August
13th 2
Corinthians 3 (Ministry of Christ)
Do
l need to be introduced?
1:
Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others,
epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you?
2: Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all
men: 3: Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of
Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of
the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the
heart. 4: And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: 5: Not
that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of
ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; 6: Who also hath made us
able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the
spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life. 7: But if
the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was
glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold
the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was
to be done away: 8: How shall not the ministration of the spirit be
rather glorious? 9: For if the ministration of condemnation be glory,
much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. 10:
For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect,
by reason of the glory that excelleth. 11: For if that which is done
away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious. 12:
Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech:
13: And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the
children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which
is abolished: 14: But their minds were blinded: for until this day
remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old
testament; which vail is done away in Christ. 15: But even unto this
day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. 16:
Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken
away. 17: Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the
Lord is, there is liberty. 18: But we all, with open face beholding
as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image
from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
Paul
asks the question - Are we going to introduce ourselves to you again?
Maybe we need letters of introduction and recommendation to you?
Maybe you could write a letter of recommendation for us? Does the
evangelist need a letter of commendation from his convert? No of
course not. Paul points out that you – believers are our letters of
recommendation. You are read and known by everyone. Because you are
our letter of recommendation which was not written with pen and ink
but with the Spirit of the living God. And not on slabs of stone but
written of the fleshly tablet of your hearts. And we have faith in
your conversion by God. We do not think that we are clever or able to
do things for God but our trust is in the almighty power of God who
is able to do everything. And he has made us competent servants of
the New Covenant. Not in the letter only but in the enabling of the
Spirit. (because the letter destroys but the Holy Spirit is the life
giver). If the Mosaic Law which brought separation from God and which
was written on stones was a wonderful thing a revelation of the glory
of God, So that when Moses came down from Sinai the children of
Israel were unable to look in his face because of the glory of God
which shone from his face. This glory was to be a fading glory. The
Glory of God seen in our ministry is much more glorious. Because if
the Mosaic Law which brought condemnation on sinners was glorious,
how much, much more will the glory of God be seen in the Gospel which
brings righteousness to the sinner. Even the Glory of the Mosaic Law
pales into insignificance in comparison to the Glory of the Gospel.
The Mosaic Law which is done away was glorious but the Gospel which
we have now is much, more glorious. Because our ministry in the
Gospel is such a wonderful hope for mankind we use very simple
language. We are not like Moses who put a cloth over his face so that
the children of Israel might not see the fading glory of the Mosaic
Law which is now abolished. But their minds are to this day blind
because even today the same cloth remains on thie eyes when they read
the Old Testament. This cloth is done away in Christ. Right up until
today, when the Mosaic Law is read in the Synagogues the blindfold
covers their eyes to the truth of God. But when they believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ the blindfold is taken away. The Spirit of the Lord
takes away the blindness of the Law and brings freedom to see
everything that God is able to do in the life of the sinner that
believes in him. And we who see the glory of the Lord like a man
looking seeing his own image in a dusty mirror and in doing so we are
changed from the glory of the Law, to the glory of the Gospel and all
this is accomplished by the Spirit of God.
- Did Paul need to be introduced to him converts?
- How does Paul contrast the Old Covenant with Life in Christ – in the Spirit?
- What is the difference between Old Israel and NT believers?
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