"A REMARKABLE COME BACK"

2 CORINTHIANS 4:7-15

          But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

          For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death works in us, but life in you. But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, "I BELIEVE, THEREFORE I SPOKE," we also believe, therefore we also speak. Knowing that He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and will present us with you. For all things are for your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God (NASB).  

INTRODUCTION

          Guidepost September 95 published the story of Jim Stovall, who became completely blind at age 29. While he still had partial vision, he volunteered at school for the blind. He was assigned to help a four-year-old boy, blind and severely handicapped. Stovall spent considerable time trying to convince the boy he could tie his own shoes and climb stairs in spite of his limitations. “No, I can’t!” the boy insisted. “Yes, you can,” Stovall replied. “No, I can’t!” The verbal battle went on.

          Meanwhile, Stovall fought his own limitations. Because of his deteriorating vision, he decided he had to quit his college courses. On his way to withdraw from college, he decided to resign his volunteer position as well. “It is just too tough,” he explained. “I can’t do it.” “Yes, you can!” said a little voice beside him. It was the four-year-old who refused to tie his shoes. “No, I can’t!” said Stovall with conviction. “Yes, you can!”

          Stovall realized if he did not continue the child would give up too. Therefore, Stovall stayed in school and graduated three-and-a half years later. The same week he graduated, his little friend tied his shoes and climbed a flight of stairs. Philippians tell us we “can do all things through Christ who gives us strength.” I would like to share with you on the topic: “A Remarkable Come Back.”

I.                  THE MANIFEST PRESENCE OF CHRIST IN

          EARTHEN VESSELS VV. 7-10

          Earthenware vessels were a common place in virtually every home in the ancient Middle East. They were inexpensive and easily broken. Unlike metal vessels, which could be repaired or glass ones, which could be melted down, and the material reused, once broken earthen vessels had to be discarded. They were thus cheap and of little intrinsic value.

          The conjunction “But” in verse 7 introduces the startling contrast between the splendor of which Paul has just been speaking and the poor vessels in which it is contained. The treasure in question is “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God” (v. 6). The false teachers who were the enemies of Paul had maligned and contemptuously described his bodily appearance as weak and his speech as of no account (10:10; 10:1; 11:6; 12:7). These false teachers were using invectives to discredit Paul’s authority as an apostle. Paul uses verse 7 to demonstrate that precious metals or treasures are usually concealed in the least suspected vessels. In the ancient times it was customary to hide treasure in clay jars, which had little value or beauty and did not attract attention to themselves and their precious contents. I remember when I was a boy, I saw my grandfather kept his precious jewels in the least suspected jars. The reason he did that was, if a thief broke into the room to steal something he might steal the beautiful jars made of glass or metal. He would not touch the ugly looking jar. After all, who would hide a treasure in an ugly looking jar or vessel? That is the way humans think. However, God on the other hand, conceals His treasure in frail and least suspecting vessels. That is why Jesus said, “I praise You O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to babes” (Matt. 11:25). The Apostle Paul also said, “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, that no man should boast before God” (1 Cor. 1:27-29).

          Despite Paul’s apparent human frailty, God chose him to bring the light of the gospel of Christ to the Gentiles of which Corinth was a part. The supreme valuable message of salvation message of Jesus Christ has been entrusted by God to frail and fallible human beings. As unworthy and frail as Paul was, Christ saw fit to choose him to carry the light of the gospel to those who were sitting in the darkness. The absolute insufficiency of man reveals the total sufficiency of God. Human weakness presents no barrier to the purposes of God. Indeed, God’s power is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor. 12:9). When you read the Bible carefully, you will find out that God used the least expected people to accomplish His purposes. For example, Moses, a failure and a wanted man, who was hiding at the backside of the desert in Media. Moses was the least expected man to be used to deliver the children of Israel from captivity in Egypt. Samuel, just a boy but God chose him to be a prophet and a judge and David a teenage shepherd that became a king of Israel. Who would appoint a shepherd as the second king of Israel? Probably no man would have done that, but God did. Amen. Joseph, sold into slavery, serving jail term, an ex-convict, yet God chose him to become the Prime Minister of Egypt. His brothers thought that they had gotten rid of him and his dream, yet the dream happened. Peter, who had denied Jesus three times and had gone back to his fishing business, yet Christ pursued him, restored him, and made him the leader of the apostolic team. Paul, the least likely figure, the one who held the clothes of those who stoned Stephen to death; the one who went to towns and cities and hunted Christians men and women, yet Christ saved him and called him as the flaming apostle to the Gentiles. The list can be endless. Paul knew that he was the least qualified candidate to be chosen by Christ. That was why he was ever grateful to God for His grace. Are you one of those who think that you deserve to be saved? Are you one of those who think and behave as if God owes you something?

          The life of Paul reveals to you and me that the transcendent power of God belongs to Christ and not to His servants. Paul knew himself. Paul knew who he was, and to whom he belonged. Do you know yourself very well? Do you know to whom you belong? In verses 8-9, Paul states that he endured “suffering everyway, but not crushed, perplexed, but not in despair, persecuted but not forsaken, struck down, but not destroyed.” These verses describe the vulnerability of Paul, his missionary team, and the power of God, which sustained them. Here, Paul is speaking from experience and this is more of constant experience. Here Paul uses the language of Greek Gladiatorial games to describe their ordeal. He says, "We go through affliction but not crushed." Sometimes Satan uses affliction to crush the spirit of the believer. He does that to win the victory over you. Paul says, "Yes we sometimes wonder, we are perplexed but not despairing." To despair means to lose hope. Brothers and sisters, the moment you lose hope in the Christian life, the very moment you lose hope in Christ, the battle is ended. If you lose hope in Christ, Satan has won the spiritual warfare. Paul says, “We do not despair.” A person can live without food for sometime. A Person can live without water for sometime, but you cannot live without hope. Hope in Christ, in His death, resurrection, ascension, and second coming is what keep us going. Never give up hope. The moment you give up hope, you are like a boxer who won the title but "threw in the towel." Paul says, “We are persecuted but not forsaken.” The devil is real. He is the archenemy of Christ and Christians. However, he uses people to do his sinister work for him. Persecution of Christians is always the work of people who have become the slaves of Satan. Paul says we are being hunted. Paul knew the agony of being hated and pursued like an animal by his fellow men, but he also knew that, no matter how savage their hatred, he was never forsaken and left as a prey to his enemies. The sad thing is that the people who claimed to be Christians and boasted of their power and spirituality became the tools in the devil’s hand to persecute Paul. If the secularist, the unbeliever, and the pagan persecute you as a Christian, you can understand. However, when one who claims to be a believer becomes your persecutor, it is difficult to endure. Sometimes Satan uses those who are close to you to persecute you. See how Saul persecuted David. A King that David had rescued from humiliation and possibly death; Saul became a tool of Satan to persecute David. David’s own son Absalom rose up against him. The good thing is that God did not forsake David. Read how both Saul and Absalom died. Paul says, yes we are persecuted but not forsaken. God has given His unchanging promise to all His faithful children. “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Heb. 13:5). Paul was fully conscious of the power and presence of Christ in his life that he was not worried even when his companions forsook him (2 Tim. 4: 10, 16).

          Paul then asserts, “We are struck down, but not destroyed.” This is a picture of a wrestling match. It is also like a boxer who has been knocked down, but not knocked out. Have you watched a boxing match where a boxer who had been knocked down came back to win the fight? The Apostle Paul says, yes Satan might have knocked us down but we are not knocked out. We are not knocked out because our champion Jesus Christ has already won the fight. He won the fight over 2000 years ago. Glory be to God. King David the Psalmist says, “The steps of a righteous man are ordered by the LORD: And He delights in his way. When he falls, he shall not be hurled headlong; because the LORD is the One who holds his hand” (Ps. 37:23-24). Many of the faithful servants of God had suffered in the hands of the agents of Satan. Among the list includes Polycarp, a disciple of the Apostle John who became the Bishop of Smyrna. This courageous man of God was burned at the stake. William Tyndale whose only crime was a determination to obey his call from God to translate the Bible into the English language was literally hunted like a prey from place to place until he was eventually martyred on October 6, 1536. They may destroy this decaying body, but they cannot destroy the soul.

          Paul also states, “We carry about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our body.” The frailty of Paul’s humanity is evident in the constant hardships and persecutions he suffered for the sake of the gospel through which he shared in Christ’s suffering. You became the target of Satan the moment you opened your heart to Christ. When you said yes to Jesus you died to self, Satan, and the world. Nevertheless, Satan would not let you go without a fight. Paul was hunted and struck down by the enemies of Christ who went from Antioch and Iconium and pursued him to Lystra. They stoned him, dragged his lifeless body and left him for dead, but he was miraculously raised up and restored to strength (Acts 14: 19ff.). Not only was Paul restored but he also returned to Lystra to minister there again (Acts 14:21). Perhaps many of the enemies who had sought his death had died. Satan and his cohorts knocked Jesus down. Like a game of boxing, the umpire was counting. The umpire started counting on that fateful Friday after the crucifixion. The Devil and his demons were jubilating on Friday and Saturday. The umpire was about to count his last on Sunday morning, when all of a sudden Jesus rose up and sent a crushing blow to Satan and his demons. The game was over. Jesus had staged a remarkable come back to win the title. And since Jesus has won the victory over sin, Satan, and death, you and I who are in Him are more than conquerors. On the outward, it appears as if we are losing the battle, but in reality, we are winning because we are fighting from victory unto victory. Praise the Lord. Glory be to God.

II.               THE MEANING OF FAITH AND THE ASSURANCE

          OF THE RESURRECTION VV. 11-14

          Paul reminds us that though we may be at the end of our rope, we are never at the end of hope. Our perishable bodies are subject to sin and suffering, but God never abandons us. Because Christ has won the victory over death, we have eternal life. All our risks, humiliations, and trials are opportunities to demonstrate Christ’s power and presence in us.

          In verse 11, Apostle Paul recaps his previous statement. In essence, he says that human weakness provides the occasion for the triumph of divine power, and daily “dying” magnifies the wonder of daily resurrection life. God is not looking for strong people to use. You know why? They would rely on their natural strength. God is looking for weak people so that He alone can get the glory. The reason why we do not experience the power and the presence of God in our lives today is that we rely on our human potential and strength. To live and serve God in human strength alone is to be defeated, but to live and serve in total dependence on the risen Christ is to live in victory. Are you crucified with Christ? The Apostle Paul could say, “I am crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me” (Gal. 2:20). Some Christians want to experience the resurrected power and presence of Christ in their lives, yet they refuse to surrender their lives to Christ. The Christian life is a life of faith in Christ. It is a life of complete submission and reliance on Christ. There are some who want Christ to save them, and yet want to live independent of Christ. In effect, they are saying, “Christ save me but let me control my life.” My friend you cannot come to Jesus and dictate the terms of operation. Jesus is the Christ, He is the Savior, He is the Lord, and you are the servant. A servant does not dictate the terms of operation; the Master does. You cannot have the resurrected power of Christ without going through some of the sufferings that He endured.

          Apostle Paul’s experience was a constant exposure to forces leading to death but he also knew that Christ had not abandoned him. In his exposure to forces leading to death, the life of Christ was greatly magnified in him, not only to sustain him, but also to work through him to bring life to others. Today you and I are the beneficiaries of the gospel of Jesus Christ through the Apostle Paul and others who risked their lives for Christ’s sake.

          In verse 13, quoting from Psalm 116:10 Paul says, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak. Paul is saying the threat of death through persecution by misguided men cannot silence us from sharing Christ. Persecution cannot seal our lips from declaring to others the redemptive work of Christ. This is the life of unquenchable faith in Christ. Paul continued to operate in the spirit of faith in Jesus Christ despite his afflictions. Do you continue to live for Christ when you go through suffering? Do you continue to share Christ with others in spite of persecution? Satan uses suffering to intimidate believers and to silence us, but that should not be the case (Acts 3 & 4Peter and John).

III.           THE MAGNITUDE OF GOD’S GRACE EXPERIENCED

          THROUGH THANKSGIVING V. 15

          In verse 15, the Apostle Paul is telling the Corinthians that they should not allow the false teachers to unsettle their faith in Christ. Why? Because the persecution and affliction which Paul and others endured for the name of Christ was a benefit to them. I must say that Paul’s writings have been a constant source of encouragement to me in trying times. The Psalms of David, which you turn to in times of difficulty, were mostly written in the crucible of sufferings. Paul says that God is using their hardships to spread the grace of God, which comes through the gospel to many people. When this happens, gratitude overflows in the heart of many people to the glory of God. Many Christians shun adversity and persecution because they are shortsighted. They do not have the big picture. They do not think of the long-term effect of what God does with their consistent faith in Christ in the midst of suffering. Many of Paul’s writings that have brought comfort and solace to many believers were written not from a palace but from prison in Rome. John Bunyan wrote The Pilgrims Progress from jail in England. Probably besides the Bible, the Pilgrims Progress has affected more people’s lives than any other book. As you face great troubles, it is easy to focus on the pain rather than on the ultimate goal. As we labor with Christ through suffering, when many lost people come to Christ, they are prompted by the Holy Spirit to give thanks to God and glorify His name.