Sunday, July 26, 2015

2 Corinthians: Be a Living Epistle & Ambassador for Christ

The Book of 2 Corinthians
For God,
who commanded the light to shine out of darkness,
hath shined in our hearts,
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 4:6

Chapter 1
(This God that Raises the Dead)
But we had the sentence of death in ourselves,
that we should not trust in ourselves,
but in God which raiseth the dead:
v.9
Inverse Relationship of Suffering
a) For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us,
b) so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.
And our hope of you is stedfast,
a) knowing, that as ye are partakers of the sufferings,
b) so shall ye be also of the consolation.
v.5,7
Work of this Godhead (Trinity)
Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God;
Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.
v.21,22

Chapter 2
(Anguish of Paul)
For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears;
not that ye should be grieved,
but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly unto you.
v.4
The 2-fold Fragrance
For we are to God the fragrance of Christ
1-among those who are being saved
2-and among those who are perishing.
v.15
Unity: To Resist Satan
To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also:
Lest Satan should get an advantage of us:
for we are not ignorant of his devices.
v.10,11
Chapter 3
(A Living Epistle)

Ye are our epistle written in our hearts,

 known and read of all men:
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God;
 not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
v.2,3
The Veil
But their minds were blinded.
For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament,
 because the veil is taken away in Christ.
But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart.
v.14,15
The Unveiled
But we all,
with unveiled face,
beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord,
are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory,
just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
v.18
Chapter 4

(We--an Earthen Vessel)
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels,
that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
v.7
Raising of this earthen Vessel
Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus
shall raise up us also by Jesus,
and shall present us with you.
v.14

Worth the Affliction
For our light affliction,
which is but for a moment,
worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
While we look not at the things which are seen,
but at the things which are not seen:
        for the things which are seen are temporal;
        but the things which are not seen are eternal.
v.17,18
The World is Blind
But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not,
lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ,
who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
v.3,4
Chapter 5
(Ambassador for CHRIST-The Message & Marching Order)
Now then we are ambassadors for Christ,
v.20
The Messages- 1) The Judgment
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ;
that every one may receive the things done in his body,
according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
v.10
2) The Good News pt.1 (Justification possible)
....that if one died for all, then were all dead:
And that he died for all,
that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves,
 but unto him which died for them,
and rose again.
v.14,15
3) The Good News pt.2 (Sanctification possible)
*Therefore if any man be in Christ,
he is a new creature:
*old things are passed away;
behold, all things are become new.
v.17
Your Marching Orders
And all of this is a gift from God,
who brought us back to himself through Christ.
And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him.
v.18 NLT
Chapter 6
(At This Time)
And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols?
for ye are the temple of the living God;
Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate,
saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing;
v.16,17
NOW is the TIME
 ...behold, now is the accepted time;
behold, now is the day of salvation.
v.2
Don't Waste Your Time
Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers:
for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?
and what communion hath light with darkness?
And what concord hath Christ with Belial?
or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
v.14,15
Chapter 7
(2 Kinds of Sorrow)
* For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience
 leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow.
* But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death.
v.10 NLT
1 Corinthians Worked!
For even if I made you sorry with my letter, I do not regret it; though I did regret it.
For I perceive that the same epistle made you sorry, though only for a while.
Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry,
but that your sorrow led to repentance.
v.8,9
So Let US.....
Having therefore these promises,
dearly beloved,
let us cleanse ourselves
from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit,
perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
v.1
Chapter 8
(Inverse Relationship of the Gospel)
For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that, though he was rich,
yet for your sakes he became poor,
that ye through his poverty might be rich.
v.9
Testing You
I am not commanding you,
but I want to test the sincerity of your love
by comparing it with the earnestness of others.
v.8 NIV
Chapter 9
(Paul's Proverb on Giving)
But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly;
and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart,
so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity:
for God loveth a cheerful giver.
v.6,7
I know you have a giving heart
I really don’t need to write to you about this ministry of giving for the believers..
.....For I know how eager you are to help,....
....it was your enthusiasm that stirred up many
of the Macedonian believers to begin giving.
v.1,2 NLT
Chapter 10
(Paul's Authority)
For though I should boast somewhat more of our authority,
which the Lord hath given us for edification,
and not for your destruction, I should not be ashamed:
That I may not seem as if I would terrify you by letters.
For his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful;
but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible.
Those people should realize that our actions
when we arrive in person will be as forceful
as what we say in our letters from far away.
v.8-11
Vertical:
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
v.5
Horizontal:
We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves.
When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves,
they are not wise.
v.12
Chapter 11
(Lesson of Eve)
But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty,
so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
v.3
As Gullible as Eve
You happily put up with whatever anyone tells you,
even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach,
or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received,
or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed.
v.4 NLT
BEWARE, the Lesson of Eve.....
For such are false apostles, deceitful workers,
transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
v.13,14
Chapter 12
(Paul's personal Testimony)
Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities,
 in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake:
for when I am weak, then am I strong.
v.10
His personal Affliction
Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited,
 I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.
v.7 NLT
His Testimony
For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
And he said unto me,
My grace is sufficient for thee:
for my strength is made perfect in weakness.
Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities,
that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
v.8,9
Chapter 13
(Paul Signs Off)
 Finally, brethren, farewell.
Be perfect, be of good comfort,
 be of one mind,
live in peace;
and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
v.11
Paul's warning
I have already warned those who had been sinning
when I was there on my second visit.
Now I again warn them and all others,
 just as I did before,
that next time I will not spare them.
v.2 NLT
Paul's Prayer
Your restoration is what we pray for.
v.9 ESV
SUMMARY:
For we are not writing any other
things to you than what
you read or understand.
Now I trust you will understand,
even to the end.
2 Corinthians 1:13