2Corinthians 5 (web)

Ministering in View of Death

Confidence in Ministering in View of Our Death

5:1 For we know that if the earthly house of our tent is dissolved,
we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens.
5:2 For most assuredly in this we groan, longing to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven;
5:3 if so be that being clothed we will not be found naked.
5:4 For indeed we who are in this tent do groan, being burdened;
not that we desire to be unclothed, but that we desire to be clothed,
that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
5:5 Now he who made us for this very thing is God,
who also gave to us the down payment of the Spirit.
5:6 Being therefore always of good courage, and knowing that,
while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord;
5:7 for we walk by faith, not by sight.
5:8 We are of good courage, I say, and are willing rather to be absent from the body,
and to be at home with the Lord.

Fear in Ministering In View of God's Judgement

5:9 Therefore also we make it our aim, whether at home or absent, to be well pleasing to him.
5:10 For we must all be revealed before the judgment seat of Christ;
that each one may receive the things in the body,
according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
5:11 Knowing therefore the fear of the Lord, we persuade men,
but we are revealed to God; and I hope that we are revealed also in your consciences.
5:12 For we are not commending ourselves to you again,
but speak as giving you occasion of boasting on our behalf,
that you may have something to answer those who boast in appearance, and not in heart.
5:13 For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God. Or if we are of sober mind, it is for you.

Compelled to Minister in View of Christ's Death

5:14 For the love of Christ constrains us; because we judge thus,
that one died for all, therefore all died.
5:15 He died for all, that those who live should no longer live to themselves,
but to him who for their sakes died and rose again.
5:16 Therefore we know no one after the flesh from now on.
Even though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now we know him so no more.
5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.
The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new.
5:18 But all things are of God, who reconciled us to himself through Jesus Christ,
and gave to us the ministry of reconciliation;
5:19 namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself,
not reckoning to them their trespasses, and having committed to us the word of reconciliation.
5:20 We are therefore ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating by us.
We beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
5:21 For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf;
so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Discussion Questions

vs 1-8 Do you prefer life or death?
What do you look forwards to after death?
vs 9-10 What kind of judgement do Christians face?
How does this motivate you to be involved in ministering.
vs 11 Is it possible for us to persuade people to believe and how would you do it?
vs 15 Who were we living for before becoming believers, and who afterwards?
What kind of behavioral changes should you expect of those who come to faith in Christ?
vs 16 How does the world categorize people?
How does God?
vs 18-19 When introducing someone to Christ, how would you communicate the concept of reconciliation.
vs 20 What is the role of an ambassador and how do you view yourself as Christ's ambassador?
What authority and responsibility does this concept impart?

Comments

vs 1-8 Paul continues his thinking from the previous chapter of not losing heart in ministry in view of our future hope. But here in these verses he is very explicit about it. Yes, he looks forward to death, but not for its own sake, but rather for what is on the other side. For what we are is not what we will be. Being clothed with our heavenly dwelling is to be clothed in a sinless body. For the struggle against not only the sinfulness in the world but also our own sinfulness will always be with us in this life as sin dwells in the flesh (Rom 7). But in the next life we will be separated from the presence of the world of sin.

This is guaranteed to the believer. The believer has eternal security. And the evidence or seal or mark of those born of God is the effects of the Holy Spirit whom the believer has received and through whom the believer has been born of God.

Are we with the Lord or are we away from the Lord? For is it not also written: "He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life." 1John 5:12 And "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me." Gal 2:20 But really we do not have the Son himself in us in a literal sense, but rather the Holy Spirit in us who represents the Son. So when Paul says that while we are in the body we are away from the Lord, he is speaking in a literal sense, while when he says, "Christ lives in me", he is speaking in a metaphorical sense.

Why I point out this distinction is that I've noticed some who define Christ as however they feel. They believe in the Christ in them, but don't necessarily take care to conform their idea of "Christ" to the the Christ of the Bible. Thus they may end up making Christ into their own image and essentially worshipping themselves.

Paul prefers the literal presence of Christ over his metaphorical presence in the Holy Spirit. Don't be satisfied with your Christian life now, for it will be better in the future.

vs 9-13 However, when we consider being in the literal presence of Christ, we have to also consider the judgement to come. Realizing, of course, that we've escaped from the judgement which leads to condemnation as Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life." John 5:24 (niv)

Yet there is a judgement unto rewards for the believer, which is more elaborated upon in 1Cor 3:11-15, in which ones sins are burned up and what's left over is rewarded. But also, when considering motivations for the ministry of evangelism, there is also the judgement of the unbelievers, which is according to their unforgiven works, which inevitably leads to condemnation in view of man's innate sinfulness. Therefore in view of God's judgement of us and of others, we try to persuade men. But this implies also that we are able to persuade men. At least in certain cases. Evangelism is not simply communicating information, but persuading men. We need to communicate our sincere convictions.

But why does Paul share all this information with the Corinthians? Certainly he wants to develop in them a sense of co-laboring, but throughout his message has also been trying to affirm his ministry among them. Why? Because there are those false teachers who are opposing him, who take pride in what is seen. There are many who take pride in what is seen. They may take pride in "titles" or in numbers or in buildings or programs, but miss out on the heart of the matter. But we walk by faith and not by sight.

vs 14-21 Paul had mentioned the fear of God's judgement as a motivating factor in evangelism. But here he mentions the love of Christ.

vs 15 There are those who accept Christ as Savior but not as Lord. They have the attitude that having been forgiven of sin, they can go on to live their lives however they please. They view Christ as their personal servant. But here Paul reveals that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Christ.

vs 16 The most essential categorization of people is whether they have Christ. "He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life." 1John 5:12

vs 17 Being born of God changes a person's nature so that he no longer will be the same kind of person. He is a different kind of creature than the non-Christian, having the permanent presence of the Holy Spirit dwelling in him. This has an inevitable affect on his behavior.

"No one who is born of God will continue to sin (in a lifestyle sense), because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God." 1John 3:9
"This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world." 1John 5:3,4

vs 18-19 Central to the gospel message is the idea of being reconciled to God. As non-Christians we are separated from God and his enemies because of our sin. But now Christ died to reconcile us with God. Often I've heard a distorted gospel message saying, "If you pray and receive Jesus, he'll make you into a better person and make you feel good." Often there is no mention of our sin separating us from God, or Christ's atoning work on the cross. And the excuse is, "Oh, we don't want to offend people or turn people off by talking about such negative things like sin and death. Let's talk about life!". It is a distorted gospel.

vs 20 An ambassador is an official representative of someone or some country. As a Christian, you are Christ's ambassador, like it or not. As such we have to consider that how the world views us reflects on Christ. But it also means that we have legitimate authority to minister. For didn't Jesus say,

"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matt 28:18-20

Paul implores the nominal believers among the Corinthians to be reconciled to God. Just as he does in 2Cor 13:5.

vs 21 Though Christ had no sin, he symbolically represented our sin in his death on the cross. Now symbolically as representatives of Christ, we become a channel of God's righteousness. For it is through us that the world comes to know Christ and thus obtains righteousness through faith in Christ.

The Boston Christian Bible Study Resources Apr 12,2004