Month: August 2013

2 Corinthians 8:16-24

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Men of Integrity.

2 Corinthians 8:16-24

We are traveling together to guard against any criticism for the way we are handling this generous gift. – 2 Corinthians 8:20 NLT

Ministry has always had its critics. There will always be those who deem it their responsibility to find fault within the church and among its leadership. Paul was very familiar with this concept, having suffered all kinds of verbal and physical attacks by those who disagreed with his message and ministry. But Paul was more concerned with the reputation of the cause of Christ than his own well-being. He wanted to make sure that he never gave a reason for anyone to dispersions on the gospel or the name of Christ. He knew there were those out there who were constantly looking for even the smallest hint of impropriety, so that they could discredit Paul and the ministry.

So when it came to the collection of funds for the saints in Jerusalem, Paul knew that he had to do everything with integrity, taking extra special precautions to insure that no one could accuse him of financial mismanagement. He understood that accusations, even if false, could do lasting damage to the cause of Christ. That’s why he went out of his way to develop a plan for the collection and delivery of the financial gift for the Jerusalem church. Paul had assembled a team of three men, all well-known and respected among the various churches throughout the region. They would be coming to Corinth to retrieve the funds given by the believers there and combine them with the gifts given by the churches in Macedonia, Asia Minor and Galatia. Then this committee of three would travel together to Jerusalem to deliver the funds to the church leadership there.

Paul knew that he was handling the funds correctly. He had every confidence that what he was doing was God-honoring and morally ethical. But he also knew how important it was that others view his efforts as above-board and blameless. “We are careful to be honorable before the Lord, but we also want everyone else to see that we are honorable” (2 Corinthians 8:21 NLT). Paul was taking no chances when it came to the reputation of his ministry and the honor of Jesus Christ’s church. He was not going to give his critics or the enemies of the gospel any cause to question his integrity or cast doubt on his ministry. Isn’t it interesting that even in Paul’s day it was normal and natural for people to assume wrong-doing when money was involved? Financial mismanagement was common and expected. Paul knew that there would be those who simply assumed he was lining his pocket with the funds collected or skimming a percentage of the proceeds for his own benefit. That kind of thing went on all the time. But Paul wanted to prove that Christians weren’t like other people. He wanted to make it clear that believers handled their affairs with integrity and could be trusted to do the right thing – even when money was involved. It is so important for us to manage our affairs well – both corporately and individually. We all know well the stories of ministries and ministers who have been caught mismanaging the financial gifts given by trusting individuals. We’ve seen the news reports of greedy pastors and televangelists, growing wealthy off of the contributions of their flocks. The actions of these individuals, while few in number, have done a great deal of damage to the cause of Christ. They have caused many unbelievers to reject the message of Christ because they could no longer trust the messengers of Christ. Even believers, those who have found themselves tricked and deceived by men they once trusted, have walked away from the faith disillusioned and disappointed. The cause of Christ is too important to take risks. The name of Christ is too valuable to ever allow it to be damaged by our acts of indiscretion or failure to take the proper precautions. We are to be men and women of integrity in all that we do, because we represent the King.

Father, may we live in such a way that we never give our enemies a reason to discredit our ministry or Your Son’s name. We know that we will be attacked, but help us to live with integrity, so that there is no basis for those attacks. May we be honest, faithful, without reproach and constantly careful in how we handle every area of our lives – all for the glory of Your name and the good of the gospel. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

2 Corinthians 8:1-15

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Grace-Based Giving.

2 Corinthians 8:1-15

Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. – 2 Corinthians 8:2 NIV

In this section of his letter, Paul began to address a topic that has always sent chills up the spines of most believers throughout the centuries: Giving. Yes, he brought up and encouraged the need to give. But not to build facilities or expand ministry projects. No, Paul was raising money for the persecuted and impoverished believers back in Jerusalem. Everywhere he went and to every church he encountered, he encouraged them to contribute toward the needs of their brothers and sisters in Jerusalem. The amazing thing is that many of the individuals to whom Paul was making this request were just as poor and equally persecuted. But he asked nonetheless. And even in the midst of their own troubles and trials, these people gave richly and generously – an out-flowing of their own joy in Christ. They were glad to give, even to people they had never met living in a land they would probably never see.

And Paul reminds the Corinthian believers that the giving by the Macedonians went far beyond what he had expected. They had even begged Paul repeatedly for the privilege of sharing in the needs of the believers in Jerusalem. They had not given out of their abundance, but had shared beyond what they could even afford. And their financial giving had been accompanied by an equally fervent giving of themselves to God and to the ministry of Paul. These people were committed to the cause of Christ and the well-being of the Kingdom. For Paul, giving was simply an expression or evidence of a believer’s love. He compared it to what Christ had done for them. “You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty he could make you rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9 NLT). When Jesus willingly, sacrificially took on human flesh and came to dwell among men, it was the ultimate expression of love and generosity. He gave up His divine rights, privileges and position as God, became a man and died a criminal’s death on the cross. He gave so that we might receive. He made us rich by providing for us eternal life – a gift we could never have afforded any other way. His selfless, sacrificial example should provide every believer with more than enough motive to give graciously and gladly to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

Paul did not ask them to “give till it hurts.” He simply asked them to be faithful and to finish what they had begun. They key was that they should give eagerly and willingly, not under compulsion or out of some sense of guilt. “Give in proportion to what you have. Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly” (2 Corinthians 8:11-12 NLT). Paul was not interested in making the Corinthians feel guilty or encouraging them to give what they didn’t have or couldn’t afford. He was simply wanting them to share in the needs of the body of Christ globally. The concept of community and commonality was always on Paul’s mind and heart. The church was global, not just local. The abundance of a few was meant to minister to those in need. God’s provision for His people would take place through the body of Christ as believers faithfully shared with others what God had faithfully provided for them. There should be no need within the body of Christ. That had been the experience of the early church from its inception. “And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need” (Acts 2:44-45 NLT). What a witness that must have been to the community around them. That kind of love and generosity was no more the norm then than it is today. This wasn’t some form of socialism, but simply a concrete expression of the love of Christ lived out in everyday life. It was a picture of the body of Christ ministering to itself selfessly and, at times, sacrificially, so that all might prosper spiritually and physically. That kind of love is contagious and gives evidence of the transformative power of the Spirit of God in the lives of the people of God.

Father, give me a heart of generosity. Let me see my abundance not as a special privilege to be spent only on my own selfish needs and desires, but as a resource to share with those around me. May the body of Christ today learn to live as a true community, giving generously and willingly to one another so that no one ever has need. May we mirror the generosity and grace of Jesus among ourselves and in front of a lost and dying world. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

2 Corinthians 7

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Godly Sorrow.

2 Corinthians 7

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. – 2 Corinthians 7:10 NLT

When one of my kids was just a little boy, and he would do something that resulted in my disappointment and his potential punishment, he would always respond in the same way. He would immediately say, “I’m sorry, dad!” Not once, but repeatedly – one right after the other. “I’m sorry, dad! Dad, I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” He seemed to believe that the more times he professed his sorrow, the more readily I would accept his apology and forego any kind of punishment. But while his apologies were always fervent, they were rarely sincere. There was one thing usually missing: Any sense of repentance. Oh, there was regret. He really was sorry. But only that he had been caught. He wasn’t sorry for what he had done. In fact, given enough time, he would usually repeat the same act again and follow it up with the same repetitive claim of sorrowful regret when found out.

Paul had had to write a “severe letter” to the church in Corinth. We are not told what the content or context of that letter entailed, but it had not been easy for Paul to write it. He had referred to this letter before by saying, “I wrote that letter in great anguish, with a troubled heart and many tears. I didn’t want to grieve you, but I wanted to let you know how much love I have for you” (2 Corinthians 2:4 NLT). The letter to which Paul is referring is not 1 Corinthians. It is a letter he penned sometime between the writing of 1st and 2nd Corinthians. In that lost third letter, Paul had reluctantly addressed some issues going on in the Corinthian church. After it was sent, he even went through some regret, fearing what he had said would prove to be too harsh and painful. But when he finally received word that his letter had produced repentance and changed behavior, he was glad he had sent it. What Paul had wanted all along from the Corinthians is the same thing I wanted from my son: Repentance. Godly sorrow – a sorrow that is produced in the life of an individual by God – always produces repentance, and repentance results in a change in behavior. The Greek word that Paul uses here that is translated repentance, actually means “to change one’s mind.” It conveys the idea of reversing your stance on an issue and admitting the error of your way. As a result, repentance results in a change in behavior. The sorrow Paul’s letter produced in the Corinthians was godly sorrow because it “leads us away from sin and results in salvation” (2 Corinthians 7:10 NLT). The salvation Paul is talking about here is not eternal salvation, but a temporal salvation or deliverance from a bad situation. This kind of sorrow comes without regret. Too often, we are only sorry for the effects our sins have produced or for the inconvenience of having been caught. But regret and repentance are not the same thing. Regret rarely produces a change in behavior because it never touches the heart. Worldly sorrow lacks repentance, and it leads to spiritual death in the form of resentment and bitterness.

It’s fairly easy to spot the difference between godly sorrow and worldly sorrow. Paul described it this way: “Just see what this godly sorrow produced in you! Such earnestness, such concern to clear yourselves, such indignation, such alarm, such longing to see me, such zeal, and such a readiness to punish wrong. You showed that you have done everything necessary to make things right” (2 Corinthians 7:11 NLT). Their sorrow produced a change in mind, which led to a change in behavior. They wanted to set things right. Their sorrow wasn’t short-lived, but long-lasting and real. “It was the kind of sorrow God wants his people to have” (2 Corinthians 7:9 NLT). Ultimately, God wants to bring joy to our lives, but sometimes He must begin the process by producing in us godly sorrow. We must learn to change our minds and see things from His perspective instead of our own. We must see sin the way He does. We must agree with His assessment of our lives and confess our sin and turn from it. We must repent. Godly sorrow produces repentance and results in a transformation in our character and conduct. And that’s something we will never end up regretting.

Father, thank You for lovingly bringing me so often to a point of godly sorrow. It is not something I pursue or desire. But I need it. I need Your help in changing my mind and seeing things from Your perspective. Too often, I can learn to view my behavior as perfectly fine and justify my actions as righteous and good. But then You convict me through Your Word and reveal the truth about my heart. That sorrow then produces repentance and result in a change in my behavior. Yes, it hurts, but it’s always for my good and results in Your glory. So don’t stop. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

2 Corinthians 6

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Living Proof.

2 Corinthians 6

In everything we do, we show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles and hardships and calamities of every kind. – 2 Corinthians 6:4 NLT

Salvation is to be a holistic experience. It should impact every area of an individual’s life. And while primarily spiritual in nature, it manifests itself in the physical realm by transforming our behavior and equipping us to live radically different lives regardless of the circumstances we may encounter. It is in the physical world that our spiritual transformation becomes visible and practical. Paul could confidently claim that his salvation and his commission as a minister of God influenced every area of his life. It was because of his relationship with Jesus Christ that he could patiently endure troubles, hardships and calamities of every kind. He had endured beatings, angry mobs, imprisonment, exhaustion from hard work, sleepless nights, and gone without food for long periods of time; and yet, he continued to live a life marked by purity, understanding, patience, kindness, and love. In other words, his life revealed the presence and power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, regardless of what was happening to him or around him. It is how we handle our circumstances that gives evidence of our salvation. Our behavior, actions, and attitudes are the best proof of our inner transformation, Paul was able to say with a straight face, “We serve God whether people honor us or despise us, whether they slander us or praise us” (2 Corinthians 6:8 NLT). Paul’s faithfulness to God was not contingent on everything going his way or life turning out the way he expected it to. Paul had endured a great deal of pain and suffering since he had come to know Christ. His path had been anything but easy. His faithfulness to God’s call had not resulted in fame and fortune, but had brought him rejection, ridicule, heartache, physical pain, and poverty. And yet, he had joy, spiritual riches, and a sense of contentment with his lot in life.

God is in the life-changing business. He didn’t just send His Son to save us, but to redeem and renew us. God is not changing the world in which we live, but He is transforming lives of His children who live in the world. He is making us His ambassadors and representatives. He is making us salt and light. He is making us living proof of His Spirit’s presence and the resurrection power of the cross. There is a day coming when God will restore and renew His entire creation. But for right now, it is only the lives of men and women that He is reconciling. We are the beneficiaries of His love, grace, and mercy. We alone can know what it means to be made right with God and restored to a right relationship with Him. He is changing us so that we might be His change agents in this world. Paul was able to say, “We live in such a way that no one will stumble because of us, and no one will find fault with our ministry” (2 Corinthians 6:3 NLT). He was confident in his assertion that his life was not a disconnect from or a discredit to his claim to have been changed by Christ. His actions under fire gave proof of his salvation. His ability to endure trials, troubles and hardships was evidence of the Spirit’s presence in his life.

There was a certain separation between the way Paul lived and the way the world around him lived. He lived his life differently and distinctively from the rest of the world. He had been set apart by God and lived accordingly. And yet, the Corinthians tended to want to have their cake and eat it too. They wanted salvation, but they preferred to keep their ties to the world and the pleasures this world offers. So Paul called them out. He challenged them to recognize their distinctiveness as Christ-followers and to live accordingly. He called them to live lives that gave evidence of their distinctiveness. Yes, it would be difficult. It would be risky. It would probably result in pain, rejection, and a certain degree of suffering. But God would be there in the midst of it all. Their lives would become proof of God’s transforming and sustaining power. They would become lights in the midst of the darkness. For Paul, compromise was never an option. Complacency was never a consideration. He was sold out and totally committed to the cause of Christ and it could be seen in every area of his life. His salvation had been total and complete. He was a new man – inside and out. And he lived like it. So should we.

Father, I want my inner transformation to show up in my outer man. I want my life to be living proof of Your presence in my life. You have not changed the world or my circumstances, but You are changing me and my capacity to live differently in the midst of it all. Continue to change me from the inside out. Let my new heart result in a new man. May others see Christ in me regardless of what is happening to me or around me. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

2 Corinthians 5:11-21

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Job Number One.

2 Corinthians 5:11-21

So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” – 2 Corinthians 5:20 NLT

Paul was a man on a mission. Ever since his call by Jesus Christ on the Damascus road, he had been like a man possessed. He had received a commission from the very lips of Jesus Himself and he took it quite seriously. “I am Jesus, the on you are persecuting. Now get to your feet! For I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and witness. You are to tell the world what you have seen and what I will show you in the future. And I will rescue you from both your own people and the Gentiles. Yes, I am sending you to the Gentiles to open their eyes, so they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. Then they will receive forgiveness for their sins and be given a place among God’s people, who re set apart by faith in me” (Acts 26:15-18 NLT).

One of the problems Paul faced on a recurring basis was that the people to whom he was called to minister did not always received him or his message well. There were those who doubted his call and so, as a result, they refused to listen to what he had to say. Evidently, Paul was not the flamboyant or charismatic type. He wasn’t impressive in his speech or appearance. But he was sincere in heart and motivated by his love for Christ. He firmly believed the message he had been given by Christ, because he had been personally and radically changed by it himself. So when he wrote that Christ had “died for everyone so that those who receive this new life will no longer live for themselves” (2 Corinthians 5:15 NLT), he meant it and believed it. Paul wasn’t just preaching and teaching, he was sharing the life-saving message of new life through Jesus Christ. Paul was on a mission to reconcile the world to God, to restore a lost and dying generation to a right relationship with their Creator. And there was only one way for that to happen: Through belief in Jesus Christ as their Savior and sin substitute. Paul was calling people back to God, and there was only one path that could lead them there: Jesus Christ.

When you think about it, there is no more worthy cause in life than to lead people back to God by pointing them to Christ. What other endeavor could compare in value or worth? There is no doubt that we must help meet the humanitarian needs of those around us. To feed the hungry, minister to the sick, bring release to the captives and care for widows and orphans are non-negotiable expressions of love for those whom God has made. We are instructed by God to do these things out of love for Him and in order to show our love for others. But if we do all these things, but fail to reconcile those to whom we minister to God, what good had we really done? To relieve someone’s physical or emotional suffering, but fail to introduce them to Christ, the answer to their spiritual suffering, would be cruel and, ultimately, unhelpful. Paul understood well the idea “that God has given us this task of reconciling people to him” (2 Corinthians 5:18b NLT). He knew that people needed to be fed, clothed, cared for and loved on. That’s why he was constantly reminding those to whom he wrote about the collection of funds for the saints who were suffering in Judea because of their faith. But Paul’s real mission was to help free people from the oppression of sin and the penalty of death by pointing them to Christ, the only hope for their condition. When all was said and done, Paul’s mission in life was to help everyone he met be made right with God through Jesus Christ. No amount of human effort can restore or repair the sin-damaged relationship between God and man. Only God can reconcile what sin has destroyed. Only Christ can lead lost men and women back to God. And we have the job of sharing this message of reconciliation and restoration to everyone we meet. To those who are starving from lack of food as well as to those who are satiated and stuffed on the things of this world. Like Paul, we have been commissioned to share the message of reconciliation to the haves and the have-nots, the famished and the full, the helpless and the self-sufficient, the powerless and the powerful. For ALL have sinned and fallen short of God’s righteous standard. ALL are condemned and face eternal separation from God as a result of their sin. But they can be made right with God through Jesus Christ – if only we will do our job and tell them the Good News.

Father, I sometimes lose sight of my real responsibility on this earth. I tend to forget that I have been saved, not to live for myself, but to love others. I have one job and one job only: To share the Good News of Jesus Christ with anyone and everyone I meet. I have the message of the hope of the world and I need to share it. I am Your ambassador and I have a responsibility to help others understand how they can be made right with You. Give me a passion to do my job well. Help me take my job seriously and to do it eagerly. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

2 Corinthians 5:1-10

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Dead or Alive – Please God.

2 Corinthians 5:1-10

So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him. – 2 Corinthians 5:9 NLT

What’s your goal in life? To be successful? Make a million dollars? Reach retirement? Graduate from college? Get married? Own a big home? Drive a fancy car? Have kids? See the world? Change the world?

As believers, we’re to have a different perspective about life on this planet and what we expect to get out of it. We are eternal creatures living in a temporary environment that is nowhere near what God intended it to be when He created it. This place can be beautiful, even breathtaking at times, but it is fallen and marred by the effects of sin. Human beings have the capacity for good, but are more prone to sin and selfishness, perpetrating all kinds of evil on one another. And yet, we find ourselves, like everyone else, living as if life on this planet is all there is. We fear death and so we try to cram as much living as we can in the days we have. We try to prolong life and extend our time here on earth, hoping to buy ourselves a bit more time to enjoy what we’ve got or get our hands on what we’ve missed out on.

But Paul had a different perspective. He longed to be with God, because he knew that what God had in store for him in eternity was far better than anything he could ever experience here on earth. Paul didn’t have a death wish. He wasn’t in a hurry to die, but he knew that his life here was temporary and a poor substitute for what was to come. And that eternal perspective led Paul to have a different goal in life. As long as he lived on this earth, he was going to seek to please God. His temporary, earthly life was an opportunity to contribute to the advancement of God’s mission and glory in the world. Rather than live for himself, Paul chose to live for God. Rather than trying to build his own kingdom on earth, Paul chose to build the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. Because Paul knew that all that he accomplished on this earth was going to one day be judged by Christ at the Bema Seat. He understood that his life as a believer was going to be held to a different set of standards. The Bema or Judgment Seat of Christ is a real event that will take place after Christ returns for his bride, the Church. Every believer will stand before Christ and will have his works judged by Christ – all those things he or she has done in their life since becoming a believer. “For we must all appear before the judgment 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.” (2 Corinthians 5:10 NASB). The judgment spoken of here has nothing to do with salvation. This will not be a judgment to determine who gets into heaven, because as believers, we will all spend eternity with Christ. But He will judge our works. He will determine the relative value of what we have done since becoming believers. The criteria for judgment will be the worth or worthlessness of our works. This is not about punishment, but rewards. There will be rewards for those things we did in this life that helped extend God’s Kingdom and accomplish His will on earth. Those things that we have done that were selfish, self-centered, and ended up building our own little kingdom will not be rewarded. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul had told them about this coming day of judgment. “Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames” (1 Corinthians 3:12-15 NLT).

The realization of rewards should motivate us to live differently in this life. It should cause us to recognize that all those things we invest so much time and energy in that are for our own pleasure or personal satisfaction, will be worth nothing when we stand before the Lord. They will be wood, hay and stubble. That is why Paul lived to please God. He wanted his entire life to be comprised of gold, silver and jewels – those things that would be judged by Christ as worthwhile and worthy or reward. But it all begins with an eternal perspective. We have to understand that this life is temporary and only a fleeting moment when compared to the eternity we will spend with Christ. Even these bodies are temporary, growing older with every passing moment, which is why God is going to provide us with new bodies, heavenly bodies, designed to last an eternity. None of us know how long we have to live. But as believers, we should know that as long as we do live, we should make it our goal to please God in all that we do. We should live in such a way that our lives are “a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable” (Romans 12:1 NLT).

Father, I focus way too much on this life. I worry far too much about getting out of this life all that I can – and mostly just for me. But I am to set my sights on eternity. I am to focus on Your Kingdom, not mine. I am to live here, but with my attention focused THERE. Show me how to live to please You. I want to make it my goal to please You in all that I do in the time that I have left here. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

2 Corinthians 4:8-18

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An Eternal Perspective.

2 Corinthians 4:8-18

So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we now see will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. – 2 Corinthians 4:18 NLT

Life on this planet can be tough. And nobody knew that better than Paul. He was an apostle of Jesus Christ, doing the work of God, and spreading the Good News around the world, and yet he suffered relentlessly and regularly for his efforts. He knew what it meant to face opposition, endure persecution, suffer humiliation, and experience the frustration of apparent failure. He described his life in fairly matter-of-fact terms: “We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9 NLT). Paul’s life was anything but easy, and yet he could calmly declare that his sufferings, while difficult, were not fatal. God had not abandoned him. That’s a huge factor in understanding Paul’s perspective on life. When difficulty raised its ugly head, Paul never jumped to the conclusion that he had been abandoned by God. He never allowed his mind to believe that his God had walked out on him. For Paul, the presence of trouble was never to be seen as the absence of God. Paul knew that God was there and that He was going to use the trials and troubles in Paul’s life to perfect him and to reveal the power of God through him.

Paul knew that his suffering was nothing compared to that which Jesus endured. Jesus’ entire life was a journey toward death. His suffering throughout His three and a half years of ministry was part of the process of His sacrifice that led ultimately to His death. Jesus came to suffer and die. And Paul knew that his suffering was, in a way, allowing him to “share in the death of Jesus.” Paul knew that he could die at any time for what he was doing. In fact, he stated, “we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus” (2 Corinthians 4:11 NLT). But he also knew that even if death was inevitable, so was eternal life. Jesus’ death resulted in eternal life for all those who believed in Him. So Paul knew that his suffering was sharing in Jesus’ suffering and, if he was to die, he would share in Jesus’ life, eternal life. Paul knew that “God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you” (2 Corinthians 4:14 NLT). So any suffering he may have had to endure was simply part of God’s overall plan for Paul’s life and the Kingdom’s cause.

Paul had developed the attitude that allowed him to view his present circumstances as temporary and small when compared to what God had in store for him. He had learned to see trials and troubles as opportunities to watch God work, rather than setbacks or evidence of God’s absence. He knew that anything he suffered on this earth was nothing when compared to what was to come. So he chose to focus his attention on future glory rather than present suffering. He chose to trust God and view his circumstances as simply part of God’s overall plan for his life. As long as the gospel was being spread and people were coming to faith in Christ, Paul was willing to suffer. He had an indomitable spirit. He refused to give up. He would not allow any amount of trouble in his life distract him from the call on his life. As long as he was doing the will of God, he would gladly accept suffering as coming from the hand of God. Jesus had done the same thing, and that more than enough for Paul.

Father, suffering is one of the hardest things we have to endure in this life. We hate it. We do everything in our power to avoid it. We somehow think its presence in our lives is evidence of Your absence. But Paul makes it clear that nothing could be further from the truth. You are with us at ALL times. You use suffering to perfect and purify us. You know that it is temporary and that if we would learn to focus on the glory of what’s to come, the suffering in this life would become insignificant in comparison. But too often, our perspective is limited and our vision is short-sighted. We think this world is all there is and so we expect all our blessings in his life. Give us an eternal perspective. Help us to fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

2 Corinthians 4:1-7

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Jars of Clay.

2 Corinthians 4:1-7

We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. – 2 Corinthians 4:7 NLT

Paul was anything but a braggart. He had plenty of credentials, a great education, spotless pedigree, and a sterling resume, but he didn’t put a lot of stock in those things. In fact, in his letter to the Philippian believers, Paul had this to say about all his accomplishments, “I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done” (Philippians 3:7 NLT). Paul had a unique perspective when it came to his role and relative value regarding the work of the Kingdom of God. While others might want to brag about their importance and highlight their accomplishments for Christ, Paul was content just being used by God to spread the message of salvation. He was a tool in the hands of God. He was nothing more than a messenger of the Good News. He didn’t use coercion, flowery words, persuasive speech, trickery, deception, or showmanship to attract followers and impress men. He didn’t practice self-promotion or try to pad his reputation. “We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Corinthians 4:5 NLT). Paul had a singular message and that was Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. He viewed himself as simply a conduit of that message. Paul’s life was nothing more than a lens through which the light of Jesus Christ shone out. He lived to magnify Christ and to let the glory of His Savior shine on those who lived in darkness just as he once had.

Paul saw himself as a fragile clay jar – a common, ordinary household jar made of unbaked clay. There was nothing about Paul’s life that made him any more valuable or worthy of God’s love and Christ’s salvation than anyone else. He was frail and fallible. He was unimpressive and undeserving of the grace and mercy that had been given to Him through Jesus Christ. And yet, he had received the light of Jesus Christ into his life. The glory and power of God resided in him. Paul never ceased to be amazed at the significance of this reality. He was constantly blown away that God had chosen to take up residence in his life and displayed His power through him. For Paul, it was never about his accomplishments or capabilities, but what God was doing through him. He knew that God was doing the work, not himself, so He had no problem giving God the credit.

It is not the value of the container that matters, but the contents. Paul told Timothy, “In a wealthy home some utensils are made of gold and silver, and some are made of wood and clay. The expensive utensils are used for special occasions, and the cheap ones are for everyday use. If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work” (2 Timothy 2:20-21 NLT). The context of this statement had to do with cleansing ourselves of any godless behavior that would bring dishonor to God. Paul was encouraging Timothy to keep his “vessel” pure. He wanted Timothy to understand the importance of keeping himself pure and avoiding godless behavior. It is God’s presence in our lives that give us value and worth, not our “container.” It is His glory that must shine through us. Too often, we want to impress others with the value of our vessel. We worry way too much about what others think about us than who they see in us. It was John the Baptist who said of Jesus, “He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less” (John 3:30 NLT). That was the attitude of Paul, and that needs to increasingly become the attitude of every one of us as believers. We are common, ordinary clay jars containing the glory of God and allowing the light of Jesus Christ to shine through the cracks of our sin-fractured lives.

Father, it still amazes me that You chose to redeem me. I know that I bring nothing to the table that qualifies me for Your grace and mercy. I have no value or worth that merits the gift of Your Son. I am a fragile, fractured clay jar, but You have placed Your Spirit within me and are allowing Your glory and power to flow through me. That truly is amazing and humbling. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

2 Corinthians 3:7-18

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New & Improved.

2 Corinthians 3:7-18

Shouldn’t we expect far greater glory under the new way, now that the Holy Spirit is giving life?. – 2 Corinthians 3:8 NLT

In this section of his letter, Paul addresses the differences between the old covenant, represented by the Ten Commandments written on stone tablets, and the new covenant, written on the hearts of men through the power of the Holy Spirit. He compares one to the other, using the word glory 19 times in an attempt to prove the new covenant superior to the old. The old covenant was given by God and, therefore, was good. But it has been replaced by the new covenant. Both were marked by God’s glory, but the glory of the new covenant was greater. The old covenant, or way, was dependent on man keeping the laws of God, given to Moses on Mount Sinai. The problem was that man, because of his sin nature, was incapable of keeping his part of the covenant. He continually sinned, breaking God’s commands and failing to keep God’s holy standards for righteousness. The old covenant ended up condemning man, exposing his sin and revealing his failure to meet God’s requirements for holiness and acceptance.

Paul understood the purpose of the law in the lives of men. He wrote about it extensively in his letter to the believers in Rome. In fact, Paul was constantly having to fight against those who wanted to demand that the keeping of the law was still a requirement, even on Christians. There were those who followed Paul on his missionary journeys, teaching new converts that their salvation was incomplete unless they also kept all the Jewish laws and religious rituals like circumcision. These individuals were a constant thorn in Paul’s side and he had to deal with their false teachings everywhere he went. He told the Roman believers, “it was the law that showed me my sin. I would never have known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said, ‘You must not covet.’ But sin used this command to arouse all kinds of covetous desires within me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power…sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me; it used the commands to kill me” (Romans 7:7-8, 11 NLT).

But what made the new covenant of Christ’s death so much more glorious was that it nullified the need for men to keep the law as a requirement for being made right with God. Paul wrote, “But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are” (Romans 3:21-22 NLT). Paul told the Corinthians, “how much more glorious the new way, which makes us right with God!” (2 Corinthians 3:9b NLT). The objectives of both the old and new covenants were to make men right with God. Sin had separated man from God. Sin is nothing more or nothing less than rebellion against God’s authority. It is rejection of his rule over our lives and refusal to acknowledge Him as our Lord and Master. God’s law revealed His holy standards for righteous living. It put down in writing what God required for men to have a right relationship with Him. But all it did was reveal man’s inability to live up to that standard. For generations, man attempted to restore his relationship with God through self-effort and better behavior, only to fail miserably. That’s why God sent His Son. That’s why the new covenant is more glorious than the old. Because the new covenant provided a fail-proof way for man to be restored to God. Jesus Christ provided a means by which sinful man can be cleansed, forgiven and given new life. We have a Spirit-empowered capacity to obey God that we didn’t have before. We have been given new hearts that desire to live according to God’s standard. And God is slowly, but surely transforming us into the likeness of His Son. “And the Lord – who is the Spirit – makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image” (2 Corinthians 3:18b NLT). And it just doesn’t get any better than that!

Father, I can’t thank You enough for the new way You provided so that I might be made right with You. I never could have kept the law and lived up to Your holy standard. I was doomed to defeat, a product and a victim of my own sinfulness. But while I was stuck in my sin, You sent Your Son to die for me. He took my place on the cross and suffered the penalty and the punishment that was meant for me. He took my sins on Himself and, in exchange, He gave me His righteousness. So I stand before You as holy and righteous, uncondemned and totally forgiven. I am right with You because of what Your Son did for me. Thank You! Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

2 Corinthians 3:1-6

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Giving God the Credit.

2 Corinthians 3:1-6

It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God. He has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death; but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life. – 2 Corinthians 3:5-6 NLT

There is no doubt that some among the believers in Corinth had been questioning Paul’s authority. They had been spreading rumors that Paul was not really qualified to address the various issues he been writing about. Evidently, false teachers had been influencing the Corinthians, contradicting the teachings of Paul, and using as their basis of authority, forged letters of recommendation from Judea. In other words, they had papers to back them up. It appeared as if they were official representatives “true” apostles back in Jerusalem. The inference was that Paul was an imposter and charlatan. He was a fake. And all that he had been teaching was to be rejected as false and dangerous.

But Paul had no desire to play their game. He was not going to waste his time trying to prove his validity by producing letters written by men. He knew his calling and who it was that had issued his call. As far as Paul was concerned, the proof of his ministry’s integrity was to be seen in the transformed lives of the men and women of Corinth. He knew that others could see the change and that was why the Corinthian believers were suffering persecution. Paul viewed their changed lives as “a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you” (2 Corinthians 3:3 NLT). The Spirit had clearly been at work in Corinth, opening the eyes of men and women as they had heard the gospel message proclaimed by Paul. This had not been the result of Paul’s efforts, but it had been the work of the Spirit – from beginning to end. Paul didn’t need letters of recommendation, because it wasn’t his work to begin with. It was God’s work. Paul had no delusions of grandeur. In fact, he fully understood that he was not “qualified to do anything” on his own. The work in Corinth had nothing to do with Paul’s competence or credibility. It had everything to do with God and His decision to work through someone like Paul. “Our qualification comes from God. He has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant” (2 Corinthians 3:5-6 NLT). In essence, Paul was telling those who were casting aspersions on his ministry, to take it up with God. What Paul had been able to accomplish in Corinth had been a clear work of God, made possible through the power of the Holy Spirit. He had simply been a tool in the hands of God to accomplish His will.

How easy it is for us to believe that we are vital to God’s plan. How quickly we can assume that God needs us to accomplish His will. We can find ourselves taking credit for what God has done and becoming prideful about our own competence and significance to His Kingdom cause. We want to boast about our credentials and brag about our qualifications. But Paul knew that he was nothing without the Spirit’s work. He knew that he was not qualified or competent to do anything on his own. The ministry of life transformation and redemption was entirely the work of God, not man. Our degrees, diplomas, education, intelligence, gifts, abilities, talents and resumes mean nothing if God is not in it. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on Him. If lives are being changed as a result of anything we have done, it is because God has chosen to work through us. We are not accomplishing great things for God, but instead, He is simply choosing to accomplish His work through us, and oftentimes, in spite of us. God did not need Paul to accomplish His will. But He had chosen and commissioned him to spread the good news about Jesus Christ among the Gentiles. And God’s Spirit had clearly worked through Paul, preparing hearts to hear and accept the gospel message. Paul didn’t need any other proof than the transformed lives of the Corinthian believers. He knew that God was at work, because he could see it. Paul had no reason to brag, but he also had no reason to doubt. It could have been easy for him to question whether or not what he had been doing was truly of God, but the evidence was undeniable and irrefutable. Lives had been changed, and only God can bring about true, long-lasting life transformation. Only the Spirit can give life. So Paul was confident and content that what he was doing had God’s blessing and complete recommendation.

Father, we need to look for life transformation. We need to learn to see where Your Spirit is at work in our midst. Too often we base our success based on our own qualifications and efforts. But the true criteria for success in Your work is changed lives. And only You can bring that about. Open our eyes so that we might see where You are at work. Don’t let us focus on what we are doing, but on what You are doing through us. We can measure programs and we can count heads and think we are making a difference. But if lives are not being changed and if people are not being saved, our work is in vain. Remove from us any desire to please or prove our significance to men. Let us be content with the proof of changed lives as Your Spirit works among us. Amen.

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org