Getting Right With God, Says It All

 Based on 2^nd Corinthians 5:11-21

As many of you may know, I spent the first 46 years of my life, in one of the most liberal Protestant denominations in America. Throughout my time at this church, which I grew up in, I always felt God calling me in one way or another, faintly and loudly. I even worked for the church for a number of years until it became an impossible place. It became an impossible place for several reasons, one of them being that the church is not a Biblically oriented or a Jesus focused church. Because of this, profound questions were raised in my spiritual heart. My work at the church  focused on  Sunday School curriculum and programming and thus,  I was continuously delving into the Bible. When I did, I would read things that would raise questions for me such as: "why are these verses, or statements by Christ never addressed in this church? Why has this or that not been taught? How come they seem to ignore this part of  the Bible?" etc.

Eventually, through the work of the evil one, a crisis of large proportions developed in the church, which caused me to resign from my position and also to leave the church. God was leading me out of this place and revealing to me that there was something important missing in my current place of worship.

But there was more to it. During this time as I remained in the church until the school year was completed, God began a revelation process that was extraordinary. Each day it seemed like God sent me a new enlightenment concerning what was not present in that denomination that I had grown up in, and a new revelation about the truth of Christ. I felt like I was watching a movie.

 At the time, I was so unfamiliar with some aspects of the Bible, that it was not until I came to Bethesda that I read about the scales falling off of Apostle Paul's eyes  in the book of Acts as he began to see what God and Christ had in store for him, and the transformation that he was to go through. What I did not realize was that I went through something like this in a very small way (I do not pretend to think that my experience was close to Paul's). I likened it to shear curtains being drawn back each day, so that the light of the truth was revealed. This was an incredible and exhilarating experience. Although, I did not look different, I felt something I had never experienced as the Holy Spirit was working on me daily. I was being changed. I could not even put a name to this, because I was so ignorant of such things.

All of this  appeared to be the will of God who had completely turned my life upside down in terms of employment and a lifelong church affiliation, to seek  a new place of worship and essentially a riveting faith. Deliberately, our family went looking for a church that was very different from where we had been. Bethesda was the place we chose.

As we began attending, I heard  so many things that I had never encountered before about God and Christ. I heard about Christian faith in a different way. We were exposed to ideas, such as: having a 'personal relationship with Jesus Christ'; that one could be saved, that there really was such a thing as 'being born again' and "getting right with God." These concepts were not taught where we had come from.  In some instances, I had heard these ideas actually mocked. My former church addressed being "born again", as some silliness that evangelicals and the new mega-churches were all about. With smugness, it declared that no one is need that sort of thing, because if one had been baptized, it was presumed you were good to go.

Therefore, as I have been reading 2^nd  Corinthians, several passages remind me so much about the many things that I came to understand about the situation we came out of. Much of 2^nd Corinthians  really exposes the differences between churches that are Biblically based and focused on Christ, as opposed to those who have a world view which tries to justify secular values.

As I read this portion of 2 Corinthians, it was quite clear that Paul was talking about the  very things I discovered, when he says: "This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 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.  For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people's sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.  So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, "Come back to God!"  For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ." 2 Corinthians 5:17-21

In this one paragraph, an important, life changing message is delivered. God was seeking reconciliation with us through Christ's death and resurrection and not punishment of our sinfulness. If we follow Jesus we are, indeed, a new creation and our old life, however, troubling, is forever lost! This was a gift from God making Jesus the offering for our sins. And it was all done so that we would understand that God was establishing a personal faith with each of us through His son. It was done so that we might turn away from a corrupt, fallen world, full of sin and darkness, evil and deceit, and choose to be "right with God."

The first time I heard the phrase, "to get right with God,"  it was like a thunderbolt. It is such a very simple phrase, yet, has the power to change lives. After all, if we are not right with God, what possible difference will it make if we achieve everything that can in this world but have left God out of our lives or barely tapped His shoulder? When I think about getting right with God, I cannot help but remember how OK I thought I was, but in reality, how far away I really was. Long ago, I had no idea how lost I was, even within the walls of a church. Paul reminds us that all God has ever asked of us, has been to listen to His word and believe, especially in His Son who was sacrificed for us. And by doing this-- we get eternity!  Getting right with God should be at the top of our priority list. It should be the thing we wake up with each morning.

Laurie Erdman

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Living in Tents

2 Corinthians 4:13 – 5:10

I have not camped out in a tent in nearly a decade. I've enjoyed it, but I'm not sure I'm made for it. I like to look up at the stars at night and not have them hidden by the city lights. The pace of life can be refreshing, while we're camping. We often get to see wildlife that we don't normally experience in town. Still, most things are more difficult when we live in a tent. It's harder to find water and harder to cook – we even have to carry the stove with us. It's a bit unsettling to live out of duffle bag. And we're so susceptible to the weather when we're living in tents. We have to be so careful, so we don't leave food or trash in places that attract bears or raccoons or other friends of theirs.

In some ways, the challenges are what make us enjoy tenting. It's just fun and refreshing to do life differently, to rough it for a few days. But even after a great camping trip – with no rain and comfortable temperatures – it feels so good to come home, turn on the water from the faucet (and even get hot water right away!), put the duffle bag away and use the dresser, and sleep in our own bed. For most of us, tenting reveals that we were made for home. As good as our camping trips are, home is where we belong.

Paul tells us in today's reading that our lives on earth are camping trips. There are rich experiences for us here, and there are difficult circumstances. And, although God can use all of those situations for our growth and benefit, we were made not for this short trip in the tent, but for an eternal stay in a home we were designed to live in and enjoy. We make the most of this tenting trip, because we want to glorify God here. But we live in this tent knowing that when this camping trip comes to a close, we're really going home.

Jars of Clay

I once read that no one was more aware of the paradoxical nature of Christianity than Paul. Our reading today is full of paradoxes, but the one that has always appealed to me is the description of a Christ-bearer as a clay jar.

For God, who said, "Let there be light in the darkness, " has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. 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.

The contrast is clear. The indescribable value of the gospel treasure, indeed the very glory of God, is held within and entrusted to beings that are plain and ordinary - you and me. The contrast, it seems to me, is not because God holds us in low esteem, but rather because the light itself is of inestimable worth.

Did any of you NIV readers pick up the new word in the NLT translation? Not only are we jars of clay, a la the NIV, we are fragile clay jars in the NLT. I like it. Not only are we rather ordinary in contrast to the light of Christ, but we break easily.

So why on earth, when God could have chosen any manner possible to spread the gospel and redeem mankind, would he have entrusted us with that mission? Paul sees the divine purpose as this: when simple men and women continue the mission of Jesus, it will be clear to the world that the power, and I might think the courage and conviction, is from God alone.

I know many people don't exactly enjoy the bible paraphrase called The Message. I found today's translation rather amusing, actually, and I thought you might, too.

It started when God said, "Light up the darkness!", and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful. If you only look at us, you might well miss the brightness. We carry this precious Message around in the unadorned, clay pots of our ordinary lives. That's to prevent anyone from confusing God's incomparable power with us. As it is, there's not much chance of that. You know yourselves that we're not much to look at.

So, we may not be much to look at, but God wants us to share in His divine purpose. The light of Jesus that dwells in us as believers has been given as a gift to be shared. His power, we will read later in 2 Corinthians 12, is made perfect in weakness. Our weakness. Our fragility.

He didn't give us the light to make us look good. He gave it to us to make Him look good to a watching, lost and lonely world. When all is said and done, we'll still look like clay jars, and the glory will be God's.

The Old & The New

Much of this reading is meant to contrast the Old Testament revelation with the new revelation through the Lord Jesus.  V. 1 – Paul appeals to the “changed lives” (the new Christians) which have resulted from the preaching of this Gospel by himself and also by others.  How and how much has your life been changed by you becoming a Christian through faith in the Lord Jesus?  V. 3 – The best ad for an effective ministry is seen in the changed lives of the people who respond to the invitation of our Lord.  V. 4 – Paul notes that he and the other witnesses for Christ are NOT qualified in and of themselves; but they ARE because of GOD!  V. 7 – Paul continues to lean heavy on being aware of Old Testament revelation.  He speaks of the old covenant as ending in death; while the new covenant (in Christ) results in life!  V. 17 – There is freedom in Christ! (not bondage).  Do you think that perhaps too many professing Christians think of the things they “can’t do” because they are Christians…thus living in an unfortunate form of bondage?  Rather than realizing the wonderful sense of freedom they now experience because Christ has set them free?  Can you think of some personal examples of feeling in a form of bondage?  Read again the last 2 lines of today’s reading:  “The Lord makes us more and more like Him!”  Recall the hymn:  “Be like Jesus, this my song, in the home and in the throng; Be like Jesus all day long!  I would be like Jesus.”

 

Donald E. Pardun

 

Restoring Broken Fellowship

2 Corinthians 2:5-7

One of the consequences of sin is evident in this passage: broken fellowship. Whoever this man was, and whatever sort of trouble he caused, Paul says "most of you opposed him, and that was punishment enough." For many people, broken fellowship with other believers acts as a corrective. Desire to renew fellowship will bring about the needed change.

Paul tells the Corinthians "Now, however, it is time to forgive and comfort him. Otherwise he may be overcome by discouragement." So forgiveness is part of restoration of the sinner with the body of believers. But as we know, forgiveness also works on those who were sinned against. Failure to forgive someone can become a seed of bitterness, and I think that's probably something Paul had in mind when he encouraged the Corinthians to forgive "so that Satan will not outsmart us."

Earlier this year, a good friend of mine found himself suddenly out of fellowship with his church, his friends, and even members of his family because of the sin in his life. The sudden loss of fellowship was a wake-up call. He told me that there were only two or three people who still kept contact with him as worked to conquer the sin in his life and get himself back on the right track.

In the end, things worked out very well. There has been forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation. But he tells me some friends -- fellow Christians -- still refuse contact, not just with him, but with his family as well, and this has been very painful.

Reconnecting with a body of believers after a period of broken fellowship must be a delicate process. One must navigate the various hazards of broken trust, hurt feelings, and other consequences of the situation.

Several years ago, I had a friend who, after discovering her husband's infidelity, sought a divorce. When her church found out she was divorcing her husband, they "disfellowshipped" her. "Please continue going to church," they told her, "but not here."

She did find a new church, but when I spoke with her a few months afterward, she was very bitter about how her former church treated her, and I can't say I blame her.

I think this need for a quick restoration of fellowship is why Paul admonished the Corinthians to quickly forgive and comfort this unknown troublemaker. Forgiveness isn't easy. I am guilty of paying lip-service to forgiveness while still holding tightly to the righteous indignation of offenses from the distant past. (There's that seed of bitterness again.)

The longer that broken fellowship continues, the more difficult it is to reconcile.

Now, however, it is time to forgive and comfort him.

Because Bethesda is a very large body of believers, it may be difficult to tell if someone has broken off fellowship with us. That's one reason our small groups are so important. Occasionally someone will ask if I've seen a particular person in church lately. Have they stopped coming? Are they going somewhere else? Are they not attending church at all? Is there an issue that needs to be addressed? If this is a matter of broken fellowship, what should be done about it?

First and foremost, forgiveness.

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

2 Corinthians 1:12-2:4

We can say with confidence and a clear conscience that we have lived with a God-given holiness and sincerity in all our dealings.

How I'd love to be able to say that.

I could end this blog entry right here, because that about sums it up. In so many of my dealings, I know that I am not entirely honest. Like a politician, I can use a half-truth to imply something that is not-truth. I can parcel out the proper set of facts that will shape a truth out of falsehood. Ironically, I do these things so that I can convince myself that I actually do have a clear conscience.

Even here, while I seem to be confessing my terrible shortcomings, I am hoping to create the implication that "I'm not all that bad." Or "We're all like this, right?" I seek collusion, co-conspirators, enablers. Someone to tell me that I'm okay, and that our struggle is a common one.

How brazen it seems for Paul and Timothy to say "We have a clear conscience."

Our letters have been straightforward, and there is nothing written between the lines . . .

I know that I have within me the capacity to manipulate the facts, but I aspire to be straightforward and honest. So when I actually set aside my self-centered agendas and take a straightforward approach, I get a little upset when I'm not taken seriously.

I'm the boy who cried wolf. You can believe me . . . this time. But I'm honest enough with myself to doubt my own honesty. Even when I think I'm being sincere, I worry about whether my motivations are properly aligned.

Paul says that people of this world say "Yes" when they really mean "No." But he points to the example of Jesus -- our standard -- as someone who never waivered between yes and no.

For those of us who just can't seem to say what we mean (and I really do hope I'm not alone in this) Paul offers this: "It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ." At the beginning of this passage, Paul says his holiness and sincerity is "God-given." It seems it would have to be. As fallen people in a fallen world, it seems supernatural intervention is required for us to truly adhere to the standard set by Jesus.

I don't need fellow enablers to salve my guilty conscience. I need the Holy Spirit as my sole enabler to guide me toward a clear conscience.