Embracing Affliction - 2 Corinthians

This message was presented using Zoom Teleconferencing as the 3rd of our "Worship from a Distance" during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Last week, we began focusing on the next section of Paul's 2nd letter to the Corinthians. Throughout the letter, Paul has built his exhortations and encouragements around the central theme of believers living their lives within an atmosphere of afflictions. He began his letter discussing the purpose of afflictions and then sharing from his own life. He then provided encouragement, by reminding the believers of their new standing in Christ and how they are being continually changed from glory to glory. God, as the Master Sculptor, is chiseling away on us - His new creations! He who began the good work in us IS CONTINUING to perform it ... UNTIL the day of Christ! He is molding us and conforming us to the image of His blessed Son - according to His promise and plan! As that work is being accomplished, there will be opposition in the spiritual realm. As we considered the "Weapons of our Warfare" last week, we saw that, again, that God's primary desire is for ALL people to come to the knowledge of the truth. Hence, He has given us this word of truth in the Scriptures, has given a charge to the church to be the pillar and foundation of that truth, and has challenged believers to see it as the first element of the armor which He has given to us to use in the spiritual war. There has been opposition to the truth of the Word of God from the beginning. Just as Eve was deceived by the serpent, so also do many individuals fall to the wiles of the devil as he attacks the validity and sufficiency of the Word of God. His goal is to get us to detract from ... or add to ... God's Word, in order that we might not live in obedience to it. Today, we begin considering how we are to utilize the "Weapons of our Warfare" ... for they ARE to be used! Today, we want to examine the first of the four areas listed by Paul - "For pulling down strongholds." This message was presented on April 5, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

This message was presented using Zoom Teleconferencing as the 2nd of our "Worship from a Distance" during the COVID-19 Pandemic. We have spent the last two Sundays considering the subject of fasting and have spent this past week in a special time of prayer and fasting. As mentioned in those messages, what originally seemed to be hiatus from our series actually was an addition to our series. For today, we come to the portion of Paul's 2nd letter to the Corinthians where he will begin to take on probably the greatest affliction that we can face - spiritual affliction in the form of attacks against the truth of the Scriptures and the obedience to that truth. Paul begins this portion by declaring his desire to exhort them in meekness and gentleness, rather than in boldness. However, there were some - false teachers - who were challenging his authority and the message which God had given him to share. When you begin to share the truth of God's Word, and begin to seek to live according to it's standards, you will find that there are many in the world who do not care to hear the message. Sadly, there are many false teachers in the world as well. Lord willing, we will consider this portion of Paul's discussion after our Resurrection Day celebration. Today, we want to continue our consideration of the weapons of our warfare. The word for "weapons" would be better translated "accoutrements." These accoutrements are listed by Paul in his letter to the Ephesians. We will take another week to discuss these weapons before discussing their utilization. This message was presented on March 29, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

This message was presented using Zoom Teleconferencing as the 1st of our "Worship from a Distance" during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Last week we began a two-part consideration on the spiritual discipline of fasting. We are considering this topic in preparation for our week of prayer and fasting (this week), and as an extension of the teaching on Spiritual Warfare which we will have from 2 Corinthians 10:1-7, Lord willing, next week. As we saw last week, fasting, in its proper form, is when you abstain from food and/or drink for a period of time. That concept has been extrapolated to other realms as well (especially during the season of "Lent".) Fasting was seen in the Old Testament to be an "affliction of the soul." However, this temporal affliction of our physical body is for a great spiritual purpose. Last week we considered the call to fasting. Today, we want to consider the "Heart of Fasting." What does God consider to be a "Proper Fast?" This message was presented on March 22, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

We have been studying Paul's second epistle to the church of Corinth for the past two months. With our spring week of Prayer and Fasting coming up a week from now, I would like to present a little teaching on the subject of fasting. This is not a commonly taught on topic in the greater church anymore. Yet, it is a discipline that is assumed to be in the life of those who seek YHWH. At first, I considered this teaching to be a break from our teaching in 2 Corinthians, but as I meditated upon it I realized that actually this teaching on fasting will be just an amplification of the next portion of our study - 2 Corinthians 10:1-7 - and our consideration of spiritual warfare. For one of our primary spiritual weapons, as we will see, is indeed the discipline of fasting. What is "Fasting"? Fasting, in its proper form, is when you abstain from food and/or drink for a period of time. That concept has been extrapolated to other realms as well (especially during the season of "Lent".) Fasting was seen to be an "affliction of the soul." Hence, as we consider this discipline of fasting for the next two weeks, we want to remember that this temporal affliction of our physical body is for a great spiritual purpose. Today, we are going to consider the call to us, as New Testament believers, to fast. As well, we shall consider some of the reasons to fast. Next week, Lord willing, we will consider "The Proper Fast." This message was presented on March 15, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

In his second epistle to the church of Corinth, Paul has been seeking to encourage the Corinthian believers regarding their position in Christ and the purpose of God as they face afflictions. Through afflictions, we have the opportunity to receive the encouragement of God and, subsequently, to dispense that same encouragement to others who are experiencing afflictions. Afflictions are a means by which we can give testimony to the greatness of our God! With this in mind, Paul transitions his exhortation to the testimony of the believers in Macedonia and how they handled the afflictions with which they were faced. Paul's goal is to inspire the believers of Corinth to prove themselves faithful regarding the commitments that they made - in spite of the circumstances which they found themselves. Afflictions test our resolve. In Jesus' parable of the sower, the seed and the soil, we are told of four different types of soil: the hard soil, the rocky soil, the thorny soil and the prepared soil. Only the prepared soil produced fruit; each of the others did not. The "hard soil" heart rejects the Word immediately. The "rocky" soil heart seemed to accept the Word but when trials and afflictions came it moved away. The "thorny soil" heart, as well, seemed to receive the Word but was choked out by temptations of the flesh and world. Paul began this string of sub-thought in verse one of chapter 6 with the comment, "We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain." In this section, we see again the tender balance between faith and works. As James states, "Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, 'You have faith, and I have works.' Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe - and tremble! ... For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." (James 2:17-19,26) This message was presented on March 1, 2020 by Bob Corbin.