2 Corinthians 12:11-21

Hey, good morning, friends. Welcome to Coffee and Devotions. This is where every day you and I, we get together, we have a little bit of coffee, we get into God's word, and we grow in our love for the Lord together. And this year, 2022, Lord willing, we'll make it from the book of Acts to the book of Philemon. And today we are wrapping up 2 Corinthians chapter 12. Let's have some coffee, we'll pray, and we'll get into God's word. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for the blessing of getting to read your word. We pray that your Holy Spirit might be working in our hearts, that you would teach us and that we might know what you would have for us today. In Jesus's name. Amen. Here we go. Second Corinthians chapter 12, verses 11 through the end of the chapter. Yeah, verse 11.
I have become a fool in boasting, you have compelled me. For I ought to have been commended by you. For in nothing was I behind the most imminent apostles, though I am nothing. Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you. with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds. For what is it in which you were inferior to the other churches, except that I myself was not burdensome to you?
Forgive me this wrong. Now, for the third time, I am ready to come to you, and I will not be burdensome to you, for I do not seek yours, but you. For the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children, and I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls, though the more abundantly I love you, the less I am loved. But, be that as it may, I did not burden you. Nevertheless, being crafty, I caught you by cunning. Did I take advantage of you by any of those whom I sent to you? I urged Titus and sent our brother with him. Did Titus take advantage of you?
Did we not walk in the same spirit? Did we not walk in the same steps? Again, do you think that we excuse ourselves to you? We spoke before God in Christ. But we do all things, beloved, for your edification. For I fear lest when I come I shall not find you such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish, lest there be contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, backbitings, whisperings, conceits, tumults, lest when I come again my God will humble me among you. And I shall mourn for many who have sinned before and have not repented of the uncleanness, fornication, and lewdness which they have practiced. Well, we need to ask ourselves first, A, what is this about? B, what's the best verse to summarize this? And C, what are we called to do in response to these words? So first, what is this about? Well, Paul is once again defending himself.
The entire book of 2 Corinthians has been this defense of his apostolic authority and ministry, of his love for the saints there in Corinth. And so he talks about how all this stuff in chapter 11 and the first part of chapter 12 of his boasting has made himself a fool, but he feels like he's been compelled by them to do this, to defend and to try to make an apology for his ministry to stand up and say hey this is what I've been like and you know me and I know you what's going on here and he says I should have been commended by you right you might look at all the other imminent apostles you might look at James you might look at Peter you might look at them but did you lack anything When Paul said, when I came to you, did you not receive signs? Did you not receive wonders? Did you not receive all the things that should flow from apostolic ministry?
Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance in signs and wonders and mighty deeds. By the way, I'm just going to say, right, these are things that the apostles did. He says, I did these things. How are you any less than any of the other churches? And how am I any less than any of the other apostles? And so he's saying, there's only one thing I didn't do for you that the other apostles did. And that's receive money. And that's what he says in verse 13. For what is it in which you were inferior to the other churches except that I myself was not burdensome to you? Forgive me this wrong, right?
He says, I didn't take money from you and maybe I should have. But he didn't think it was the right thing to do. He says, for the third time, I'm coming to you and still I'm not going to be a burden to you. I didn't come to seek yours, but I came to seek you. He says, I wasn't coming because I wanted to get your money. I wasn't coming because I wanted to receive your stuff.
I wanted to receive you. I wanted to see you built up. I wanted to see you grow in your faith. I wanted to see you. You're a whole person. fall in love with Jesus Christ, be redeemed and be built up. I wanted to see your lives transformed. I wanted to see your workplaces changed. I wanted to see your habits turned over. I wanted to see you turn from your sin and have repentance unto life. I wanted to see you have a true apprehension of the mercies of God in Christ. And I wanted to see you have a grief and hatred of your sin and turn from it unto God.
I wanted to see you walk in new obedience. I wanted you, I didn't want your stuff. Why? Because the parents should be laying up stuff for the kids, not kids laying up stuff for their parents. And so I wanted to give you a good gift. I wanted to see you walk in faith. And it wasn't just me, I sent you Titus. And Titus didn't take your stuff, did he? No, he walked in the same way. He did the same stuff. Right, so he says, again, do you think that we excuse ourselves to you? We speak before God in Christ. But we do all things, beloved, for your edification. We were building you up, everything we've done. has been for you, because we love you. We wanted to see you prosper. We wanted to see you grow.
Paul is saying, I was an apostle, the least of all the apostles, but given you by Christ. They were in his fear, and everything he did, all the time he spent with them, all the hours he labored while he lived with them, all the teaching he gave them, even the hard letter he wrote them, was because he wanted to see them built up.
For I fear, lest when I come, I shall not find you such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish. I said, I'm kind of worried. There's all these people saying I'm not an apostle. But I'm worried about what's going on in your lives. I'm worried about outbursts of anger. I'm worried about jealousies and contentions. I'm worried about fighting over this stuff. I'm worried about unrepentant sin. I'm worried that you've forgotten the way of grace.
They are Paul's boast. They are Paul's joy. They are Paul's children of faith. Paul loves these people. He can't believe that his ministry is being questioned amongst them. He's saying he's worried about the state of the church when he gets there. He's concerned for them. He's going to come to them. It's going to be a third time coming to them. It's going to be a third time visiting with them.
He says, I'm really worried that I'm going to be mourning for many who have sinned before and have not repented of uncleanness, fornication, and lewdness, which they have practiced. Do you hear Pastor Paul's heart? He's not about their money. It's not about his own reputation. It's about their holiness.
What's the best verse to summarize this whole section? Well, I have it underlined in my Bible, verse 14 and 15. I think you could also underline verse 12. And maybe also, you know, underline verse 19, but that's way more than one verse. Maybe you're better at just underlining one verse. Let me know down in the comments, what would you underline? How does this apply to our lives?
Are you busy about seeing others edified? Are you a person in the church who's worried about contentions and jealousies backbiting? Are you worried about your own holiness? Are you worried about who's the best teacher, who's the most right, who has all these things? Are you walking by the Holy Spirit?
Are you endeavoring after new obedience? Are you turning away from fornication and turning towards holiness? Are you turning away from adultery and turning towards faithfulness? Are you turning away from lying and turning towards truth? Are you turning away from stealing and putting on hard good work that you might show generosity to people who have need? Are you turning away from backbiting and gossip and slander that you might build others up with your words? Are you turning away from idolatry and from the deeds of darkness that you might walk in the light?
This is God's desire for his people. May we walk in new obedience. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for this day, and we pray that your Holy Spirit would give us the fruits of repentance, that we might walk before you in love. Lord, thank you that you have poured out your grace upon us in Jesus's name. Amen. May God bless you. May you walk in the joy and peace of Jesus Christ, and I'll see you next time. Bye.
Thanks for listening to this week's message from God's Word for You, a ministry of Sharon R.P. Church in rural southeast Iowa. We pray that the message would be used by God to transform your faith and your life this week. If you'd like to get more information about us, feel free to go to the website, SharonRPC.org. We'd love to invite you to worship with us. Our worship time is 10 a.m. every Sunday at 25204 160th Avenue. Morning Sun, Iowa, 52640. May God richly bless you this week.