Living Letters

BEFORE DISMISSING KIDS

Before I dismiss to KC, we will be giving our KidCity teachers off for the month of July. There will only be nursery during those months. The whole purpose for that is two-fold: 1) We are averaging just about 60 kids every week. We are also at a unique place as a church, where nearly everyone who attends is serving in some capacity or another. So we don’t have the option of just replacing everyone who wants a break, nor do we want to just keep driving the chariot here – we want to care for the people who give a lot of time and energy to teaching our children the gospel of Jesus. We’re so grateful to every teacher, every teachers assistant, every junior assistant that serves in those back hallways, and everyone who serves with Pathfinders – that’s an army of people who are actively raising up the folks who will be the next generation of worship leaders, directors, discipleship and community group leaders – we want to honor them and thank them.

And 2) Secondly, not quite so inspiring and probably won’t get any applause – summer is a really busy time when people travel a lot and it’s hard to schedule enough people. So, there will be only nursery for the month of July.

Parents – we as pastors promise to do our part to keep the sermons a little shorter, knowing that you have active young ones sitting with you and that it’s not always very restful. We expect they will make a little noise. It’s okay. It means they are here, and having kids in church is a win.

PRAY FOR KIDCITY TEACHERS???

DISMISS

When I was ordained a pastor back in 2018, the actual ordination ceremony itself was kind of a surprise to me. I was expecting a little more hoopla, and there really wasn’t much. I had been through two years of elder training, and then answered questions from the panel of elders, but the actual ceremony was simply the elders laying hands on us and praying that God would establish me for ministry as we started River City Church. And I remember in the next couple of weeks, going into the executive pastor’s office and asking, like, am I supposed to have a piece of paper that proves something happened here? I mean, you go to the chiro or physical therapist, or the tax accountant, and the paper is on the wall. “this person can legally do this.” And I’m thinking, man, I’m going to be marrying people, counseling people, teaching doctrine that determines people’s view of God and effects their eternity – and I already feel so inadequate to do this, I’m diving in way over my head to be part of starting a church: I mean, shouldn’t I have something that says “someone vetted this guy? He can legally do this.”

I was at a wedding one time where the officiant said, “by the power invested in me by www.getordainedonline.org, I pronounce you husband and wife,” so I’m thinking that guy probably had something he printed off – probably has it in his suit pocket in case someone asks. I would sure feel a lot more settled if I had a piece of paper. And the executive pastor said, well, you don’t actually need a certificate to prove you’re a pastor. There’s no registry, at least in Iowa, like when you do something they look for your name on the list. Nothing. No certificate needed. But, he said, I’ll print one up for you if it makes you feel better. I’m pretty sure he just went to the church secretary and said, hey, find something on Google Docs to put Gehman’s name on so he feels official. They gave me something, but I probably threw it away. If it didn’t mean anything to them, it didn’t mean anything to me either.

If you’re just joining us at River City, we’re going through one of the Apostle Paul’s letters to a church he started in Corinth, which is a city in modern day Greece, and we’re looking at several word pictures that 2 Corinthians gives us to help us understand what a follower of Jesus is like, and today, that word picture is that we are Living Letters. Living Letters. Or, if you prefer, you could say, Living Certificates.

I’m sure many of you haven been in a situation like me where you felt way over your head – so inadequate for the situation. We’ll talk about that today – where does our confidence come from when God calls us into a situation where we feel very inadequate. And secondly, when you listen to a preacher or a speaker or something, how do we know if we’re being fed truth or if it’s all poison? I mean, last week at the end of chapter 2, Paul started into this, saying that there are people who market the word of God for profit, and he had to warn churches on multiple occasions to beware of false teachers. You and I live in a day and age where you can go on YouTube or Podcasts and watch or listen to one teacher after another for days and days and days. So what is the litmus test for which ones you should trust and which ones you should avoid?

I know those two things might feel very disconnected, and you might think, dude, where are you headed with this? Well, this the exact situation that Paul is addressing here in 2 Corinthians today. See what’s happening here in Corinth is that no sooner did the fragrance of the Gospel of God’s grace that we talked about last week begin to spread among the Gentiles than a counterfeit ‘gospel’ appeared – another aroma, this one a mixture of Law and grace. It’s Jesus PLUS the Law. You believe Jesus by faith, but you also have to follow Jewish customs in order to be completely Christian. Paul is referring to a zealous group of people sometimes referred to as “the Judaizers.” These guys were showing up in Corinth, and apparently saying, listen – Paul preaches a little different gospel than we do. He says you don’t need to hold to the Jewish customs and laws that have been in place for, I don’t know, forever! We say if they have been necessary to this point, why change now?

So who are you going to believe? You gonna believe some random guy that makes tents for a living roaming around telling you what is true and what isn’t? Or will you listen to people who have the training? The certificate. The degree. And have letters of recommendation/endorsements from the higher-ups in Jerusalem (Wiersbe)?

And at the end of chapter 2, Paul starts to defend himself. He contrasted his own ministry against the ministry of these Judaizers saying, look we’re not carrying the fragrance because it makes us rich and famous. In fact, they had been beaten and left for dead, or oimprisoned, or just bulldozed out of town more times than they could count. This gospel isn’t a marketing tool to make us prosperous – we’re not just trying to gain followers here. On the contrary, verse 17, we speak with sincerity in Christ, as from God and before God. And then in verse 1 of chapter 3, it’s almost like Paul catches himself, going – wait, wait, wait… 3:1 “Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Here I am, trying to defend myself, as if you need me to validate our ministry. Or do we need, like some (The Judaizers), letters of recommendation to you or from you?

I resonate with Paul. This guy carried a level of sarcasm that we don’t often appreciate. This last question is completely sarcastic. Look, wherever we go, we speak with sincerity, we’re speaking with authority as our words are from God, we’re living our lives before God – we’re accountable to him for everything we do – or do you want me to show you my certificate? Want me to have the executive pastor print one off for you, too? Total sarcasm.

But his point is being made: Then he gets serious and says, well, actually, we do have a letter of recommendation. We do have a certificate that validates our ministry, and, Verse 2: It’s YOU, the Corinthian church that he’s writing to. You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. In other words, Paul says, our credibility doesn’t come from a piece of paper, it comes from the fruit of the gospel we preach. Your lives are the proof that the gospel is real, that our preaching is effective, and that you belong to Jesus. Jesus said in John 15:8 “My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be my disciples.” Your certificate of being a disciple in the first place, is the fruit that the Spirit produces in you as he brings you to life, and makes the gospel real to you.

So Paul said here in 2 Cor 3, here’s the fruit I can point to – here’s the certificate that our ministry is genuine:

You Corinthians are written on our hearts. We’re not using you for profit – we love you! Our motivation isn’t to be somebody – our motivation is that you are helped. That you grow in Christ, that you walk in faith! And if anyone spends 10 minutes with us, they can see by the way we talk about you, the way we pray for you, the way we interact with you – verse 2 again – everyone can know and see that you are written on our hearts. Love born out by the Spirit is the first fruit that grows. In fact, Paul would write in 1 Corinthians 13, that very famous chapter, that if the love branch isn’t growing any fruit at all, then even the gifts of the Spirit aren’t helpful. So first of all, you aren’t a means to an end – you are written on our hearts.

Secondly, everyone who knew you can look at your lives and see a difference. They can see your pursuit of Christ, your transformed lives, thanks to our work there in Corinth of preaching and teaching the good news of the kingdom, persuading and explaining that Jesus is the Messiah, and THAT is all the credibility we need. Your love for each other and for Jesus are the fruit of our labors. So you yourselves are the proof that we have a credible ministry.

I know you shouldn’t try to make too much out of what’s NOT there, but I think it’s telling that Paul doesn’t say that God’s calling on his life is his credentials. Paul isn’t claiming that his credibility is because he saw Jesus on the road to Damascus, or that he has the authority to write scripture. He’s basically just saying, look at the lives of the people we’ve ministered to. Look at the lives of the people who have walked with us. Is there transformation there? Do they have the Holy Spirit? Do they love God? Do they see Jesus as the Son of God, the Messiah? Are we producing disciples that are hungry for holiness; hungry for the Spirit of God; Hungry to know Jesus more? Hungry to love the word, hungry to serve the church, hungry to love our neighbors and reach the lost? Or, like these Judaizers, are we producing disciples that are hungry for rules and regulations? Righteousness that comes from outward appearances. Hungry for position or titles? Hungry for recognition and power? Or even hungry for the spectacular? Are we producing disciples who need to keep coming back to us for the secret sauce?

And then Paul continues, you know what though, it’s not even about us. The fruit in your lives isn’t even about giving us credibility, Paul says, verse 3, You show that you are Christ’s letter, delivered by us… The transformation in your lives actually gives validation, not to us, but to the gospel! It gives validation to message of Jesus Christ, and the ministry of the Holy Spirit. We are just the messengers. We’re just the delivery person. We’re the UPS people, just delivering the fragrance of Jesus to you, and Christ’s Spirit in you is the one who actually brings about the fruit, not us. Paul knew that one of the greatest evidences to the gospel is a life that has been transformed.

I mean, think about who is writing this letter to the Corinthians! Paul – FORMER CHURCH HATER, TURNED CHURCH LEADER. He used to be dragging people off to prison who believed in Jesus, approving of their persecution – and now he’s been to prison, he’s been beaten, he’s been mistreated for persuading people that Jesus is the ONLY way! He’s not just talking about Jesus – he’s willing to die for him! Paul’s life is a living certificate that says the gospel of Jesus Christ has transformational power.

So when Paul preaches the gospel, he’s preaching as someone who is in it himself. He’s been changed by it. He’s living it. I mean think about it – you go to the car dealership and the salesman tells you about how awesome Mustangs are, you gotta have a Mustang for this reason and that reason – and then you watch that guy drive away in a Mustang? You’re like – okay, that was authentic. He’s speaking from experience. Now if he drives away in a Prius (no offense to anyone), you’re going to say his whole Mustang speech was pretty fake, right? He’s trying to sell you something.

That was the difference between the ministry of Paul and the ministry of the Judaizers. His ministry was verified by life change – their ministry was marketing the word for profit… just trying to sell something. And so, to answer the question from earlier – how do you discern, among all the teachers and preachers out there, if you’re listening to the truth or someone trying to sell you something? If you’re at camp, or a chapel speaker shows up, or you’re at a conference and everyone is just eating it up – how do you discern if you’re being fed truth or something that’s just not right? Here are three ways – I’m sure there could be more.

Paul’s first suggestion would be, look at the fruit of their lives – are you walking away from that podcast, youTube video, or chapel service with a greater view of Christ? Has the fragrance been spread? Or are the people speaking drawing attention to themselves and their own ministry, tearing down others as if no one else gets this right but them? Are they, like the Judaizers, adding hoops for you to jump through in order to be a true follower of Jesus, where it’s more about what you do than what Christ did?

Secondly, does what they preach sound like something Jesus would say? 1 Timothy 6:3–4. Paul says, If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. Pretty cut and dry. If the podcast is teaching something that disagrees with what Jesus said, that teaching is a joke.

Thirdly, does the teacher hold to the true gospel taught by the apostles in the New Testament? In Galatians 1:8–9 Paul wrote, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, a curse be on him! As we have said before, I now say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, a curse be on him!” Paul is red hot on this one, like, I don’t care if you have a vision, or a real actual angel from heaven showed up in your room one night – if that angel gave you a revelation that is a different gospel than what we’ve preached to you – to hell with that angel! So again, a great test of whether or not someone is authentic or just trying to sell you something for their own gain – are they claiming some unique revelation that only came to them? Or are they sticking to the true gospel written by these apostles in the New Testament? Are they working from scripture as the final authority, or are they claiming their own experience as the authority?

That’s what Paul is up against – a group of people who have drifted from the true gospel, are adding law to it – which makes it a new gospel altogether, and then pointing to their letters of recommendation as the validation for what they preach.

And Paul goes, nah. We preach the true gospel. We don’t need endorsements to prove anything. I don’t have to convince you that I’ve had some miraculous revelation. Your faith, the transformation of your lives, gives evidence to Jesus. We, the apostles, were just the mailman, delivering the letter. (verse 3) This letter was not written with ink, or as one commentator says, “not in lines drawn by human hands on a lifeless piece of paper, in characters that easily fade or that may become illegible, or that can be read only by a few, or that may be soon destroyed, but by the Spirit of the living God moving on the heart, and producing that variety of fruit which gives such a striking and beautiful evidence of your conversion. Written by the Spirit of the living God, it is far more valuable, and precious, and permanent than any record which could be made by ink.

Every trace of the Spirit’s influences on the heart was an undoubted proof that God had sent the apostles; and was a proof which they would much more sensibly and tenderly feel than they could any letter of recommendation written in ink (Barnes).

This letter was not written with ink, but by the Spirit of the living God — then Paul adds – not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. By referring to “tablets of stone” Paul is referring to the whole scene on Mt Sinai where God gave the 613 laws, including the 10 Commandments, to Moses. In Ex 24, God called Moses up the mountain to receive the law, and in Exodus 31:18, “When he finished speaking… he gave him the two tablets of the testimony, stone tablets inscribed by the finger of God.” Those are the stone tablets that Paul is referring to: In short: The Law of Moses, or another way to say it is, The Old Covenant. Its what the entire Old Testament is about.

Now what exactly is Paul getting at here? This is one of those things that the first people reading 2 Corinthians would understand and we need a little more time to unpack. Because Paul is making a much bigger statement here than just “we don’t need letters of recommendation.” He’s proclaiming a much deeper truth. Because even though the Law was etched in stone, it never changed the people’s hearts anymore than a bigger speed limit sign means we’ll actually slow down.

So God said in Jeremiah 31 that a new covenant was on the way, and Paul seems to be referencing this: Jeremiah 31:32–34 “This one will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors on the day I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt—my covenant that they broke even though I am their master”—the Lord’s declaration. “Instead, this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days”—the Lord’s declaration. “I will put my teaching within them and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will one teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know me, from the least to the greatest of them” —this is the Lord’s declaration. “For I will forgive their iniquity and never again remember their sin.”

So back to our text in 2 Corinthians 3, Paul says to the Corinthian church, You show that you are Christ’s letter, not written in stone, but on human hearts! In other words – your lives are proof that the gospel of Jesus is not about obeying more laws, or obeying the Old Covenant better – the fact that the Spirit of the living God is in you and transforming you is proof that the new covenant that God promised thru Jeremiah is here – IN CHRIST!! That’s why Paul says in verse 4, Such is the confidence we have through Christ before God. It is not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God. He has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter, not of adding more laws, but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”

Paul’s last line there – The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life! – Simply means the Law is there to show us how far we fall short of what we were designed for. It just leads to guilt and shame. That was the point of it. When you’re driving on Highway 22 and you see that police SUV coming the other way and you slam on the brakes – the law brings guilt. When the law appeared, you knew you were breaking it, and you knew you were guilty. It’s the purpose of the officers cruising the highways – when you see them, you instantly become guilty! God gave his laws so we would know all the ways we fall short of his glory. So, one commentator writes, a ministry full of legalism (like the Judaizers) always brings death. Preachers, teachers, churches, groups, etc, who major on rules and regulations keep their followers under a dark cloud of guilt, and this kills their joy, power, and effective witness for Christ. Christians who are constantly measuring each other, comparing “results,” and competing with each other, soon discover that they are depending on the flesh and not the power of the Spirit. There never was a law or standard that could transform a person’s life, not even the Ten Commandments. Only the grace of God, ministered by the Spirit of God, can transform lost sinners into living letters that glorify Jesus Christ. And those Spirit-filled, transformed lost sinners are a walking billboard for the truth and power of the gospel, better than any certificate or personal endorsement could ever be.

So let’s pull the strings together on this – what is it that settles your identity in Christ? What is it that gives you confidence that you are a disciple of Jesus? So many of us, when we think about that question, gravitate toward legalism like the Judaizers. Well, I served at church once a month. I gave more than 10% in the offering box, in fact, I donated quite a bit to the building fund. I took seminary classes. I tried to share my faith any chance I got. I try to read some verses every morning. Right?

And yet where does Paul say his confidence before God comes from, there in verse 5? It’s not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything, but our adequacy is from God. HE has made us competent… In other words, when Paul himself got to heaven and literally stood before God, he would not have claimed any of his church planting, missionary journeys, being beaten and left for dead, writing 2/3 of the NT, title of Apostle, authority to write scripture, came from the right family, speaking in tongues more than anyone – none of that was a certificate that he would have claimed for himself to say, I have a right to be here. He realized that he was only competent because the blood of Jesus cleansed him from all of his unrighteousness, and the Spirit of God is at work in and through him.

Don’t you just love the words Paul uses – adequate and competent. Maybe those should have been the identity words today. So average and boring. No athlete who is adequate gets their jersey retired. No artist who is simply competent sells their art for much money. Paul isn’t even saying being filled with the Spirit makes me outrageously brilliant, spectacularly marvelous or a superhero of faith – nope. God makes us adequate and competent for the work he gives us to do, and Paul is confident enough in the Spirit to get himself out of the spotlight and say, all glory to Jesus.

So church, our confidence before God as we all work together to do ministry here in Riverside doesn’t come from some sending church giving us fancy papers, it’s not because we didn’t swear as much last week, or because we gave money to someone, or served at the church an extra shift, or built a huge new building with 100 programs to reach people… although all of those things are great! Our confidence is not that we are somehow smarter than other churches and figured out the secret sauce, or that we’ve served enough in the past or had enough faith that God said, okay, you’ve earned the right to have me bless you in a big way – No. Our confidence is that anything good and true and lasting that we do as a church is because by the Spirit of the living God, he has made and will make us adequate and competent for whatever he puts in front of us. All the flash? All the glory? All the praise? All the wow! that’s amazing! Those are the certificates that all go to him.

As we close today, under the old covenant, the Passover meal was a significant part of remembering God’s provision and deliverance. At the Lord’s Supper, Jesus held up the cup of redemption, or the cup of blessing – and said, THIS IS THE NEW COVENANT IN MY BLOOD. Redemption. Blessing. Forgiveness. Grace – all of it made possible through the blood of Jesus.

So as we participate in the Lord’s Supper today, we aren’t just reminding ourselves that Jesus died – the bread and the cup remind us that we have ZERO shot of earning our way to heaven. We couldn’t give enough money to satisfy the one who owns everything. We couldn’t give enough of our time to the one who exists outside of time. We couldn’t give enough of our worship to the one who is surrounded by the heavenly council and thousands upon thousands upon thousands of angels. We couldn’t help enough old ladies across the street, adopt enough orphans, or get all 613 laws followed just right so that we are perfectly flawless. The law only brings death. It’s the Spirit that brings life. He’s the breath that makes us alive. And that was made possible by the death of Jesus – the full and final sacrifice for sin. The perfect lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. And as we participate in the Lord’s Supper today, we aren’t just remembering the cross – we remember the empty tomb. We remember that he is alive and that he’s returning again!

If you’re here today, and you would openly admit you’re not a follower of Jesus, not a disciple yet – you don’t quite buy this stuff, you haven’t placed your faith in Jesus to save you…just pass the elements on by when they come to you. We’re glad you’re here, not trying to single you out or anything, it’s just that this is one of the ways we celebrate our union with Christ – that we belong to him, and he belongs to us. If you want to be a follower of Jesus, you can pray a simple prayer right now. There are no magic words, no hoops to jump through – Jesus did all of that for you. You just need to admit you’re a sinner. Confess that you’ve not honored God with your life. Believe that your forgiveness and salvation doesn’t happen because you do something spectacular for Jesus – it comes because he did something spectacular for you. He’s alive right now, interceding for you. Call out to him by faith, repent of your sin, and believe.

And I want to add this yet – if you’re here today, and you feel inadequate. You’re a believer, but you don’t feel like you should participate today because you have too much sin going on. Something unconfessed. Something heavy. Let me remind you – our confidence before God doesn’t come from us getting ourselves to where we want to be. Our confidence doesn’t come from getting our ducks in a row. Our confidence is in a Savior who loved us enough to give his life as a ransom for ours. He is what makes us adequate. He is our confidence. So by faith, let’s lean into that today and let the bread and the cup remind us of that.

SOURCES

Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 1:637–638.

Albert Barnes, Notes on the New Testament: II Corinthians & Galatians, ed. Robert Frew, (London: Blackie & Son, 1884–1885), 49–55.

Richard L. Pratt Jr, I & II Corinthians, Holman New Testament Commentary, (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 7:321–323.

David Brown, A. R. Fausset, and Robert Jamieson, A Commentary, Critical, Experimental, and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments: Acts–Revelation, (London; Glasgow: William Collins, Sons, & Company, Limited, n.d.), VI:343–344.