(2 Corinthians) ch.4:12-5:9 — Zac Poonen

Dying to Self for the Life of Others

Let's turn today to 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 12. We were considering this verse in our last study where Paul says death works in us but life in you. Here is one of those verses that teaches us that the body of Christ is one, that when one member is willing to fall into the ground and die like Jesus said in John 12 24 as a corn of wheat it brings life to others.

This is the same principle on which life has come to us through Christ's death on Calvary. Because he died for us life has come to us. Now this verse teaches that we too can be gripped by the same spirit and the results will be the same.

If we are willing to fall into the ground and die in our daily life to our ego our reputation our self-life the result has to be the same. If a corn of wheat falls into the ground and dies it will bring forth much fruit there's no doubt about that.

And that's what Paul is saying here to the Corinthians that as death works in my life life spiritual life comes forth to you Corinthian Christians because the body is one and one member when he sacrifices the blessing comes not only to his own life but to other members of the body.

We can see that in our physical body how the health of the body is what protects an injured member from getting further diseased that the health and the rest of the body infuses life into a diseased member so that finally the diseased member is healed.

And this is how it should be in all our churches. It's very easy to criticize another person for something that we see wrong in him or her but if we see the body of Christ we shall see that person as one whom Christ has accepted and therefore one who is a member of the same body and therefore the responsibility falling upon us who are healthier and more spiritual and mature to die to ourselves so that life can come to that weaker member.

Verse 12 is really the mark of a spiritual man no one will be willing to die to himself in order that life may come to others unless he's really spiritual it's really one step higher than what we see in verses 10 and 11 in a sense in one sense verse 10 11 and 12 go together because the life of Jesus spoken of in verse 10 which comes to us is a life that lives for others but it's possible for us to have a very selfish attitude towards wanting to have the life of Jesus manifested in our own life but that very selfishness itself we need to see is contrary to the spirit of Christ and contrary to the life of Jesus that if the life of Jesus is really manifested in our body as spoken of in verse 10 and 11 it has to logically and naturally lead on to verse 12 where we like Jesus Christ our Lord.

We also are eager to lay down our lives so that life may come to others and we're willing to take the low place so that others may be lifted up. There are very few with this spirit but that's a spirit that builds the church of Jesus Christ as his body.

Paul calls this a spirit of faith in verse 13 we will not give ourselves to death unless we have faith that God is going to bring a result from it. And he says in verse 14 we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us up.

Jesus could give himself freely to the Roman soldiers who came to capture him because he was convinced that he was going to be raised from the dead. And if we have the same spirit of faith to believe that in a situation where we have to die to ourselves the life of Jesus will be manifest in us.

The same spirit that raised Jesus from the dead will work in us to lift us up and bring to us the resurrection life of Jesus. If he had that faith we would gladly give ourselves over to death. We wouldn't resist that death when it comes to us in any circumstance or through any person.

The fact that we resist dying to ourself indicates that we don't have the spirit of faith. We don't believe that God will do his part and give us that glorious life of Jesus manifest within us. And that's why we hesitate to give ourselves over to death.

And this is why we need the spirit of faith he says. I believe therefore I spoke. Notice the same connection that we've seen in Romans chapter 10 between faith in the heart and the confessed word with our mouth what we believe in our hearts.

We must speak further. In verse 15 he goes on in the same theme to say all things are for your sakes. And that's an amazing thing. That also is the mark of a truly spiritual Christian to say that we go through all these things for your benefit.

There are many people who are willing to go through suffering if they themselves can grow spiritually. That's good. But a further stage in spiritual development is when we are willing to go through suffering so that others can grow spiritually.

We shouldn't rest content with merely the fact that I'm willing to die to myself because I want to be like Jesus. That's good. But we must be willing to go further be willing to die to ourselves so that others might receive the benefit.

All things are not for our sakes but for your sakes. God is seeking to deliver us from this self-centered life that we've all inherited from Adam. Adam from the time he sinned became self-centered and all his descendants which we are are basically self-centered.

And so even when we receive forgiveness of sins we think of ourselves. When we think of the baptism in the Holy Spirit we think of ourselves. When we think of sanctification and holiness we can think of ourselves but God wants to deliver us from this bring us to the spirit of Christ which thinks not just of ourselves but of others.

Think to be able to come to this place which Paul came to where he says everything that I go through is for God's glory of course and for your benefit. He's always thinking of the glory of God and the good of others not his own self.

And here we see how few really ascend this mountain of true spirituality. But this is a mountain to come here where we are willing to go through all things to benefit others and not just purely for the sake of others.

This is not a humanistic teaching that teaches that service to your neighbor is service to God. No notice what he goes on to say in verse 15. The ultimate purpose is that the grace which is spreading to more and more people.

That is the greater the number of people to whom the grace is given the greater will be the praise to the glory of God. So ultimately it is not the good of other people but the glory of God. Notice two things there in verse 15.

One is the good of others all things are for your sakes. And the second thing in verse 15 is that giving up thanks may abound to the glory of God. And this is why I say this is a mountain a great peak of spirituality where we live a life and are willing to die to ourself and follow Jesus taking up the cross every day so that God may be glorified and that other people might receive a benefit through our lives.

And so that the benefit that comes to them will bring praise to God not praise to ourselves. Notice that Paul says he's not thinking of praise that will come to him for what he's gone through to be a blessing to others but rather that when this grace spreads through Paul dying to himself it will result in more people giving thanks to abound to the glory of God.

That's the mark of a truly spiritual man. Therefore he says verse 16 we don't lose heart. He says it's because of this result that we see very clearly that's going to come out of all that we go through.

Therefore we don't lose heart even though our outer man is decaying now that's something we can't avoid. The outer man will decay. We keep growing till about 25 years of age and after that we are going the other side down the hill.

The outer man begins to decay and you can do nothing about it. We can take medicines we can take tonics we can get the best treatment in the ultimately we will still wither and die. And we cannot stop the decay of the body even though we can delay it a bit.

But Paul says even though we can do nothing about that outer man decaying there's something we can do about the inner man. The decay of the outer man is automatic. You don't have to do anything about it.

But the renewal of the inner man spoken of in verse 16 is not automatic. If i don't do something about it my inner man will not be renewed. My inner man will rot and backslide if i'm not wholehearted to take up the cross to follow Jesus.

And so Paul says my glory is this that my inner man is being renewed. And if any of you are sick or suffering in some way instead of worrying too much about that if you can concentrate on the renewal of the inner man you'll find spiritual profit.

You can't stop the decay of the outer man. But you can follow Jesus and ensure that your inner man is renewed. Let's turn to 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 16. We were looking at this verse in our last study.

Therefore we do not lose heart. Paul says this is the second time he says that in this chapter he began the chapter verse 1 with we do not lose heart. He says in verse 8 we don't despair. And he says again in verse 16 we do not lose heart.

That teaches us that even the apostle Paul was tempted at times to lose heart and to get discouraged. But he didn't give in to that temptation. He didn't despair. He didn't give in to discouragement. But even though the outer man was decaying and Paul recognized that that his outer man was decaying he didn't have the strength that he had in his younger days.

But one thing he could thank God for that he made sure this inner man was being renewed. And we can do nothing about the decay of the outer man. But we need to do something about the renewal of the inner man.

And it says here that this renewal is something that is to take place day by day. In other words every day i need to make use of the opportunities that come my way for the renewal of the inner man. What is this renewal of the inner man.

The old man is basically self-centered. The renewal of the inner man means that i use all the circumstances and the word of God i receive each day to reorient my way of thinking my attitudes so that i'm no longer self-centered but God-centered.

And that i no longer reflect the nature of Adam but the nature of Christ not just externally but that there's a renewal deep within so that it's not just a matter of acting like Christ but rather of partaking of the divine nature within so that there's a there's an actual renewal of the inner man so that it's being reflected through our personality.

There's a lot of difference between acting like Christ and partaking of the divine nature. It's very important to see this distinction. We can act like Christ and it's only on the outside that we can try to speak in a gentle way in a good way and stand for righteousness externally.

And yet if we haven't actually partaken of the divine nature in the inner man it's really not going to help us much in eternity because all this outer expression is going to be stripped off from us then.

So the main thing is that the inner man is actually renewed. And the only way to be renewed is to partake of God's own nature more and more in the inner man. And that's something it says here in this verse we can do day by day.

That's why Jesus said we got to take up the cross every day. And there are situations that come in our life every day. Jesus said sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. In other words there is a quota of evil something that God has determined a rationed quota of evil that comes my way every day.

And it's a question of how I respond to the evil that I face each day from people from circumstances from demons. If I am willing to believe that God works all these things for my good and for my sanctification I can humble myself and take up the cross.

Then God's spirit will be able to renew me in the inner man so that I can partake of his nature increasingly day by day. And he goes on to explain this in verse 17 and 18 he says our light affliction which is just for a moment.

And when you think of all the affliction that Paul went through being beaten so many times stoned shipwrecked the number of times he was imprisoned just to talk of the physical sufferings and then all the other sufferings he had of being scandalized and evil reports being spread about him.

His financial difficulties it says he went through hunger not enough clothing to wear and many difficulties he suffered in his service for the Lord. We can think that what we call suffering in our life is like little mosquito bites compared to what Paul went through.

And yet sometimes we have such a habit of making mountains out of molehills that the little things we go through we magnify so much. We want everybody to feel sorry for us and sympathize with us. And yet look at Paul's attitude to all that he went through which was a hundred times more than we any of us have ever gone through.

He calls it light affliction. He says it's nothing. And he says it's only for a moment. He's had it just for 30 years you see just a moment a momentary light affliction. How could he call 30 years a moment because he was looking at eternity.

When we get into eternity we'll discover that 30 years was just a brief moment of time. And when our mind is renewed when our inner man is renewed so that we see the eternal things more clearly we'll see that many many years of suffering are really a very short time.

And even intensity of affliction we will see as light when we see what it is producing for us. He says our momentary light affliction is producing for us or as the king james version says is working for us or preparing for us or achieving for us or piling up for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.

Think of that who is one whom you can say works for you. If you say somebody works for you such a person is your servant. And that's exactly what paul succeeded in making affliction into. He said our light affliction works for us.

My affliction works for me means affliction is now my servant. With many people affliction has become their master governing their moods they become grumpy and miserable. We can say that in such people affliction has become their master dominating them.

But in paul's case no affliction could ever rob him of his joy in the lord because affliction was not his master. He had learned to make affliction his servant. It worked for him. What did it work for him.

It was achieving for him and piling up for him an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. It's like that children's fairy tale that some of us may have read of a girl who was asked to convert straw into gold by the king and a little fairy came a little dwarf came along and helped her to convert all that straw into gold.

We can use that as an illustration. We have affliction and suffering that comes our way. And by the help of the holy spirit we got to convert that affliction into glory. And the way we can do it is by taking up the cross humbling ourselves going down into death.

And one important thing which is mentioned here in verse 18 he says that this affliction will work for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison to the affliction itself if if only. And that's a very important condition if only verse 18 we fix our eyes on the unseen eternal things and refuse to fix our eyes on the things that are temporal and visible.

If we keep looking at the temporal visible results of our affliction then it's certainly not going to work for us an eternal weight of glory. It's just going to work for us a great weight of complaining and grumbling and murmuring and criticism of the people who are afflicting us and backbiting against us and telling stories against us and criticism of a god who allows all these problems to come into our lives.

And that's all the weight that it's going to produce for us. And that weight's finally going to crush us and bring us into depression and gloom and bad moods. But that's because we're looking at the things that are seen.

We're looking at things from a human standpoint. We're looking at the visible things. And here he says in verse 18 all these visible things are only temporary. The real eternal things are those things which are invisible.

And this is a secret dear friends to have our eyes fixed on those things which are invisible. If only we can see that everything that we're going through here on this earth is only for a short time and one day it'll pass away then we shall see that the eternal things alone have value.

And then we will be able to rejoice. And we will find that every affliction that comes our way produces for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison to the affliction itself. Because we believe what God says in Romans 8 28 that all things work together for good to those who love God who are called according to his purpose and his purpose.

We read in Romans 8 29 is that we might be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. And if we believe that we can speak the word of faith in every situation in every trial in every affliction however great it may be God will make sure it doesn't go beyond your ability that it'll work an eternal weight of glory even for you and me.

The Heavenly Body and Eternal Clothing

Let's turn today to 2nd Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 1. For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down we have a building from God a house not made with hands eternal in the heavens.

Here he's speaking about our physical frame which he calls the earthly tent. We need to realize that our body is only a tent in which we are living. In a earlier verse he spoke about this outer man decaying chapter 4 verse 16.

Here again he's speaking about this outer man. This tent has wear and tear coming upon it gets a few tears here and there needs to be stitched up. But it's only a tent. It's not serious. It's the person who's living inside the tent that's important because one day this tent will be pulled down by God in any case.

So we shouldn't worship our bodies. We shouldn't think of healing as the most important thing in life. The renewal of the inner man is a million times more important. If we need healing it's only that we might be healthy in order to serve God.

But we mustn't worship our bodies to such an extent that healing itself becomes our goal in life as it has become to some. No this earthly tent we want to keep it patched up but always to remember that it's only a tent.

We're not the glory in that which is external that which is visible. He's spoken about not looking at the things which are visible in chapter 4 verse 18. And one of the things which are visible is this body of ours.

We shouldn't waste our time trying to beautify it and dress it up in fancy clothes and waste a lot of time with this earthly tent because one day it's going to be torn down but then God's going to give us a building a house not made with hands eternal in the heavens.

We praise God that we have a hope that God will give us a glorified body when we have to give up this one. In the day when Jesus comes back and the dead are raised we shall be raised together with him if we have already left this earth.

And we shall have glorified bodies. And that's the theme of the first few verses here in chapter 5. And therefore he says in this house we groan in this present physical body. We are constantly sighing and longing earnestly desiring to be clothed with our dwelling in heaven.

Paul says I long to cover my earthly raiment with the robes of my heavenly mansion. We want our heavenly habitation to be put over this one in as much verse 3 as we having put it on shall not be found naked.

And it's only if we have put on that heavenly habitation that we can be sure that we shall not be naked at the hour of death. And that's a very interesting verse which teaches us that many people when they die they die in a naked condition naked in their soul because they've never put on that heavenly habitation during their earthly life.

And that's the theme here that before we leave this world we need to clothe our inner man. We've spoken about the renewing of this inner man in chapter 4 verse 16 with that heavenly habitation the raiment of heaven the clothing of heaven so that when we leave this world we're not naked.

For he says in verse 4. Indeed while we are in this tent we groan being burdened. Yes that's true. We have a painful longing as long as we're in this body to leave to be with the lord. Not so that we might take off our present tent and be unclothed.

We don't want to be unclothed but he says to be clothed in order that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. It's not that i want to be stripped off my earthly raiment. No but because we want to know the full cover of the permanent house that will be ours.

It's not that we want to have the old body stripped off but rather our desire is to have the new body put over it unwilling to take it off in one sense and yet wishing to put our heavenly body over it much more.

And that's a good question for us to ask ourselves as christians whether we have the same longing that the apostle paul had to be clothed with that which is going to be our permanent clothing for all eternity to be clothed with the raiment of heaven so that this dying nature in the last part of verse 4 he says might be absorbed and swallowed up into life immortal.

And the practical application of this is to ask ourselves in our daily life whether we are really seeking to be clothed with that which is eternal and heavenly. In the last verse of romans 13 it says.

Put on the lord jesus christ and don't make any provision for the flesh with its lusts. We are born into the world with a clothing called the flesh with its lusts. And during our earthly life through the power of the holy spirit we're to seek to overcome these lusts and be clothed more and more with that nature which is called the life of jesus.

In chapter 4 verse 10 and he says that's the dress i want to have when i leave this world. I don't want to leave this world just saying i managed to keep myself in health and live to the ripe old age of 95 or something like that.

No he says i want to leave this world having partaken of the divine nature to the maximum extent possible having overcome the bitterness and the irritability and the anxiety and the grudging spirit and all the other wretched things that there are in the flesh of adam.

I want to be clothed with the meekness and gentleness and goodness and humility and patience of christ so that i'm clothed when i leave this world and not naked. This is a theme that a number of the apostles speak about that when jesus comes we should not shrink away from him in shame because we're naked.

In the book of revelation the lord says to the church in laodicea he says come and buy from me clothing. Revelation chapter 3 verse 18 he says buy from me white garments that you may clothe yourself so that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed.

He's not speaking to unbelievers there he's speaking to a church and to the leader of a church in laodicea he says you gotta buy white garments from me now. That's obviously not forgiveness of sins because we can never buy forgiveness of sins.

Forgiveness of sins is free. The baptism in the holy spirit. That's free. We can never purchase it. But here's something which he says you gotta buy revelation 3 18 white garments. What is it that we have to buy.

And what's the price we have to pay for it. Paul says in philippians 3 i counted everything as loss and suffered the loss of all things in order that i may gain christ. Philippians chapter 3 and verse 8 that's the price he paid.

Jesus said if anyone wants to be my disciple he's got to forsake all that he has. That's the price we have to pay. That's how we buy the garments. We give up every right over our own self and then we can be clothed renewed day by day so that we are clothed so that in the day when jesus comes it can be said about us.

As we read in the book of revelation chapter 19. The marriage of the lamb has come and his bride has made herself ready revelation 19 7. And she's clothed in fine linen. And the fine linen is not the righteousness of christ revelation 19 8 it's the righteousness of the saints.

It's that which they stitch themselves bit by bit in the daily situations of life. There is a dress which can be called the righteousness of christ. We are justified. But there is another which is spoken of in revelation 19 which is the righteousness of the saints.

And this is the dress we should long to be clothed in. Second corinthians 5 5 says that god has given us the spirit as a pledge as a guarantee. When god gives us the holy spirit that's like a foretaste of what he's going to do for us in eternity.

The spirit has come like a down payment a guarantee that god will do the complete work. He who has begun a good work will complete it. And this is why we need to cooperate with the holy spirit in the work that he's seeking to do in our lives of sanctification.

Walking by Faith Rather Than Sight

This is why paul says in verse 6 amazing words he says. Therefore we are always of good courage. Notice that repetition of that phrase we are always of good courage is the same as saying we are never discouraged.

Think of being able to say that we are never discouraged we are always having an unfailing confidence. Or as another translation says i'm always cheerful and confident always never a moment. Because he says we know that while we are at home in the body we're absent from the lord.

We walk by faith and not by sight. We know that god's working in us preparing us for that time when we will be forever with him. Let's turn to second corinthians chapter 5 verse 6. Paul says here therefore being always of good courage and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the lord.

Notice the number of times he speaks here about being of good courage. In chapter 4 verse 1 we saw him say we do not lose heart. Chapter 4 verse 8 we do not despair. Chapter 4 verse 16 we do not lose heart.

Chapter 5 verse 6 we are always of good courage. Chapter 5 verse 8 we are of good courage. Those who serve the lord are constantly tempted to discouragement. And all believers are. And paul was no exception.

It says about jesus in hebrews 4 15 that he was tempted in all points as we are. He too was tempted to be discouraged. But they all overcame this temptation. Jesus was never discouraged. And paul says here we are always verse 6 of good courage.

He would never lose heart never give up hope no matter what happened. Knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the lord. That means in a sense to some extent we're not fully with the lord.

As long as we're in this body we're going to have a much fuller sense of the lord's presence when we go up to glory. Meanwhile until that day comes we walk by faith. Verse 7 not by sight or appearance not by external appearance not by what we see.

The same emphasis as in chapter 4 verse 18 we do not look at the things which are seen. We should not think that to have a physical vision of jesus christ physically standing before us is necessarily a matter that makes us spiritual.

No. To walk by faith is a far greater and a higher thing than walking by sight. And as far as paul is concerned he says we walk by faith not by sight. We are of good courage in walking by faith. It's not a wonderful thing to see a vision of jesus.

It's a wonderful thing to walk by faith as one who has not seen him. Peter says that in 1 peter chapter 1 he says. Whom having not seen you rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. 1 peter 1 verse 8.

Though you have not seen him you love him and you rejoice. And that's a far greater thing than if he did see him. So that's good for us to remember. In a day when so many are claiming to have seen jesus christ physically that not to have seen him and to walk by faith is a far greater thing.

Really we guide our lives by faith. If a physical vision of jesus is the thing that would help us to be spiritual it would be no problem for god to give such a vision to every single one of his children.

The fact that he doesn't do that proves that it's not necessary. Neither is it a mark of spirituality. To be spiritual is to walk by faith not by sight. And under sight. We could include feelings emotional ups and downs.

We're not to allow our spiritual life to be affected by our feelings. We walk by faith that god is still on the throne whatever our feeling may be like right now. And that's the secret of not being discouraged.

If there's a reason why paul was always of good courage verse 6. Here is the reason we walk by faith and not by sight. And if there is a reason why believers are discouraged here is also the reason they're walking by sight and not by faith.

They're walking by feelings and not by faith. Put those two verses together verse 6 and 7 in second corinthians 5. And you see the reason for all the discouragement that's unfortunately found so much even among believers.

Why can't we walk by faith that god is still in control of the situation that he rules in the heavens. He hasn't abdicated his throne just because we're feeling a bit down. We must refuse to live by our feelings but to live by faith in eternal facts revealed in god's word.

And he repeats it again. We are of good courage. We are of good courage always. Verse 6. We are of good courage verse 8. Always reason verse 7. We walk by faith because we walk by faith and not by sight.

He gives the reason there. Therefore we are of good courage i say. And of course we prefer if it's a matter of choice we would rather leave this body and go to be with the lord himself. He says that in another letter in philippians chapter 1 he says.

I personally if you were to give me a choice i would rather be with christ to depart this world. Philippians 1 23 and be with christ. That teaches us that as soon as we leave this world we go immediately into the presence of the lord.

That's very much better. There's no doubt about that. But he says in philippians 1 24. For your sakes it's necessary for me to stay on. I have to stay on for your sake because i need to fulfill the will of god for you people.

And so he says we prefer to be absent from the body and to be at home with the lord. But we leave that to god to decide when we should leave this body and come into his presence. Meanwhile we have only one ambition in life verse 9.

Pleasing Christ and Facing His Judgment Seat

It's wonderful to see that that paul had only one ambition in life. He says in philippians chapter 3 and verse 13 he says one thing i do only one thing. Paul didn't dabble in 101 things only one thing.

And that was to press toward the mark for the prize of god's high calling in christ jesus. And he says the same here we have one ambition and that is whether i'm here or there whether at home or absent.

That is at home with the lord in glory in his presence in the third heavens or here on this earth where i don't have the physical sense of his presence i want to be pleasing to him. And that's another thing that we can see from this passage.

Some people like to have a physical sensation of the lord's presence. That's also not a mark of spirituality to have a physical sensation of god's presence. We live by faith not by feelings and sensations even of the lord's presence.

There's a sense in which we don't have those physical sensations says we are absent from the lord. In a sense christ dwells in our hearts and yet we don't have that physical sensation of his presence that we will have when we reach the third heaven.