Simple Faith

vs 1-2 - Affirming his call. Why is he an apostle- the will of God.

3-11 2 truths

With Christ, suffering is not in vain.

You will be comforted

You will be able to comfort others

You will learn to depend on God

With Christ, you will be delivered.

God who raises the dead

There is not a depth of suffering that God cannot redeem and deliver you from.

12-24 The Gospel is simple and sincere.

If it cannot be understood by the common man, it is not the gospel.

Paul changes his plans, but affirms to us that Jesus’ promises are always fulfilled.

The Spirit is the key guarantor of the ultimate promise: Salvation

Do you worry about your faith? Do you feel stagnant? If you have the Spirit, you can rest, knowing He has guaranteed it.

You are sealed.

The enemy ants you to believe that your destiny and outcome changes like your seasons. That is not what the Bible teaches.

2:1-11 Forgiving the immoral brother

In 1 Corinthians, Paul told the church to deliver the immoral brother to Satan.

That his flesh may be destroyed.

That his spirit may be saved.

In balance, he now says to forgive and reaffirm their love to him.

Tension: Is Paul being wishy washy?

Church Discipline- is for the sake of the sinner and the church.

It cannot be out of balance in benefit- Only what’s good for the church, or only what’s good for the one who has sin.

Unrepentance tears churches apart and waters down the Gospel message.

Repentance is the thing Heaven parties over.

When someone repents, they need to be reaffirmed and brought back in.

There must be repentance.

2:12-17

2 aromas

To the one we smell of life- We bring the answer for eternity. To the one being saved, our message, whether challenge or comfort, are the words of life.

To the one perishing, we are a reminder of the inevitable second death.

Remember these things:

They hate us because they first hated Jesus.

As we suffer at the hands of the perishing, coming full circle, we are comforted by Christ.

Summary-

Simple and Sincere

You can count on God. He always delivers.

He is always amen.

You don’t have to have other people’s faith figured out.

God sways the hearts of men. we do not need to know their hearts.

Wheat and weeds.

Those who are tasked with church discipline don’t take lightly.

Practice radical forgiveness.

You don’t have to have your faith figured out.

If it was up to your understanding, would you even be saved?

He is doing the work… Surrender to him.