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Verse By Verse Devotional On 2 Corinthians By Pastor Jack #88

September 12, 2016 | by: Jack Lash | 0 comments

Posted in: 2 Corinthians

Blind to the Gospel (4:3)

4:3-5 "AND EVEN IF OUR GOSPEL IS VEILED, IT IS VEILED TO THOSE WHO ARE PERISHING, 4 in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake."

The apostle here seems again to be responding to a charge that has been brought against him: namely that his message is incomprehensible.

Paul’s answer is that if his gospel is indeed "veiled", it is veiled to those who are perishing in their sin.

Who were the ones bringing this charge against Paul? It again must have been the Judaizers who were "false apostles" (11:13) "peddling the word of God" (2:17). It is understandable that Paul was incomprehensible to them, since they despised everything new about what Paul said, even much of what he said about the old covenant (like the fact that the old covenant of Moses was a ministry of death and condemnation - 3:7,9).

Though Paul’s statement is general -- referring to all those who are perishing -- it seems especially aimed at the trouble-making Judaizers, claiming that the reason they do not "get" his teachings is because they are still unbelievers (4:4) perishing in their sin (4:3) and blinded by the devil (4:4).

This harks back to 2:15-16: "For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life." The reason that these men do not accept Paul is not because of Paul but because of Paul’s Christ, whom they despise. They reject Paul’s preaching because they reject the One Paul is preaching about, for Paul goes on to say, "For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord. " (v.5)

Two lessons we should learn here:

1- Just because someone rejects our message doesn’t mean it’s because we are doing a bad job at presenting it or representing it. There are many who are blinded by Satan and rejection of our message MAY be a good sign not a bad one. The Judaizers rejection of Paul’s gospel was certainly a result of its sound portrayal of Christ.

2- It is appropriate and even necessary to publically condemn those who are preaching a false gospel. To remain silent gives the impression that their false teaching is at best harmless and at worst valid. Paul was adamant about the gospel: "Even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!" (Gal.1:8-9) In this day when "toleration" is the highest virtue we must not allow the pressure of our society to silence us about those who would poison those who believe or might believe the gospel. (We must be very careful about this, of course. It is very possible to condemn friends instead of foes in our zealousness for the truth. We must avoid the trap of Luke 9:51-56 and Mark 9:38-40.)

There is so much pressure upon Your people, O Lord, to soften Your truth, to ignore the exclusivity of Christianity, and to think that everyone is OK. Please help us remember that there is a heaven to secure and a hell to avoid, and a gospel that must be embraced and Satanic lies that must be repudiated. Open our eyes, Lord, that we might not be blind to the eternal realities that lie behind what is merely visible.

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