2 Corinthians (Program #36) – The Minister’s of the New Covenant (8)

2 Corinthians is a book dealing with the New Testament ministry and the New Testament minsters.  As this ministry is comprised of the essentials of God’s economy carry out His eternal purpose, we might well think that the apostle would place particular emphasis on the ministry in such a book.  But actually he devoted only one chapter to the ministry of the New Covenant.  While he devoted four chapters to the qualifications and characteristics of the New Covenant ministers.   Why such emphasis on the ministers rather than on their work?  Because God cares much more for what we are than what we do.  We may do many things for Him or in His name, but the question is “does our living, does our experience of Christ really match our words or even our works?”

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2 Corinthians (Program #35) – A New Creation in Christ Becoming God’s Righteousness (2)

The New Testament Ministry described in the epistles of Paul is characterized as the ministry of reconciliation and the ministry of the Spirit. While the Old Testament Ministry is called the ministry of death and the ministry of the letter.

The apostle according to 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and ultimately the believers as well become ambassadors of this New Covenant ministry of reconciliation.

2 Corinthians  5:20, “On behalf of Christ then we are ambassadors, as God entreats you through us; we beseech you on behalf of Christ, Be reconciled to God.”

What is it to be fully reconcile to God according to this verse?  We will explore the New Testament ministry of reconciliation today.

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2 Corinthians (Program #26) – The Ministry of the Spirit as the Life Supply, and of Righteousness as God’s Expression (1)

The Old Testament had one unique ministry beginning with Moses and his receiving and delivering to the children of Israel the law or commandments. The ministry of the law commands and continues until the coming of Christ. But the coming of Christ usher in another ministry, the ministry of the New Covenant. Actually these two are the only ministries spoken of in the Bible.

Acts chapter 1 makes it very clear that not withstanding the current situation, there is a reality of only one ministry. Listen to verse 17 and 25 of Acts chapter 1,

17 “For he was numbered among us and was allotted his portion of this ministry.”
25 “To take the place of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.”

The ministry of the New Covenant is a very great matter that we dare not take lightly, neither should we take it into our own hand to try to put it into practice.

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2 Corinthians (Program #25) – The Essence of the New Covenant Ministry (2)

It’s always interesting and most often enlightening when we compare what’s become the common practice in the realm of Christian work to the Bible itself. It’s natural to take many things for granted, simply because it has become common or ordinary. But one of the things that we try to do on this program is to challenge the common and ordinary thought and to check ourselves and our concepts with the Bible.

For example today it’s quite common to speak of the varies ministries. In fact we all become comfortable with this or that Christian worker speaking about his or her ministry. But if you check carefully in the pages of the New Testament this thought is just not present.

Yes, there is such a thing as ministry but it is called the ministry or this ministry and only once in the entire New Testament do we find the term ministries. So what is this ministry and in what sense does the Bible refer to the plural term ministries?

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2 Corinthians (Program #24) – The Essence of the New Covenant Ministry (1)

The apostle Paul’s writings in the New Testament are rich with the use of metaphors. He frequently used metaphors to help convey the deep and profound meaning of the highest spiritual truths contain in scriptures.

Two such metaphors are found in 2 Corinthians chapter 3. In this chapter we, the believers are first liken to letters, letters of Christ been written or inscribed by the apostles with the Holy Spirit as the ink. How about that?

Later in chapter 3 we become mirrors that both behold and reflect the glory of the Lord. Metaphors like these inspired by the Spirit Himself do help unlock the unsearchable riches of Christ both in our experience and in the working out of God’s great plan, a full salvation.

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2 Corinthians (Program #21) – Shining the Glory of the New Covenant (2)

Two items are marvelously connected in 2 Corinthians that you may have never noticed or linked before. These two things are the New Covenant and the shining of the glory of Christ.

The Old Covenant was a Covenant of law and of letters with the affect of bringing us into spiritual death. The New Covenant on the other hand has everything to do with the Spirit and life. And to be brought into the reality of the New Covenant is to be brought into the glory of the face of Jesus Christ.

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2 Corinthians (Program #20) – Shining the Glory of the New Covenant (1)

The Bible is very rich in the many titles that it describe to God. Of course He is the almighty, the God of glory, the all sufficient One and on and on. It opens in Genesis 1 with the Hebrew word, Elohim, meaning the creator of the heavens and the earth. But interestingly at the end of the Bible, in the final chapter, Revelation 22, God is called simply, the Spirit.  But along the way between these two great bookends of the Bible, we see the journey or the process, that God has passed through in time to accomplish His great eternal purpose.

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2 Corinthians (Program #15) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (7b)

All genuine believers in Christ know that an essential of the Christians faith is that Christ our Savior is sinless. In fact the Bible tells us in 2 Corinthians that He did not know sin. Yet the very same verse tells us that this One that did not know sin, was made sin. Here is chapter 5:

21 “Him who did not know sin He made sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

What mysterious, marvelous language. He, Who did not know sin, was made sin on our behalf. We, who believed treasure the fact that He died for our sins. Yet do we really have the proper understanding, a proper appreciation of the fact that according to God’s word that He was made sin on our behalf?

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2 Corinthians (Program #14) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (7a)

The apostle Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 that he and the other apostles had received a ministry or reconciliation. To reconcile one person to another is to restore the offending party to the offended party.

Of course in our case we all had offended God and the moment that we believed into Christ, receiving His work on the cross for us, we were brought nigh to Him and experience the first step or first level of reconciliation.

But actually 2 Corinthians reveals that there is a further step, a second level or degree of reconciliation. And that only someone fully in God can have such a ministry to reconcile others fully into God. This is the ministry of reconciliation that Paul was commissioned with.

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2 Corinthians (Program #13) – The Ministers of the New Covenant (6)

At the beginning of chapter 5 in 2 Corinthians Paul the apostle speaks in a strange way.

1 “For we know that if our earthly tabernacle dwelling is taken down, we have a building from God, a dwelling not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens.”

Well, we may consider that we have understand this at least in parts. But listen to:

2 “For also in this we groan, longing to be clothed upon with our dwelling place from heaven,”

3 “If indeed, being clothed, we will not be found naked.”

Actually what Paul is expressing here is his deep longing and desire to be raptured.

Rapture, is a topic today that fascinating millions today even unbelievers are intrigued by this topic as we’ve seen by the tremendous popularity of recent series of novels on this subject.

But what is most often missed by Christians considering rapture it that it’s linked not just to our initially salvation but much more to our growth and maturity in the divine life. For as we grow and mature, our longing for this day deepens as we can clearly seen in Paul’s words.

4 “For also, we who are in this tabernacle groan, being burdened, in that we do not desire to be unclothed, but clothed upon, that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.“

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