Final Thoughts

2 Corinthians: Final Thoughts

2 Corinthians 13:1-10

2 Corinthians 13:1–10 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. 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. 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! 6 I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test. 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. 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.

1. Introduction – We are nearing the end of our study through 2 Corinthians.

a. This week, next week, and then we’re done. It will be 30 sermons in all.

i. It’s been a difficult letter, but it’s also been a rewarding study.

1. We’ve seen a strained relationship between a church and its apostle.

a. We’ve seen Paul reminding the church of their spiritual heritage – he reminded them of the power truth of the gospel.

i. We looked at the theme of power in weakness.

2. We’ve seen Paul’s pastoral heart, as he yearns for his beloved spiritual children to come back truth.

b. And in the verses we’ll look at today, 13:1-10, we see Paul’s final appeal.

i. And what we’ll see when we read and study these words is that Paul doesn’t end this letter on a discouraging note.

1. He doesn’t berate the Corinthians for their stubbornness or for their falling into false teaching.

a. Instead, Paul gives them one final warning in vv.1-4. He wants them to repent of their unconfessed sin.

i. So Paul delays his 3rd visit – he writes them a corrective letter in hopes that they will come to repentance.

b. Isn’t that how God deals with us? He doesn’t zap us the moment we sin. But, in his loving forbearance, delays judgment in order to give us time to repent and come back to him.

i. That’s what Paul does with the Corinthians. He gives them time – time to get with the program, but if they don’t, he will be forced to use his apostolic authority harshly.

ii. In vv.5-6, Paul asks them to shift their focus. Instead of judging whether Paul is an apostle or not….

1. Instead of coming up with different criteria of an apostle, Paul tells them to focus on themselves.

a. Instead of looking everywhere else – they should examine themselves to see if Jesus is really in them.

iii. And finally, in vv.7-10, we have Paul’s prayer for the Corinthians.

1. Paul often writes prayers for churches in his letters. Usually they are found in the opening verses, but in 2 Corinthians his prayer is at the end.

a. It’s a fascinating prayer…one we’d do well to learn from.

c. That’s what we’ll look at this morning.

i. Paul’s final warning in vv.1-4, Paul’s test in vv.5-6 and Paul’s prayer in vv.7-10.

1. Hear the Word of God. 2 Corinthians 13:1-10.

2. Paul’s Final Warning – Paul starts this section by telling them he’s going to be making a visit. His third.

a. The first visit came in AD 50 – when he planted the church. He stayed for 18 months as the church established itself. We can read about that visit in Acts 18.

i. His second visit did not go so well. His second visit was the previously mentioned painful visit he referenced in chapter 2 of this letter.

1. It was a visit where Paul was publicly humiliated and basically run out of town.

a. But in telling the Corinthians of his intended 3rd visit – Paul uses it as a way to validate the witness and authenticity of his ministry.

ii. Back in Deuteronomy 19, as the final instructions were being given to Israel as to what life in the Promised Land would look like, Moses said this to the people…

1. He said that charges can’t be land against someone willy nilly – probably not his exact words, but you get the point…

a. In order for a charge to stick, there had to be 2 or 3 credible witnesses.

b. And here in 2 Corinthians 13:1 – Paul takes that idea of credibility being established by 2 or 3 and he applies it to his visits.

i. Remember Paul has been showing the Corinthians throughout the whole letter that he is indeed a true apostle of Jesus Christ…

1. He’s been showing them that the false teachers in Corinth are nothing more than charlatans.

a. And Paul uses his visits as a reference. 2 previous visits…and upcoming 3rd…to show that he is indeed a credible and called apostle.

c. This section really is Paul’s final warning to the Corinthians. He’s warning them that if they don’t repent before he gets there, he’ll be forced to discipline them when he does arrive.

1. In essence, what he’s saying is, “You wait till your father gest home!” have any of you given or received that threat?

ii. I remember misbehaving as a kid, and my mom saying that to me. It’s meant to cause radical and immediate change in behaviour…

1. As if the very thought of dad coming home was enough to cause one to straighten up.

a. However, I also remember replying, “Good, he doesn’t spank as hard as you!”

b. Moving on – what Paul is saying in these verses is a continuation of what we looked at last week.

i. If Paul comes to Corinth and he finds them in rampant and unrepentant sin – he would be forced to drop his meek and mild characteristics and become the disciplinarian.

iii. And as I said before, Paul writes this letter, ahead of his intended 3rd visit – in order to give the Corinthians time to repent of their sins and change their ways.

1. He’s giving them time – just like god gives us time to repent of our sins and turn back to him.

a. It’s an often-overlooked aspect of God’s character – he is slow to anger – he is forbearing.

i. Yes he does punish sins…but only after ample warning and time to repent.

iv. So Pal warns the Corinthians – Correct your ways! Repent of your sins. Accept me as Christ’s apostle.

1. Do it before I come – or I will have to use my authority to discipline – and I will not spare any of those who are unrepentant.

d. And to finish off one of the prominent themes from this letter – Paul holds up Jesus as the ultimate example of power in weakness.

i. We’ve seen throughout this letter that the Corinthians want showmanship – they wanted displays of power.

1. They wanted bravado and charisma – but Paul constantly reminded them that the ways of God are different from the ways of the world.

a. And in chapter 13 he holds up Jesus as the example – specifically his death and resurrection.

ii. It’s not that Jesus was overpowered on his way to the cross. He didn’t die a martyr’s death. No Jesus, denied himself, took up his cross and humbly submitted to the will of the Father.

1. He died on the cross to become the atoning sacrifice for sin – that whoever believes in him won’t die but have eternal life.

a. But even though Jesus died in weakness, that wasn’t the end of his story, because he lives by the power of God.

i. He was raised to new life as the firstfruits of the resurrection of the dead.

e. And its is in this relationship between power and weakness that Christians operate.

i. We live lives of self-denial – recognizing that its not I but Christ that lives in me.

1. Yes, some of that resurrection power is in us today – it is what enables our sanctification.

a. But the full extent of resurrection power will only come in the age to come when God’s kingdom is fully established on earth as it is in heaven.

ii. So to sum up this first section – Paul warns them to repent before he comes – otherwise they may get more power than they bargained for.

3. Testing – We need to move on or we aren’t going to finish this section.

a. Next I want to turn your attention to vv.5-6. Paul changes topics – from power, authority, repentance and discipline to examination. Self-examination to be exact.

i. Take note of the repetition of the ‘yourselves.’ Examine yourselves at the beginning of verse 5. “Test yourselves” in the middle of v.5.

1. Paul is stressing a little introspection here. Here’s why. The Corinthians had been busy examining everyone else.

a. They were examining Paul – using their own criteria – to judge whether Paul was actually an apostle.

ii. The Corinthians used their own criteria to judge the interlopers in Corinth.

1. And based on their examination of others – they thought Paul was a fraud and the intruders were the real thing.

b. So Paul writes here – instead of judging everyone else – instead of examining me – test yourselves…see if you are in the faith.

i. This self-examination will have one of 2 results.

1. Either they will find that they are not in the faith at all – in which case they need to repent and come to Jesus.

a. Or they will find that Jesus is indeed dwelling in them.

ii. The result of that should be the Corinthians growing in Christlikeness. Like Paul, the Corinthians should hunger to know Jesus’ meekness, gentleness and something of his weakness.

1. This is a brilliant move on Paul’s part. Paul puts the test and the results of the test squarely on the Corinthians themselves.

a. Which means they are unlikely to fail themselves – so if they pass themselves – then they must pursue Christlikeness.

iii. Passing this test also means this – they must accept Paul’s apostleship as well.

1. If, as a result of their self-examination they find Jesus to be in them, then this is also an unavoidable conclusion – the one who led them in their first steps of faith also has Jesus living in him and is not useless, as some have suggested.

c. This idea of testing and self-examination is something we should pay attention to and put into practice.

i. We should test ourselves – see how we’re doing, see where we’re growing, where maybe we’re regressing and where we need to grow.

1. Examine ourselves to see if we are growing in grace – growing in our knowledge of God’s Word. Are we reading it simply to check a box off, or are we studying it and really wrestling with the content?

a. Are we growing in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control?

i. Examine ourselves to see if we are using our spiritual gifts for the edification of the church.

ii. To grow in our faith – we have to honestly assess where we are – to know where need to help, to get to where we want to be.

4. Paul’s Prayer – And finally today – Paul ends this section with a prayer. But its not only a prayer – is a model for us to follow.

a. Look at the 2 ‘we pray’ statements in these verses.

i. First, Paul writes, “We pray to God that you may not do wrong.” In other words, that they will be kept from, preserved and restrained from sin.

1. This is the most profound thing we can pray – for ourselves, for our friends – that we may do no wrong.

a. That God will give us the grace to steer clear of sin and honour his name in all we do.

ii. Secondly, look at this ‘we pray’ statement. “Your restoration is what we pray for.”

1. Literally the word is ‘mending.”

a. Relationships were broken in Corinth. The relationship between this church and Paul was strained…Paul prayers for their restoration.

iii. But he is also praying for their restoration to Christian values…praying for their abandonment of a false gospel…praying for their pursuit of holiness.

b. Now, what’s so incredible about these 2 ‘we pray’ statements??? Paul prays these things for his critics.

i. Hear it again – he prays them for his critics. He prays that his opponents will grow in Christian maturity.

1. He prays that his critics will be restored. He prays these profound prayers for his opponents. Just let that sink in.

ii. If you are in any kind of Christian ministry for any period of time…you will experience critics and opposition.

1. And as human’s our knee-jerk reaction is this – our prayers often change. We stop praying for our opponents good…and we start praying for our own vindication.

a. But Paul lives out what Jesus said. He loved his enemies and prayed for those who were persecuting him.

i. Paul doesn’t stop praying for his opponents – instead he prays for their full restoration.

iii. I think this is a beautiful model to imitate.

1. Often, instead of praying for our critics – we criticize them right back. Maybe we bad mouth them or are just generally nasty to them.

c. But here, Paul reminds us of the way of Jesus. Who not only taught us to pray for our enemies, but actually did it as he was dying on the cross.

i. He asked the Father to forgive those who didn’t know what they were doing.

1. When Paul was pressed to the limit, he’s not retaliatory of cheap – above all else he still seeks the spiritual well-being of his converts.

a. It’s a very humbling model of Christian leadership…but its an example we must all imitate.

5. Conclusion – And in v.10, as a conclusion to this section and to the whole letter really – Paul reminds them that he doesn’t seek to tear down but to build up.

a. He’s interested in growth, maturity and edification. God placed him in his position as an apostle to build the church up…and that’s what he hopes to accomplish on his third visit to Corinth.

i. So…did it work? Did this letter of 2 Corinthians cause the church in Corinth to get with the program?

1. Did it cause them to repent of their sin and restore their relationship with each other and with Paul?

a. Well, we’ll explore that question next week as we wrap up our study through this letter.