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2 Thessalonians Sermon Series: Return of the King “Hold What Ya Got” 2 Thessalonians 2:13-17

2 Thessalonians Sermon Series:

Return of the King

“Hold What Ya Got”

2 Thessalonians 2:13-17

Introduction

Growing up in the church can be wonderful but it can also be very difficult. On one hand you have the blessings that come from a Christian family (provision, love, order, godly instruction, an extended church family), but the draw-back is that you are not allowed and certainly not encouraged to question the doctrines and traditions that you have grown up under.

So, predictably, when a young person, who has grown up in the Christian home begins to question and ask, “How do we know this to be true?” the church squirms and looks down and believes that all is lost. This generation is lost to the world because they don’t want to do things the same way we did things – but all they want is an answer to a very reasonable question.

The danger of passing the baton from one generation to the next is that man made tradition (the method) is held on the same level as God’s Word (the message). So, when the younger ask the older, “why do we do it this way?” and “Can we do it another way?” there erupts arguments. Today Paul is telling a young church to hold to the traditions they have received – but it’s not the traditions that you may be thinking of.

Prayer

It is Going to Be Ok (vv. 13-14)

13 But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. 14 To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This new church had endured horrible persecution. Many in the church services would have been nursing the wounds of that persecution. Then, they had received the false teaching that Christ had arrived, and they had the emotional relief that all their suffering was over, they would be with Christ in moments.

Then Paul writes them back, saying no, Christ will return, but there are things that have to happen first. So back down the emotional roller coaster they go again – figuring out how do they stay faithful under the weight of persecution and hardship.[1] It is not enough just to correct people’s doctrine – Paul also understands that he needs to address their spirit, they need to be encouraged.

Timothy Dwight once said, “The Bible is a window in this prison-world, through which we may look into eternity.” Paul is wanting the church to look through the window of his words to remind them of the eternal glory of being with Christ.

So Paul goes back in eternity, and will end in the future kingdom. “God had planned their place, and their final glory is Jesus Christ.”[2] Firstfruits is an agricultural term of where a crop will come in, and there will be several more yields in the season. Paul is thankful for the believers at Thessalonica because they are “firstfruits” of many more that are to come.

When discussing the salvation of those at Thessalonica, he points back to them being chosen way before the establishment of the church, and then to their being able to experience the glory of the Lord in eternity. His view of salvation is an eternal, high-level perspective. It is much bigger than the difficulties and hardships that they are currently enduring. Their lives and the work they are to be doing has been established “before the foundation of the world” (Eph. 1:4).

Paul says, “God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. . . he called you through our gospel” – The process of salvation seems to follow this order; God chooses a person in eternity past to be saved[3], they are called through the sharing of the gospel, the Holy Spirit sanctifies them, and they then believe the truth.

God chooses you, then through “sanctification by the Spirit,” – sanctification is act of making something or someone clean or holy.[4] We see a picture of this when Moses encounters the Spirit of God in the burning bush. Exodus 3:5 “Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”

God wants Moses to come into His presence “For God so loved the world”, so he takes the first step (the burning bush). Moses chooses to investigate “this strange sight” then God tells him how to be clean in his presence (take off your shoes). Moses then removes his shoes – there is a relationship where man enters into the presence of God – God draws and man follows the direction.

Sanctification occurs in the beginning of salvation, where the blindness of sin is removed enough so that a person may respond to the gospel – but it is also a life-long process of removing sin and becoming like Christ in holiness. But this same process of man cooperating with the Spirit in dealing with sin – it remains a choice their entire lives.

There are two sides in the matter of salvation. The initiative and the power are God’s; the necessary response is man’s. In these verses there is a movement of God first, then we respond to that calling and the movement of the Holy Spirit. And, as first-fruits, there is more to come. Their work in the church will lead to others coming to saving faith.

Also, before we move on from these verses, we do see that all three of the Trinity are involved in the salvation of people. All three are involved in the work of salvation.[5] Gould says, “It is clear that our salvation is rooted in love, planned in eternity, initiated in time, and consummated in glory. Essentially, salvation is all of grace since it is originated in God’s loving choice, wrought through the power of God’s Spirit, bestowed by answering God’s call, and perfected in the glory of God’s Son.”[6]

All that is needed for salvation, God has provided (with all that he is).

Hold What You Got (v. 15)

15 So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter.

When I was a kid I would go and help my grandfather, who learned to be a carpenter after he retired. He would hold one end of the board, and I would hold the other and place it on the desired mark. He would check it for level, and they he would always say, “hold what you got” – in other word this is exactly where I want the board to be, just hold it still.

(v. 15) Paul says, “stand firm and hold to” – “to have a masterful grip on a thing” the same word for take hold is used in Mark 1:31[7] where Jesus heals Simon’s mother-in-law, “And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.” We are to hold on masterfully to the traditions.

2 Timothy 2:15 “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” You take God’s word and hold it up where it needs to be – “hold what you got.”

The word for traditions (meaning to pass on something from one person to another) can be used in a bad sense such as Col. 2:8 “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.”

And the word tradition can be used in a good sense such as, 1 Cor. 11:23 referencing the Lord’s Supper “For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,” and here in our passage today.

When we say tradition, it is not a reference to a way of doing things (like contemporary or traditional music, or order of worship). This is not what is being passed along. Paul is referring to his, Silas and Timothy’s teachings they have received while they were there.

So there are things that tend to get passed on from one group to another group, one generation to the next generation, and we must discern if it is empty human tradition, or the teachings of Scripture. “Sound doctrine is vital. The Thessalonians are to disregard the voices of theorist and fanatics, and keep “the word.’”[8]

For them, they had Paul’s spoken word as he stayed with them, and then later wrote them with letters. Robertson says, “The worth of the tradition lies not in the form but in the source and the quality of the content.” Consider the source, where is this tradition (body of teaching) coming from?

Jesus even said several times, “You have heard it said (meaning other teachers), but I say to you. (Matthew 5-7).” Many of the religious teachers in Jesus’ day had not interpreted the Scriptures correctly.

He criticized the Pharisees for slavishly following their traditions (their interpretations and additions) and making them more authoritative than the Scripture (Matt. 15:2; Mark 7:3).[9] Our ultimate source of tradition is the Bible, it is our ultimate source of authority.manuscripts,

How do we know that what has been passed on to us today, has not been corrupted with time? Like the children’s game of telephone.

There are several ways to establish the reliability of the Bible. The first is manuscript evidence.[10] So a manuscript is a copy of a section of the Bible. “There are now more than 5,300 known Greek manuscripts of the New Testament. Add over 10,000 Latin Vulgate and at least 9,300 other early versions and we have more than 24,000 manuscript copies of portions of the New Testament in existence.”[11] These manuscripts stretch out over many years and yet remain incredibly the same.

The differences that are found among these thousands of manuscripts are changes to the spelling of words (which would count as a variant), and repeats of words as they were being copied (and and, the the), and there are no variances that would change any doctrinal concepts. Today you can go to the British Museum and see the Codex Alexandrinus that was written in AD 400, and it contains almost the entire Bible.

There is also many archeological examples of cities or personalities mentioned in the biblical text, and then those cities being discovered, or the names of the person being mentioned in texts found on the site of the archeological discovery. In other words we see again and again this field of study proving the Bible to be accurate. Archaeologist Nelson Glueck asserts, “It may be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted a biblical reference.”[12]

Also, in 1947 a Bedouin shepherd boy was out looking for a lost goat, threw a rock into a cave on the west side of the Dead Sea. He heard the sound of shattered pottery and went in to investigate, where he discovered ancient copies of various books. They were leather scrolls, rolled up, placed in linen coverings, and sealed in clay pots where they had sat for 1,900 years (AD 68).

There were several other caves discovered and many other copies of Old Testament books – one example is that it placed a manuscript of Isaiah 1,000 years earlier than before; and it was incredibly accurate to the earlier version. These Dead Sea Scrolls push the time line of the dates of manuscripts even earlier than before.

We Have a Job to Do (v. 16)

16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, 17 comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

Paul closes this section with a prayer. Everything relating to salvation and the church ultimately comes down to God’s power working within it. Through God’s grace we know that we have an eternal home, and in that have a “good hope.” But we are still here in this world, having to face the reality of a sinful fallen world – and in that we have a work to do, a word to share.

Paul is praying that God will comfort the church and to settle them down to focus on the important work they are to be doing – sharing the gospel.

Esther 4 “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that if any man or woman goes to the king inside the inner court without being called, there is but one law—to be put to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter so that he may live. But as for me, I have not been called to come in to the king these thirty days.” 12 And they told Mordecai what Esther had said. 13 Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not think to yourself that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. 14 For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”

________________________

[1] “The artificial and strenuous excitement of the hope of Christ’s immediate return, and their disappointment at his delay, had left their minds fatigued. The irritation in their midst caused by a few incorrigible busybodies and confirmed loafers had left their nerves frayed. They needed uplift, so Paul takes them up to a high place where they can have a conspectus of their own state, the religion in which they believe, and God’s purpose for them in the present and in the future.” George Arthur Buttrick, The Interpreter’s Bible, Volume 11 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1955) 331.

[2] Buttrick, 331.

[3] See also 1 Thessalonians 1:4 – Chosen by God.

[4] David Noel Freedman, Editor-in-Chief, Eerdman’s Dictionary of the Bible (Grand Rapids, Michigan; William B. Eerdman Publishing Company, 2000) 1166.

[5] J. Glenn Gould, Beacon Bible Commentary, Volume 9 (Kansas City, Missouri; Beacon Hill Press, 1965) 524.

[6] Gould, 524.

[7] Archibald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 4 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1931) 54.

[8] Gould, 525.

[9] Ronald F. Youngblood, General Editor, Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, Tennessee; Nelson Publishing, 1995) 1272.

[10] Suggested reading on this topic: Norman L. Geiser and William E. Nix, From God to us, How We Got Our Bible (Chicago, Illinois; Moody Press, 1974)139 ff.

[11] Josh McDowell, Compiled by Bill Wilson, The Best of Josh McDowell, A Ready Defense (San Bernardino, California; Here’s Life Publishers, 1993) 43.

[12] Josh McDowell, Evidence that Demands a Verdict (Nashville, Tennessee; Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1999) 89.

2 Thessalonians Sermon Series: Return of the King “Don’t Be Deceived” 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12

2 Thessalonians Sermon Series:

Return of the King

“Don’t Be Deceived”

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12

Introduction

Isaiah 55:10-13 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, 11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

12 “For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. 13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall make a name for the LORD, an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

What are we to make of a thorn becoming a cypress, and a brier becoming a myrtle? If I go out in my backyard and water the thorns, I get bigger thorns, but not God’s Word. The purpose of God’s Word is that it is transformational – it turns thorns into cypresses, turning a sinner to a saint. It is God’s Word that we base our lives upon, but what if we get it wrong? What if our understanding is skewed? How does that affect our lives? What if our doctrine is untrue?

Prayer

The Doctrine You Hold (vv. 1-3a)

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way.

In the ESV is says, “we ask you” and is later in the verse, but in the Greek it says more empathetically, “we beg you” and it is first thing in the sentence. This is a vital matter, it is vitally important that they not be shaken or alarmed.[1]

The new church had been taught falsely that “the day of the Lord has come” or is present. The Day of the Lord is a “fearful period of divine judgment”[2] described at the end of 1 Thessalonians. It is the period of time predicted in the Scripture when God will deal directly with human sin, and “it includes the tribulation time preceding the second advent of Christ as well as the whole millennial reign of Christ. It will culminate in the judgment of the great white throne. The Day of the Lord is therefore an extended period of time lasting over one thousand years.”[3]

They were confusing the difficulty they were experiencing with what was supposed to happen after Christ’s return and rapture of the church.

Why is it such a big deal if they believe this?[4] What is the danger of them believing this false belief? To begin with, some within the church believed that they had missed Jesus’ return. Paul was clear in his first letter to the church would meet Christ in the air, and that the dead in Christ would be raised first. Paul was addressing their concerns about their loved ones and what happens to them, this false belief causes that fear to return.

Jesus evens deals with false teachings in Matthew 24:4-8 “And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. 5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.” In this chapter Jesus goes on to outline what will happen at the end of time.

Another danger of false teachings is that they lead us to have fears and concerns that are not real. No one wants to be left behind.

Paul says, if you are claiming that God has revealed this to you, someone claiming a new revelation, then you are wrong “by a spirit,” or someone else has told this to you, then you are wrong, “or a spoken word,” and Paul flatly denies that he had written them a letter teaching this, “a letter seeming to be from us” or a forgery.

“Let no one deceive you in any way.” – the word for deceive here means an intentional purposeful deceit.[5] Why is doctrine important?

Correct doctrine is important because it addresses the difficulties in our lives with truth. Having false answers to life’s hard questions is of no value, it doesn’t help you. A life based on a lie is foolishness. Paul even said, “If in Christ we have hope in this life only (if Jesus were not raised), we are of all people most to be pitied. (1 Corinthians 15:10). Holding to the truth anchors us in the storms of life.

First Things First (vv. 3b-5)

For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?

The church could not be experiencing “the Day of the Lord” because certain things have to happen first, Paul says, “For that day will not come, unless . . .”

There will be what Paul calls “the rebellion” – this is a worldwide “anti-God” movement. “This Greek word apostasia is transliterated into English as “apostasy.” It is also called “falling away.” It is used in classical Greek for revolt or rebellion. It seems to refer to a growing rebellion against God by unsaved men. It is as though Satan will push all his forces into one last despairing effort.[6]

During this time a figure “the man of lawlessness” will emerge embodying everything opposed to God, and he will proclaim “himself to be God.”

“This individual “opposes and exalts himself over everything that is called God or is worshipped.” His direct and determined opposition to the true God will be a leading feature on the continuing “rebellion.” It will be especially marked by the removal of the symbolic articles from the Jerusalem temple. The man of lawlessness will occupy the holy precincts in order to accept and even demand worship that is due God alone. This evidently is a Jewish temple to be rebuilt in Jerusalem in the future.”[7]

“The man of lawlessness” designates a false prophet, probably to be identified with the second beast of Revelation 13.[8] His primary function will be to preside over the religious apostasy in cooperation with the beast of the sea (Rev. 13:1 ff.) who leads political opposition to God. Paul wrote these things as if they were going to happen in the future, so the Day of the Lord had not arrived while he was writing the church. [9]

“It is important to note, in this connection, that just like the apostasy will not be merely passive but active (not merely falling away from but also a rebellion against God and His Christ), so also the man of lawlessness will be an active and aggressive transgressor. He is not called “lawless” because he never heard God’s law, but because he openly defies it!”[10]

Then Paul says, “Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?” (like in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17) Paul had been with them for about three weeks before he had to leave them. In that time he worked, probably making tents or the fabric tents were made of, and the church people had to work.

So in the late afternoons and evening Paul, Silas, and Timothy would gather the church together and teach them. One of their core teachings was the end times (eschatology). He also expects them to remember his teachings on these topics because later he doesn’t go back over the material for later readers (v. 6)

Studying doctrine is important because we don’t always get it the first go around.

What You Love Determines Your Destiny (vv. 6-12)

6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

When Paul says, “And you know what is restraining him now,” he is referring to a previous time when he taught the church on this topic, but since we were not present for that lesson, we don’t know what he is talking about. There is someone “restraining him [the lawless one] now so that he may be revealed in his time”

There are different ways to interpret this passage; 1) This is the work of the Holy Spirit. At Pentecost (Acts 2) the Holy Spirit entered into the church and empowered them to do the work of the church, and continues to empower and guide the church in its’ work. But at this point in history, the Holy Spirit is still working.

2) It may be a change in government. Now, government restrains and tempers individuals from seizing worldwide power. Something will happen that will remove this restraint and they are then able to seize control of the entire world, and the government established will be powerless to stop him.

With regard to these verses, Augustine says, “[Paul] was unwilling to make an explicit statement, because he said that they [the Thessalonians] knew [what he was referring to]. And thus we, who don’t know what they knew, desire to understand what the apostle referred to, but even with hard work are not able, especially as his meaning is made still more obscure by what he adds [i.e., vv. 7-8a]. Augustine is basically saying, I don’t know what he is talking about.”[11]

Those that have “fallen away” during this time are given a strong delusion from God so that they keep on believing the lies. God hardens their hearts. “When Pharaoh hardens Pharaoh’s heart (Ex. 7:14; 8:15, 32; 9:7), God hardens Pharaoh’s heart (Ex. 9:12).[12]

In Exodus 8:15 God sent the plague of the frogs, “But when Pharaoh saw that there was a respite, he hardened his heart and would not listen to them, as the LORD had said.” Pharaoh hardened his own heart. Exodus 14:8 “And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly.”

There is a season when you have a choice to harden your heart toward the things of God, but there will be a day (and it is up the Lord when that is) when God will remove that option – he will permanently harden the direction you have chosen.

“because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.” Who believes a lie they know to be false? Those that “had pleasure in unrighteousness.” “The love of the truth or the gospel is in contrast to the lying and deceit of Christ’s enemies. They believed them rather than Christ (John 8:44-47).” You can only be saved by committing yourself to him who is truth. Truth brought salvation; falsehood, lies, and deception resulted in eternal separation from God.

Then, God will give them over to their own deliberate choice to reject the truth of the gospel and their love of unrighteousness. “God’s actions are a response to, not the cause of, their actions.”[13]

Romans 1:24-25 says, “Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator.” God is giving them up to their ultimate choice. “The beginning of sin is to forsake God; the end of sin is to be God forsaken.”[14]

The sad part of this teaching from Paul is that the great “rebellion” will be from the churches. There will be people who claim to be Christians, go to church, go through the motions, but when times get difficult, and there is an option to turn from Christ to the Anti-Christ they will leave in huge numbers – only a small remnant will remain.

Why is doctrine important? It guides us to the truth which ends in eternal life, and keeps us from lies which leads to eternal separation. True doctrine is the engineer sitting in the Engine of the train that pulls us to our ultimate destination. What you believe is incredibly important; it is worth the time to sit down and figure out what you believe – because your doctrine directs your actions. Your decisions determine your destiny.

"Doctrine is the engineer sitting in the Engine of the train that pulls us to our ultimate destination." pic.twitter.com/eM9138DfXA

— DrewBoswell (@DrewBoswell) March 20, 2022

Satan will use the same lie at the end of time that he used at the beginning of time, Genesis 3:5 “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” You determine what is good and what is evil, you determine what is true and what is a lie – not the Creator, not God. If someone follows this lie, and loves sin more than the gospel then Paul says, “in order that all may be condemned.” In the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve had the freedom and nobility of choice – we choose to follow God in truth, or follow Satan and his lies. And for a season here on earth we have a chance to follow Christ, accept His gospel, and live for God. Do you know Him? It’s still your choice.

______________________

[1] Clifton J. Allen, The Broadman Bible Commentary, Volume 11 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Publishing, 1971) 290.

[2] John F. Walvood, The Thessalonian Epistles (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Dunham Publication, 1968) 116.

[3] Walvood, 117.

[4] Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Christ’s coming occurred on October 1, 1914, but was invisible rather than public and involved a change of location in heaven (Holmes, 237).

[5] The Expositor’s Bible, Volume 11 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1955)326.

[6] Allen, 291.

[7] Frank E. Gaebelein, General Editor, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 11 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1978) 322. See also, Daniel 9:26, 27; 11:31 (cf. Matt. 24:15; Mark 13:14).

[8] Rev. 13:11 ff; 16;13; 19:20; 20:10.

[9] Gaebelein, 323.

[10] William Hendriksen, New Testament Commentary, Exposition of 1 &2 Thessalonians (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Baker Book House, 1987) 170.

[11] Michael Holmes, The NIV Application Commentary, 1 & @ Thessalonians (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1998) 234.

[12] Hendriksen, 186

[13] Holmes, 236.

[14] Allen, 294.

2 Thessalonians Sermon Series: Return of the King “Glorifying God in Tribulation” 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12

2 Thessalonians Sermon Series:

Return of the King

“Glorifying God in Tribulation”

2 Thessalonians 1:1-12

Introduction

Robert Frost, “The Road Not Taken”

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

“The Road Not Taken” has confused audiences literally from the beginning. In the spring of 1915, Frost sent an envelope to Edward Thomas that contained only one item: a draft of “The Road Not Taken,” under the title “Two Roads.” According to Lawrance Thompson, Frost had been inspired to write the poem by Thomas’s habit of regretting whatever path the pair took during their long walks in the countryside—an impulse that Frost equated with the romantic predisposition for “crying over what might have been.” Frost, Thompson writes, believed that his friend “would take the poem as a gentle joke and would protest, ‘Stop teasing me.’”[1]

In today’s passage the church in Thessalonica have to make a choice, continue on the Christian faith despite hardship and persecution – are they going to regret making this choice to follow Christ, perhaps they are struggling with why God is allowing them to go through this.

Biblical scholars believe that the person who delivered 1 Thessalonians stayed long enough to see the effect the letter from Paul had upon the early church. Then this person returned back to Paul and gave a report. Paul then penned the second letter to the Thessalonians.[2] It is also believed that the new church received an intentional forgery indicating that “the Day of the Lord” and its judgements was already occurring.[3] This went against what Paul taught them in the first letter to the Thessalonians.

The report that Paul received told him that they church had “made progress in their faith and love (1:3). They had remained firm under repeated outbreaks of persecution (1:4). Also, their distress about the death of their loved ones had been relieved by the teachings of the First Epistle. But their excitement relative to the second coming had been intensified. They were agitated by the view “that the day of the Lord is already here (2 Thess. 2:2).”[4] Some quit working, some become busy bodies, meddling in others business, so Paul responds to these conditions.

Prayer

The Growing Church is Encouraged (vv. 1-4).

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. 4 Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring.

Paul is writing the church to address specific issues (not working, wrong ideas about the return of Christ), but he first recognizes that for the most part, there are a majority of people who are “growing abundantly.” And while that small minority might be causing enough of an issue that it requires a letter to be written, he focuses first on those whose “love of every one of you for one another is increasing.”

In life it is sometimes so easy to focus on the one or two things that are wrong, and lose sight that there is a vast number of things that are right. The church is being persecuted, but they are being steadfast in their faith, they are enduring great afflictions, and yet Paul says, “your faith is growing abundantly.”

When a person puts their faith in Jesus, they believe in Christ’s deity, that He is capable of saving them from their sin, but it is also possible to learn by experience to trust the Lord in all things – this is a process that we grow in. As Christians go through life, they learn to trust God in different ways. Some even trust God for the eternal, but not the problem right in front of them.[5]

Paul doesn’t start with the problems and what is wrong, he starts with what is right. He even says, “We ought always to give thanks to God for you” We ought to begin with thanksgiving for what God is doing. There will always be issues that the church must work through, we are people after all, but the things we tend to focus on, what holds a majority of our attention, determines our overall view of the situation.

Paul is taking a moment to celebrate what God is doing in this church in spite of all the difficulty that surrounded it. We also, before we focus on the negative, ought to take time to thank God for what He is doing, and all the positive things we see Him doing in others around us. Otherwise, you just focus on the negative all the time. It’s always easier to see the bad, it takes extra effort to see the good.

If Paul had started with the few trouble makers, then it would have been like pouring cold water all over the many who that were growing in their faith, being an example to surrounding cities, and were excited themselves about what God was doing.

Also, Paul is acknowledging that they were growing, “In 1 Thessalonians Paul prayed for growth in faith, love, and hope (1:3). Now he thanked God that the Thessalonians had achieved this.”[6]

(v. 4) Paul praises them by saying, “your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring.” He is boasting to other churches about how they were remaining steadfast, “As they kept on growing in faith and bearing abundant fruit in love, Paul kept on boasting about them in other churches of God.”[7]

The word used for steadfastness means patience, or “remaining under.”[8] Christians have burdens and cares they are under, or are carrying and want to get rid of them, yet remain under them. The steadfast person remains under the stress and burden and adjusts himself to the circumstances that he is called to live.

This church is being persecuted because of their work for the Lord, and they are growing in their ability stand up under this weight. Their situation was the same as when Paul left, but the church, the members were not the same – they were growing in their faith.

“persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring” – the way Paul used the word enduring means that it is relentless, constant, there is no letting up. So in these opening verses Paul is commending them on their growth in love and faith. They are growing in how they are loving God, and how they are loving others, in spite of the circumstances around them. Whatever is going on in your life, there is no excuse for not growing in your relationship with the Lord.

God’s Promise to The Faithful (vv. 5-8a)

5 This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering— 6 since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7 and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels 8 in flaming fire, . . .

(v. 5) “This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God” – Now, Paul jumps from the present when they are suffering, to the future when those who persecute and cause them harm will suffer. The word for evidence is used only here in the New Testament and it means “proof.”

God’s judgement is given in the context of history. That judgment of God “will be in keeping with the evidence (proof) as found in the individual’s life on earth and the subsequent results of that life in the lives of others.”[9]

God’s people may be in affliction now, but at the final judgement the ones afflicting them on earth will be in affliction.[10]

(v. 7) “and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels” – Paul is also saying that this will not last forever. When Christ returns, all of His followers will be granted relief, rest. All the pain, suffering, persecution, hatred, . . . all of it will end.

In their suffering and pain, God has not left them to figure it out. Followers of God will experience God as his helper, and it has been this way since the beginning. “The patriarchs declared it, the prophets experienced it, the psalmists sang it, the disciples rejoiced in it, the martyrs evidenced it, and in the succeeding days men and women of every kindred and people and tongue have cried with those who have marched the rugged way before them: “‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear (Psalm 46:1-2).’”[11]

Paul is saying that the fact that they have been able to stand up under the weight of persecution, and absorb this punishment with patience is evidence of God’s power working in their lives. Also, God is working in their lives “making them worthy of the kingdom of God,” And there is a coming judgement.

God’s Promise to the Faithless (vv. 8b-10)

. . . inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, 10 when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed.

I don’t think the intention of Paul is to say, “those who hurt you, will be hurt.” Instead it is a reminder that you once were one of those who hurt people, but now you are not destined toward that future, you are now going in a different direction – because of your belief in the gospel.

The difference between the two groups of people is those that know God, and those that do not know God (not the good and the bad). Romans 3:23 says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

How then does one come to know God? You know God and are known by God by “obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus.” What then is the gospel?

So why would God punish someone who does not receive the gospel? Because like the persecutors of the church they have caused harm to themselves and others. (see the Ten Commandments).

(v. 9) There is are two time-limits that a person has to respond to the invitation of the gospel, their own death and Christ’s return (if they are still alive). There is also a time restriction to the state of those that know him and those that do not know him. Those that do not know Him, “will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might.”

The second part of the sentence explains the first[12]: What Paul means by “Eternal destruction” is being “Away from the presence of the Lord and “Away from the glory of his might.”[13] Eternal Life and Eternal Destruction are exact opposites. Eternal life is to be in the presence of the Lord and to experience His majesty, Eternal Destruction is to be away from the presence of the Lord and His majesty. [14]

Glorifying God With Our Lives (vv. 11-12)

11 To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, 12 so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul is telling the church about the future, not to satisfy their curiosity, but for them (and us) to take action based on that information. “This is the point Paul makes here. He has reviewed their sufferings, and how God is able to take care of them. He has discussed how the wicked will be punished in due time. Then he makes a practical application. If this is our destiny, if there is glory ahead, if we are to be in the very presence of our glorious Savior, what an exhortation it constitutes to live for Christ right now.”[15]

Our lives are to be lived in such a way as to bring glory to God. Paul says, “so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you” – this is his prayer for the church, that God has given us so much, that we must grow in our walk with the Lord, and live in such a way as to “make you worthy of his calling.”

Psalm 19:1-2 says, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. 2 Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.” Creation declares the glory of God in intelligent design.[16] The heavens show His wisdom, power, and purpose in designing all creation for an intelligent end. Nature reveals that God is and what He can do.

But they do not reveal the love of God, nor His righteousness. “That is where Christians come into the picture. We are designed to show “the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ (Eph. 2:7).”

If we are to share that message with the world, then we must submit to the gospel message, and be an example to others of what the power of God and his grace can do in a person.

“I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.”

Have you made the choice to follow Christ, to put your faith in Him? Do you know Him and His gospel?

__________________________

[1] https://lithub.com/youre-probably-misreading-robert-frosts-most-famous-poem/

[2] D. Edmond Hiebert, An Introduction to the Pauline Epistles (Chicago, Illinois; Moody Press, 1954) 60.

[3] John F. Walvoord, The Thessalonian Epistles (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Dunham Publication, 1968) 101.

[4] Hiebert, 60.

[5] Walvoord, 105.

[6] Clifton Allen, Broadman Bible Commentary, Volume 11 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Publishing, 1971) 286.

[7] Allen, 286.

[8] Walvoord, 106.

[9] Allen, 287. See also Buttrick, 319. This is the only use of the word for proof , rare in classical Greek.

[10] lex talionis – the law of retaliation, “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth.”

[11] George Arthur Buttrick, Commentary Editor, The Interpreter’s Bible, Volume 11 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1955) 320.

[12] Hendiadys

[13] Michael Holmes, The NIV Application Commentary, 1 & 2 Thessalonians (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1998) 215.

[14] Nature fights on the side of the good (Rev 12). “Though the mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceedingly small.” Longfellow, “Poetic Aphorisms: Retribution.” Sinngedichte of Frederich von Logau Buttrick, 323).

[15] Walvood, 111.

[16] Ontological argument for the existence of God.

Unboxing the Bunny

Bellevue Baptist Church is offering a Photo Hoopertunity (hehehehe) for children, furry friends, and anyone else who wants to have their picture taken with the Easter Bunny! I think I will be making some adjustments to the costume. Mark your calendar for April 9th and sign up at https://bellevuenashville.org/photo-hoppertunity/

This is what it was supposed to look like, do you think it looks the same?:

Generous Sermon Series “You Reap What You Sow” 2 Corinthians 9:6-15

Generous Sermon Series

“You Reap What You Sow”

2 Corinthians 9:6-15

Introduction

One day, a man was lost in a desert without water, but he saw an old makeshift structure. He knew he couldn’t make it much longer, so he got to the covering as fast as his worn-out legs could carry him. To his surprise, inside he found a jar of pure looking water. This jar was on the floor next to a pump.

As he reached down to pick up the jar of water, though, he noticed a sign.

Filled with relief, he walked over to the jar to quench his overbearing thirst. As he reached down to pick up the jar of water, though, he noticed a sign. The sign read, “Use this water to prime the pump. When you have gotten as much water as you need, refill the jar, and leave it for the next person who will pass this way.”

This man suddenly found himself on the horns of a dilemma because he was so thirsty that he was close to dehydration. What if he followed the directions on the sign and there was no water in the well? What if he poured out all of the water he now held in his hand and got nothing in return? Was that worth the risk to even try? The man had to make a decision to either fill himself now, or pour out what he had and take the chance that deep down there was so much more. The man made the choice to prime the pump. It was a good choice because the water flowed freely. He drank to his delight and collected enough water to take him on his journey. Before he left, he filled the jar and placed it next to the note. Under the words of the note, he wrote, “Trust me. It works!”[1]

Prayer

God Supplies the Need of the Giver (vv. 6-10)

6 The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap[2] bountifully. 7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. 9 As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.”10 He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.

(vv. 4-5) Whenever we study a passage of Scripture, it’s important to look at the passage in context. Verse 1-5 speak of the apostle Paul planning to arrive with some others and how this church (Corinth) has promised a gift for them. The gift is “to express concern of the Gentile churches for the needy Jewish churches in Judea.”[3]

Paul says, “The point is this,” He does not want to be humiliated and embarrassed or to embarrass those coming with him, when they arrive and the church in Corinth to not have gathered the offering. Paul says, “so that it may be ready as a willing gift, not as an exaction.” He doesn’t want it to look like the offering is “wrung” from them, but that it would truly appear as a gift, ready to be given when they arrive.

(v. 6) With an agricultural principle in mind, Paul shows that the harvest the farmer has at the end of the season is directly related to the amount of seed sown at the beginning of the season.[4] If the farmer sows a few seeds, he will reap a few plants.

You reap what you sow. “With the measure you give will be the measure that you get. In some form or another it comes back to us.”[5] This is a biblical principle that you see again and again through the Bible. This is also a universal principle, like “the sun rises on everyone, and the rains fall for everyone in common.”[6]

Jesus uses this principle in Matthew 7:2 “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” The idea of these passages is what you do with your life (good or bad) will come back to you in some form or another.

John Calvin said, “Whenever fleshly reason calls us back from doing good through fear and loss, we should immediately oppose it with this shield; But the Lord declares that we are sowing.”[7]

Also, when you plant one kernel in the ground it produces multiple ears of corn, with hundreds and hundreds of kernels of corn in season. Now multiply that by acres of property, so that not only can the farmer feed his family by sowing the seed, but now he has the ability to feed others as well.[8] The farmer trusts the soil to take the seed and multiply it. We trust God’s Word that when we seek to faithfully and cheerfully give, that our efforts will be multiplied.

The context also helps us to answer the question, “what is the harvest?” – it is not your personal finances. There are some who will say, give a seed offering to whatever ministry and they use this passage to say that you will get more back than you gave.

The harvest here is a result of the ministry of the church – we give so that a harvest of souls can be gathered at harvest time. We give to the church (like Corinth is giving to this other church) so that the gospel can go forth and people will be saved.

(v. 7) “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion,” – Paul does not want to apply pressure; if they give while feeling under compulsion (from Paul), then their contributions will be made reluctantly and the whole purpose of the project was to show they want to help.

Giving for Paul is “an outward act expressing inward conviction rather than desire for praise or fear of censure.”[9] Also, the church had decided to take this on as a project, so no one should have to wring, pry, cajole, etc. the people to give toward something they said they were in favor of.

“What each man ought to give must be thought out in light of his own responsibilities for the use of his money.” Giving is a spiritual disciple because you have to (or should) sit down, and evaluate all your expenses and responsibilities and putting God first, you then give the Lord. We allow the Holy Spirit to guide our decision to give whatever that amount may be.

“for God loves a cheerful giver” – God is a giver and as his followers we are to have his characteristics. We get our word hilarious from this word “cheerful.”[10]

Now Paul moves to the reason why God would bless the cheerful giver. (v. 8) “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” – look at how many times the word all is used here. The way God gives his grace is the opposite of “sowing sparingly.” God gives His all. “For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son.” John 3:16 He holds nothing back.

“The sense of the verse seems to be that if men are willing to give, God will always make it possible for them to give (having all sufficiency).”[11] Paul is not saying that if you give, then you will always have a standard of living that will allow you to give to those in need.

Paul himself had times of poverty and wealth, Philippians 4:12 “I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” Also, the offering they are collecting is going to the poor in the Jewish church.

Jesus helps us to understand this principle when he took the small gift from an unknown little boy and miraculously fed five thousand people, and had baskets full left over (John 6:5 ff). That little boy’s offering is an example where “God is able to make all grace abound to you”

What we have does not come from within us but by the grace of God, and there will always be some kind of work that we can do. (v.8) “the term for blessing is literally “grace” (charis), which Paul employs in the sense of gracious gift. God is able to provide those material resources for your own needs, and enough to provide in abundance, that you may give to others in a manner which matches God’s abundant giving to you.”[12] Grace (you being blessed) may abound so that good works (your ministry to others) may abound.

Also, If we show love toward another person, the “true return is not even the love of others; it is the increased capacity to love. The reward for generosity is the generous heart which rejoices in giving and seeks no return.”

(v. 9) “As it is written” – is a reference to Psalm 112:9, “God will give the man enough to have contentment in life and to enable him to be rich in good works and generous giving.”[13] By quoting from Psalm 112 he is saying that “those who give generously to the needy should know that their charitable act is a part of that larger righteousness of God by which they themselves live and in which they shall remain forever (.v 9).”[14]

If the Corinthian church would give generously, Paul is saying that they will see more resources in the next season, where then they will be able to give even more. The work will grow.

Our Giving Affects the Future (vv. 11-15)

11 You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. 12 For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. 13 By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others, 14 while they long for you and pray for you[15], because of the surpassing grace of God upon you. 15 Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!

(v. 13) “they will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your confession of the gospel of Christ” – Giving in this passage is a picture of where God has moved in their hearts. “There the racial barrier between Greeks and Jews was very real.”[16]

There were also leaders in the early church that said if you were not circumcised then you were not a true follower of Christ. These Judaizers “asserted that without circumcision and other requirements of the Jewish law the Christian standing of Gentiles was defective.” So here the Gentile church was giving an offering to the Jewish church and Paul is saying, God will get the glory in this love offering.

1 John 4:20-21, “If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot1 love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.”

Paul is teaching and encouraging this church to serve and minister to another church who had a need. Paul in another place says, “faith without works is dead.”[17] If we know there are brothers in Christ starving, without clothes, suffering, and we can do something, but choose not to, then our faith is worthless.

Verses 11-15 are pointing toward the future, there can be a change in the future. How do we change hateful and bitter attitudes between people who have differences? These two groups were incredibly different, but it was the gospel and generosity that brought them together.[18]

Jesus taught that the reality of our Christian spirit is tested by its fruits, Matthew 7:218-0 “So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.”

If this Gentile church in Corinth wanted to show the Jewish church that their faith was just as genuine as theirs, then this collection would show it. It would be a real life depiction of the parable of the good Samaritan.[19] Their fruit of their faith was this love offering to this church. Paul says, “the generosity of your contribution for them.” If you have a disagreement with another believer, then love them, be generous to them, and shower them with grace.

The world wants to church to fail. We are seen as hateful, hypocritical, and bigoted. We overcome these views when the world sees the working of grace within us. Paul says, “By their approval of this service (your gift offering), they will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your confession of the gospel of Christ (your changed heart)” They will glorify God because of you showing how your heart has been changed by the gospel.

Paul’s goals with this offering are going to be reached: “God will be glorified in the thanksgiving of many, and the divided Jewish and Gentile churches will abound in love to one another.”[20]

So did they give? Were they ready when Paul and the delegation arrived? “The apostle paid a third visit to Corinth as planned (12:14; 13:1), Spending three months (the winter of 56-57 AD) in Greece (Acts 20:2,3), during which he wrote Romans (Pom 16:23; 1 Cor. 1:14). Romans 15:26, 27 “For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem. 27 For they were pleased to do it, . . .”

Years ago, Chinese farmers decided they would eat the good big potatoes and just use the small ones for seed. A new understanding of the laws of life came to them when, through the years during which they kept up the practice, nature reduced all their potatoes to the size of marbles!

Those farmers learned through bitter experience that they could not keep the best things of life for themselves and use the leftovers for seed. The laws of life decreed that the harvest would reflect the planting.[21]

(v. 15) “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!” – The apostle Paul has given his life for the sake of the gospel, and now has one new church helping another new church as the gospel is spreading and new churches are developing. He got to be apart of this work, and the writing of the New Testament, because of his willingness to give of himself.

We get to be apart of what God is doing in our time, we get to be apart of gospel expanding in our day. We, like Paul should shout out, thank you God, for allowing me to be apart of your work.

Paul also concludes with a shout of thanks to God for his gift to us, His only Son, the Savior of mankind. “The divine gift that inspires all gifts” (Tasker).[22] Do you know Him today? Are you apart of His work?

_______________________

[1] https://tonyevans.org/blog/prime-the-pump

[2] Proverbs 22:8a

[3] Colin Kruse, Tyndale New Testament Commentary, 2 Corinthians (Grand Rapids, Michigan; William B. Eerdsmans Publishing Company, 1987) 165.

[4] Pr. 11:24-25, Gal. 6:7-9

[5] George Arthur Buttrick, Commentary Editor, The Interpreter’s Bible, Volume 10 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1953) 376.

[6] Ambrosiaster, Ancient Christian Texts, Romans and 1-2 Corinthians (Downers Grove, Illinois; IVP Academic, 2009) 242.

[7] Philip E. Hughes, Paul’s Second Epistle to the Corinthians (Grand Rapids, Michigan; WM.B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1962) 329.

[8] Buttrick, 378.

[9] C.K. Barrett, Harper’s New Testament, A Commentary On The Second Epistle to the Corinthians (New York, New York; Harper & Row Publishers, 1973) 236.

[10] Archbald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 4 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Publishing, 1931) 248.

[11] Barrett, 237.

[12] Clifton Allen, General Editor, The Broadman Bible Commentary, Volume 11 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman press, 1971) 62.

[13] Allen. 62.

[14] Victor Paul Furnish, 2 Corinthians, volume 32a (New York, New York; Doubleday, 1984) 449.

[15] Paul is anticipating that once the other church receives the offering that they will then pray for the church in Corinth. “The belief that the prayers of the poor were especially efficacious was present in the early church as well as in Judaism.” Furnish, 452.

[16] Buttrick, 379.

[17] James 2:14ff.

[18] “He drew a circle that shut me out, Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout. But Love and I had the wit to win: We drew a circle that took him in.” Edwin Marklam “Outwitted”

[19] John 4:9. Hughes, 339.

[20] Allen, 63.

[21] https://www.voicings.com/illustration/894

[22] Hughes, 342.