2Corinthians 3 (web)

THE HOLY SPIRIT'S ROLE IN MINISTRY

The Spirit Produces Fruits

3:1 Are we beginning again to commend ourselves?
Or do we need, as do some, letters of commendation to you or from you?
3:2 You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men;
3:3 being revealed that you are a letter of Christ, ministered by us,
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God;
not in tablets of stone, but in tablets that are hearts of flesh.

The Spirit Makes Us Competent Ministers

3:4 Such confidence we have through Christ toward God;
3:5 not that we are sufficient of ourselves, to account anything as from ourselves;
but our sufficiency is from God;
3:6 who also made us sufficient as servants of a new covenant;
not of the letter, but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

The Spirit Reveals the Lord
and Transforms Us into His Image

3:7 But if the service of death, written engraved on stones,
came with glory, so that the children of Israel could not look steadfastly
on the face of Moses for the glory of his face; which was passing away:
3:8 won't service of the Spirit be with much more glory?
3:9 For if the service of condemnation has glory,
the service of righteousness exceeds much more in glory.
3:10 For most assuredly that which has been made glorious
has not been made glorious in this respect, by reason of the glory that surpasses.
3:11 For if that which passes away was with glory, much more that which remains is in glory.
3:12 Having therefore such a hope, we use great boldness of speech,
3:13 and not as Moses, who put a veil on his face,
that the children of Israel wouldn't look steadfastly on the end of that which was passing away.
3:14 But their minds were hardened,
for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains,
because in Christ it passes away.
3:15 But to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart.
3:16 But whenever one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
3:18 But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord,
are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord, the Spirit.

Discussion Questions

vs 1-3 How would you measure fruitfulness in ministry?
And what are some ways in which it has been measured?

vs 4-6 How does God develop people to be competent ministers?
Does this necessarily include going to seminary?
What "letter" kills?
Was that "letter" a part of Jesus' ministry?

vs 7-16 Why is the New Covenant ministry more glorious?
What application does Paul derive from this fact?
What can people do to help them understand the Bible better, if it's veiled to them?

vs 17,18 What is the difference between the Lord and the Holy Spirit?
What effect does the Holy Spirit mean to have on the believer's lives?

Comments

vs 1-3 One's fruitfulness is a reflection on one's self. Many measure their fruitfulness by numbers. But that just measures popularity. Some measure it by the size and extravagance of buildings and programs. Paul measures his fruitfulness by the quality of fruit which is produced. It was apparent that having heard the message through Paul's preaching, those who believed received the Holy Spirit which was evident by their lives. His comment concerning writing on their hearts was in fulfillment of the New Covenant promise.

Jer 31:33,34 "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest," declares the LORD. "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." (NIV)

vs 4-6 The Holy Spirit not only produced the fruitfulness evident in the Corinthians, but also made Paul into a competent minister. It is not by going to a seminary that one can be made a competent minister. But rather as one ministers in cooperation with the Holy Spirit, one becomes competent. I myself have never taken a seminary course and yet I find that God has made me rather competent in ministry. And so I encourage all to just do it and learn from the Holy Spirit as you're doing it.

There are those who foolishly claim that the "letter" refers to the preaching of the gospel. These are those who claim to preach by their lives rather than through the Word of God. And they treat with contempt the idea that a person must hear what the Bible says to be saved. But the reference to "letter" is a reference to the Law. Notice the context throughout this chapter. In verse 3 he made mention of "tablets of stone". This is a reference to the Law of Moses as also verse 7 reveals. What Paul is saying is that he did not approach them as a "Moses", with a set of rules and regulations that failing to obey they would be held guilty. That's what he means by "letter". Rather he approached them with a life-giving message that, having believed, the Corinthians would be forgiven of sin and given the life-transforming Holy Spirit which empowers them to live the Christian life appropriately.

Also don't confuse the "letter" (NIV) of verse 3 which is "epistole" in greek with the "letter" (NIV) of verse 6 which is "gramma".

vs 7-16 The ministry that condemns is the ministry of convicting people of sin through the Law. It is glorious in that it reveals God's justice and holiness. Yes it is a part of Christian ministry to bring conviction of sin. For even Jesus did so in much of his teachings, such as in answering the question, "what good thing must I do to get eternal life?" (Mark 10:17), he answers with the Law, and he points out the hypocrisy of the Pharisees in Matthew 23. And so forth. For the law is our tutor to lead us to Christ that we may be justified by faith. It does so by making us aware of our sinfulness.

Ro 3:20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.

The ministry that brings righteousness through faith in Christ reveals God's graciousness and love. And it brings eternal life in that it restores a right relationship with God and imparts the life-changing Holy Spirit into its recipients.

But what is the application of these facts? BOLDNESS in preaching. So not only is the message different than that under the Law, but the messagers are also different. Before the Spirit was given, even the apostles living under the Law were like wimpering cowards compared to what they became under grace. Compare Peter's denial of Christ before the resurrection and his boldness on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2.

But those who live behind the veil have only a vague idea of the application of Biblical truth. But with repentance comes revelation. If you want to really understand the Bible, no amount of study or course taking will help unless you first turn to the Lord.

"Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him." John 14:21

vs 17,18 The Lord is not equivalent to the Holy Spirit. For it also uses the phrase "Spirit of the Lord". So the two things cannot be equivalent if one thing is "of" another thing. Rather, the Holy Spirit represents the Lord in a metaphorical sense. He represents him by proxy like an ambassador.

Freedom obviously does not mean licentiousness (freedom to sin). But rather freedom from sin to live righteously.

Under the New Covenant, believers are not only justified (forgiven of sin), but also are being made godly (into Christ's image). Of course Christians are not nor ever will be God. But to be godly is to be conformed to God's image as it is revealed in Christ. Thus Christ is viewed not only as Savior and Lord, but also as a pattern to which the believers will inevitably conform. This transformation (also known as "Sanctification" and "glorification") comes from the Holy Spirit who dwells in the believer. An example of which can be seen in 1John 3:9

"No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God."

The Boston Christian Bible Study Resources Apr 12,2004