Verse By Verse Devotional On 2 Corinthians By Pastor Jack #74

The Secret of Boldness

3:12 "Therefore having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech."

What was the secret of Paul’s boldness? Certainly he was one of the boldest witnesses for Christ who ever lived. From the first days of his life in Christ he bore a courageous testimony for his new-found Lord (Acts 9:27-29). And throughout the rest of his life he "had the boldness in God to speak the gospel of God amid much opposition" (1Thes.2:2).

So what was his secret? This verse tells us: "having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech."

What hope is he referring to? It is obviously the hope he has been talking about in the first 11 verses of 2Cor.3, a passage that A.T. Hanson calls "the Mount Everest of Pauline texts as far as difficulty is concerned." (You wondered why the devotionals suddenly got harder a while back?) Well, apparently, even though it is a difficult passage, there must be something there after all that is important for us. Paul says it is the secret of his boldness.

The hope Paul mentions here is his hope in the superior glory of the new covenant.

Realize this: There is a glory of the new covenant that Paul knew, and it was the key to his exceedingly great boldness. This means that if we perceived the glory of this new covenant, we also would be propelled into a life of freedom, joy and courage in Jesus Christ.

Christian boldness comes from Christian hope. And Christian hope comes from knowing the truth about the glory of the new covenant. This ought to motivate us to be very conscientious about wanting to perceive the glory of the new covenant.

In the next devotional we will consider the life of the apostle Paul and how it demonstrates the glory of the new covenant.

Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, You are to be most highly praised for Your excellent deeds in all the earth. But the deed that exceeds all others is what You have done through the coming of Your beloved Son. And yet, Lord, though I know that His coming ought to have explosive impact in my life, too often it seems as if it doesn’t carry much weight. Forgive me for a heart that is slow to believe. Please open my eyes to see the glory and splendor of my Jesus and of His redemption, so that my life might be filled with faith, hope, love and boldness.