2 Corinthians 5:16 Consequently, from now on we estimate and regard no one
from a [purely] human point of view [in terms of natural standards of
value]. [No] even though we once did estimate Christ
from a human viewpoint and as a man, yet now [we have such knowledge of
Him that] we know Him no
longer [in terms of the flesh].
I’ve been struggling lately with my sense of value of my own
person. Part of me of course recognizes
that apart from God we are nothing.
Another part sees myself from a strictly human point of view, how much
income I produce, who cares whether I am
alive or not. This Sunday school lesson
addresses this idea. It begins by
stating we regard no one from a purely ‘natural’ human point of view and by
human standards. Jesus Himself was born
as a man and altogether too many in the church continue to view Him as that
human man.
Paul’s statement here is that while he did indeed once view
Christ from a purely human viewpoint, he does not do so any longer. Paul’s first introduction of Christ Jesus
was as a cult leader who appeared to be leading Jews astray. He was vehemently and violently opposed to
Christ’s ministry and went so far as to throw these deluded Christians into
jail to keep the heresy from spreading.
Paul was as focused as he could possibly be until one fateful day on the
road to Antioch. It was on that day that
Paul came face to face; not with Jesus the man, but with Christ the Messiah and
King.
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any person is [engrafted]
in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed
away. Behold, the fresh
and new has come!
The day someone becomes born again is not a day like any
other. It’s not the beginning of a
process to be Christ like and yet…it is.
On the one hand, the work is instantaneous. Becoming born again is an instantaneous
process that happens in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. That is the process which transforms your
spirit from death to life. Having your
mind renewed by the Word of God is a lifetime event that will last as long as
you live on this earth. We are told to press toward the mark for the prize of the
high calling of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14).
2 Corinthians 5:18 But all things are from God, Who through Jesus Christ
reconciled us to Himself [received us into favor, brought us into
harmony with Himself] and gave to us the ministry of
reconciliation [that by word and deed we might
aim to bring others into harmony with Him].
Everything we have since becoming born again we have from
God and not flesh, not man. We are
reconciled TO God BY God THROUGH Jesus.
We are brought into the very favor of beloved children in this way. Once we have become true and beloved children
of God we receive the ministry of RECONCILIATION so that we might bring others
into this same oneness.
We’re not perfect in flesh while we do this but we ought to
be better, more loving and more gracious toward others than we were before
coming to Christ. God is love. If I choose to curse and attack others…where
is my love? If I call others “Christ
killers”…where is my love. I ought to be
someone that others are drawn to, not repulsed from. If I am truly born again then the love of God
ought to be shed abroad in my heart by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5).
2 Corinthians 5:19 It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling
and restoring the world to favor with Himself, not counting up and holding
against [men] their trespasses [but cancelling them], and committing to us the
message of reconciliation (of the restoration to favor).
If God Himself doesn’t count up and hold our sins against us
in Christ, who are we to count the sins of others? God actually cancels our sins when we accept
the redeeming gift of Jesus into our hearts.
Notice it once again says that AFTER God’s forgiveness and AFTER
receiving the justification of Christ we receive the message of reconciliation. We CAN lead them to a holy relationship with
God THROUGH Christ Jesus.
2 Corinthians 5:20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors, God making His appeal
as it were through us. We as Christ’s personal
representatives beg you for His sake to lay hold of the divine favor now
offered you and be reconciled to God.
An ambassador comes from the king; from the head of the
government and makes a statement on behalf of that king or head of
government. Notice it says that we are
Christ’s ambassadors and yet says that God (all of God) is making this
ambassadorial plea THROUGH Christ. Over
and over we see this hint of the triune nature of God. God the holy Father could not accept us as we
were and so He had to make a way. The
way is explained more fully in John 1.
“In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the
beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any
thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not… And
the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the
glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”
Once we have become Christ’s PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVES it is
our responsibility to beg others to come to Him in any way possible. This says nothing of cursing the lost or
condemning them to Hell in Christ’s name.
We have a ministry of reconciliation and not rage. Why should we be angered at others for
Christ’s sacrifice when that sacrifice was offered on OUR behalf for OUR
sins? Why should we be self righteous
and even angry toward those who struggle to believe in God when many of us
struggled even harder to believe?
2 Corinthians 5:21 For our sake He made Christ to be sin Who knew no
sin, so that in and through Him we might become the righteousness of God,
approved and acceptable and in right relationship with Him, by His goodness.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten
Son that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish but have eternal life
(John 3:16). Through Christ we have
become the righteousness of God, approved and accepted. God literally knows we can’t live the lives
He requires us to live. This is why we
are to press TOWARD the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. You will never arrive at His perfection apart
from Jesus. You MUST TRY of course but
God’s grace is REQUIRED. It is by HIS
goodness…not ours.
Background
2 Corinthians 6:1 We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that
ye receive not the grace of God in vain. 2 (For he saith, I have heard
thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succored thee: behold, now is the accepted
time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)
God is appealing to us to become RECONCILED with Him. Paul and the others with him BEGGED this
worldly church to get their act together so they might not have received God’s
grace in vain. This means that you CAN receive His grace in vain. How?
By failing to accept His wonderful gift with all truth and all your
strength. Now is the acceptable
time. Now is the day of salvation. Tomorrow is not promised to you.
I remember reading in Foxe’s Book of Martyrs a story of a
man who was being tortured for his faith in Christ. He was in extremis and could not take it a
moment longer. He recanted and said
Jesus was not Lord. As they released the
bands that had been tearing his body apart he died. A young girl about 17 years of age jumped up
on the device they were torturing him with and cried, “You FOOL! But for one moment of peace you have
condemned yourself to an eternity in Hell!”
The men grabbed her and put her in his place and she withstood it until
she died.
You may never be forced to endure such things in your walk
with God but Romans 8 makes it apparent that you probably will endure
something. God has not promised you
peace and safety. He has promised you
eternal life with trials here and peace there.
ASV 2 Corinthians 6:3 We put no obstacle in anyone's way, so that no fault may
be found with our ministry, 4 but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great
endurance, in afflictions,
hardships, calamities, 5 beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless
nights, hunger; 6 by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness,
the Holy Spirit, genuine love; 7 by truthful speech, and the power of God;
with the
weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8 through honor and dishonor,
through slander and praise. We
are treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9
as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and
yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many
rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.
Paul’s entire message here was to win the Corinthian church
back to full fellowship with God. In the
next verses he insists that he is not going to do anything that might cause
anyone to wonder if he himself was fully committed to this walk. Paul points back to all they have had to
endure for this walk. He says that his
pedigree doesn’t come from any degrees he might have, but from what he has had
to put up with in his daily walk with God.
Look at this list. He says it
took great endurance to stand in the face of afflictions, hardships, calamities,
beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights and hunger.
Paul endured these things by the same gifts of the spirit
found in Galatians 5:22-23; purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy
Spirit, true Agape love, honesty and God’s Dunamis power! He insists that he held the weapons of
righteousness in both hands and has continued while being honored and
dishonored, slandered and praised, accused of being a liar while desperately
holding to the truth. Sound
familiar? I certainly hope so. It should be a reflection of our lives.
As important as he was to Christianity he was still largely
unknown in many circles and yet well known both positively by his true friends
and negatively by the nay sayers. He was
ready to die but walked in the newness of life, was beaten down and afflicted
and yet still eternal. Paul knew how
grievous this life can be but even more so understood its joys. Whether in poverty or wealth in desperate
straits or swimming in money, Paul knew how to live before God and man.
2 Corinthians 6:12 There is no
lack of room for you in [our hearts], but you lack room in your own affections
[for us]. 13 By way of return then, do
this for me—I speak as to children—open wide your hearts also to us.
Paul’s humility in Christ did not mean that he never called
others on their failure toward God and God’s children. In this case he chided them about their lack
of love and grace toward those who brought the life giving Word to Corinth. His whole purpose here was for them to open
their hearts wide.
It is always difficult to overcome custom, tradition and
community. Even today in America there
is a great gulf fixed between many of God’s children based on no more than skin
color and race. I read the post of a
young man who declared that the God who passionately loved bright colored
flowers must have also lived the diversity in racial characteristics. He created DNA which could not breed between
human and animal but is fully successful between ALL THOSE HE CALLS HIS
CHILDREN. Black, White, Red, Yellow and
Brown can blend and mix the palate of life until we are one soul if we will but
allow it.
God says, “My beloved children; OPEN YOUR HEARTS! Receive one another as I have received
you. See the Christ in one another. “
2 Corinthians 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers [do not make
mismated alliances with them or
come under a different yoke with them, inconsistent with your faith]. For what partnership have right
living and right standing with God with iniquity and lawlessness? Or how can
light have fellowship with darkness?
There IS a group that we should not breed or wed or do
business with. Unbelievers. There are times when you must work for them
to have income but what happens when your boss expects you to lie for the
company or about your taxes. When the
truth will both set you free and cost you your job, what will you do? Now the rubber is on the road and you know
what your faith might cost you. God
expects much from us in this respect. He
never meant separation to be racial or color coordinated. He meant it to be SPIRITUAL.
Key Scripture
AMP 2 Corinthians 7:2 Do open your hearts to us again
[enlarge them to take us in]. We have wronged no one, we have betrayed or corrupted no one, we have cheated or taken advantage of no
one.
Paul is trying once again to open up the way of
fellowship. Because of the tension in
America there are races who would call me a liar if I said I have only the most
noble and honest desire for them. I might
be called a mocker and a fool if I tried to make them believe that I would put
their welfare ahead of my own. I’ve done
this many times over the years and still can feel the doubt from others that I
am not fully trusted.
Unless you can prove that someone did you harm with a will,
accept the good. Unless you see or they
have told you that they want to hurt you, believe only the good. Open up your hearts and understand that there
are those who are not like you who none the less love you with a powerful love. Receive them beloved and appreciate the
diversity of God’s love.
I love you.
Bishop J
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