our fellow brother’ and sisters’ lives.
2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
This means we must test ourselves and each other to make sure we are “in the faith” and that Christ is found in us.
This means we also do not take lightly what it means to charge a brother or sister as wayward nor do we ignore such a responsibility.
Invitation
1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; 2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.
6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent,
32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.
8 in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.
