Paul's 4 Lessons to remember when going through suffering or pain

This is from Mark Finley after his hospitalization

 for a 2nd time this year from serious injuries.

"Paul gives us four lessons to remember when we're going through suffering or pain. 

Now, you may not be going through any suffering or pain right now, but I'll tell you sometime you most likely you will. 

We don't get out of this life without going through some suffering, some pain, some heartache.

There are four great principles that Paul gives in 2 Corinthians 4. 

1- We start with verse 7. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of

us. So Paul says this treasure of Christ, this treasure of Jesus that we have is in earthen vessels.
The first thing for us to remember is this -- that in this life, our bodies are fragile. We're always just a few moments away from some accident. We're a few moments away from some sickness, some disease that can afflict our bodies. 

Q: And so, what does that do? 

A: It keeps us from being arrogant. It keeps us from being proud.

2- The second point that Paul makes here is that he says in verse 8 of 2 Corinthians 4, we are hard pressed on every side yet not

crushed. We are perplexed but not in despair. Those are amazing verses. Paul says all this stuff is happening to us. We're pressed down
on every side.
So, you may be confused with what's happening to you right now.
Why? Why? Why? But notice what God says here. Paul says, "We are perplexed, but we are not in despair." 

Q: Why not? 

A: Because we know that Christ is with us.

3- But notice the third principle. When we feel pressed on every side,

when we feel perplexed, notice verse 10, third principle, always
carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus may be manifest in our body. 

When we go through pain and suffering and we can be powerful witnesses for Christ and share His grace with others, then the life of
Christ is manifest in our suffering.

4- But there's one last point that Paul makes that I think is the most

powerful. He says here he talks about the fact that death works in all of us. But then he points beyond that to this incredible hope. And I think this is what what we can hang our hang on to verses 16 to 18 in 2 Corinthians 4. Therefore, we do not lose heart. We don't lose heart in suffering. We don't lose heart in sickness. We don't lose heart in pain. 

Q: Why not?

A:Therefore, we don't lose heart even though our outward man is perishing. But he goes on, it gets better. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.

So Paul is saying whatever affliction you have, 

it's just for a moment in the light of eternity. 

It's for a moment.

Look beyond your pain. Look beyond your heartache. 

Keep your eyes fixed on eternity. 

Keep your eyes fixed on the fact that Jesus Christ will come again." Mark Finley

2 Corinthians 6:17

Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith
the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,..... 

2 Corinthians 6:17

"Let me tell you, my brothers and sisters, for you to carry out your purpose as a lightbearer, God desires that you SEPARATE YOURSELF FROM EVERY EXPRESSION OF DARKNESS." 

Randy Skeete

For those who can sing.....

And David and all Israel played before God with all their might, and with singing, and with harps, and with psalteries, and with timbrels, and with cymbals, and with trumpets. 

1 Chronicles 13:8

"And when God gives a purpose to a man or a purpose to a woman, he requires the carrying out of that purpose by the abilities and the talents, the strengths, the resources, the endowments that He gives to that person for the carrying out.
Q: Do you think God gave you the gift of singing so that you can

win a Grammy?
A: No, that's not why God gave you the gift of singing that through the ministry of song, you may touch hard hearts. 

You may minister to the love and the grace and the goodness of God. That gift is given that you might carry out the purpose for which God gave you life." 

Randy Skeete

Feasting on TV and Hollywood?

"You cannot feast your mind on TV and Hollywood and have a
spiritual character. It's just not possible. 

Q: Because by beholding we become what?

A: Changed. 

So if we are spending more time with Hollywood's productions than we are with the word of the living God, how can we expect ever to be ready for the coming of Jesus?

This is no time to flirt with the devil's allurements and conform to the

world's standards.
Saturate your mind with the word of God. Jesus says, "Watch." (Matthew 24:42)
Daily let God mold your mind, shape your character, transform your life through the spirit inspired word of God." 

Mark Finley

2 Corinthians 6:14

"When you hear in Genesis 1, 

and God divided the light from the darkness, you can almost hear the spiritual principle in 

2 Corinthians 6:14. Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?
And or what communion hath righteousness with unrighteousness? Or what fellowship hath light with darkness? 

There should be no interaction.

When light and darkness mix, 

they both become darkness." 

Randy Skeete

Question to Ponder

"If Christ came to look for fruit in your life today, right now, 

Q: what would He actually find?

--Be honest.
--Look past what you hope He would find and past what you intend to produce someday.
What is genuinely there when He comes close enough to look?"
EC
Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry.  And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, Let no fruit grow on you ever again. Immediately the fig tree withered away. Matthew 21:17,19

The Mine of Truth

For Thou wilt light my candle:

 the LORD my God will enlighten my darkness.

Psalm 18:28

"There are treasures in the word of God that can be discovered only by sinking the shaft deep into the mine of truth.

The carnal mind rejects the truth; but the soul that is converted undergoes a marvelous change. 

The book that before was unattractive because it revealed truths which testified against the sinner, now becomes the food of the soul, the joy and consolation of the life. 

*The Sun of righteousness illuminates the sacred pages, 

*and the Holy Spirit speaks through them to the soul." 

E.G.W.

Theology that keeps Changing those Goalposts

Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes. Deuteronomy 12:8

“Grace without the clear and authoritative truth of Scripture is deadly. The goalposts change. 

We lose the revelation of God’s will for our humanity. 

We are left instead to construct an identity based upon our experience of reality. ‘I feel gay; therefore, I am gay; therefore, God blesses my gayness.’ 

Man-centeredness inevitably leads to a form of sin-centeredness."

Andy Comiskey

The wisdom from above IDENTIFIED

But the wisdom that is from above is 

--first pure, "....without mixture of maxims or aims that would debase it: and it is free from iniquity and defilements, not allowing of any known sin..."

--then peaceable,  "Peace follows purity, and depends upon it."

--gentle, "not being rude and overbearing in conversation, nor harsh and cruel in temper."

--and easy to be intreated, "...it is very persuadable, either to what is good or from what is evil."

--full of mercy "...inwardly disposed to every thing that is kind ..."

--and good fruits, "..do good, both to relieve those who want and to forgive those who offend,.."

--without partiality,  "The original word, adiakritos, signifies to be without suspicion, or free from judging, making no undue surmises nor differences in our conduct towards one person more than another. The margin reads it, without wrangling, not acting the part of sectaries, and disputing merely for the sake of a party; nor censuring others purely on account of their differing from us."

--and without hypocrisy. "It has no disguises nor deceits. It cannot fall in with those managements which the world counts wise, which are crafty and guileful; but it is sincere and open, steady and uniform, and consistent with itself."

James 3:17/Matthew Henry

A word about books (by extension - Movies, TV, etc.)

Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. Titus 1:15

"The nature of one’s religious experience is revealed by the character of the books one chooses to read in one’s leisure moments. 

In order to have a healthy tone of mind and sound religious principles, the youth must live in communion with God through His word. Pointing out the way of salvation through Christ, the Bible is our guide to a higher, better life. 

It contains the most interesting and the most instructive history and biography that were ever written. Those whose imagination has not become perverted by the reading of fiction will find the Bible the most interesting of books." 

E.G.W.

Real takeaway from the Fig Tree Parable

Having a form of godliness but denying its power. 

2 Timothy 3:5

"The doom of the fruitless fig tree has an application to individual professors 

--who manifest the natural tendencies of the unrenewed heart, 

--and contradict their faith by their daily life. 

*They do not represent to the world the character of Christ, 

*because they have not Christ in them."

E.G.W.

The Panorama of Earthly Ambitions

"Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes through the lens of poor choices. “Vanity” expresses the futility of seeking satisfaction from living life “under the sun” apart from God. 

The panorama of earthly ambitions, when pursued as ends in themselves, produces emptiness. 

Q: Did God originally create this world in a state of “vanity”? 

A: Absolutely not! “And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). 

Q: So, what happened? 

A: Adam disobeyed God’s command, and in response God said, “Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life” (Genesis 3:17). 

--The apostle Paul underscored this consequence when he wrote, “For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope” (Romans 8:20).

Believers must live life balanced between two extremes.

*First, we acknowledge that God provides the gift of life for us to enjoy. “There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labor” (Ecclesiastes 2:24). 

*On the other hand, we should firmly acknowledge life’s limitations. “For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away” (James 4:14). 

Solomon urges us to fear God, keep His commandments, and “remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh” (Ecclesiastes 12:1)." CMI

A golden calf with a Cross painted on it

"There is a sentence of Christ that sounds simple until it begins to breathe. 

It is not a metaphor.

Matthew 7:13 says, Enter ye in at the straight gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in there.
And then like the closing of a courtroom door, verse 14 follows, because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. 

Few, not most. Few.
*Now hear the terror that most people miss. 

Christ is not speaking to pagans in a temple of idols. 

He is speaking in the context of religious listeners, people who assume they belong near God.
Many will seek. Many will try. Many will attempt a religious approach, and yet they will not enter. 

Q: Why? 

A: Because they seek an entrance without surrender. 

They seek a gate wide enough for pride to fit through. 

They seek a Christ who saves without ruling. 

They seek a heaven that does not require holiness.

*They keep a Jesus who comforts their flesh. 

That Jesus is not Christ. 

That is a golden calf with a cross painted on it. 

The narrow gate is narrower than you think because it requires a new heart." 

Jonathon Edwards

The Broad Road's Lullaby

"And over time, you begin to treat pardon like a payment that clears the account while you keep spending the same debt. 

But Proverbs 28:13 says, He that coverth his sins shall not prosper. But who so confessth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

We mercy is promised not to confession alone, but to confession with forsaking. 

*This is why many churchgoers will not enter. 

They want Christ as insurance, not as Lord. 

They want heaven as reward, not as God. 

They want forgiveness to soothe guilt, not holiness to destroy sin. They want spiritual benefits without spiritual death. 

But the narrow gate is Christ. 

And Christ does not negotiate His throne. 

Luke 9:23 says, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me.

That is narrow. Few there be that find it. If that sentence does not

disturb you, you may already be sleeping under the broad road's lullaby because the human heart naturally assumes the best about itself.
Luke 13 gives a picture that should haunt every churchgoer. Luke 13:2 says, When once the master of the house is risen up and hath shut to the door, notice that the door does not remain open forever. There is a point where God's patience reaches its appointed limit. 

The door shuts, 

not because sinners suddenly become less welcome, 

but because time ends, life ends." 

Jonathon Edwards

2 Corinthians 13:5

"The tragedy is that many imitate fruit while remaining rootless.

They learn the language. 

They adopt the habits. 

They join the culture. 

But the secret life is untouched. 

They can talk about doctrine and still feed hidden lust. 

The remnant is exposed when no one is watching because true religion is what you are when the stage is removed. 

The human heart can use religion as a disguise. 

--It can hide from God while speaking about God.
--It can build a reputation while remaining unconverted.

So scripture demands self-examination.
2 Corinthians 13:5 says, Examine yourselves. Whether ye be in the faith, prove your own selves. 

That is not a suggestion. 

It is a command." 

Jonathon Edwards

Behold, I am vile

Behold, I am vile. Job 40:4

"ONE cheering word, poor lost sinner, for thee!
You think you must not come to God because YOU are vile.
Now, there is not a saint living on earth but has been made to feel that he is vile.

Q: If Job, and Isaiah, and Paul were all obliged to say "I am vile," oh, poor sinner, wilt thou be ashamed to join in the same confession?

Sinners, 

Jesus came to call.

Beloved; though once degraded with the rags of sin, thou shalt be

adorned with a robe of righteousness, and appear white as the angels are.
Oh! may the Holy Spirit give thee saving faith in Him who receives the vilest." 

Charles Spurgeon

A Matchless Temple

But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: Romans 16:26

"I use the Scriptures, not as an arsenal to be resorted to only for arms and weapons. . . . but as a matchless temple, where I delight to contemplate the beauty, the symmetry, and the magnificence, of the structure; and to increase my awe and excite my devotion to the Deity there preached and adored."
Boyle

A Reminder

If My people, which are called by My name,

--shall humble themselves,

--and pray,

--and seek My face,

--and turn from their wicked ways;

then will I hear from heaven,
and will forgive their sin,
and will heal their land.
But as it is written,

--Eye hath not seen,

--nor ear heard,

--neither have entered into the heart of man,

the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.
2 Chronicles 7:14/1 Corinthians 2:9

An intimate acquaintance with the Holy Scriptures

For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Romans 15:4

"An intimate acquaintance with the Holy Scriptures 

--is a secure haven, 

--and an impregnable bulwark, 

--and an immovable tower, 

--and imperishable glory, 

--and impenetrable armor, 

--and unfading joy, 

--and perpetual delight, 

and whatever other excellence can be uttered." 

CHRYSOSTOM

Vertical & Horizontal Tables of the Law

He that loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. Matthew 10:37

Some people put the 2nd Table of the Law (The Horizontal Portion of the Law dealing with you and your fellow man / Commandments 5-10) above the First Table of the Law (The Vertical Portion of the Law dealing with you and God / Commandments 1-4) when they cry "Love, Love" but reject the Law of God.