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Sermon 2 Corinthians 10
Last week:
Intro
A change of topic now. We have seen many topics in this letter. I summed up this letter recently by saying the great theme of the letter is The Life of Faith. This letter deals with gritty stuff, what The Life of Faith is all about.
I said, and I think you agree with me, that I want this church to biblically literate, an intelligent church, a people of the Truth, people of the word, of revelation. We want to be a church that wins the lost, that displays Christ in the way we serve our community, and a church that has discovered what it is to “be” in a way that pleases God. I want us to be people that live the life of faith.
This letter is a rich manual for those wanting to live this way. After covering various topics in this letter Paul reaches his final crescendo in his summary of the life of faith in his teaching on the topic of mastering money before money masters us, as covered last week.
Now Paul is on the final stretch in this letter and he appeals to his readers (and hearers as this would have been read out) to accept his teachings by reminding them of his apostolic authority.
He begins this next section at the beginning of chapter 10 by declaring the essential spiritual nature of our conflict.
1) The War
Verse 3 “Wage war” and verse 4 “we fight”.
Living the Christian life, the spiritual life, is to be in conflict. We go against the flow in this world.
See:
Matthew 5:10-12 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Matthew 10:16 I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
Matthew 10: 22 All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
John 15:19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.
John 16:33 I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.
Let us not expect the worst though, see
Acts 7:9-11 And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt: but God was with him, And delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favour and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house.
Acts 2:47 praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Acts 13:48-52 When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honoured the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed. The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. But the Jews incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. So they shook the dust from their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium. And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
2) The Weapons
It is a strange war that ends in a victory that to most people looks like a defeat, Jesus Christ crucified.
The believers that Paul writes to in Corinth, understood that on the cross Jesus had triumphed. Therefore perhaps they were not being told, or being informed, about this point by Paul, but were being reminded by him of what they already knew and understood.
Hear what Alan Redpath says in his book, “Blessings out of Buffetings”, p174.
They were to win the battle by apparent defeat. By crucifixion they were going to be crowned. By refusing to counter attack they were to find the way to victory. By apparent failure they were going to conquer; by allowing themselves to be identified with His cross they were going to find they way to triumph, The paradoxes of the Christian life! Thus the Christian faith had in its birth, a new principle at the heart of it - the principle of sacrifice, the principle of of love, the principle of non-retaliation, the principle that was to lead to absolute victory.
Paul walked in the weakness of the flesh as we all do, but he didn’t wage war according to is.
I think this section has two possible meanings, perhaps one is right, perhaps they are both right.
(a) First meaning:
Paul and the righteous (the “we” in this section) can come against the false teachers at the work in that church and the false philosophies and religions (see Romans 1:18-23
- with divine power
- utterly demolishing the lie
- captivating the thoughts of those deceived
- and setting them free in The Truth of Jesus Christ.
This understanding of the passage fits with the final statement in verse 6. Once the majority are obedient again to the Truth, the rebellious can e dealt with. The ultimate and awful sanction was to put a person our of the church - to no longer associate with him/her (1 Cor 5)
(b) Second meaning:
Before anyone, even an apostle dares to wage war in the above manner on another person’s “rival gospel”, they must demolish “every pretension” in their own lives, they must take captive every thought of their own.
The greatest battles you and I face? Are those battles that are within ourselves.
A prayer:
Lord Jesus though I live in this world help me, for I do not want to wage war as the world does.
You tell me the weapons I fight with are not the weapons of the world, that they have divine power to demolish strongholds. Then help me I pray, to demolish the arguments and pretensions within me that set themselves up against the knowledge of God. Help me Lord to take my every thought captive to make them obedient to Christ.
I ask for this power Lord, the authority to build up rather than pull down. Thank you that you send me into the world to build for you.
Amen
Based on 2 Corinthians 10 verses 1-5
