II Corinthians 4:1-6
Welcome to another lesson from II Corinthians, we are honored you have chosen to be here with us. Heralds of Hope produces this program, but Bible teaching is not the only thing we do. We also distribute Bibles. Please pray for us as you think about us. Pray that God would use these Bibles to build His kingdom and make disciples of Jesus everywhere they are distributed. Whether it is teaching the Word or distributing it, we are committed to the principles found in these pages.
J Mark will teach us today’s lesson from II Corinthians 3. The title is “The Light of the Gospel,” and we look forward to learning more of these principles.
When I was a child, I was afraid of the dark. I remember not wanting to be the first one to go up the stairs to my bedroom at night. Some of that fear was heightened by my siblings. But even without their teasing, I believe we’re born with a sense of discomfort with darkness.
Depending on which translation of the Scriptures you use, the word darkness appears somewhere between 150 and 200 times throughout the text. Other forms of the word dark occur multiple times also.
Darkness is a symbol of confusion and chaos. The opening verses of Genesis tell us, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was on [or covered] the face of the deep.” This darkness describes a planet characterized by waste and emptiness. Darkness, in the Scriptures, often implies the absence of God’s presence. To be separated from God is to be in darkness.
Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:19 that people love darkness rather than light, because of their evil actions. You and I know that the vast majority of crimes are committed under the cover of darkness because it provides concealment and anonymity.
Darkness is the domain of Satan, our adversary. In Colossians 1, Paul writes, “[God] has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” Notice the contrast here; delivered from the power of darkness into the light of the kingdom of Jesus. I hope and pray you have experienced that deliverance from darkness to light.
As we continue our study of Second Corinthians, we come to the opening verses of chapter four. I’ve titled our study, “The Light of the Gospel.” Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote things that will help us better understand various aspects of the Gospel. So, let me read the text, Second Corinthians 4:1 to 6.
1 Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart.
2 But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.
3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,
4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.
5 For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake.
6 For it is the God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
This text illuminates several FACTS that help us better understand “The Light of the Gospel.”
The First FACT (to help us better understand the light of the Gospel) is,
It Must Be Proclaimed in Truth
Immediately, you might ask, “Can the Gospel be proclaimed in falsehood?” Yes, it can, or there’d be no reason for what Paul wrote. And we’ll get into that shortly.
But notice the word, therefore, at the beginning of our text. Whenever we see that word, we should look back at the preceding verses for the larger context and connection. In this case, the larger context is chapter three. Some of the themes of chapter three were: God enabling Paul, and all Believers to be competent or able ministers of the new covenant; the contrast between the old and new covenants, death, and life; and the power of the new covenant effected in us by the life-transforming power of the Spirit of God.
So, Paul affirms that the mercy of God is the basis for the ministry we’ve been given. Our job isn’t simply to tell people about God’s high standards, as Moses did, but to provide God’s grace to them as agents of the Holy Spirit. People do need to understand the requirements of the Law, but then show them how to meet those requirements in Jesus Christ. Our knowledge of what we deserve as sinners makes us sincere in carrying out the ministry committed to us.
It’s also by the mercy of God that we are being changed from glory to glory. That enables us to face hardship and trial without giving up in despair. If anyone would be tempted to despair in the face of trials, it was Paul. It seems he was always in distress! When we get to chapter eleven, he has a whole list of things he suffered for the sake of the Gospel.
Now, let’s focus on Paul’s emphasis on the Gospel being proclaimed in truth. And he begins by talking about the truth being mishandled.
Several years ago, someone gave me a book they wanted me to read. I was a little hesitant to accept it because I didn’t know anything about the author, and it was a thick book. Besides, I always have a stack of books I’m waiting to read. But I took it and started to read. I barely opened the book when I came across a strange sentence. I don’t have it word-for-word, but it was this; “if you don’t use the King James Version of the Bible, then the ideas and processes in this book won’t work.” I was like, “Why would you write that?”
I have nothing against the KJV. I’ve used it for years and still appreciate it as a solid translation. But it struck me as an odd way to introduce a book. I almost stopped reading right there, but I wanted to be fair to the one who gave me the book, so I kept going. I didn’t have to read very much further to see exactly what the author was doing.
He was proof-texting, and no, that’s not like texting on your phone. He was mishandling the Word of God by taking verses out of their context and attempting to make them say what he wanted them to say. In other words, he started with his idea and his agenda and then gathered a variety of Scripture verses to try to prove his point. Rather than allowing the Scripture to speak for itself, he was forcing an interpretation into the text. That’s proof-texting.
Let me give you an example. There’s a prominent idea in Western Christianity that God wants you to be physically healthy, financially successful, and enjoying your best life, right now. Unfortunately, this false teaching has been exported to other parts of the world. People who teach this false doctrine point to the words of Jesus in places like John 14:13 and 14. “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”
These false teachers emphasize the last sentence. “If you ask ANYTHING in my name, I will do it.” So, if you want a Mercedes Benz, ask God. If you want a fancy house with a heated pool, ask God. If you want to be healed from cancer, ask God. He says you can ask for anything. But let me ask you something. If God gives a person those symbols of wealth and status is God going to receive the glory, God? Hardly!
Notice what Jesus says in verse 13. The goal of our asking for things in His name is – wait for it – so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. The context of John 14 focuses on our heavenly home, not the things of earth. It focuses on God’s presence with us and His provision of peace in a troubled world. The goal of Jesus is our best life in eternity because our “now” time here is so short. He warned us about loving the world and the things the world offers. Those things lead to spiritual ruin.
Paul says that he and his fellow workers have disowned this kind of disgraceful behavior. You and I need to make the same commitment! Earlier, in the last verse of chapter two, he said, “We are not like many who corrupt the word of God…” There were false teachers in Corinth, just like there are today, who corrupt the truth of the Word for personal advantage. He said we reject hidden practices belonging to the category of disgraceful conduct!
In Second Timothy 2:15 Paul wrote, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” The idea is, “cutting it straight” not tampering with the meaning of Scripture to suit your ends. When Paul wrote about handling the word of God deceitfully, his readers understood he was using an analogy of diluting wine with water or of making coins of base metals and then plating them with gold and passing them off as genuine.
Instead of this trickery and deceit, look at Paul’s method. “But by manifestation [or showing] of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.” This revealing or showing of the truth is in direct opposition to the hidden things of shame. In other words, Paul writes, “We have nothing to hide.” That’s a wonderful way to live! And notice, he ties this truthfulness back to the beginning of chapter three and the need for letters of commendation. A man’s truthfulness and sincerity are the greatest commendations he can have. “He who is not honest with himself will not be overly honest with the Word.”1
Note also that Paul wasn’t appealing to any of the factions that existed in Corinth. Nor was he appealing to any particular prejudices of his audience, but he was appealing to their conscience in the sight of God. When the conscience is informed by the Word of God and guided by the presence of the Holy Spirit, it becomes a reliable guide.
So, do you understand that the Gospel must be proclaimed in truth? This applies to the message and the messenger. In recent years, many pastors and Bible teachers have carried on what looked like an effective ministry, all the while having a major moral failure in their lives. I make that statement very much aware that I face the same kind of temptations they do. “Our only safety is in instant and courageous defiance to all the powers of darkness.”
Speaking of the powers of darkness leads us to the next fact that helps us better understand the light of the Gospel.
Thanks, J Mark for this teaching from God’s Word, and thank you for being there. We believe God’s people are supposed to read the Bible and allow it to affect their lives. The teaching in the Bible is for us and we are supposed to live it out. Thanks, J Mark, for giving us practical ways for us to do that.
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Thanks again for joining us, Lord willing next week we will be together for another lesson from II Corinthians. I leave you with Paul’s parting words from this book, “Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.”
*This episode is an exposition by J. Otis Yoder, re-recorded by J. Mark Horst, with an opening and closing by Arlin Horst.