2 Corinthians 5:11-21 (The Eternal Gospel, Jeff Kliewer)

Let's begin in prayer.

God, we were dead in our trespasses and sins which we formerly bought. We were slaves to sin. We were unable to please you.

We were in the flesh.

You interposed your precious blood to rescue us, to deliver us, to pay the penalty that we deserve to pay, to bridge that gap that we would be reconciled to a holy God. This gospel, this good news, it is our life.

We are so thankful for the precious blood of Jesus. We are not ashamed of the blood. The blood of the cross that was spilled for us, your church, takes away our sin. This morning we pray that our hearts would be reminded of that gift, and that it would stir up love for you, Jesus Christ, and that we would share in your love for the church.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Sailing from England to South Africa, John Coletto was already compromised in his faith. Often I begin these sermons with hero stories. Let's begin this one with a villain story.

He's off to be the bishop of a region of South Africa where the Zulu people live, Zululand. And John Coletto at this point had already been compromised by the teachings of Frederick Maurice. Maurice followed the critical approach to the Bible, which questioned everything and denied the historical realities of the Bible.

For example, the story of Jonah being swallowed by a fish. Surely, according to the critical theory, that is nothing but allegory, but in history no such thing ever happened. This was the teaching of the critical theory.

Coletto held that view when he went off to his mission. His heterodox views began to rear their ugly head quickly in his ministry. In 1855 he wrote on tolerance of polygamy and began to apologize for the Zulu people in their polygamy and not call them to repentance from polygamy, but call the church to adapt to the ways of the world in which Coletto was living.

After that, it wasn't too long before he denied eternal punishment. Hell seems to be one of the first cardinal doctrines that's thrown to the side when someone is departing from the faith. So Coletto rejected eternal punishment.

From 1862 to 1879 he wrote a series of articles, books, papers, denying the realities of the events behind the Pentateuch and the book of Joshua. So the first five books of the Bible and the book of Joshua he called allegory, mere myth, developed as oral traditions came about over time.

Also following Charles Darwin, Coletto said that there wasn't just one Adam,.

But there were many Adams.

And therefore the races, as he called them,.

All came not from one Adam, but from many. This co-Adamism was a big part of his theology and how he explained differences among people. Coletto desired the admiration of people. He loved to write articles and send them back to England.

He loved to get applause. He also wanted the approval of the Zulu people. So rather than calling for repentance, oftentimes he would pander to their desires. Isn't that still true today? The love of the world, the desire for approval, often supersedes our love for Christ and His Church.

So Coletto pounded at the foundations of the Church, the cardinal doctrines of substitutionary atonement, Christ dying as a substitute sacrifice in our place. He brailed against that doctrine. But the foundations of Christ's Church shall never be destroyed.

And as hard as people attack the foundations of the Church, which is Christ Himself, our great rock upon which we are built, and His Word, Ephesians 2 .20, the Church is built on the apostles and the prophets, the writings of Scripture will never be broken.

And so in answer to Coletto, the Church called upon a minister whose name was Samuel Stone. And his answer to Coletto was not theological argument in this case, not in the technical sense.

There was no debate.

Coletto was far off on the mission field. So what Stone did was he wrote a hymn. Maybe you'll recognize the words. The Church's One Foundation, written in 1866 to answer Coletto's heresies. On the back of your notes, if you have your bulletin, I've written the words for you.

If you want to follow along. Listen carefully to the words of Stone as he refutes the heresies of Colenso. But more than just the negative teaching, the positive teaching of what the Church is and this foundation, the unshakable foundation upon which we're built.

The Church's One Foundation is Jesus Christ, her Lord. She is his new creation by water and the Word. From heaven he came and sought her to be his holy bride. With his own blood he bought her, and for her life he died.

Elect from every nation, yet one over all the earth, her charter of salvation, one Lord, one faith, one birth. One holy name she blesses, partakes one holy food, and to one hope she presses with every grace and duty.

Though with a scornful wonder, men see her sore oppressed by schisms rent asunder, by heresies distressed. Yet saints their watch are keeping, their cries go up, how long? And soon the night of weeping shall be the morn of song.

The Church shall never perish.

Her dear Lord to defend, to guide, sustain, and cherish.

Is with her to the end. Though there be those that hate her and false sons in her pale, against the foe or traitor she ever shall prevail. Mid toil and tribulation and tumult of her war, she waits a consummation of peace forevermore.

Till with the vision glorious, her longing eyes are blessed, and the great Church victorious shall be the Church at rest. Yet she on earth hath union with God, the three in one, and mystic sweet communion with those whose rest is one.

O happy ones and holy, Lord give us grace that we, like them, the meek and lowly, on high may dwell with thee. It's a song, it's a hymn, it's a strong answer to the heresies that were ripping the Church asunder in South Africa.

The Eternal Gospel, a message of unchanging content, completely changes us from self-serving wretches to ministers who love Christ and love His Church. Sadly, it seems that many people living in a very individualistic culture in America have decided that it's possible to love Christ without loving His Church.

No longer gathering, forsaking the assembly of the saints, the called-out ones, the congregation is the ecclesia that are called out from the world to gather together in the name of Christ. But many have settled for a privatized meeting with Christ.

Skipping church on Sundays, is no longer seeing the value of gathering in the name of Christ and often, very often, tearing at the Church with harsh criticism. To expect from the world, but sadly often comes from the lips of Christians as well.

To love Christ is to love His Church. Go to a newly married man, or a man who's been married for many years for that matter, and talk trash about his wife and see how he reacts to you. If you love Christ, you love His Church.

Christ loves His bride. He loves His bride so much that He interposed His precious blood for His bride to wash us clean. So let's go now to 2 Corinthians chapter 5, and this is the context in which we're dealing,.

Where we left off last week.

We were all standing before the bimah, the judgment seat of Christ, where each one of us will have to give an account for the things that are done, whether good or evil. Now, in 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verse 11, we pick up with the word, therefore.

In light of this coming judgment, in which we will be judged, never condemned, but the bad things that we did after being born again will be consumed with fire, like wood, hay, and stubble, and the good works that we did for Christ and for His Church will survive that bimah seat, like gold, silver, and precious stone.

Therefore, verse 11 and following, therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others, but what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience. We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart.

For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God. If we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this, that one has died for all, therefore all have died.

And He died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who for their sake died and was raised. From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh, even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard Him thus no longer.

So we'll stop there for a moment. We will read a few more verses later on in the sermon, but let's comment on that, unpacking what is being said. Therefore, ties back to the bimah seat, we will be before the bimah and give an account.

And so, therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we don't walk as unwise, but as wise.

Knowing that we will give an account.

For every careless word we speak and every action done in the body,.

We will go before the bimah.

Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, I hope it is known also to your conscience. In other words, Corinthians,.

I hope you know who we are.

Paul, speaking for himself and his traveling companions,.

I hope you know who we are.

We are not who they say we are. Who's the they? In the church of Corinth, after Paul had traveled on beyond probably spending time in Ephesus at this point in time, there were false teachers.

Who rose up behind him.

And began to attack Paul's ministry. So the book of 2 Corinthians is really a defense of Paul's apostleship. False teachers were looking at his outward appearance.

And the way in which he spoke.

And lifting themselves up over against Paul.

As deeper teachers.

These were almost Gnostic in the sense they had a special knowledge that could go farther than what Paul preached. Paul was being kicked to the curb and these guys were stepping up as if they were super apostles.

Paul says, I hope you know who we are. It's not who they say we are. Then he says in verse 12, and don't think I'm trying to exalt myself. He's already called himself a jar of clay with an all-surpassing power.

He says, we are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you cause to boast about us.

Why?

Here's the issue. So that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. You need to have an answer for the people who are raising themselves up as deeper teachers, rejecting Paul's apostolic teaching and taking them in a different direction.

We're told in 1 Peter 3, verse 15, always be ready to give a reason for the hope that is in you. We need to have an answer for the Colenzos of the world. We need to be ready to answer with gospel truth and scriptural evidence for everything we teach.

But before we give an answer, we need to trust in his word. Psalm 119 says that. Then I shall have an answer for him who taunts me, for I trust in your word.

In order to have an answer,.

We need to be studying the Scripture, trusting in His word. But 1 Peter 3, verse 15, doesn't begin with. Always be ready.

To have an answer.

How does it begin? Set apart Christ as Lord in your heart. We need to have godliness first. In order to speak into these situations, into other people's lives in the church, we have to be living with fear of the Lord.

If that's the case, we move on to verse 13. For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God. If we are in our right mind, it is for you. Everything that Paul is doing here in defending his apostolic ministry is not for himself.

It's not for ego.

He doesn't want a team on his side over against some other Christians.

On another team.

He is for the church, and he recognizes these false teachers must be confronted and rejected. What he is doing in fighting, in doing apologetics, in arguing for the truth.

Is all done out of love.

That's why he says in verse 13, it is for you. Paul has a special love for the Christians at Corinth. A special love. It's a love that didn't come from him. Look at the very next verse, 14. For the love of Christ controls us.

The love that Christ has spills over into Paul,.

And he loves the church.

Because Christ loves the church. Again, there's a connection with for you. A special love that Christ has for his church. The love of Christ controls us. Verse 14. Now, you've probably heard this verse taken out of context.

It's probably been used as a proof text to argue for universal atonement. Because it says,.

We have concluded this,.

That one has died for all, therefore all have died. But who is the all in this verse? I want you to look carefully and in context. For you refers to the church, the love of Christ controlling us, because we have concluded this, that one has died for all, therefore all have died.

It goes on to say, and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but him who for their sake died and was raised. Understanding the teaching of Paul requires a broader understanding of his apostolic view of the church.

In Paul's theology, according to Romans 5, we are crucified with Christ and raised to walk a newness of life. There is, as the hymn writer says,.

A mystic union.

There is a union between Christ and his church. Ephesians chapter 1 describes this as being in him. Before the foundation of the world, God the Father elected a particular people in Christ, we're told.

And when Jesus died to atone for the sins of people in Ephesians 1, he accomplished that redemption.

For those who are in Christ.

And when the Holy Spirit regenerates people, he comes and brings the gospel outwardly and works salvation inwardly.

For those who are in him.

We're told again and again in Ephesians 1, it's for those who are in Christ. This doctrine is called union with Christ. Union with Christ. That the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity, being in perfect union,.

Have a union with the church.

That is a special kind of love.

In John 3, 16, we're told, for God so loves the world.

True.

He loves the world. God has a general disposition of love towards the world. So much so that he gave his one and only son that whoever, there's the particularity, whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

If God wanted to save the entire world,.

That no one would be lost.

He had the power to do that. He has, however, a particular people called the church upon whom he has fastened a special kind of love.

The way I love my wife.

Is not the same kind of love.

As I have for all women.

It would be problematic if it were the same,.

Wouldn't it?

And if I am capable of different kinds of love as a man made in the image of God, how much more is God capable of a particular kind of love,.

A saving kind of love,.

Where Christ comes and interposes his blood.

For the elect?

What I'm telling you here is that the teaching of this passage is that the ones who die are also the ones who are raised. And to die with Christ, in Pauline theology, is to be crucified with him.

It is to be united by faith.

In the Son of God such that when he dies,.

His death counts as your death, and when he rises,.

His rising to life is your life.

There is a union between the Son and those who are in him. This is the theology of Paul in 2 Corinthians 5. And that theology cannot be ripped apart from all of the theology of the Bible. The Scripture says in Romans 8, 7 and 8, that no one who is in the flesh is able to please God.

No one is able to please God. The person who has not been born again is not able to please God. To have faith, to put faith in Christ would be pleasing to God, wouldn't it?

But you're not able.

In the flesh, you're not able.

It says, indeed, you cannot.

Please God. The very next verse explains that this is a difference between those who are in the flesh, meaning unsaved, and those who are in the Spirit. In this context, that means to be born again. You please God when you are in Christ.

This doctrine of being completely unable comports with Ephesians 1. You are dead in your trespasses and sins. You are a slave to sin. In other words, you are totally depraved. You are totally unable to come to him because you are a hardened sinner who hates the God who has rule over you.

Until he gives you the gift.

Of regeneration. We're told in Ephesians 1, verse 4, that he elects people. He unconditionally elects people, not on the basis of their works, Ephesians 2, 8, and 9, not on the basis of their own free will choice, but on the basis of his grace, to the praise of his glorious grace, Ephesians 1, 6.

We're told in John, chapter 10, that Jesus lays down his life.

For his sheep.

And he tells us in John, chapter 17,.

I do not pray for the world,.

But I pray for those who have been given out of the world. He says in John, chapter 6, verse 44, that no one comes to the Father except that the Father draws him. No one comes to the Son except that the Father draws him.

And I will raise him up on the last day. What does that mean? The ones who are drawn by the Father will be raised up on the last day.

It's irresistible.

Now does that mean that people cannot resist the gospel call?

If you go preach the gospel,.

They must come. And every person who will eventually be saved.

Will come?

No.

People do resist the Holy Spirit until the effectual call of God comes. When he, the Father, draws them to the Son, they will come.

He has that much power,.

That much freedom,.

That much ability to irresistibly draw people to himself. And we're told in Romans 8, verse 30, that God, the same God who predestined and called and justified is also able to glorify.

And he will do those things.

If you read Romans 8, verse 30, you'll notice it's all in the past tense. Those whom God predestined, he also called. And those whom he called, he also justified. And those whom he justified, he also glorified.

In other words,.

He has the power to keep those.

Who are his sheep.

And he will do that.

It's in the past tense from his perspective. What am I trying to tell you? The special love that God has for his church is overpowering and unbreakable. And it's a perfect unity. It's a perfect unity, theologically speaking.

And in that same way.

That these passages that I've given you, Romans 8, 7 and 8,.

And Ephesians 1,.

And Romans 8, verse 30 we talked about, John 6, all of these passages cannot be broken,.

But they form a consistent theology.

Why?

Because God is the God of truth. Truth corresponds to reality as it is. And therefore there can be no contradiction.

In the truth.

So you see that the scriptures all correspond to one another and fit together perfectly in the doctrine of grace. You can't rip that apart any more than you can rip apart the Trinity itself. The purpose of the Father, follow this, the purpose of the Father in electing a particular people.

Cannot be set at odds.

Against the purpose of the Son in dying for a people. And that purpose cannot be set at odds with the purpose of the Spirit who regenerates a people.

It's never the case.

That the Son has died for someone and is trying his hardest to save them, but failing. And it's never the case that the Father has elected someone that the Son intended to save and cannot do it, and the purposes of the Father and Son are put at loggerheads.

Can't happen.

But the consistent teaching of the scripture is that the Trinity is a unified God who has consistent purposes. So some people hear this phrase,.

And guys,.

This is what we're talking about this morning,.

Limited atonement.

And that sounds like a scary term. Limited atonement sounds scary because it sounds like there was something lacking.

It's limited.

The atonement of Christ is limited, and it sounds like.

There's something missing,.

Something has fallen short.

In the atonement.

It's not an unlimited, infinite atonement. It's just a mere limited atonement. Guys, that term is a big part of the problem.

Because there's nothing limited.

About the value of Christ's blood.

His blood is valuable enough.

To atone for the sins of all the world.

So that no one would go to hell.

His blood is valuable enough for that. There's no deficiency in His blood.

That's not the issue.

The issue is intent.

And so a better term than limited atonement is particular redemption or definite atonement. That Christ died for John 10, verse 11.

Who?

His sheep. Amen.

And we're told in John 10, verse 26, the reason that some do not believe.

Is because they are not His sheep.

Not the other way around.

It doesn't say,.

You don't believe, therefore you're not my sheep.

It says, Jesus speaking to the Pharisees, the reason you do not believe is because you are not my sheep. So this teaching is very important. I know we're going deep theologically. We're going to come back up from the sky and now just reemerge.

And get down to earth a little bit here.

But I did want to take the time to do that because the doctrine of definite atonement, particular redemption, teaches us about the love of the bridegroom for his bride. It's why you should love the church.

And here's how we get down to earth with this thing. When you look at each other in this building, the ecclesia, the called out ones,.

The bride of Christ,.

You need to love the person in the church who you're looking at the way Christ loved them. With a special love for the church. This is a brother for whom Christ died sitting next to me. This is a sister for whom Christ died sitting next to me.

He loves this person so much that he interposed his blood and died the death she deserved.

And so yes,.

We'll rub each other the wrong way sometimes. And our sinfulness will rub up against each other and we'll hurt one another.

But as we see one another, we need to remember.

The same love that Christ demonstrated for his bride is now compelled to be the love.

That we have for one another.

Love each other as those for whom Christ died.

That's the point.

If you love Christ, you are compelled to love the church. And now we get into verses 17 to 21. This condensed passage of amazing verses that probably many of you have memorized a lot of these verses. They happen one after another.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come.

All this is from God,.

Who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them,.

And entrusting to us.

The message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ. God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. Just like John 3 .16, For God so loved the world.

When we go out into the world, we are ambassadors of our King. We are ministers of reconciliation.

We have love for the world.

We don't know the identity of the elect. We do not know for whom the Father has set his special affection in electing them. We don't know for whom Christ has died. We don't know who the Spirit will ultimately call in effectual drawing.

We don't know that.

So for our part,.

We go out as ambassadors.

And we plead with people, be reconciled to God. We don't discriminate in any way, shape, or form. Based on any characteristics, whatsoever. The elect don't walk around with a giant E tattooed on their forehead.

We don't know.

So we go out and we preach Christ crucified and risen, and we trust the work of the Spirit to draw to Himself those whom He has chosen. It becomes our life ambition. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.

No longer living for sinful, selfish desires.

Paul says, if I'm out of my mind,.

It is for Christ. And if I'm in my right mind, it's for you. What does he mean?

The kind of radical.

Transformation that happened to Paul made him look insane. There's no doubt that the false teachers of Corinth were playing off of this point. This crazy little guy with a hunched over back can barely see, doesn't talk very well.

This.

Passionate fireball who almost.

Gets himself killed into every city in which he goes.

He's crazy! He's a lunatic! He's out of his mind.

And the false teachers are pressing this point.

Paul says, if I'm out of my mind,.

I'm out of my mind for God. Why?

I'm dead. I already.

Died with Him. I was crucified with Him. I don't care about the approval.

Of men anymore.

I'm living to make Christ known.

And Him alone. I care about this Word.

And what the Scripture teaches, not about the approval of mere.

People.

So he looks like a lunatic,.

But that's what a new creation.

Looks like. If you don't look a little crazy, maybe you're a little worldly.

You need.

To have that wild in your eye a little bit.

Telling.

People, pleading with people to be reconciled to God, because if.

You see that on the other side.

Of the veil of death,.

There awaits an eternal flame, but this offer.

Is free. The offer.

Of grace extended. If it's a free offer, we don't know who will accept it or not. We plead.

We implore people.

Seems like a contradiction to everything I've been preaching. But it's not. We can go into it another time. I have a book actually in my office if you want to take it. It's called Boxing with Calvin. And we get into how this is compatibilism.

The idea that there's a real creaturely will that can respond to the gospel call. That's part of being a creature.

Made in the image of God.

You can get that book and read it. They're free copies.

In my office to anybody here at the church.

All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. You are a minister. Pastor John, Pastor Ben and I, we're not the only ministers in the building.

Now the elder,.

Bishop, pastor role, that's an office in the church. But here, ministry, just diakonos. Service, servants. That's all of us. And what are we to do? We like ambassadors are to plead.

With men.

As if God is making his appeal through us, we implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. Now Paul makes that call right into the church at Corinth because he recognizes that not everybody at Corinth is genuinely born again.

That's why there's false teachers that are opposing him and trying to knock him down. But there's also a whole lot of people that are listening to those false teachers. And so we implore all people, whether gathered on a Sunday morning or not, be reconciled to God unless you have repented of your sin, known yourself to be a wretch,.