We do not Lose Heart

I'll read this passage and then we'll and then we'll pray. 2nd Corinthians chapter 3. Starting at verse 16. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now, the Lord is the spirit and where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all with unveiled face beholding, the glory of the Lord. Are being transformed into the same image from one degree of Glory to another. For this comes from the Lord, who is the spirit Therefore having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart, we have her announced, but we have renounced disgraceful underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word. But by the open statement of the truth, we would commend ourselves to every one's conscience in the sight of God, and even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case, the God of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we Proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ, as Lord with ourselves as your servants, for Jesus sake. For God, who said, let light shine out of Darkness has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. In the face of Jesus Christ. This is God's word. Thanks be to God. Heavenly Father, we praise you and we thank you for your word. We praise you Lord for bringing light out of Darkness. For Shining Light into our hearts, so that we can see with spiritual eyes. What you have done through your son, Jesus Christ, what you are doing and what you will bring to final fulfillment when your son comes again. We thank you Lord for the testimony of Steve and how we have seen your Holy Spirit work in his life in drawing him to you. And so we ask that your spirit would be at work. Now in our hearts Lord give confidence, and also humility to my words as we look at these scriptures and see how your gospel, your good news through your Son takes hold in people's lives and how we can persevere and keep going and in your name we pray. Amen.

Many of you may be familiar with the basketball coach. From NC State, who in 1983 won? I think a national championship on a last-second. Play coach. Jim Valvano. How many of you have heard that name? Jim Valvano Jimmy V is he was known. Well, Jimmy V got cancer. And then at one of the ESPN award shows, the Espy Awards in. I think the early 1990s he gave this speech. And it's known as the don't ever give up speech. And so he talks about raising money for cancer research. She says, we need your help. I need your help. It may not save my life and may save my children's lives and may save someone you loved. Then it's very important. ESPN has been so kind to support me in this endeavor and to allow me to announce tonight with ESPN support that they're raising money and dollars for the V foundation for cancer research. He says, we are starting the Jimmy V foundation for cancer research and its motto is Don't Give Up. Don't ever give up

And then he says, and that's what I'm going to try to do every minute that I have left, I will thank God for the day in the moment. I have if you see me smile and maybe give me a hug that's important to me too, but if you can try to support whether it's the A's or the Cancer Foundation so that someone else might survive might prosper. In might actually be cured of this great dreaded disease. I can't thank ESPN enough for allowing this to happen. I'm going to work as hard as I can, for cancer research and hopefully, maybe we'll have some cures and some breakthroughs. And then he closes this and this way he says, I'm going to say this again, cancer can take away all my physical abilities but it cannot touch my mind. It cannot touch my heart, and it cannot touch my soul, and those three are going to carry on forever. I thank you and God bless you all. That's known as the don't give up speech. Don't ever give up. Will those words continue to ring out and for us in our physical bodies, the greatest battle we may face Maybe with cancer, it may be with some other physical ailment, or trial, but, in our hearts and our souls, the battle is not only cancer, but how to persevere in the face. Don't ever give up. We do not lose heart. The scripture says, therefore having this ministry by the mercy of God. We do not lose heart, we are not discouraged, we do not grow weary.

Think for a minute, how lonely a person who does not know Jesus could be going through a trial such as cancer. You think of that someone who maybe doesn't have any family around? And who goes through a physical battle like that, nothing of how they, how lonely they might be. That loneliness, could be an opportunity for us to share the gospel with them. The Paul says, in 2nd Corinthians 4:1, we do not lose heart. We press on, we keep going. We looked discouragement in the eye and we defy it and we look to Christ Jesus our lord. Amen. So keep going and so he says the same thing and verse 16, he bookends the chapter, he says, therefore we do not lose heart so we do not lose heart. And verse 16 though, our outer self is wasting away. Our inner self is being renewed, day by day. He is saying it for himself. He is saying it for the Corinthians. He is saying it for Titus. He is saying that for others. And so in chapter one, he starts off with God, is the God of all comfort in his suffering. In Chapter 2, he tells the Corinthians about the hard letter, the severe letter that he wrote and he says I didn't write that to you to pain you but I wrote it to you because I love you. In chapter 3, he gives the ministry of the New Covenant, and he says his fellow Jews were hardened in their minds and they don't see the gospel in verse 14, but their minds were hard. And then he says, for to this day, when they read the old Covenant, the same deal remains unlifted because only through Christ. Is it taken away?

And so in chapter 4 he says later on then we are struck down but we are not destroyed. So the question is where does all of Paul's strength come from?

Where does his maybe in my, in my growing-up years the teachers would talk about determination? You need to have determination. Well, now, to in today's generation, it's you need to have grit. Okay. That's the new word. Basically means determinations, Focus. Ambition, discipline stick-to-itiveness. Whatever that is, what it wherever that would, that word comes from. That's what it is. Where did Paul's strength come from? Where does our strength come from?

Well here's the main truth. I mean think about it think about this way was Paul just a unicorn you know we talked about if somebody is a unicorn like like they're one of one of a million kind, right? Kristap porzingis with the with the Boston Celtics. When he was first drafted, you know he was known as a unicorn because there's never been any player like him. He's so so tall he can go to the basket. This way, he can do all these things with Paul just one and a million who had a super heroes grip on face. Is that why God has given us? The scriptures right here to say oh yeah that was Paul. He was a boy. He was quite a Christian, wasn't he? That's not why God has given us. The scriptures God has given us in scripture so that we can say along with Paul. We do not lose heart. Amen. Because here's the main truth, we do not lose heart because God has shown us. His Mercy In Christ and we can keep going because God is merciful

In 4:1 there for when you see therefore in the Bible you have to look and see what it's there for. The purpose of therefore therefore because of what I just told you in chapter 3 verses 7 through 18, since we are being transformed from one degree of Glory to another by the Holy Spirit therefore we press on having this ministry by the mercy of God. We do not lose heart. God has shown into our hearts, he has shown us himself in the face of Jesus. That literally says, they're for having this ministry by the mercy of God. It could be translated as God has been merciful there for having this ministry. As God has been merciful to us, we do not lose heart. It's a, what do you go back to? That's the question, what do you go back to when you were discouraged? When you have spent at all of your self-pity? When you have spent all of your anger? When you have spent all that time, blaming others, when you receive criticism, when you receive bad medical news, when you have a job loss, when you have a financial shorting every month, where it what do you go back to? Do you go back to an inspiring YouTube video from Jim Valvano speech, don't ever give up. Don't ever give up

That's knocking inspyrus. The way the strength of Christ gives us inspiration. Gives us hope gives us fulfillment. Like Steve said, I had the, I had the hell part, I just didn't have any idea of walking with Christ. I didn't have any idea of the closeness. They can come by walking with the Lord. And so The inspiring YouTube videos aren't going to do it. We have to go back to what God says in his word. When I began ministering in Florida, is my first time as a pastor of a church solo pastor of a church and we had it. We had a worship leader who worked about 10, 15 hours a week and and so it was very helpful to have him cuz he had been a full-time worship Pastor before in California, but it was my first several years preaching every week and I became extremely discourage the weekend before or the week before a men's Retreat. I was kind of excited about the retreat because we are church was small and we were linking up with with another church in Jacksonville Florida. And we were at some church camp in that Northern Florida, part between Jacksonville and Ocala. I don't know if it was a Salvation Army Camp or Methodist Church camp anyway. What kind of remote? And so we drove we drove and we met there. And we went for this men's weekend retreat at but I was so discouraged at that point. The men's retreat was the last thing I wanted to do. You know, you ever get you were getting kind of discouraged or you're just getting exhausted and you're like, I'm people doubt, I can't do any more people today and so I remember going to this beds Retreat, you know, and everybody's in line for the dinner. And of course we're all excited about the food but but of course there's chatter going on, you know, there's people talking and I'm thinking the last thing I want to do is just start a conversation with someone, you know, I'm really discouraged.

the first talk at that Retreat and I think it was a I think it was a sermon that had been taped her a video message from from another Pastor first message of that weekend 2nd Corinthians 4:1 Therefore, because we have them have this ministry by the mercy of God. We do not lose heart. And I remember thinking to myself, Lord, why have you given me this ministry? With how discouraged I can get with how down I can get. There's no reason I have that Ministry other than the mercy of God, there's no reason why, any of us is where we are today other than the mercy of God, Amen. The scripture says, what did you what do you have that? You did not receive And so we start from that point of humility, recognizing that God has been merciful to us. And so there's there are two principles So ever since then that adverse has been something that I go back to you to help me keep going, but there are two principles here that we want to look at in the scriptures which remind us of God's mercy through the ministry of the gospel. And really the whole, the rest of the book of 2nd Corinthians is really about Paul's perseverance in in his own trials, and calling the Corinthians to perseverance. So, the two principals here that remind us of God's mercy. So I'm using verse one as the main point and then versus versus 2 through through three are the first first point. So, the first principle is that God's mercy empowers us to speak the truth of Christ. We don't need to sell out in order to gain an audience who was Paul arguing against, he was arguing against the false Apostles, the sofas the teachers in Corinth, who would come into town? They would earn money by by tutoring people or or giving them speeches practicing rhetoric and and and Corinth was a place where people love to soak up the latest wisdom and all that sort of thing. And so they were impressed with these different speakers. But they would do, they would come in and they would teach to to to gain money to gain a following and then they would leave town. It's a pulse. As we speak, we have an open statement of the truth. We refuse to practice, cunning that is deception. Or to tamper with God's word, meaning, we don't dilute God's word. We speak by the open statement of the truth. We would commend ourselves to every one's conscience in the sight of God.

God's mercy. Empowers us to speak the truth of Christ. Paul deals with reality, the Bible deals with reality. He says, if you were a follower of Christ, look back in 2:15 for we are the aroma of Christ to God Among those who are being saved, woohoo and among those who are perishing, 21 a fragrance from Death to death to the other a fragrance from Life To Life.

Who wants to sign up to follow Jesus? The question is, is he worth it and the scriptures continually say yes he is worth it. There's nothing. I desire besides you, we sing the song in the end, you know, more precious than silver more costly than gold. Lord, you are more beautiful than diamonds. There's nothing. I desire. Besides you. So when we speak the truth of the Gospel, we're going to smell like death to people, to some people, that's the reality. That's the reality. The poll says, when we don't gain an audience, we don't have to change methods. We don't have to figure out what people want to hear.

Today, people water down the message of Christianity either with a health and wealth type teaching. Or they avoid talking about personal Holiness, or leaders. Don't address open sins in the church.

Brothers and sisters. When we get discouraged, we don't need to resort to deception, or diluting, the message another way of diluting. The scriptures is to take the references to hell out of the Bible or just say, well, hell doesn't exist God's going to save everybody, there is absolutely no social cost to saying all religions, teach the same thing. Let's all just get along to get along every religion is the same. I mean, they all kind of teach the same thing though. You know, the latest iteration is the Baha'i faith, which basically says huge Baha'i Temple in. In Chicago, just north of Northwestern, just north of Evanston. The equality, basically, the equality of all religions and you can believe anything you want. Except the exclusive truth of Christ. Jesus said, enter by the narrow gate for broad is the way and wide is the gate that leads to destruction and there are many who find it, but narrow is the gate and a small is the way that leads to life. There's always the temptation to change God's truth when it isn't registering. And so Paul says even if our gospel is veiled even if it's not registering with people, even if it's falling on deaf ears, even if it's falling on Flat, even if it's not getting clicks or likes, even if that is the case, we are not going to change our message. We speak by open statement of the truth.

We speak openly, we say Jesus. Save me from sin and death and he continues to forgive me everyday. He is coming again to judge the living and the dead. And I hope that you would repent and believe the good news now. We can say that with a clear conscience. I open statement of the truth. There is a Creator God who made the world and everything in it. And human beings are rebellious against him. You just have to put 10 people in a line at a store and see who gets fidgety over this person got this first or this person got that first.

CS Lewis's argument in the in Mere Christianity. He says right and wrong as a clue to the meaning of the universe chapter 1, he says, and it's the British thing. Brit Britain's love waiting in line. Like they know how to queue, right? Instead of the British word, the Q we know how to do the Q. He says. What happens? The first time somebody cuts in line in front of somebody else, the sin nature comes out.

Human beings have rebelled against God. And we need a savior.

And we have the good news. We know him. Who is true? 1st, John chapter 20 says 5:22. Excuse me says this. We know that the Son of God has come and given us understanding so that we may know him. Who is true and we are in him. Who is true in his son Jesus Christ. He is the true God. And eternal life An open statement of the truth.

We know him. Who is true? He is eternal life. Now, what I appreciate about what Steve mentioned is that, you know, every, every person is at a different point in how much they understand about God, what their background is, what they wear their circumstances in life are. And so somehow, we pray that the, as we share with people, that that they would get to that point of knowing that Jesus is the son of God and knowing that they need him.

And so, Paul, then shows us in the next verse, the gravity of the situation, the reality of those without Christ. Who cannot see him with spiritual eyes. Here's Verses 4 through 6. In their case, the God of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, for what we Proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ, as Lord with ourselves, as your servants, for Jesus sake.

Then we can go to the next. Next part, is it up there. Okay, there we go. For God. Who said let light shine out of Darkness has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Those are hard, truth aren't they? The God of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, the God of this world, he's referring to Satan or Jesus, says the prince of this world. Satan has power, but he only has the power that God allows him read, joke, chapter 1 and 2 to realize that that principle. And so we say well isn't this problem in in the Gospels? It says that Jesus was led by the spirit Into the Wilderness to be tempted by the devil. So he was led by God Into the Wilderness to be tempted by the devil. So so the devil does the tempting, but the devil only has the power that God allows him to have.

Satan is not the god of Heaven and Earth. He is only the God of this world. He can only cause chaos in this world, not in the next world. Amen.

Now course that that brings up the idea of the problem of evil. But God is not the author of sin. The James chapter 1 and 2, says God cannot be tempted by evil. He himself tempts. No one. But a person when he is enticed and dragged Away by his own evil desire, Gives birth to sin. So God is not the author of evil, but he is the Creator and Sovereign of all things that he has given us. As one person said, he has given us the best world that we can have in order to prepare us for the very best world. Amen. That he has given us as far as what he reveals to us, and God has perfectly good reasons for not, not for allowing things in this world that I don't understand. Because he's in the under, no obligation to reveal those reasons to me. Jefferson that the pride of the human heart says, I have to understand every reason, the God has for every negative. Terrible thing that's happened in my life or else, I won't believe that is arrogance. That is pride. That is defying. God, the fool says in his heart. There is no God so why do people real and real and real against God and Rick, Richard Dawkins in this chapter of his, The God Delusion book You know, he just rails against the god of the Old Testament. And so then the question is mr. Hawkins, where do you get these moral categories? If there is no God, FRFR human bodies are merely Cosmic accidents of atoms. Clean crashing into one another where do you get the categories of love and hate and evilness and write evil and goodness and righteousness.

See there is, there is no gaining of moral categories without a Creator. God,

God allows Satan an amount of influence, but people are still responsible for their choices. The God of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ. He uses this phrase, those who are perishing, he uses it in 2:15 for we are the aroma of Christ to God Among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 21 a fragrance from Death to death to the other, a fragrance from Life To Life. Those who are perishing, And then he uses that same word those who are perishing in 2nd 2nd Thessalonians. Excuse me, 2:10 where he describes Satan's activity and he talks about the coming man of lawlessness and he says, and with all Wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Now, where does the responsibility lie?

2nd Thessalonians 2:10, with all Wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. God is Sovereign and we are responsible. God is Sovereign and we are responsible. Like the man who was going and he knew a flood was coming. And he had a small cabin and he was trusting that the guy was going to deliver him from the flood. And so the water starts Rising above the river, cresting above the river near his house. And, you know, someone, someone comes by in a small boat, going down the river, and they say, sir, please get on the boat. Please get on the boat now. No know God's going to provide jobs. Going to provide. The Watercress up and starts coming into the first floor of his house. And so, you know, another another person comes by in a, in a larger rescue vehicle that is is able to, you know, go along the land with a couple of feet of water and, and they're urging him, come out the second floor of the house. We're here to rescue, you know, know, God's going to provide to provide. And then he has to find the climb up to the roof of his house in. And the helicopter comes by and says sir sir, we're here. We're here to rescue, you know. No, God can provide a solution solution, the man dies in the flood and goes up to heaven. And any says will Lord, why do you know why, why did you, why did you let me die there? And then after that flooding and got this will, what did you want? I sent you someone in a small boat. I send you someone in a rescue vehicle. I put you a helicopter God is Sovereign, but we are also responsible for our choices. Amen. The Bible teaches, both of those Now, the doctrine of election is clearly taught in the Bible, the scripture says in Romans 9:18, so then he has Mercy on whomever he wills. And he Harden's whomever he Wills, and so what happens is, when you don't believe the gospel, when you disbelieve the truth of God's word, Every time you exercise unbelieve, it makes you more likely to exercise unbelief the next time. Did Pharaoh have many chances. Yes, Pharaoh had a lot of chances. He had nine played nine or 10 plagues of chances to respond to God. And yet the Bible says Pharaoh hardened, his own heart Pharaoh's, heart was hardened and God, hardened Pharaoh's heart. I thought you have both God's sovereignty and human responsibility there. Now, the point of all that is to make our hearts tender and to bleed for those who don't know, the Lord. Amen.

It's not just a theological Point, although I appreciate the the the the depth of Theology and in the doctrine of election and it and debating Free Will and predestination in all of them. It's not just a theological point.

It's to make our hearts burn and end bleed. For those who don't know him.

Election does not know. If I the necessity of repentance and Faith nor does election, the doctrine of election box God in as if people did not have opportunity to believe The point here for Paul is both theological and personal. Theological in the sense that salvation is an act of re-creation by God, just as God, spoke let there, be light in Genesis chapter 1. God makes people he creates them Anew in Christ. Jesus.

And that verse there in inverse 64, God who let said let light shine out of Darkness has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. In the face of Jesus Christ, there's two references there from the Old Testament. One is Genesis chapter one where God said, let there be light And so in second Act of Creation in a sense, God God creates God recreates. People knew in the image of Christ in Salvation, but then the other Old Testament references, Isaiah chapter 9, where it says, the people who have dwelt in darkness, have seen a great light. Which Jesus, which was applied to Jesus in his own Ministry.

Now personally Paul is also recalling I think when he was blinded by the glory of Christ on the road to Damascus, he knew the glory of God in the face of Christ. The experience that. Christ appeared to him and said, Paul Saul Saul? Why do you persecute me? Notice how Jesus identifies himself with the church there. Why do you persecute me? And then also his point is also for the church. That beholding, the glory of Christ is the essence of our Salvation that is we are able to see him. We're able to know him, we're able to trust him. We're able to serve him. And we declare the glory of Christ. When we worship together. That Jesus is Lord, that he is worthy of all glory, honor and praise. And again, that's the main truth is that we can keep going because God is merciful

and that Jesus Christ is Lord. Let me just read this. Testimony of someone who came to Christ, this idea of God, bringing a light. To our eyes, opening our eyes, so that we can see the glory of Christ. Holly Ordway was a highly educated atheist who thought Christianity was both quote, a historical curiosity and a quote blemish on Modern civilization. To her the Bible with a collection of folk tales and myths, though. She knew though, she did not know much about Christianity. She mocked Christians and belittle their faith, and their intelligence and their character. She said, I had built myself, a fortress of atheism, secure against any attack by a rational faith. I lived in it all alone. No, she wasn't looking for God, she began to be drawn to matters of Faith. One reason for interest, she explains is that her naturalistic worldview was inadequate to explain the nature of reality in a coherent way. She realized it could not explain the origin of the universe nor could it explain morality. After a series of conversations with a mentor and exposure to helpful Christian writings Ordway went from denying God, to committing herself to Christ. She embraced the Apostle, Paul's forthright declaration. The Christianity is based on the historical witnessed events of Christ's death and Resurrection 1st Corinthians, 15 verses 31 through 4. And the Christian Theology and philosophy offers, quote, real answers. She said really, it doesn't matter whether we like Christianity or not. What matters is is it true? That approach may not resonate with everyone, but it was, what open the door for me. Now for her, that was a Steve mentioned before the way in through the backdoor.

For others. It may be just simply experiencing the love of Christ through and act of service, and act of kindness and maybe someone going through a cancer diagnosis, and they realize they, they recognize their own mortality.

Whatever it is, we Proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord. For God, who led said, let light shine out of Darkness has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. That's a big description. I don't know how to give words to that description. There's like four prepositional phrases fit in right there at the end, he has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But I think about the woman, who came to Jesus, with the issue of the bleeding issue and it says she had had this issue for 12 years, and she had been to all the doctors and she had spent all her money. and she said, if I can just Touch the Hem of His Garment

I can be made, well.

I don't know what Jesus face looked like when he was Jewish he was Semitic And so you know, he would have had that that ethnic look to him. But think about him turning around and asking that woman face to face. And it's saying who touch me and then she locked eyes with him. She saw the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. He is the one we are beholding. Let's pray.

Heavenly Father, we thank you that you have shown us your word

We thank you that you have given us hope in Jesus Christ because without him, we do not have any hope.

Yes, there are lots of things that we can pursue their lots of Endeavors in this world that we can give our attention to

But ultimately, Lord, that the bucket list is not going to matter in the worldly sense.

what matters is whether we know you, and, In our time here on Earth. Sharing your story. With everyone, we know.

Praying, and hoping and pleading and urging. That others would recognize you as a Savior and Lord.

As their forgiver, as their healer as their Shepherd.

As their friend.

We ask these things in Christ name, amen.

Hey man. What the stand? We want to sing one more song for we head out.