An Appeal Through Us
Notes
Transcript
Last week:
Paul talked about the struggles of ministry, as death works in him, but life for the Corinthians
But Paul reminds us that the momentary light afflictions are nothing in comparison to the eternal weight of glory, and we look at what is eternal, and not temporal
Today, we get to continue seeing the eternal vs the temporal
Intro:
I was a camp counselor at a Bible Summer Camp. Each week, we would have a new group of kids, some being as young as going into first grade all the way to those going into their senior year of high school. What I noticed, no matter the age, kids who hadn’t been here before were always uncertain of what was going to happen. They would come and find their bunk, say hi, and then always worry what the week had in store for them. What they worried about, I knew that they would only waste effort and time being concerned, because they were going to experience a week that would transform their lives. All those worries would pale in comparison to the experiences they would have, the friends they would make, and how they would meet the Lord in a new and intimate way. What they worried about, is often what we worry about in life and what we will experience in eternity, but rest assured, these kids would leave the camp and become great advocates to their parents and friends that this place was awesome. We too, once we have tasted and seen the goodness of God, we can take our confidence and assurance of what we have in store for us, and this makes us wonderful ambassadors of the Kingdom of heaven, as we will see today
Temporary Vs. Eternal House (V.1-8)
V.1
O: For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down
I: If we, in our physical bodies are beaten, destroyed
A: In relation to handing over our bodies to death, that this momentary ight affliction we experience, that if our house, or body id finally torn down…
O: we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens
I: We will have a new body from God, a body not created by me, nor carnal, but it is heavenly and lasts forever
A: The hope we have in this reality of eternal life
V.2
O: For indeed in this house we groan longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven
I: In this mortal body we ache and cry out, looking forward to our new body in heaenv
A: (Put your application here)
V.3
O: Inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked
I: When we put on the new body, we will not be in shame or nakedness
A: We will have bodies in heaven, not just spirits
V.4
O: For indeed while we are in this tent we groan, being burdened because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed
I: While in these bodies we feel pain and carry the heavy burden that we long to be clothed with our eternal body
A: Here, we will always feel out of place, because we know that this isn’t it our final home
13 All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.
Important to remember, while we wait, to clothe ourselves with Jesus.
14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.
27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
O: so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life
I: Eternal life will replace our mortal bodies
A: That this life of pain would be overcome, or swallowed, by life
V.5
O: Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God
I: God has prepared us for this, to live in eternity with new bodies
O: who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge
I: The Holy Spirit, the Comforter, given to us as a guarantee to God’s fulfilled promises, God’s preparation for eternity
A: A pledge, or down payment, or the word means the First installment
This means that our eternity is not only guaranteed, but there is way more to come, things we can’t even imagine in eternity
V.6
O: Therefore, being of good courage and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord
I: Knowing our secure eternity, we can take courage here in these bodies, even though we are not with the Lord right now
A: Even though we desire to be with the Lord, He wants us to take courage in Him right here and right now
7 For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.
V.7
O: For we walk by faith, not by sight
I: We live according to our trust and hope in Jesus, not what is right in front of us
A: (Put your application here)
V.8
O: We are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord
I: We have the courage it takes to live by faith, but it would still be best case scenario to be in the presence of Jesus than to live in this fallen, broken world
A: faith takes courage, to make that final step into eternity, to go from what you see to the unknown.
It also takes courage to live and minister where you don’t want to be
Like Paul, we want to be with the Lord, but we have the courage to see this through here on this earth until the Lord calls us home
Pleasing to God (V.9-16)
V.9
O: Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him
I: Because we live for eternity, whether we are here on earth, or with the Lord, we want to do what pleases Him
A: Our number one priority should always be to please the Lord, no matter what we do, because…
V.10
O: For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad
I: We will all be judged before the Lord on what we do here on earth, whether it is good or bad, and be rewarded accordingly
A: We will be judged by the Lord with what we do here on earth. Although, our judgement will be different than those who reject Christ. We see it in 1 Corinthians 3:11-15
11 For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12 Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,
13 each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work.
14 If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.
15 If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.
V.11
O: Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men
I: Knowing these things, we fear the Lord, we want to be pleasing to Him and we make our case before men, we try to be winsome
O: but we are made manifest to God, and I hope that we are made manifest also in your conscience
I: Our hearts are laid bare before the Lord, it is all revealed to Him, an Paul is hoping the Corinthians can see that as well
A: One strong motivation we have to persuade men should be the fear of the Lord, the fact that He sees everything, even our hearts.
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place, Watching the evil and the good.
28 “Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
V.12
O: We are not again commending ourselves to you but are giving you an occasion to be proud of us
I: Paul is saying that he isn’t trying to prove himself and his ministry to them, but that they can rejoice with Paul and take certainty in what Paul is doing… WHY??
O: so that you will have an answer for those who take pride in appearance and not in heart
I: Paul is saying these things so that the Corinthians can defend his heart against those who judge in a fleshly sense
A: Don’t take pride in appearance, take joy in the heart.
We take pride in church growth, in big programs, in the things that we see
Paul is wanting the Corinthians and us to take joy and encouragement in the heart of our ministry
Some complain we aren’t growing, people are leaving? We have to get to the point where we aren’t surprised by people’s criticism of what the Lord is doing.
For big churches and small churches
V.13
O: For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God. If we are of sound mind, it is for you
I: For the Lord, we may be a bit overwhelmed, but for you, we are clearly thinking
A: We often find ourselves in overwhelming situations… make sure it is for the Lord
The Lord will allow us to go through things where we are too overwhelmed, so we can trust in Him, not ourselves
We may be spontaneous with the Lord, but be organized for people
33 for God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.
V.14-15
O: For the love of Christ controls us
I: It is Christ and His love for us, or His love working in us that motivates us
A: We see a motivation for convincing men is the fear of God, but now, our motivation for our work within the Body is the love of Christ
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her,
O: having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; (15)and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf
I: Christ died for all so in this flesh, in these bodies, we won’t live for ourselves, and instead, live for Christ
A: That we wouldn’t seek our pleasures here on earth, but to seek His purpose and desires here on Earth
Too often, we live for our careers, our families, a Mariners world series, a Seahawks Superbowl… and Christ becomes Sunday morning, and that hour and a half is His. But he didn’t die for that to be the case, He died so you would live for Him, and it would be reversed. That a few hours you would enjoy sports and other fun activities, but Christ is all you are living for
V.16
O: Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer
I: For this reason, we wouldn’t see and recognize people in these mortal bodies, just as we knew Christ as Human here on earth, but now we know Him as the One at the right Hand of the Father
A: We need to recognize people as eternal beings, not the flesh that fades away
When we see a person who needs Jesus, we don’t see them as an obstacle to this flesh, but rather, one to convince of the gospel of Jesus
On the other side, when we see a brother or sister struggle with the flesh in this life, we see them as co-heirs, and not writing them off, but knowing their eternal body is waiting for them, prepared by the Father, and we have the love of Christ that motivates us to see them and help them live their life here for Christ, not themselves.
Our New Ministry (V.17-21)
V.17
O: Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come
I: Because Christ died for all, and we have the hope of an eternal body, for anyone who is in Christ, we become new, the things that use to be are gone, you now have newness to look to.
A: In Christ, we are new creatures
We think different
We act different
We hope different
The beautiful part of all this, is that this is a present reality and a future hope.
We are now brand new, and our heavenly home is already made and prepared for us… we now become a live, even when our bodies die.
V.18
O: Now all these things come from God who reconciled us to Himself through Christ
I: This is from God, that in Jesus, we have a new relationship with God from the one we had with Him in the flesh
A: In and through Jesus, God reconciled the fractured relationship we had with Him
1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
O: and gave us the ministry of reconciliation
I: God has given us this ministry to bring reconciliation
A: We get to be tools used to bring reconciliation
Don’t misunderstand, the ministry of reconciliation is not to be reconciled to the flesh nor to be reconciled to darkness nor evil… but rather our ministry is…
V.19
O: Namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation
I: God used Christ to bring reconciliation, to show the world who He really is and hasn’t held our sins against us, but rather, has delegated to us to share this reconciliation to the world
A: It was through Christ that reconciliation was brought
13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,
14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him,
20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.
We are called to bring this message to the world
7 How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
V.20
O: Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ
I: we have been made representatives for Christ
A: We are ambassadors
An Ambassador, represents a King or a country. A person who is sent who will represent a King or President as if they are there themselves.
Their behavior, their actions, their beliefs, their words represent who they are there for.
As ambassadors, we reflect the One who sent us
What we choose to be involved in
How we respond to one another
How we respond to tragedy
How we respond with tweets and posts
O: As though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God
I: God is calling out through us to the world, urging people to be reconciled to God through His Son Jesus Christ
A: We have no work we have to do to be saved, it is by grace, through faith, that we are reconciled to God through His Son. This is the message we get to share, that we get to represent to the world.
Just as an ambassador will promote and try to win others to the King’s ideas and policies, that is what we are doing
V.21
O: He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him
I: For us, Christ had he shame of sin poured on Himself so that through Him, we would be the righteousness of God
A: We are not just made righteous, but we are made as the righteousness of God.
Charles Spurgeon says this:
2 Corinthians 7. How God Made Reconciliation Possible (21)
“The righteousness which Adam had in the garden was perfect, but it was the righteousness of man: ours is the righteousness of God.”
This is how we can be righteous before the world, is because of Jesus
As ambassadors, we don’t need to worry about our standing before God and His righteousness, because He has indeed made us His righteousness
Conclusion:
As those who take confidence in what the Lord is preparing for us, a new body, a new home, we can then focus our hearts to pleasing the Lord here on earth, as ambassadors, bringing the wonderful message of God’s reconciliation through Christ to a hurt and desperate world
