Live or Die – We Are In This Together

Transcript

GR 1812
7/19/2015
Live or Die – We Are in This Together
2 Corinthians 6:11-13; 7:2-4
Gil Rugh

We're going to return to our study of 2 Corinthians today. You can turn there in your Bibles. And you''ll note in our newsletter we have a booklet on the subject of homosexuality and the Scripture teaching on it which we have been covering the last few weeks. And they are available in the literature racks if you wish to refresh your minds on that subject.

We come back to Paul's second letter to the Corinthians and it is put in the context of what Jesus warned His disciples about, about what Paul warned those that he ministered to about. When you get to 2 Corinthians 6 put a marker there and back up to the Gospel of John, just to refresh your minds. It has been a few weeks since we were in our study in Corinthians. Come back to John 16:33, Jesus speaking to His disciples here in anticipation of His coming crucifixion, this is His last night with them. “These things I have spoken to you so that in me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation.” And that's important to remember. Christ promised His peace to us, that will be what guards our hearts in Christ Jesus, but He didn't guarantee that we would not have tribulations and trials. “In the world you have tribulations. Be of good courage, I have overcome the world.”

Then back up to John 15, still part of that last night of Christ with His disciples. Verse 18, “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own, but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. Remember the word I said to you, a slave is not greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake because they do not know the One who sent Me.”

Then Paul's exhortation over in Ephesians 6, written to the church at Ephesus that Paul had established. Verse 10, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenlies. Therefore, take up the full armor that you may be able to resist in the evil day.” Reminder of the seriousness of the conflict that we are in as believers. When we lose sight of that, then we get discouraged and we begin to think we must not be doing things the way we should. Why do people have a negative opinion of us? Why do people oppose us? Why do people think we are unloving, narrow, and on it goes? There is a spiritual warfare going on and those who will not bow before Jesus Christ and have Him as their Lord and Savior are opposed to Him and to every single person who becomes one of His followers.

Come over to 1 Timothy 1. We are talking about the Apostle Paul's ministry, and Paul's ministry is a ministry of struggle and trial and conflict. Great spiritual accomplishment but in the context of great difficulty. And Paul did not see himself as a unique case when it came to suffering. He saw that all those who will live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. As he anticipates his impending death in 2 Timothy 1 he writes a letter to Timothy and he says in verse 7, “God has not given us a spirit of timidity but of power and love and discipline. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the Gospel according to the power of God.” Faithfulness to Christ takes the power of the indwelling Spirit to enable us. God doesn't give His children a spirit of timidity who withdraw from the conflict that is involved in being faithful to Him.

Down in 2 Timothy 2 he begins by saying, “You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” He'll say to the men, the men ought to step up. This is a battle, this is a war. We don't need men who are timid and cowardly. And much of the serious ministry in the churches has been left to the women. The women need the grace and strength of God as He uses them but the men ought to be leading the way. God has called us to be leaders, protectors, defenders and no place is it more needed than in the ministry of the church and in the ministry of God's truth. He says in 2 Timothy 2:3, “Suffer hardship with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.” You pass these truths on to other faithful men and the battle will go on and the ministry will go on, and God will win. The victory has been won in Christ. We are carrying that victory to a lost world.

You come back to 2 Corinthians. We mention this because Paul is talking about the conflicts and trials and difficulties that come to him as he is faithful in the ministry. Back in 2 Corinthians 1:8 Paul said, “For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia that we were burdened excessively beyond our strength so that we despaired even of life. Indeed we have the sentence of death within ourselves.” So we would learn not to trust in ourselves but in the God who raises us from the dead. But God delivered us.

Come over to 2 Corinthians 6, where we are. And in verses 4-10 Paul gives an extensive list of the trials and sufferings that he went through. “In everything commending ourselves as servants of God in much endurance, afflictions, hardships, distresses, beatings, imprisonments, tumults, labors, sleeplessness, in hunger, purity, knowledge, patience, kindness,” on it goes. Down in verse 9, “dying, punished yet not put to death, sorrowful, rejoicing.” It's a difficult ministry to be faithful to the Lord and as we have talked about, we as believers need to have our focus on faithfulness to Christ, not looking for the easy way, the soft way. Not courting martyrdom but not being afraid of suffering. We need to be afraid of not being faithful, afraid of not pleasing the Lord with our lives and service. That's what Paul is talking about.

Now when the attacks and trials come, they can take a variety of forms, and we need to be aware of this because this is what Paul is going to be talking about in the section we're going to look at. Some of the battles are physical. Paul suffered imprisonment. He suffered beatings and so on. He was stoned and left for dead on an occasion. So some of the attacks that come are physical, they are the obvious ones. Some of the battles we face are doctrinal. For example in the church at Corinth in Paul's first letter in 1 Corinthians 15, some unbelievers had infiltrated among the church and began to deny the teaching of the bodily resurrection of the believer. Paul had to deal with that false doctrine. If Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some among you be saying there is no resurrection of the dead? Some of the battles are doctrinal. And then some of the battles and conflicts are personal. They are attacking the character to attempt to discredit the messenger. That's what Paul is primarily having to deal with in his second letter to the Corinthians. And the false teachers that have infiltrated among the church at Corinth, they are not directly attacking Paul's doctrine in this context, they are not physically punishing him. Not even there. But they are sowing doubt about the trustworthiness of his character and where does that lead? Well, if you can't trust Paul in certain things, how can you trust him in other things?

Come back to 2 Corinthians 1:12, “Our proud confidence is this, the testimony of our conscience that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God we have conducted ourselves in the world and especially toward you.” You're going to see he is coming back to that very emphasis in the verses we will be looking at in 2 Corinthians 6. “We write nothing else to you than what you read and understand. I hope you will understand until the end.” What has happened is there are accusations being made about Paul's trustworthiness. He says in verse 15 “he intended at first to come to you” in a certain pattern of travel. Paul's plans changed, he didn't follow his original travel schedule. Now the false teachers pick up and therefore Paul says in verse 17, “Therefore I was not vacillating when I intended to do this, was I? Or what I purpose, do I purpose according to the flesh so that with me there will be yes, yes and no, no at the same time? But as God is faithful our word to you is not yes and no.” So these personal attacks, a subtle one. Didn't Paul say he was going to come on this schedule? Did he do it? Not a very trustworthy man, is he? If you can't trust him on his travel schedule, how can you trust him on the doctrine he claims to teach? And you begin to undermine confidence in the messenger and thus shake your confidence in the message that he teaches. It is more difficult to deal with than the doctrinal issues because with doctrine, the resurrection, it is clear. Here is what the Scripture says, they are teaching contrary to it. But now Paul is drawn in to have to defend his own personal character. That becomes more nebulous and the attacks are not direct, they are indirect, and they often go on behind his back without his being aware. But they are just as destructive. Very important.

I want you to go to one other passage, then we'll get into the passage in 2 Corinthians. Come to James 3. He opens up by warning them about the danger of being teachers. They shouldn't expect that everybody in the church is going to be a teacher. God hasn't gifted that way, it's not His intention. And a warning, teachers will have a stricter judgment because they teach, they use their tongue. And there is a problem. Verse 2, “We all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.” Do you know what that says? There is not a person sitting here who doesn't have trouble with their tongue. I guess I have to say there is not a person standing here who doesn't have a problem with his tongue, either, because there is not a person who lives perfectly in every area of his life. And the last area you can get ahold of, James says, is your tongue, though we know this is personal and it is true of every one of us to one degree or another. Then he goes on to say the problem. You can put a bit in a horse's mouth and you can control their body; you put a small rudder on a big ship and you control the ship. Verse 5, “So also the tongue is a small part of the body, yet it boasts of great things.” It is little in the body, too, but it does great things also. “See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire.” And we have repeated examples of this in the news where just a match, cigarette, or something like that, a small, little flame and you do huge amount of damages. Just at the end of this week there were cars, a truck consumed in a fire, got out of control. Those things can start small and do huge damage.

Verse 6, “And the tongue is a fire, the world of iniquity.” See the Spirit of God emphasizing for us the danger there in everyone's mouth. There is a potential for a world of evil—vileness, iniquity. “The tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, sets on fire the course of life and is set on fire by hell.” I want you to remember that statement—the tongue is set on fire by hell, gehenna, hell, referring to the personage connected with hell, the devil. Do you know what our word devil translates? The Greek word diabolos. If you go to a Greek lexicon or dictionary, do you know what the definition of diabolos is? Slanderer, various forms. A slanderer is one who is slanderous. And our tongues becomes the potential of a world of iniquity and they are set on fire. The devil lights the match by hell. And every one of us has that tongue in our mouths. And this is what Paul has to deal with in the church at Corinth. The devil has set some tongues on fire and it is beginning to spread through the church, and it is undermining their confidence, trust and love for the Apostle Paul, and thus beginning to shake their confidence in what he taught them. And Paul has to address it.

So you come back to 2 Corinthians 6. And this is not a pleasant thing. It is always awkward to defend yourself, to tell people that I am really honest, I am really trustworthy. But Paul has to do it. He has referred to this back in 2 Corinthians 3:1, he says, “Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Do we need as some letters of commendation to you as from you? You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men,” and so on as we have talked about this. I shouldn't have to defend myself to you, Paul says. I mean, you are a result of my ministry. He's going to have to come back to this in 2 Corinthians 6. What is wrong in the church at Corinth that they are listening to these rumors and accusations about Paul, when their very existence as a church and as believers is a testimony to Paul's ministry? In 2 Corinthians 5:12 he has the same thing, “We are not again commending ourselves to you, but are giving you an occasion to be proud of us so that you will have an answer for those who take pride in appearance, not in heart.” I'm not writing primarily to defend myself to you, I'm just writing to remind you and to encourage you in your trust in us. And so you can tell others, that's not the Paul we know. We've sat under his ministry, he has led us to Christ. He has nurtured us in the Word.

So this is where we are when we come to 2 Corinthians 6:11. We're going to break up the passage because two parts of what Paul says overlap, he's going to repeat himself, so we'll do those, 2 Corinthians 6:11-13 and 7:2-4. Then we'll go back and do the middle piece that ties together, we'll see how they all work as a unit.

We come to 2 Corinthians 6:11, “Our mouth has spoken freely to you, O Corinthians, our heart is opened wide.” You know Jesus said in Matthew 12:34, “The mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart.” Our words reveal what is in our heart. That's what Paul is saying here. Our mouth has spoken freely to you, our mouth is open to you, we have spoken directly, frankly and honestly. And the last part, our heart is opened wide, you see what is in our heart. There is nothing hidden, I don't have ulterior motives. I have spoken to you clearly and frankly with no ulterior motives, not hiding anything, not trying to trick you. I have been fully open, I have spoken to you frankly, directly from my heart. We're going to just summarize it. And this is an indication of his love, my heart is opened, that indicates his affection, his love for them. He is speaking out of love, he is addressing this issue because he does love them. He is concerned for them. And you see something of his emotion and passion when he addresses them, “Corinthian.” It's rare that Paul addresses his readers with that kind of direct address. Perhaps four times in all of his letter, this is the only time in the letters to the Corinthians he addresses them “Corinthians.” When Paul does address those personally like that, it is an indication of his emotion, the love that has gripped him for them and his concern.

Turn over to 1 Timothy 1. When Paul writes the first letter to Timothy in 1 Timothy 1:18, Paul has left Timothy in a difficult spot. He left him at Ephesus to correct doctrinal attacks on the church. Verse 3 he had said, “I left you at Ephesus on my departure so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines.” Then he addresses him down in verse 18, “This command I entrust to you, Timothy my son, fight the good fight.” Now there is that warmth, that affection for Timothy. I entrusted this to you, Timothy. He does it again over in 1 Timothy 6:20, “O, Timothy,” and often in our English Bibles we'll put that word O, even though it is often not there in the Greek because addressing them directly gives you that passion, that emotion that we get better in English with that O Timothy. “O, Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you.” This is a serious matter and Paul's concern for Timothy.

In Galatians 4:19, a church that Paul had to deal with doctrinal conflict, opposition to his doctrine, “O foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you?” What has happened? And you feel the passion in what Paul is saying, that direct address.

So when you come back to 1 Corinthians 6 and Paul says our mouth is opened to you, I have spoken openly, honestly, Corinthians. We have it O Corinthians. I mean, I've poured out my heart. There is nothing hidden here, there is nothing deceptive here. These are perfect tense verbs, the two verbs in verse 11—mouth is opened, our heart is opened. Perfect tense is something that has been true in the past, results continue in the present. Paul has been this way in the past with them, he continues to be in the present. He is not changing, but something has happened. Paul is open with them and his affection and love for them is open, but verse 12, “You are not restrained by us,” or in us, “but you are restrained in your own affections.” Restrained, something that is constricted, held back, restrain gives you the idea. There has been no restraint in my love for you and in the demonstration of that love, but you have been closed or restrained in your love and affection for us. Why are you holding back? I have opened my heart, poured it out to you, but you've closed your heart to me. You are now withholding your love for me. They are treating him with distrust and suspicion. They don't see Paul like they used to, someone I trust. Someone I love. We've heard people say this, I don't have the same feelings for them I once did. I don't have the same trust in them I did. What did Paul write them in his first letter, in the love chapter? 1 Corinthians 13:7, “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” They don't have that kind of love for Paul anymore. They are suspicious of him, they doubt him. So they don't trust him. There is a shakiness now, a doubt that has come in. I have been open and my love and affection for you has not changed, but you don't love me with the same affection.

So you come to 2 Corinthians 6:13, “Now in a like exchange, I will speak as to children, open wide to us also.” What is Paul looking for? A like response. Now in a like exchange, I want you to respond in the same way, I want you to love me without restraint like I love you without restraint. Open your heart up to me like I've opened my heart up to you. That's the point. And he drives it home. I'm your spiritual father, you are my spiritual children. That's what he means when he said I speak as to children. Not that he is addressing them as an adult to kids, but who led them to the Lord?

Come back to 1 Corinthians 4. This has been an ongoing problem in the church at Corinth. Character attacks are terrible, they are just hard to deal with. They are multiplied in our day. Now we have the internet and people put things out there about you and you don't even know they are out there. But that's going on with Paul. He is not at Corinth. He has to find out by people who come from Corinth or a letter that comes what is really going on there. His reputation is being destroyed and he doesn't have any way to deal with it. And you'll note he doesn't try to deal directly with the people who are doing the slanderous things. He deals with the people who are listening to the slanderous things. His concern is for the Corinthians primarily and he'll address the matter of those false teachers and those who are promoting that. And we'll be looking at that in a future study.

In 1 Corinthians 4:14, he has talked about his condition in this letter. Verse 11, “To this present hour we are both hungry, thirsty, poorly clothed, roughly treated, homeless, working with our own hands.” We are slandered, we are still committed. The false teachers made that up. Does he look like, as we've talked about, someone the Lord is using? Is that the way the Lord's people live? Verse 14, “I do not write these things to shame you but to admonish you as my beloved children. For if you were to have countless tutors in Christ yet you would not have any fathers. For in Christ Jesus I became your father through the Gospel.” I am your spiritual father. Stop and think, how did you come to know and believe in Jesus Christ? Well, the Apostle Paul came here one time and told us the Gospel and then he stayed for a year and a half and nurtured us. Stop and think, there is a relationship, I am your spiritual father. What has happened? Now my children don't love me. I haven't stopped loving them, pouring out my life for them, but now they have closed off their affections. They don't see me like they used to, they don't love me.

That's what Paul is talking about back in 2 Corinthians 6. Isn't it amazing? He dealt with this in his first letter, he has to deal with it again in the second letter. Do you know part of the problem? I won't have you do it because your hands are probably dirty, but you grab onto that tongue and you know, it is just a world of iniquity. Not only in what we give out but what we let people say into our ears with their tongue. And we just all like to hear a tidbit. How often have we said, I don't know if there is any truth to this but . . . Well, if you don't know if there is any truth to it, what are you passing it on for? What happens on the news if a rumor breaks out about some public figure? It's on every news channel. Nobody knows yet if it is true or not, but it sure is fun to hear about it and talk about it. Paul is saying, I'm your spiritual father, why do you listen to that about me? Why would you, instead of opening your heart to me you open your ears to the slanderers who undermine your love for me, create doubt about your love for me, try to destroy my character and thus ruin my ministry to you. I speak as to children. You ought to respond to my affection with a like affection, it's abnormal that you don't.

Then we're going to jump down to 2 Corinthians 7:2 because he is going to basically review what he has said. So we'll take it together, then in our next study we will come back and look at the verses in between, see how it all fits together. Paul is really burdened about this,. The Spirit of God is burdened that the point be made because nothing has changed in 2000 years. This wasn't placed here by the Spirit so we could just read it and be impressed with the difficulty of Paul's ministry as a history lesson. This is so we could benefit as the church and learn. The pattern of the devil does not change and so we have to deal with the same things today.

Come down to 2 Corinthians 7:2, what does he say? “Make room for us in your hearts.” That's where he left off back in 2 Corinthians 6:11, “Our heart is opened wide, you are restrained in your own affections.” Verse 13, “Now open wide to us” with your affections, with your heart. He picks that up again. The problem is they have listened to the wrong people. They have stopped listening to Paul and they are listening to Paul's critics and they have no grounds for it. “Make room for us in your hearts.” And then he says “there is no reason not to.” You know all they have that has changed their minds is what other people have told them about Paul, but it's not their personal experience with Paul. Look what he says at the end of verse 2, “We wronged no one, we corrupted no one, we took advantage of no one.” I don't know that there are any specific things that he is drawing on here, what it is, is just a way of summarizing. My life and ministry is open to you. He said my words reveal my heart, I didn't take advantage of anyone, I didn't wrong anyone. I didn't corrupt anyone. This wasn't their direct experience. They didn't have any problem with Paul until the tongue of someone came and told them things about Paul. Doesn't matter there is no substance to it.

Do you know what happens when someone tells you something about someone, even though it's just an unfounded rumor? It's still in your mind. That's why I don't want people to come and tell me about people. Sometimes you have to say if there is sin involved it has to be dealt with and things have to be sometimes addressed. When he is being honest and open, he is direct about sin as well. We saw that back in 1 Corinthians 5 when he had to deal with immorality, and just address it directly. There are rumors that float around there, people say things. Well, I didn't know that about them, that wasn't my experience with them. But it's there. Now I think maybe I shouldn't be so trustworthy, maybe they know something I don't know. The doubt is put there, the foundation begins to get shaky. Paul says stop. “We wronged no one, we corrupted no one, we took advantage of no one.”

Turn over to 2 Corinthians 12:14, “Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. I will not be a burden to you, I do not seek what is yours, but you; children are not responsible to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.” And that principle, and you are my spiritual children. I am not out to get from you what I can get, I'm out to give to you what I can give to you for your benefit. This idea that Paul has some ulterior motives, he's addressing it again. “I will most gladly spend and be expended for your souls. If I love you more, am I to be loved less?” Same thing we are talking about in 2 Corinthians 6. This is a serious matter, the Spirit of God puts the repetition here because the devil continues to work.

Look at verse 16, “Be that as it may, I did not burden you myself. Nevertheless, crafty fellow that I am, I took you in by deceit. I have not taken advantage of you, neither have the people I sent to you.” It's amazing how quickly we'll give up our firsthand knowledge to give ear to what someone else tells us. That's what Paul has to deal with. And it's a compound problem, he's not there so it's not like he could catch these early. He couldn't get an e-mail immediately so you have time going by and he is gone, and when he is not there it just magnifies the problem because maybe what we thought of him and our experience with him wasn't true. Maybe this person has more insight. Paul says they are all lies. That's why he said remember the tongue is set on fire by hell. And the devil doesn't even stop at making slanderous accusations about God. Didn't he attack Christ with temptation and try to get Him to worship him in Matthew 4?

What does the devil do in the presence of God? Turn over to Revelation 12. The devil is being cast out of heaven in the middle of the coming seven-year tribulation. We're not going into the details but look at verse 10, “Loud voice in heaven saying, now the salvation, the power, the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down. He accuses them before our God day and night.” He is a relentless opponent. That's why we looked at Ephesians 6. We sometime as believers and in the church just get dull and lax. This is spiritual warfare. The devil would love to get hold of my tongue. The devil would love to get hold of your tongue and begin to undermine God's work in the church. How many churches have been torn apart with rumors and battles?

I pastored a church, I've shared with you, where it had the center aisle, the old-fashioned church, the center aisle with its pews, the building was well over 100 years old, celebrated their 100th anniversary when I was there. And on this side, I won't say the family name, and on this side the other family name. And that's where it is. Those who were supportive of this family sat on that side, those who supported the other family sat on this side. And if anybody came in as a visitor and didn't have a clue what is going on, that poor person sat down, just thinking there is an empty seat, I'll sit on this side. He is marked out, he belonged to that side. I finally got those two men, the patriarchs, together. I said tell me what this problem is. This problem goes back a long way, it was here when you came and it will be here when you go. I never did learn what the problem was. How do those things go on in a church? I mean, they develop their own life—rumors and accusations and dealings and suspicions. I had a young couple come to me and they were great. They said we just can't stay here in this atmosphere. Dealing with it is horrendous. That's what goes on in a church, that's what Paul has to deal with—accusations.

So come back to 2 Corinthians 7:3, “I do not speak to condemn you for I have said before that you are in our hearts to die together and to live together.” My purpose here is not to condemn you. I love you. Paul is not drawing the line, not saying I've had enough, I'm done. How many years has this gone on? I have poured my life into your church, your life. I've been open to you, I've loved you. I've suffered for you. And I'm just done. No, I didn't write to condemn you. I love you. It's like your children, you sit them down and you have to be open and direct and deal with the situation. That's not because you don't love them.

What does Paul say? “I have said before you are in our hearts to die together and live together.” We are bound together in a permanent relationship. Death won't end it, life won't end it. We're in this together. We might say sink or swim, live or die. What Paul says is this relationship can't be broken. So I'm not writing this to judge you, like we're done, it's over. No, we're in this together. I love the way he puts it, the end of verse 3, “You are in our hearts to die together and to live together.” Reminds me of Romans 8.

Come back to Romans 8:33, “Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the One who justifies. Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is the One who died, yes was rather raised who is at the right hand of God who intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ?” Then he goes on to all kinds of things that people might say. But verse 37, “In all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life,” Paul says we are in this together whether we die or whether we live. Here he says “I am convinced that neither death nor life, angels, principalities, things present, things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus.” And the same thing Paul says about the love relationship that was established in Christ with God is true of the children of God. Paul says we are in this together. Remember at the end of 2 Corinthians 5 he talked about reconciliation and God has reconciled us to Himself. There also has been brought about a reconciliation among God's people as 1 John 1 starts out, “We have fellowship with one another because our fellowship is with God.” We're in this together. There will be things that have to be dealt with, sin has to be dealt with. There will be problems that have to be faced. “Brethren if any of you see a fellow believer overtaken in a fault, you who are spiritual restore such a one.” That's the problem, we don't avoid dealing with sin but we don't tolerate rumors, either. We don't let slander go on, not in our family. What is this? Children trying to destroy the father's reputation? And you say that is wicked, what in the world? A father that loves, pours his life into his children, cares for them. That's what Paul says, what are you doing? We're in this together, we are a family, we are God's family.

Then come back to 2 Corinthians 7:4, this is a transition verse, so we just mention it. “Great is my confidence in you.” Do you know what I love about Paul? He is reminding the Corinthians of their obligation to love him, but he hasn't started to love them less because they are withholding their love. “Great is my confidence in you, great is my boasting on your behalf.” Boast about the Corinthians? Even we today think of them as the church with problems. I remember when I was in Bible school years ago one of my professors said you ought to teach the letters to the Corinthians early in your ministry because you will cover every problem that will come up in your ministry. Is he right? But Paul said I boast about you. Do you know what love does? Love covers a multitude of sins, not in the wrong sense but in the right sense. When you really love someone, you don't delight in exposing their faults. Someone says you have a beautiful wife. Oh you think so, huh? Look more closely, do you see the wrinkles? Do you see the sagging chin? Do you think that's beautiful? What's wrong with you? You say, what? But in love we overlook it. You have a handsome husband. A handsome husband, you're married to an old man. Look at him. I mean, that's not the way love functions. And love overlooks those things. Did you ever look and say I couldn't be married to him, it would drive me crazy. If I were married to her, I would be guilty of murder. I'm not saying I ever had that thought. But there is a love relationship between those two people that makes all the difference. Love covers a multitude, it overlooks those things that might drive someone else crazy. We appreciate them as the special little quirks of that person, we delight in one another.

That's the way it ought to be in the family of God. Well, that's not a perfect church. No, it isn't. We overlook one another's faults. That doesn't mean we don't deal with sin if we have to, but we don't look for things to deal with. I don't like the way they dress, I don't like what they do, I don't like . . . We overlook things, love does that. You can cover a multitude of sins, the little things that don't need to be dealt with, you realize. I'm not going to forget them, I know they said this one time. Well, maybe they did stumble with their tongue. I'm going to hold that now as a grudge until I die? Paul says I boast about you. You know that church in Corinth has a lot of problems. Do you know what Paul would say to you? They are wonderful. I went to Corinth and I preached the Gospel and they believed and I spent a year and a half there teaching them the Word and they grabbed onto it. And I have written them letters and they responded. But Paul they have . . . Yes I know they have problems. Isn't that the way we do with family? That's what Paul is saying—respond in love to me as I love you.

One more verse and we're done, come over to Philippians 4. You know it's not what we don't know, it what we know and don't do that causes the problems. Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good reputation, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” Now I want to tell people about our church. I am privileged to pastor the most wonderful church, the people come, they are open to the Word, they overlook my faults, I could wish every pastor could have that kind of ministry. Sounds like you have the perfect church. I do, it's the perfect church for me. Isn't that the way we ought to be talking about one another? We brag on our kids, don't we, those little monsters, born sinners, giving us more gray hairs. That's the way we look at each other, that's the way we look at each other.

So these are the things we think about. Put a clamp on the tongue. If somebody wants to come and put some garbage in your ears, say no. They may come and say I have a concern, I think there is sin here. They may say let's go, at some time you may say I'll go with you, let's address it. You may say to them why don't you go and confront the person and talk to him about it. Get it resolved. What happens is we pass it on? We say we do it in a good guise, we'll pray for them and I'll find out from someone else who will find out from someone. Let's just stop it. Love believes all things, love is vulnerable. Sometimes you get hurt. But that's all right, we recover. That's what Paul is doing. This is what Christ does in our lives. We don't want to open ourselves up to the dividing, fighting work of the devil.

Let's pray together. Thank You, Lord, for the riches of Your grace, the wonder of Your Word, the change You bring about in our lives. We are made new, we live differently, we talk differently, we think differently, we are Your people bound in an unbreakable love that You poured out upon us and now we are privileged to respond to and privileged to share with one another. May our testimony be clear and strong. We pray in Christ's name, amen.