Embracing Affliction - 2 Corinthians

About Embracing Affliction - 2 Corinthians

An Expository Series covering 2 Corinthians by Bob Corbin. Presented at Family Bible Church located in Martinez, GA

Publisher

Bob Corbin & Family Bible Church

Category

religion & spirituality

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

12 Jan 2020

Latest episode

24 May 2020

Latest episodes

19 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   24 May 2020

   In Defense of the Ministry (Part 3b - Paul's Challenge)

   This is the 17th, and final, message in this series on Paul's second epistle to the church of Corinth. We began studying this epistle in January and, specifically, this last section of Paul’s letter at the end of March. Over the past three weeks we have been considering Paul's defense of his ministry and how that applies to our own ministries. We have considered Paul's call and his credentials. In those messages, we saw how Paul continually pointed the Corinthians to Christ. A truly called minister of God would seek to glorify God by guiding those in his sphere of influence according to the truth of God. Hence, Paul warned them regarding false ministers who proclaim a false Jesus, have a false spirit, and teach a false gospel. These false ministers seek to enslave believers in legalism, devour their resources, divide the true church, exalt themselves, and intimidate believers into obeying them. The true minister seeks to emulate Christ in his ministry. Last week, we began considering Paul's final challenge to the Corinthians: a challenge to test the genuineness of everything according to the standard of God - His truth. Paul addresses this challenge in a two-fold manner: first, to consider his genuineness and, secondly, to consider their own enuineness! This message was presented on May 24, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

2. 

   17 May 2020

   In Defense of the Ministry (Part 3a - Paul's Challenge)

   This is the 16th message in this series on Paul's second epistle to the church of Corinth; we began studying this last section of Paul's letter at the end of March. Over the past two weeks we have been considering Paul's defense of his ministry and how that applies to our own ministries. We have considered Paul's call and his credentials. In those messages, we saw how Paul continually pointed the Corinthians to Christ. A truly called minister of God would seek to glorify God by guiding those in his sphere of influence according to the truth of God. Hence, Paul warned them regarding false ministers who proclaim a false Jesus, have a false spirit, and teach a false gospel. These false ministers seek to enslave believers in legalism, devour their resources, divide the true church, exalt themselves, and intimidate believers into obeying them. The true minister seeks to emulate Christ in his ministry. Today, as we close this epistle, we will consider Paul's final challenge to the Corinthians: a challenge to test the genuineness of everything according to the standard of God - His truth. Paul addresses this challenge in a two-fold manner: first, to consider his genuineness and, secondly, to consider their own genuineness! Due to the system wide issues with Zoom, we only considered the first part of this challenge in this message. This message was presented on May 17, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

3. 

   10 May 2020

   In Defense of the Ministry (Part 2 - Paul's Credentials)

   This last section of Paul's second epistle to the Corinthians deals specifically with the affliction that comes with "spiritual warfare." As we seek to serve Christ we will experience opposition. We are told in God's Word that we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." (Eph 6:12) As we have seen, this battle is primarily directed against the glory of God by attacking the truth of His Word. This attack is two-fold: attacking the message itself and then, also the messenger. We considered first, the attack on God’s message and our responsibility to clothe ourselves with the armor of God, the weapons of our warfare, in order to defend the truth and to disarm the attacks against it. Last week, we began considering the attack upon the messenger of the truth. If Satan can silence the messenger, he hinders the proclamation of the truth. As our ministry is attacked, how should we respond? Paul provides an example in these final four chapters of this letter. Last week, we considered "Paul's Calling" and it's application to our lives. Today, we will consider "Paul's Credentials" ... what bore witness of the validity of his ministry and calling This message was presented on May 10, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

4. 

   3 May 2020

   In Defense of the Ministry (Part 1 - Paul's Calling)

   Approximately one month ago, we began considering this last section of Paul's second epistle to the church of Corinth. This last section deals specifically with the affliction that comes with "spiritual warfare." We are told in God's Word that we "do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." (Eph 6:12) As we have seen, this battle is primarily directed against the glory of God by attacking the truth of His Word. This attack is two-fold: attacking the message itself and then, also the messenger. We have considered the attack on God's message and our responsibility to clothe ourselves with the armor of God, the weapons of our warfare, in order to defend the truth and to disarm the attacks against it. Today, we begin to consider the attack upon the messenger of the truth. If Satan can silence the messenger, he hinders the proclamation of the truth. In warfare, the first two targets are the communication lines and the supply lines. Individually, that is prayer and reading God's Word. As a body, that is the preaching of His Word and the provoking of one-another in the body. As our ministry is attacked, how should we respond? Paul provides an example in these final four chapters of this letter. This message was presented on May 3, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

5. 

   26 Apr 2020

   The Weapons of our Warfare (Part 4 - A Practical Application)

   This message was presented using Zoom Teleconferencing as the 6th of our "Worship from a Distance" during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Over the past three messages in our study of Paul's 2nd letter to the Corinthians, we have been considering Paul's discussion of spiritual afflictions. The first, and foremost, of these Spiritual Afflictions is the attack upon the Truth of God's Word. In that battle, as Paul reminds the Corinthians, "we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God ..." We began by identifying those weapons, considering prayer and fasting, and the Armor of God (Ephesians 6). As we considered the description of the armor, we noted that it revolved around truth - the truth of God's Word, and was infused with power through prayer. Paul continued by revealing four areas in which these weapons of our warfare are supposed to be utilized: For Pulling Down Strongholds; For Casting Down Arguments; For Bringing Every Thought into Captivity to the obedience of Christ; and For Preparing Justice ... being ready to punish all disobedience. In the Spiritual War, Satan's tactic is twofold: 1) attack the message of truth, and 2) attack the messenger of truth. In chapters 10-13, Paul is intertwining a defense of both truth and his apostleship. Today, we want to conclude our study of his exhortation regarding the importance of knowing, and defending, the truth by jumping forward into chapter 11. In chapter 11, Paul presents a practical application to the Corinthians regarding how this spiritual warfare should be pertinent to them. This message was presented on April 26, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

6. 

   19 Apr 2020

   The Weapons of our Warfare (Part 3 - Pulling Down Strongholds)

   This message was presented using Zoom Teleconferencing as the 5th of our "Worship from a Distance" during the COVID-19 Pandemic. In our study of Paul's 2nd letter to the Corinthians, we have been studying Paul's transition into a consideration of spiritual afflictions. Paul is reminding the believers of Corinth that the ultimate war that we are in is a spiritual war. Hence, we do not war according to the flesh. Prior to our week of Prayer and Fasting, we considered the spiritual discipline of fasting and the spiritual power that is derived from "true fasting." We then considered the "Armor of God" that Paul describes in Ephesians 6. Two weeks ago, we began examining the utilization of these spiritual weapons of warfare by considering the first, of four items, against which which we battle: Strongholds. We are told that these spiritual weapons are to be used for the Pulling Down of Strongholds. During that message, we considered four strongholds that we fight against: Ignorance, Idolatry, Iniquity, and Intimidation. Today, we want to consider the other three items against which Paul states we battle. This message was presented on April 19, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

7. 

   5 Apr 2020

   The Weapons of our Warfare (Part 2 - Pulling Down Strongholds)

   This message was presented using Zoom Teleconferencing as the 3rd of our "Worship from a Distance" during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Last week, we began focusing on the next section of Paul's 2nd letter to the Corinthians. Throughout the letter, Paul has built his exhortations and encouragements around the central theme of believers living their lives within an atmosphere of afflictions. He began his letter discussing the purpose of afflictions and then sharing from his own life. He then provided encouragement, by reminding the believers of their new standing in Christ and how they are being continually changed from glory to glory. God, as the Master Sculptor, is chiseling away on us - His new creations! He who began the good work in us IS CONTINUING to perform it ... UNTIL the day of Christ! He is molding us and conforming us to the image of His blessed Son - according to His promise and plan! As that work is being accomplished, there will be opposition in the spiritual realm. As we considered the "Weapons of our Warfare" last week, we saw that, again, that God's primary desire is for ALL people to come to the knowledge of the truth. Hence, He has given us this word of truth in the Scriptures, has given a charge to the church to be the pillar and foundation of that truth, and has challenged believers to see it as the first element of the armor which He has given to us to use in the spiritual war. There has been opposition to the truth of the Word of God from the beginning. Just as Eve was deceived by the serpent, so also do many individuals fall to the wiles of the devil as he attacks the validity and sufficiency of the Word of God. His goal is to get us to detract from ... or add to ... God's Word, in order that we might not live in obedience to it. Today, we begin considering how we are to utilize the "Weapons of our Warfare" ... for they ARE to be used! Today, we want to examine the first of the four areas listed by Paul - "For pulling down strongholds." This message was presented on April 5, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

8. 

   29 Mar 2020

   The Weapons of our Warfare (Part 1)

   This message was presented using Zoom Teleconferencing as the 2nd of our "Worship from a Distance" during the COVID-19 Pandemic. We have spent the last two Sundays considering the subject of fasting and have spent this past week in a special time of prayer and fasting. As mentioned in those messages, what originally seemed to be hiatus from our series actually was an addition to our series. For today, we come to the portion of Paul's 2nd letter to the Corinthians where he will begin to take on probably the greatest affliction that we can face - spiritual affliction in the form of attacks against the truth of the Scriptures and the obedience to that truth. Paul begins this portion by declaring his desire to exhort them in meekness and gentleness, rather than in boldness. However, there were some - false teachers - who were challenging his authority and the message which God had given him to share. When you begin to share the truth of God's Word, and begin to seek to live according to it's standards, you will find that there are many in the world who do not care to hear the message. Sadly, there are many false teachers in the world as well. Lord willing, we will consider this portion of Paul's discussion after our Resurrection Day celebration. Today, we want to continue our consideration of the weapons of our warfare. The word for "weapons" would be better translated "accoutrements." These accoutrements are listed by Paul in his letter to the Ephesians. We will take another week to discuss these weapons before discussing their utilization. This message was presented on March 29, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

9. 

   22 Mar 2020

   The Heart of Fasting

   This message was presented using Zoom Teleconferencing as the 1st of our "Worship from a Distance" during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Last week we began a two-part consideration on the spiritual discipline of fasting. We are considering this topic in preparation for our week of prayer and fasting (this week), and as an extension of the teaching on Spiritual Warfare which we will have from 2 Corinthians 10:1-7, Lord willing, next week. As we saw last week, fasting, in its proper form, is when you abstain from food and/or drink for a period of time. That concept has been extrapolated to other realms as well (especially during the season of "Lent".) Fasting was seen in the Old Testament to be an "affliction of the soul." However, this temporal affliction of our physical body is for a great spiritual purpose. Last week we considered the call to fasting. Today, we want to consider the "Heart of Fasting." What does God consider to be a "Proper Fast?" This message was presented on March 22, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

10. 

    15 Mar 2020

    The Call to Fasting

    We have been studying Paul's second epistle to the church of Corinth for the past two months. With our spring week of Prayer and Fasting coming up a week from now, I would like to present a little teaching on the subject of fasting. This is not a commonly taught on topic in the greater church anymore. Yet, it is a discipline that is assumed to be in the life of those who seek YHWH. At first, I considered this teaching to be a break from our teaching in 2 Corinthians, but as I meditated upon it I realized that actually this teaching on fasting will be just an amplification of the next portion of our study - 2 Corinthians 10:1-7 - and our consideration of spiritual warfare. For one of our primary spiritual weapons, as we will see, is indeed the discipline of fasting. What is "Fasting"? Fasting, in its proper form, is when you abstain from food and/or drink for a period of time. That concept has been extrapolated to other realms as well (especially during the season of "Lent".) Fasting was seen to be an "affliction of the soul." Hence, as we consider this discipline of fasting for the next two weeks, we want to remember that this temporal affliction of our physical body is for a great spiritual purpose. Today, we are going to consider the call to us, as New Testament believers, to fast. As well, we shall consider some of the reasons to fast. Next week, Lord willing, we will consider "The Proper Fast." This message was presented on March 15, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

11. 

    8 Mar 2020

    The Principles and Promises of Giving

    In the last message, we saw how afflictions reveal our faith. Within the context of that theme, Paul refers to the testimony of the believers in Macedonia who gave great evidence of their faith - in the midst of their affliction - by giving to the needs of the saints in Judea (cf. Romans 15:25-26). This abundant giving was founded on the fact that they had first given of themselves to the Lord. They understood that everything that they owned was actually under His stewardship and for His glory. As we will continue to examine today, they gave out of their great devotion for what God had done for them. Hence, the Priority of Giving is giving yourself first. Today, we pick up on the theme of giving by considering the Principles, and Promises, of Giving that Paul gives in chapters 8 and 9. This message was presented on March 8, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

12. 

    1 Mar 2020

    The Priority of Giving

    In his second epistle to the church of Corinth, Paul has been seeking to encourage the Corinthian believers regarding their position in Christ and the purpose of God as they face afflictions. Through afflictions, we have the opportunity to receive the encouragement of God and, subsequently, to dispense that same encouragement to others who are experiencing afflictions. Afflictions are a means by which we can give testimony to the greatness of our God! With this in mind, Paul transitions his exhortation to the testimony of the believers in Macedonia and how they handled the afflictions with which they were faced. Paul's goal is to inspire the believers of Corinth to prove themselves faithful regarding the commitments that they made - in spite of the circumstances which they found themselves. Afflictions test our resolve. In Jesus' parable of the sower, the seed and the soil, we are told of four different types of soil: the hard soil, the rocky soil, the thorny soil and the prepared soil. Only the prepared soil produced fruit; each of the others did not. The "hard soil" heart rejects the Word immediately. The "rocky" soil heart seemed to accept the Word but when trials and afflictions came it moved away. The "thorny soil" heart, as well, seemed to receive the Word but was choked out by temptations of the flesh and world. Paul began this string of sub-thought in verse one of chapter 6 with the comment, "We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain." In this section, we see again the tender balance between faith and works. As James states, "Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, 'You have faith, and I have works.' Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe - and tremble! ... For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." (James 2:17-19,26) This message was presented on March 1, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

13. 

    23 Feb 2020

    Godly Sorrow

    In his second epistle to the church of Corinth, Paul has been seeking to encourage the Corinthian believers regarding their position in Christ and the purpose of God as they face afflictions. Through afflictions, we have the opportunity to receive the encouragement of God and, subsequently, to dispense that same encouragement to others who are experiencing afflictions. Afflictions are a means by which we can give testimony to the greatness of our God! Our relationship in Christ should effect how we think about our purpose in this world. We must remember that we are, ultimately, eternal beings and will one day be absent from the body and present with the Lord! Hence, while we live upon the earth, we must see ourselves as ministers of reconciliations and ambassadors of God. As such, we should seek to bring no offense (or stumbling block) to others in their coming to the knowledge of the truth. As God's ambassadors, we must seek to not be unequally yoked, in order that God may direct our path in the ministry to which He has called us. In today's passage, Paul draws the teaching back to his initial teaching regarding how our relationship and position in Christ should totally transform how we view sufferings and sorrows. In the beginning of his epistle (our chapters 1 and 2), Paul discussed the level of tribulation that he and his team had experienced in the province of Asia. Now, he turns the thought to what he experienced when he entered Macedonia and how news from them encouraged. Tied together with Paul's sufferings was the sorrow of the Corinthians. We will discussed each of these subjects again. This message was presented on February 23, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

14. 

    16 Feb 2020

    The Effects of Grace

    In the midst of Paul's teaching and encouragement to the Corinthian believers regarding dealing with afflictions in this world, he reminds them of their precious relationship with God in Christ. This relationship is a result of God's grace. The grace of God has been defined using the word itself as an acronym: G.R.A.C.E. - God's Riches At Christ's Expense. We see this grace portrayed in the "great exhange" spoken of at the end of chapter 5, "For He (God) made Him (Christ) who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." It is God's grace that brings us to salvation. It is also the grace of God that continues to draw us toward being conformed to the image of Christ - this is called sanctification. This message was presented on February 16, 2020 by David Hayes.

15. 

    9 Feb 2020

    The Ministry of Reconciliation

    As we began our study of Paul's second epistle to the church of Corinth, we considered the purpose of affliction in the life of the believer. Through afflictions, we have the opportunity to receive the encouragement of God and, subsequently, to dispense that same encouragement to others who are experiencing afflictions. Afflictions are a means by which we can give testimony to the greatness of our God! Over the past two weeks, we have seen that at the core of "Embracing Afflictions" is the constant battle between the physical and the spiritual realms. As we have seen meteorologically, when two fronts collide there is a storm! Paul told the Ephesians, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood ..." Though we live in a physical plane, as spirit beings we must learn to think beyond the moment. Today's passage, continues the thought process from the past two messages and brings our consideration of events of this world to a crescendo. This is where the rubber meets the road; where proclaimed belief meets actual actions. For if we are in Christ, we are new creations with a new focus and a new calling! This message was presented on February 9, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

16. 

    2 Feb 2020

    Maintaining a Proper Focus

    As we began our study of Paul's second epistle to the church of Corinth, we considered the purpose of affliction in the life of the believer. Through afflictions, we have the opportunity to receive the encouragement of God and, subsequently, to dispense that same encouragement to others who are experiencing afflictions. Hence, rather than seeing trials as the world sees them - as hindrances and enemies to our happiness - we must come to embrace them knowing that our Sovereign God allowed them into our lives in order that we might grow in our knowledge of Christ and glorify He who redeemed us by His blood! Two weeks ago, we saw how Paul declared that there were points in his life and ministry where he despaired of even life itself (1:8). Yet, he found his strength in God who delivers from death itself! He then, seemingly, changed the subject to contrast the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. Yet, Paul was laying the foundation and instructing the believers regarding the existence of spiritual afflictions which are a result of the spiritual war in which we walk - unbeknownst many times! Paul revealed the superiority of the New Covenant which is spiritual, not physical. Truly, the core of our consideration of "Embracing Afflictions" will come as we consider the constant battle between the physical and the spiritual. Paul told the Ephesians, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood ..." Though we live in a physical plane, as spirit beings we must learn to think beyond the moment. In today's passage, Paul challenges the Corinthians to Maintain a Proper Focus, first by using his own life, and ministry, as an example.. This message was presented on February 2, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

17. 

    26 Jan 2020

    Ministers of a Superior Covenant

    As we began our study of 2 Corinthians, we considered Paul's "thesis statement" regarding the purpose of affliction in the life of the believer. Through afflictions, we have the opportunity to receive the encouragement of God and, subsequently, to dispense that same encouragement to others who are experiencing afflictions. Hence, rather than seeing trials as the world sees them - as hindrances and enemies to our happiness - we must come to embrace them knowing that our Sovereign God allowed them into our lives in order that we might grow in our knowledge of Christ and glorify He who redeemed us by His blood! In the last message, we saw how Paul declared that there were points in his life and ministry where he despaired of even life itself (1:8). Yet, he found his strength in God who delivers from death itself! Today, we begin to consider another angle on afflictions. God created man with a body, a soul, and a spirit. Afflictions then can come in each of those planes. In this section, we see Paul begin to discuss spiritual opposition that comes from those who seek to teach a false gospel, who declare that salvation is a result of works and not faith by grace. To address this, Paul contrasts the Old Covenant and the New Covenant, revealing the Superiority of the New Covenant. This message was presented on January 26, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

18. 

    19 Jan 2020

    The Burden and Boasting of Paul

    Last week, we began studying the second epistle of Paul to the Corinthians. As we began our study, we considered Paul's "thesis statement" regarding the purpose of affliction in the life of the believer. Through afflictions, we have the opportunity to receive the encouragement of God and, subsequently, to dispense that same encouragement to others who are experiencing afflictions. Hence, rather than seeing trials as the world sees them - as hindrances and enemies to our happiness - we must come to embrace them knowing that our Sovereign God allowed them into our lives in order that we might grow in our knowledge of Christ and glorify He who redeemed us by His blood! During that message, we mentioned that throughout his letter to the church of Corinth, Paul would refer to his own afflictions and the various trials and tribulations which the believers in Corinth had already experienced, or were currently experiencing. Today, we begin to consider the example that God allowed Paul to be to the church and, Paul's desire for the church. This message was presented on January 19, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

19. 

    12 Jan 2020

    The Purpose of Afflictions

    In 1981, Rabbi Harold Kushner wrote a book that would go on to be a "Best-Seller". It was called, "When Bad Things Happen to Good People." In his book, Rabbi Kushner debilitates God by reasoning that God does not cause bad things - afflictions - but is, as well, powerless to prevent them. Regardless of the theology of the book, it sparked a debate and conversation regarding the role of affliction in the life of the "righteous." Sadly, the terms "righteous" and "good people" are often defined from one's own perspective and not from God's. Yet, the premise of the question remains, why do afflictions arise "to those who love God and are the called according to His purpose"? (Romans 8:28) In Paul's second epistle to the believers in Corinth, he specifically addresses this topic citing examples from his own life and that of the church of Corinth. Today, as we begin our study of Paul's second epistle, we consider Paul's thesis statement regarding the purpose of affliction, and the subsequent encouragement from God, to the Corinthian believers. This message was presented on January 12, 2020 by Bob Corbin.

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