For Your Eyes Only
2 Corinthians • Sermon • Submitted
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· 11 viewsGod’s power is truly revealed in our dependency on him in the everyday life.
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BIG IDEA: God’s power is truly revealed in our dependency on him in the everyday life.
One of the things Shannon and I have been doing, because we don’t have cable, is watch the News on YouTube. You can actually get quite a bit of news if you are willing to wait after it’s broadcast on cable. We would have our Global News for Canadian content, Al Jazeera for world content, and American News from MSNBC with Lester Holts to top it off. However, the feel of each news station is different. Global is earnest, Al Jazeera is broad in scope, and MSNBC is… well sensational! It’s like a fire hose of doom and gloom blasting at you non-stop for 20 full minutes; everything is worse as it’s ever been, it’s loud, it’s depressing.
But it’s highly addictive. We are creatures who have short attention spans, so sometimes the megaphone is the best way to get our attention! The spectacular, the dazzling, the tabloid-like, but when it comes to faith, to church, to our experience with Jesus, is that what we are looking for?
GOD
We are continuing our series on 2 Corinthians and we will be reading from 2 Corinthians 12:1-13. Now if you have not been following us or are here for the first time, this is what we know about 2 Corinthians. Paul wrote this letter as a series of exchange with the church in Corinth because there have been troublemakers, so-called super-apostles, infiltrating the Corinthian church. These Jewish converts to the Christian faith were stirring up the Corinthians to side with them and against Paul. They challenged Paul’s claim that he was a true apostle. They said his preaching was weak. They endeared themselves to the Corinthians by their mighty works and showy preaching and acceptance of financial support. Paul, in no uncertain terms renounces this manipulation, and we are looking at the final part of him playing the fool in order to shame his opponents and those in the church who believe these super-apostles. Paul is about to throw his final punch (figuratively) by discussing visions and revelations and we would be learning this:
God’s power is truly revealed in our dependency on him in the everyday life.
1 I must go on boasting. Though there is nothing to be gained by it, I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord.
Paul reiterates there is nothing to be gained by boasting like a fool except to say that’s how the super-apostles behaved and the Corinthians adored them for it!
What are visions and revelations? They are supernatural occurrences of spiritual experiences which are from God, often with an intended purpose and mission. Paul himself is not a stranger to visions. In fact, it was precisely a vision that brought him to Macedonia, and then to Achaia when he saw a man of the region asking him to help them in Acts 16:9-10. Paul had another vision later on where an angel told Paul about being saved from a shipwreck in Acts 27:23-4. Paul also says he speaks in tongues more than most in 1 Corinthians 14:18. But even there we already see Paul’s heart regarding these matters:
18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. 19 Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue.
The word revelation in Greek is actually apocalypse. Perhaps that is how the English word comes to be associated with end-times supernatural visions of fantastic proportions. And it is here that Paul talks about this amazing journey. This brings us to our first point:
I. God reminds us to see ourselves aptly and not arrogantly.
I. God reminds us to see ourselves aptly and not arrogantly.
2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. 3 And I know that this man was caught up into paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows— 4 and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter. 5 On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses— 6 though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth; but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me.
Paul enters into this cryptic language of some man in Christ, but when we get to verse 5 we realize Paul is actually talking about himself. A few things to note here. First, the fact he calls himself a man in Christ in the third person can be because he is describing an out-of-body experience, almost as if it were happening to another person. The other thing to note is it happened fourteen years ago, which is a long time. Why didn’t Paul have more recent experiences? We don’t know, but perhaps this was the most vivid because in this vision, God catches him up to the third heaven. The third heaven is the highest part of heaven according to Jewish belief of the heavenly strata. And in paradise. What does paradise, which is the Greek word for a walled protected garden remind us of? Jesus’ promise to the thief on the cross who repented was that he would today be with him in paradise in Luke 23. Did Paul go there? It doesn’t say.
In fact, what Paul says next is almost a let down, because Paul “heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter.” Even though it was a vision, Paul’s description, the little he gives us is audible, not visual. But what he heard was so spectacular or frightening (sometimes the spectacular are also the most frightening, just read Daniel 7 or the Book of Revelation with the four horses, blaspheming red dragon and a lake of sulfur) he has no words to describe and refrains from describing it. This probably was in sharp contrast to his super-apostle opponents who go into vivid detail on what they saw in their so-called vision in order to win over the Corinthians. That’s precisely the point.
Paul knows how hearing these vision and revelation would affect the Corinthians. He would be seen as a super-apostle! Someone he is not. Paul knows his place and more important Christ’ heart and way, is to never glorify himself and be exalted like a god. It will be very good for the ego but a very poor display of Christian humility, “so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me.”
Brothers and sisters, are we as wise and discerning as Paul to know the effects of the things we say, whether they will grow the church or grow our ambition? Whether they will glorify the one who gives us those experiences or stroke our fragile ego?
A true follower of Jesus knows the extent he should share before he falls pray to the sin of pride. We should strive for hearing these words when we share our faith: “God or your God is so wonderful and good,” not “you are so wonderful and good.”
II. God reveals the secret to our persevering faithfulness. (12:7-10)
II. God reveals the secret to our persevering faithfulness. (12:7-10)
7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.
Not only did Paul refrain from speaking of things in the third heaven by choice, God saw fit to keep allow an event that would discourage Paul from boasting about the vision: a mysterious thorn in the flesh. Perhaps it is through the thorn in the flesh, our second point, which leads to Paul being unwilling, unable, or just downright confused as a passive participant of his revelation to entertain it except for his own spiritual benefit. What is the thorn in the flesh? This whole chapter up to now is one mystery after another. First, the vision and revelation of something in the third heaven that cannot be spoken of. And secondly this thorn in the flesh (which has been at times guessed to be some physical eye ailment, severe migraines, or the persecution Paul suffered, etc., etc.) is equally mysterious. Especially describing it as a messenger of Satan to harass Paul, to beat him up repeatedly, in order to keep Paul in line, is a terrifying prospect. Here, we venture into almost Book of Job territory where God allows some terrible treatment to befall Paul in order to keep him quiet until the day he dies. Again, we aren’t given any details except it was such an experience (physically, mentally, emotionally, we just don’t know). Paul pleaded it would be taken away. In fact, he asked for it to leave him three times. This flies in the face of some people’s misconceptions that bad things only happen to bad people. God flatly says no, and instead reveals something greater. Not another vision, or some out-of-world revelation, but a promise.
9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
And not only a promise, but a way of life. A preparation for Paul (if we were to assume this thorn happened shortly after the revelation 14 years ago before his first missionary journey).
Paul can’t say anything about his vision in the third heaven, he can’t even ask God to remove the thorn of the flesh, but he can reveal what matters to life and faith!
Like a meticulous doctor, God knows precisely what Paul needs, not what Paul wants (relief from the thorn, or the ability to speak of the third heaven).
What can be mentioned (that is, Christ is enough for me, for us) is worth more than any ecstatic vision and revelations!
God knows because Paul is his chosen instrument to witness to the Gentiles,
10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
So is it better to prepare Paul by giving him the spectacular to fuel his missionary journeys ahead where his own people will misunderstand and revile him, beat and stone him, and those he wants to reach will imprison him, and those he loves (including the Corinthians) will belittle him, align with his enemies, disowning him as his father in faith and founder of the church… or those precious words from Lord Jesus, the one who have experienced all the same things Paul has from his own people, his beloved disciples.
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
In other words, Paul so identifies with Jesus he lives a crucified and cruciformed life of utter dependence on the Heavenly Father!
See, if Paul didn’t experience this, we would never possess this gem for how we can stay faithful, despite all that we go through.
We would be so easy to see our faith largely as this: good gets rewarded and the evil gets punished. But life isn’t like that, it’s unfair. It’s cruel. It can rob you of your joy, knocking you down just when you are picking yourself up, and stepping on you when you are already down. The secret to persevering faithfulness is being crucified to our framework of what should be and ought to be, and embrace the power of Christ!
Paul knows what the Corinthians most despise ironically is what they need the most - weakness made perfect by the power of Christ through his sheer grace. Or else they will be led astray by the super-apostles’ spectacular showmanship, who would be the same people when persecution from Rome hits Corinth, will be the fist to leave and abandon the ship! Then who or what will the despondent Corinthians rely on?
But like a vaccine or a flu shot, if they can be injected with the resilience needed when the going gets tough, to rely on Christ, to expect difficulty, to never give up hope despite how bad things will become, then Paul will have truly fulfilled the task as an apostle to equip the saints.
This is also what every church faces. It’s easy when things are humming well, our doors are open, we have tonnes of exciting activities and buzzing with life! But COVID-19 hits and everything is on lockdown, and suddenly everything we relied on no longer helps us. We are no longer successful, not as attractive. Is it time to abandon ship? Or is it time to hold our position crucified to the one who calls us to a persevering faithfulness, and weather the storm together?
Lastly,
III. The Only Revelation we need is Jesus is with us in the everyday
III. The Only Revelation we need is Jesus is with us in the everyday
11 I have been a fool! You forced me to it, for I ought to have been commended by you. For I was not at all inferior to these super-apostles, even though I am nothing. 12 The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works. 13 For in what were you less favored than the rest of the churches, except that I myself did not burden you? Forgive me this wrong!
By now, we know the context as Paul concludes his role as the fool. He hopes by now the Corinthians are convinced they had it wrong, really wrong. Might is not right. The spectacular is fleeting and foolish. Though Paul made himself nothing, he is at the very least more of a model of Christ worth following than the super-apostles! And he mentioned again in a pretty sarcastic tone in verse 13 how he refused to be supported by the Corinthians, and if that’s the only reason why they are estranged when in fact it’s for their good, he is guilty of the charge!
But I am gripped by verse 12:
12 The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works.
If a false apostle relies on the spectacular, then the true apostle relies on the everyday. Again Paul keeps it vague, just like what the third heaven is like (because he’s forbidden to), what the thorn is about, and now the signs of the apostle is also mysterious. But perhaps utmost patience can give us a clue. I believe it’s the journeying with the Corinthians in life and faith. It’s the nightly teachings. It’s the countless visitations. It’s the tears and prayers for the sick congregant. It’s the heartaches and constant intercession for the wayward brother or sister. It’s the bearing of all the false accusations and comparisons with other successful ministries. Paul says all of that was done with utmost patience. Life, true journeying faith and life cannot be rushed. It’s not always glamorous and pretty. Sometimes it can get downright disappointing, like you want to quit. Sometimes you doubt your ability, your calling, but then you remember Paul’s example, which he received from Christ: For when I am weak, then I am strong.
But another thought comes to mind. What if we have lost sight on just how amazing the everydays of our faith is?
I mean isn’t every word in the bible a revelation of Jesus? It’s not as spectacular as a vision (I once believed if everyone saw the real Jesus, they cannot help but come to faith, and then I remember Matthew 28 how some even doubted at the sight of the risen Lord). It’s the living God speaking to us, revealing His heart and His ways!
Every time we enter into prayer, isn’t that the most mysterious interaction that we are actually having a conversation with Jesus through the Holy Spirit?
And speaking of the Spirit, have you just sat down and marveled for a second at the very fact the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit who was at the foundation of all Creation, He is actually in ways we can’t fully explain and comprehend in us and among us?
And by that same Spirit, we are serving His community by being given gifts we can’t claim ownership of yet nevertheless is released day after day, and week after week?
Our career is Christ’s! Our marriage is Christ’s! Our friendship is Christ’s! Our health is Christ’s! In all things and in all ways we are Christ’s!
Brothers and sisters, I think we all need to be reminded of this from time to time (I know I most certainly do) that while most of us won’t have vision and revelations, THE revelation is with us and for us and will get us through every storm in life, every trial we face.
May we take hold of the promise and continue in a persevering faithfulness for the glory of God!
Amen!