August 30th

By Randall L. Broad

Read: Job 34:1-36:33; 2 Corinthians 4:1-12; Psalm 44:1-8; Proverbs 22:10-12

In Today’s reading of Second Corinthians we find the conclusion of a long apology (defense) of Paul’s ministry began in chapter two (vv. 2:14-4-6). This is one of two passages found in Second Corinthians where Paul defends his teaching as the “Ministry of the Spirit” (vv. 2:14-4:6; 12:1-12) and thus free of any influence decreed by human authority. It was a common practice in Paul’s time for men to carry letters authorizing them to act on behalf of political and religious leaders. Saul of Tarsus carried letters of this type on his journey to Damascus.

¹Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out threats of murder against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest ²to ask for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any men or women belonging to the Way, he could bring them as prisoners to Jerusalem.

Acts 9:1-2

The Corinthians would also have been familiar with this practice and now ‘others’ have arrived in Corinth bearing letters and questioning the authority of Paul’s ministry. While Paul never clearly defines who these “others” are, he nonetheless, establishes early in this passage the distinction between his ministry and theirs: To the one, we are an odor of death and demise; to the other, a fragrance that brings life (v. 2:16). But his argument here is much bigger and more significant than an “us versus them” argument. At the core of Paul’s ministry is the coming of the Spirit, while theirs is still rooted in the traditional practice of religion. For Paul in particular, the spiritual nature of his conversion on the Damascus Road and the mandate he was given by Christ to carry the gospel to the Gentiles is in stark contrast to everything he understood and believed as a Pharisee. This reality is revealed in Chapter 3:

⁷Now if the ministry of death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with such glory that the Israelites could not gaze at the face of Moses because of its fleeting glory, ⁸will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? ⁹For if the ministry of condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry of righteousness! ¹⁰Indeed, what was once glorious has no glory now in comparison to the glory that surpasses it? ¹¹For if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which endures!

¹²Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. ¹³We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at the end of what was fading away.

¹⁴But their minds were closed. For to this day the same veil remains at the reading of the old covenant. It has not been lifted, because only in Christ can it be removed. ¹⁵And even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. ¹⁶But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.

2 Corinthians 3:7-16

These “others” could well have been any number of groups active in a city as diverse and cultured as Corinth, but Paul’s language would suggest his opponents were knowledgeable of Christianity and Jewish scripture as reflected in his references throughout the passage to Moses (vv. 3:7-11), the veil that hid the truth of God’s glory from the Israelites (3:12-17), and the superior Glory of the New Covenant (vv. 3:17-18). For the Apostle Paul, the gospel of Jesus Christ represented a newness of Spirit where freedom, not bondage reigned. The cross marked the end of the old ways, and the beginning of the New Covenant.

So in today’s reading, we find the conclusion of this important apology in verses 3:17-4:6.

¹⁷Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. ¹⁸And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

¹Therefore, since we have this ministry through the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. ²Instead, we have renounced secret and shameful ways. We do not practice deceit, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by open proclamation of the truth, we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. ³And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.

⁴The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. ⁵For we do not proclaim ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. ⁶For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 3:17-4:6

While the Holy Spirit is not mentioned in the verses found in our reading today His presence and activity underlies everything in Paul’s mission and ministry. In this apology, Paul’s authority is rooted solely in the truth of the Ministry of the Spirit. This long passage is often incorrectly viewed as a Christ-centered narrative. Christ is indeed the one glorified, the one who frees us from the law, and the one we desire to be transformed into–but for Paul it is the Spirit that transforms us just as it did him.

There are some textual difficulties in discerning the activities of the Spirit here, but consider the following verses. Paul describes himself and his ministry companions as men sent from God (v. 2:17); and in the context of the rest of the passage “from God” here most likely refers to the Holy Spirit. The Corinthians are “… the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts” (v. 3:3). And it is this Spirit that “… has qualified us as ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life (v. 3:6). Comparing it to the old ways Paul says, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious (v. 3:8)?

Though Paul’s purpose is to glorify Christ who is God’s Glory, our freedom, and the One we follow this is essentially a Spirit passage not Christological … for the Holy Spirit was for Paul and is for us the essential key to life in the New Covenant.

Walk with the Lord …

Ephesians 1:17

(RLB230830)

© Copyright 2019: Randall L. Broad

Disclaimer: This commentary is written by Randall L. Broad. It is in no way affiliated with or represents any denomination, university, church, or pastor. Any errors or omissions are purely my responsibility.