2 Corinthians 2:12

Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ's gospel, a door was opened unto me by the Lord. I had no rest in my spirit because I found not Titus, my brother. Taking my leave of them, I went from there into Macedonia.

Now, thanks be unto God, who always causes us to triumph in Christ and makes manifest the savor of His knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a sweet savor of Christ in them that are saved and in them that perish. To the one, we are the savor of death unto death, and to the other, the savor of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things? For we are not as many who corrupt the word of God, but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God, we speak in Christ.

Let's pray. Father, thank You for Your word. We ask, Lord, that You by Your Spirit would teach us and guide us into all truth now, that You'd give us insight and application into this passage. Lord, transform us by Your living word. We pray this in Jesus' name, and all God's people agreed, saying, Amen. You can be seated.

As the apostle Paul writes this letter, 2 Corinthians, he is in the city of Philippi, most likely in the region of Macedonia. He is writing to a group of people he knew well, to a church he had planted. God had used him in a very instrumental way to see this church birthed in Corinth and to see it strengthened, although they had many problems like every church does. He had a real love and passion for this church, which stemmed from the love of God in him. As we see in 2 Corinthians 4, it is the love of Christ that compels me, that constrains me, that stirs me to do this work.

This is now perhaps Paul's fourth letter to the church in Corinth. He has been encouraging and challenging them in their growth all along the way. There were some individuals in Corinth, perhaps not from the church itself, who had come from outside and were bringing accusations against Paul and the ministry that God had given him. Some people were saying things like he was greedy for money, claiming that the only reason he did this was to gain something from those he apparently ministers to. Others accused him of being fickle and flighty, suggesting that he did not plan things according to God's will, but rather acted out of a self-willed determination. They pointed out that he had said he would come to visit them but did not follow through, implying that he was not motivated by the Spirit of God.

There were many different things being said about the Apostle Paul, and he is addressing some of these issues and defending himself against these false allegations from Corinth. As we have considered over the last several weeks, one might wonder why he even feels the need to defend himself. David in the Old Testament would say, "God is my defense." Why stand in defense of oneself here? However, as we have seen, Paul, as an ambassador of Christ, had a very real concern that these false allegations might stick to him and project a misunderstanding of God. He feared that people would misinterpret who God is and how He works because of the things said about one of His ministers, Paul.

So, Paul is answering these questions. We have seen two of his defenses so far. At the end of chapter 1, he defends his decision not to come to them. They were accusing him of being fickle or flighty for not visiting as he had promised. He defends himself by stating that he did not come to them out of restraint, as he did not want to bring a severe rebuke. This is found in 2 Corinthians 1:24. He explains that he refrained from coming because he knew that if he did, he would have to rebuke them harshly.

Last week, we examined his second defense in the first few verses of chapter 2. He stated that he did not come to them out of a desire to avoid bringing a burden of sorrow upon them. When we come together in fellowship, the purpose is mutually beneficial joy. If he could not come and be a benefit to them, and they to him, then he would change his plans.

Now, as we come to chapter 2, verses 12 and onward, Paul presents what is essentially his third defense regarding why he did not come to visit them. He explains that a door of opportunity for him to preach Christ's gospel was given to him in the city of Troas.

I didn't come to you because an open door came to me in the city of Troas. Paul had been in the region of Ephesus, and now he traveled a little more than 100 miles north to the city of Troas because there was an opportunity for Christ's gospel. Did you note that in verse 12? Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ's gospel, it's His message. Paul says, "I'm not one who is speaking forth my own teaching, my own ideas." He says, "I am one who is carrying forth Christ's gospel." A door was opened unto me. From whom? Who opened the door at the end of verse 12? From the Lord. So God opened the door. It was God's message, God's good news. He made the way open, and Paul's place in this was to be faithful.

The same thing applies to you and me. It is God's message. It's Christ's gospel that He has committed to us, the ministry of reconciliation that is given to us. Every single day throughout our lives, God opens opportunities. He actually opens doors for us to minister as He supplies the strength. We have a decision at that moment when we're given an opportunity to minister. We have a decision whether or not we'll take it, whether or not we'll walk through that opportunity. How many of you will honestly say today that it's not always easy to walk through those doors? It's not always easy.

Paul says to the church at Corinth, "I didn't come to you as I planned because an opportunity was open to me in Corinth." But it gets a little bit more complicated. In verse 13, he explains, "When I was there in Troas, I had no rest in my spirit because I found not Titus my brother." Now, Titus had been dispatched by Paul to the city of Corinth. He had left Corinth, and the plan, apparently, was that they were going to meet up again. Paul was going to meet up with Titus, and now that didn't happen.

So Paul says, "I'm in Troas, and I have no rest in my spirit because I couldn't find Titus my brother." He decided to take his leave of those in Troas and go from there up to Macedonia. He states, "Reason number three why I didn't visit you: I didn't come to you because an opportunity for Christ's gospel was open to me." Don't you feel ashamed, Corinth? You're getting all mad that I didn't come and see you, but you're not recognizing that I had an opportunity to preach the gospel. Aren't you selfish? That may not be explicitly stated, but he continues, "And while I was in Troas..."

I just had no rest because Titus was supposed to come to me, but he didn't. I was compelled, out of concern for him, to head to Macedonia, about 140 miles to the northwest of Troas, probably to the city of Philippi. Paul goes up there, and he's waiting for his dear friend Titus, who was a disciple of Paul's, one that he was training and teaching in the ministry.

It's very interesting; when you read through Paul's letters, you see that he's like the king of digressions. He'll be saying one thing, and then all of a sudden, he's right here, and now he's over here. Then he's over here, and he's back over here. Sometimes it jumps around a little bit, and you're not exactly following what he's saying. Right here, for the next several chapters, Paul takes what is called the Great Digression. He says in verse 13, "I had no rest in my spirit when I was in Macedonia because I was waiting for Titus, and he hadn't come."

Now, turn over several chapters to the right, to chapter 7, and look at verse 5. In 2 Corinthians 7:5, it says, "For when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side; without were fighting, within were fears." Nevertheless, God, who comforts those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus.

Imagine, if you will, that between chapter 2, verse 13, and chapter 7, verse 5, there is like a giant parentheses where Paul takes a little digression—four chapters of digression. He is going to defend himself a little bit more in his apostleship in these chapters. But that's where we're going. Chapter 7, verse 5 connects us once again with chapter 2, verse 13, where he says, "I was in Troas, but I left Troas to go to Macedonia because I was troubled in my spirit because Titus hadn't come to me."

When we were in Macedonia, we had fightings within, and it was just difficult. Our flesh was troubled until God comforted us by the coming of Titus. Before we move on from here, even though it's several weeks down the road, I think it's really important to note something key that we see in chapter 7, verse 6, because I think it lends support to what we're looking at here in chapter 2. He says that God, who comforts the cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus.

Remember in chapter 1, Paul said that God is the God of all comforts and the Father of mercies. He comforts us. In this passage, Paul expresses that he was troubled in his spirit and had no rest in himself until God, who comforts the cast down, comforted him in a very practical and natural way by bringing a brother and friend, Titus, alongside him to provide comfort.

Sometimes, we miss the very natural ways that God seeks to work in our lives to bring us comfort because we are looking for something amazing and supernatural from the God of all comforts, the Father of mercies. In reality, God often provides something very natural and practical to meet our needs.

Perhaps you've heard this story. It's an old story, and it might even be cliché for me to share it, but it illustrates the point well. There was a man facing a great flood in his county. As the floodwaters began to rise, a neighbor came to him and said, "Old friend, you need to leave. The flood is going to overtake this whole valley. You've got to get out of here." The man replied, "Oh, no, no, no. I trust God. He's going to save me."

As the waters continued to climb, the sheriff drove up and urged him to leave, saying, "Sir, you have to go. The floodwaters are going to overtake your house." Again, the man insisted, "I believe in God. I trust God. He will save me." Eventually, the water filled his house, and he found himself sitting on the roof when a boat came by. The rescuers called out, "Listen, come with us. You know you're going to die." The man replied, "I trust God. He's going to save me."

In the end, he was clinging to his chimney as the water rose higher. A helicopter arrived and dropped a ladder, urging him to grab hold and come to safety. He still insisted, "I trust God. He's going to save me." Tragically, he drowned. When he met God, he asked, "Why didn't you save me? I trusted you." God responded, "I sent your neighbor, I sent the sheriff, I sent a boat, and I sent a helicopter. I tried to save you, but you didn't take hold of that."

This story illustrates that many times, God works in very natural ways. Yes, we have a saying that God works in mysterious ways, and He does. However, God also often works through very natural, practical means. Paul said he was troubled in his spirit, and God, who comforts the cast down, comforted him by the coming of Titus. Therefore, we need to be careful not to reject those very natural comforters that God sends our way. The natural things He brings to us are indeed good things.

Again, that's getting ahead. So, back to chapter 2, verses 12 and 13. When I came to Troas to preach Christ's gospel because of a door that was opened to me by the Lord, I had no rest in my spirit because I did not find Titus, my brother. Taking my leave of those in Troas, I went to Macedonia.

Now, this is very interesting. This highlights something that I've been pointing out quite a bit as we've been going through this letter. Paul was a person just like us. There are times when we can almost deify Paul and think that he has some extremely high position and some extra measure of faith in the Spirit that nobody else has. We fail to recognize verses like this where Paul confesses that he was discouraged, troubled, and even stressed.

Can anybody here today relate to the stress that Paul speaks of? Come on, be honest. We live in a very stress-filled culture, a culture that seems to embrace stress as if it stirs us on to do greater, bigger things. However, there are times when you're just stressed, discouraged, and filled with anxiety.

I want you to notice something very key here. Paul says a great door was opened to him by God to preach Christ's gospel in Troas, and he left because he was distressed. Do you see that? Discouragement and stress hindered the work that God desired to do in Troas. I wonder what could have happened in the city of Troas.

We experience similar things where God has given us His message, His word. It's Christ's good news; it's not our own message. We're not trying to sell something. He's given us His good news. Doors are open to us regularly, often throughout the week, and many times we are hindered from going through those doors because of stress, anxiety, and discouragement.

Can anybody here relate to this today? A door is open for you to preach the gospel or to share and minister with someone, but you don't go through it because you have something else to do right now. You're stressed, anxious, and worried about many things. You can't see the opportunity right in front of you because of the fifty things on your mind.

I have to get done by 5 o'clock. How many open doors for the gospel of Jesus Christ are missed because we're hindered by stress and anxiety? Although Paul might correct me when we get to heaven, I'm perfectly fine with that. It seems from what he himself says here that he had an open door and left because he was stressed. He had no rest in his spirit and no relief internally. That is a classic biblical definition of stress. So, he left and went to Macedonia. While he was in Macedonia, he ultimately found comfort from God as God brought Titus to him.

This situation begs the question: how do we deal with those times when distressing and stressful circumstances come to us, and we are tempted to be anxious? I know for certain, without needing to ask for any raised hands, that a significant portion of the people in this sanctuary, right at this very moment, are anxious. I'm stressed and having a hard time focusing on what God is trying to speak right now because you're thinking about what you have to do before Monday morning and what you have to accomplish by the end of this week. Statistically, this is just a reality.

So, how do we deal with that? How do we handle distress and discouragement in life and in ministry? Remember, all of our life is ministry because everything we do is to be for the glory of God. Whatever we're doing is for His glory; it's ministry, wherever we are. How do we confront that anxiety, stress, and discouragement that we inevitably face?

I believe we have at least a couple of choices when distressing circumstances come into our lives. First, we can focus on the circumstance and turn inward with a sort of "poor me" attitude. This is incredibly easy to do. In fact, this is our default in our flesh. Because of our flesh, we instantly default to internalizing our struggles and thinking about them from fifty different angles. This is often what causes sleepless nights.

You're laying down, and you've had a stressful circumstance or situation enter into your life. It happens all the time. You're lying in bed, thinking about it. What if I did this? No, that won't work. What if I do this and this and this? Then it's 3 in the morning, and you haven't figured anything out. Maybe I'm the only one who deals with this, but you're trying to figure out how to deal with this thing. That's our default. We're all very good at being stressed. We've got PhDs in anxiety because we've worked for many years. Just, yeah, I'm stressed. I'm anxious.

Well, what's the other way to deal with this? We can refocus upon God and all that we have in Him. Refocus on Him. There's a perfect illustration, a perfect picture of this in the Old Testament in the book of Numbers. I'm sure you remember the story of Moses and the children of Israel coming out of Egypt. You've probably seen the Ten Commandments. God had given a promise through Moses to the people in Egypt, the children of Israel, saying, "I am going to take you out of Egypt, and I'm going to bring you into a land flowing with milk and honey."

God had taken them out of Egypt, fulfilling the first part of His promise. By Numbers chapter 13, they had seen God do this in an awesome way. They witnessed Him perform miracles through plagues, such as turning the waters of the Nile to blood, bringing tons of frogs upon the people, and causing darkness. The children of Israel were protected in the middle of this while the Egyptians were not. The ultimate plague was the death of all the firstborn sons of Egypt. After that miraculous move, the Egyptians said, "Get out of here." They were basically paying the Israelites to leave, giving them silver and gold, saying, "Get out of here."

Then, in Exodus chapter 14, we see them with the Red Sea in front of them, mountains on either side, and the Egyptian army behind them. They were scared and cried out to God. Anxiety! God caused the waters of the Red Sea to part, and they passed over on dry ground while the Egyptian army was destroyed. If ever there would have been a cool miracle to see, I think that would have been one of them. And then they're...

In the wilderness for two years, God provides water out of rocks and bread from heaven. He takes care of their needs, and by Numbers 13, they are standing at the border of that land filled with milk and honey in a place called Kadesh Barnea. They send twelve spies into the land for forty days, spying it out from north to south and from east to west. They see the whole thing and come back with a bunch of grapes so big that it has to be carried between two people. They say, "This is a land filled with fruitfulness. It's a land of milk and honey. It's just as God said it would be."

However, ten of the spies say there are giants in the land. At the end of Numbers 13, they declare, "We were, in our own eyes, as grasshoppers when we saw those giants. They're just too big for us. We're nothing. They're going to squash us." There were two spies, Joshua and Caleb, who had the minority report. They said, "Yes, it's a fruitful land. Yes, there are giants in the land, but they will be bread for us. Our God is greater."

They were able to step back from that distressing situation. They saw everything else that everybody saw, but they saw something greater: God. The entire camp of the nation of Israel went to bed weeping that night and did not enter the promised land for 38 years. Only two of that generation, Joshua and Caleb, went into the promised land 38 years later. The only two. Everybody else died in the wilderness. They all saw the same thing, but they viewed it through a different lens. Just two of them, among all the rest of the people, were able to step back and see the same situation but perceive something different.

In this, we have a very clear indication of how we ought to face distressing circumstances. I believe Paul, after he got to Macedonia and Philippi, registered this truth. He recognized it and clues us into it here in the next verses. Look at verse 14. In verse 13, he mentions that in their spirit, they were troubled and could not find any rest, so they went to Macedonia. In verse 14, he writes, "Now, thanks be unto God, which always causes us..."

To triumph in Christ, we were stressed. We were hindered from work that we could have done in Troas. We went to Macedonia. He doesn't even get to the point where Titus comes and comforts him. Before Titus ever even showed up, that's why we have this parenthesis for four chapters. Before Titus ever even shows up, he says, "Now, thanks be to God who always causes us to triumph in Christ and makes manifest the savor of His knowledge by us in every place."

For we are unto God a sweet-smelling savor of Christ in them that are saved and in them that perish. To the one, we are the savor of death; to the other, we are the savor of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things? Ultimately, Paul got to this place where it registered with him that God is greater. Initially, though, and again, he'll probably correct me, just looking at what it says here in the text, he was so troubled that he was hindered from going through the open door at Troas and opted instead to go to Macedonia, where his friend Luke was, and wait for Titus to get there.

While he was there, he came to this recognition: God is to be thanked because He always causes us to triumph in Christ. Always. He turned away from the debilitating, depressing, discouraging, heartbreaking circumstance that brought him such sorrow and anguish with tears. Now, his focus has changed; it's lifted.

To the point that he gives this great truth in the book of Philippians, chapter 4, which I believe he learned while he was visiting Philippi at this very time. In Philippians 4, he writes this to the church at Philippi many years later, verse 6: "Be anxious for nothing." Now, that's a command of Scripture that every one of us fails at on a regular basis. Be anxious for nothing. I believe that when God gives a command, He also gives us the enabling counsel on how to fulfill that command. He gives us the enabling power on how to make that happen.

Practically, these principles can happen in our lives. He says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God, and the peace of God, which surpasses understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

When you have no rest in your spirit and are troubled by difficult circumstances, take a step back and let your requests be made known unto God. His peace, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus.

Then, he gives us some more counsel in verse 8 of Philippians 4. "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue and if there be anything praiseworthy, think on these things."

When a difficult situation arises, our default is often to focus on it, trying to unpack and deconstruct it from every possible angle to figure out how to fix it. We must make a decision of our will to step back and say, "God, I'm going to think on You, Your virtue, Your character, and Your love. I'm going to dwell on those things that are of good report."

What will happen? In verse 9 of Philippians 4, we read, "Those things which you have heard and learned and received and seen in me, do, and the God of peace shall be with you."

In Isaiah 26, Isaiah says, "God will keep you in perfect peace as your mind is stayed on Him because you trust in Him." He will keep you in perfect peace. In the original Hebrew, it says, "Shalom, Shalom." Shalom means peace. He is going to keep you in Shalom, Shalom. It is repeated for emphasis; it signifies perfect peace, peace times two, and great peace as your mind is stayed on Him because you trust in Him.

So that is the truth. He will do that as you trust in Him and keep your mind stayed on Him. The very next verse is an exhortation: "Trust in the Lord forever." Difficult circumstances and trying times come to all of us.

We are tempted to get focused on those things, and they will hinder the work that God desires to do in and through us. The only way to deal with this is to step back, refocus on the Lord, and bring our requests, our supplications, and our needs to Him, knowing that He will guard our hearts with His peace.

So, what good, lovely, virtuous, praiseworthy things can we think on? Paul gives us one here in 2 Corinthians 2: God in Christ makes us victorious conquerors always. Do we really believe that? God in Christ makes us victorious conquerors always. In Romans 8, verse 37, He says He has made us more than conquerors.

Now, it's interesting the words that Paul uses here when he says that God makes us, causes us to triumph in Christ. The word "triumph" there is a technical term that speaks of the triumphal processions that would take place in the Roman Empire for a victorious Roman general as he returned from a great victory. William Barclay, in his commentary on the Corinthian letters, speaks of it like this: the highest honor which could be given to a victorious Roman general was a triumph. To attain it, he must satisfy certain conditions. He must have been the actual commander-in-chief in the field, the campaign must have been completely finished, the region pacified, and the victorious troops brought home. Of the enemy, at least 5,000 must have fallen in one engagement. A positive extension of territory must have been gained, and not merely a disaster avoided or an attack repelled. The victory must have been won over a foreign enemy and not in a civil war.

These things didn't happen often in the Roman Empire. But when a great Roman general met these requirements and was coming home under the banner of victory to the Roman capital, there was this great triumphal procession that would be made as he came into the city. Barclay goes on to explain what it looked like. In a triumph, the procession of the victorious general marched through the streets of Rome to the capital in the following order. First came the state officials.

The Senate, always the politicians first, was followed by the trumpeters. Behind them came those carrying the spoils taken from the conquered land. One of these triumphs took place after Titus, the Roman general, had destroyed Jerusalem in 70 AD. In Rome today, in the ruins, one of the arches right next to the Colosseum has a bas-relief of this triumphal procession. In that bas-relief, we see them carrying the seven-lampstand, the seven-pillared lampstand that was in the temple, and they were carrying the table of showbread. All these great things they brought with them to Rome to say, "Look at what we did to those enemies of ours."

Behind them came painted pictures of the conquered land, models of the conquered citadels, and the ships that were overtaken. Following that came a white bull for a sacrifice, which would be made. Walking behind all of these were the captive princes, leaders, and generals in chains who were shortly to be flung into prison or probably put to death by execution. Then came the officers who attended the magistrates, and the executioners would be in line as well, bearing the rods that they would use for execution.

Following the executioners were the musicians with lyres and harps, then priests swinging censers with sweet-smelling incense burning in them. After that came the general himself on a chariot led by four horses. He would wear a purple tunic with gold embroidery all over it. A slave would hold over his head a crown of Apollo. Behind him would be his family riding on chariots with him. Then, behind them would be all of his conquering men, his victorious army, and they would be chanting, "Triumph!" It was a pretty awesome spectacle.

However, these events were rare; they didn't happen all the time. The procession moved throughout the streets of Rome, decorated and filled with the sounds of cheering crowds all around. It was just a tremendous thing.

Now, when Paul says that God, through Christ, has made us to triumph always, the picture that Paul seems to be alluding to here is this triumphal procession. Jesus is the general; He is the captain of our salvation. He won the battle of battles on the cross when He said, "It is finished." In Christ, He has brought us into this triumphal procession, and we are victors with Him.

More than conquerors with Him. Always. This is the picture of what we're looking forward to when we return with Him to the earth, whether He raptures His church or we die to be with Him. One day, He is going to have a triumphal entry 2.0. He will come on a white horse, and we will be behind Him, victorious in the battle. Amen.

Of course, my mom is going to say it. Sorry, I'm getting excited. This is what we look forward to. When stressful, difficult circumstances arise, we can feel bottled in, consumed by these situations that seem like the biggest thing in the world. However, they are not. There is something greater, and we are part of this victorious procession.

Why not now? Why aren't we there yet? Well, we still have work to do. We are still in this great parade for a purpose, sounding the glory of our victorious General and permeating this world with His savor, His incense, His fragrance.

See it there with me? Look at the end of verse 14. It makes manifest the savor of His knowledge by us in every place. In this great procession, we are like a permeating influence, a fragrance of Christ and His victory that spreads throughout the world, carrying the greatness of His glory.

Verse 15 states that we, those who are victors with Him, are unto God a sweet-smelling savor of Christ. God enjoys and loves what He sees in us.

A sweet-smelling incense to Him is what Paul says. Think of your favorite smell; every time you encounter it, you just go, "Oh, that's good." Have you ever walked around Main Street at Disneyland? As you're walking down Main Street, heading toward the castle, there's a cinnamon bun place on the left, about halfway down. They pipe the smell into the street, and every time I'm there, it's just wonderful. Andrea and I can't pass that place without stopping; it's the first thing we do when we go to Disneyland. We've gone to Disneyland with Mark and Sonia a few times, and the four of us always make it our first stop. It's just so good.

That sweet-smelling savor that we enjoy is what we, His church in Christ, are like to God. He wants to make manifest the savor of His knowledge, the knowledge of Him, in every place. He desires that to go everywhere. That's why you're in that workplace that you detest, the one that stresses you out. You're there to be the sweet-smelling savor of the knowledge of God in that environment.

Look at verse 15: "For we are unto God a sweet-smelling savor of Christ in them that are saved and in them that perish." It's a curious thing that Paul says. Our fragrant influence, where we go on behalf of Christ, may lead to the salvation of some or to others rejecting Christ, but it remains a sweet-smelling savor to God. Sometimes we think that if our presentation of God to someone doesn't lead to their salvation, then it has been ineffective. That's not what Paul says here. He has placed us there to be the fragrance of Christ. It may lead to salvation; it may not, but it is still the fragrance of Christ, and God is pleased with that.

Look at verse 16. To those who encounter this fragrance, we are, to one, the savor of death unto death.

Pardon me. To the other, the savor of life unto life. Who is sufficient for these things? So Paul says, wherever God leads us, wherever He takes us, we are the sweet-smelling fragrance of the knowledge of God. To some, when they smell it, it's the fragrance of death unto death. To others, it's the fragrance of life unto life.

What is he talking about here? Again, back to the picture of the triumph. Here are these priests swinging censers that are sending the smell of incense out into the crowd. Just in front of them are crowds of prisoners of war, captives taken in the war, and they smell that scent. It doesn't smell very glorious to them because it's the fragrance of their coming judgment. In the rear are the victors, and they smell that scent. It's the smell of great joy and glory.

So, where God leads us, there are some people who just get the incense; they get the fragrance of Christ in you. They used to be your friends, but now they just don't come around anymore. You became a Christian, and now you don't talk like them. You don't hang out and do the cool things you used to do. You're not interested in the jokes. You are such a conviction upon them that they just opt out. They don't want to be around that person anymore because the fragrance of Christ in you is like the smell of death to them.

There are other people who can't help but be around you because the fragrance of Christ to them is one of joy and life. And Paul says, who is sufficient for these things? For we are not as many who corrupt the word of God, but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God, we speak in Christ.

Paul says we are not like those who are peddlers of this message. That's what it means when we read in the King James Version about those who corrupt the word of God. We are not like them. That word "corrupt" is a term that could be used for a street salesman trying to con someone into buying something, even though they may know that it's not really that great. They want you to buy it because it's going to make them money. There were people, and Paul says there were many who used the gospel, peddled the gospel for their own fame, for their own money, for their own power, whatever they did.

They use the good news of the gospel to try and get something. He says, "Listen, I'm not like one of those." What is he doing here? He's answering some in Corinth who are saying the only reason Paul does this is that he's greedy for gain. He's trying to get something from us—money, fame, power, or something. Paul says, "Yes, there are many who are like that. I am not one."

Now, fast forward 2,000 years later. There are many today in the world who peddle God's word and the gospel for their monetary gain, their fame, or their power, whatever it may be. Yes, there are some out there that are like that. Paul says, "That's not us." How do we know? Well, notice what he says at the end of verse 17.

"But, as of sincerity, when I preach the gospel to you," Paul says, "it's out in the open. It's judged by light. It's where everybody can see it and examine it and see what I am saying. I have no hidden meanings, as we saw two weeks ago. I have nothing that I'm trying to slide in there under the surface as I'm preaching this. I do it out in the open. And, not only that, I do it as of God. It is God who does this through me. It is His message, not mine. It's Christ's gospel."

Not only that, he says, "I do it in the sight of God." He recognized that God was his ultimate judge. One day, he says, "I will stand before the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the judge of all things, who will judge me for what I have said." These con artists, these peddlers that Paul was speaking of, he says, "They don't have that recognition. They will stand before God for judgment one day."

So, what we do, we do out in the open, in the light, by the power of God, before God as our judge.

In verse 1 of chapter 3, he asks, "Do we again commend ourselves, or need we, as some others—perhaps those peddlers he's speaking of—do we need as some others, epistles of commendation to you or letters of commendation from you?" He says, "I preach out in the open, in the light, by the power of God, before God as my judge, not that I need to even answer to you or commend myself and my ministry before you."

Yes, there are some false apostles who show up on your doorstep, he says, and when they come to your church, they come with...

Letters of recommendation and letters of reference from Jerusalem say, "Look, here we are." Then you might say, "Well, Paul the Apostle, you know who he is?" They respond, "Well, he doesn't have any letters of recommendation like we do." Did he show up with a letter of reference? No, he didn't. Well, we have letters of reference. Oh, wow, you do, huh?

When they left, they said, "Hey, you know, we're going on to the next city. Would you give us a letter of reference so when we go there they can say, 'Look, look at what we did at Corinth. They wrote us a letter.'" Paul says, "I'm not like those guys who need a letter of reference or recommendation." Why?

In verse 2, he states, "You, Corinth, you are our epistle, our letter, written in our hearts, known and read of all men." Paul emphasizes that he needs nothing of the sort. The genuineness of his ministry is seen in the fact that there is a church called the Church at Corinth. "You are the endorsement of this ministry. You are proof enough of my sincerity in ministry," says Paul.

In verse 3, he continues, "For as much as you are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not in tables of stone but in fleshly tables of the heart." He asserts, "You, Church at Corinth, you are Christ's letter for all men to see the truth of the gospel."

Now, once again, we are confronted with a sobering reminder. We, like the Church at Corinth 2,000 years ago, are living epistles of Christ. Whether we like it or not, we as Christians are walking advertisements for Jesus wherever we go. God has, by the mere fact that He has saved us and brought us into His family, made us walking advertisements for Him.

At work, at school, on the ball field, in your neighborhood, wherever you are, whether you like it or not, you are a living letter of Jesus. They may never read this, but they'll see you; they'll see me. That's a pretty heavy, sobering reality. One Bible commentator wrote, "The honor of Christ is in the hands of His followers." We judge a shopkeeper by the kind of goods that are sold. We judge a craftsman by the kind of articles that are produced.

We judge the church by the kind of men and women that it creates. Therefore, we judge people, or judge Christ, by His followers. Another famous preacher said that the greatest handicap the church has ever had has been the unsatisfactory lives of professing Christians. Ouch. Those are challenging words, aren't they?

Now, as we prepare to go in just a few minutes, I've dropped this bomb on you. When you leave these doors, you go outside of here. People you don't even know know that you're a Christian. They're watching you, and you're a walking advertisement for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. When they see you, they're expecting to see what it means to be a Christ-like individual because that's what "Christian" means.

With that on your mind, think about your life this last week. It's challenging. You may be thinking at this point, "I didn't sign up for this. I didn't see the fine print here." What do you mean? I just thought I was going to be a part of this church and come here on Sunday. But what do we mean that I'm going to go out here and people are going to see my life and say, "That's what it means to be a Christian?" Sign up for that? I can't do that.

Back up just a little bit. Look at chapter 2, verse 16, the very end: "Who is sufficient for these things?" Now look at chapter 3, verse 4: "And such trust we have through Christ towards God." What does Paul say? This is a heavy reality, so we have to trust God.

Verse 5: I highly recommend that you memorize verses 5 and 6. "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as being of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God, who has made us able ministers of the New Testament, from the New Covenant. Not of the letter, but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life."

He, as we trust in Him, enables us to be the right kind of ministers of the gospel. Just take the word "ministers" out of there, put a blank, and fill it in. He, God, has made us able husbands, guys, for the glory of God. He has made us able parents for the glory of God. He has made us able employees as engineers.

For construction workers, or whatever it may be, He has made us able for the glory of God. Paul recognized his insufficiency, and this is what made Paul great. Alan Redpath once said, "God reduces a man to a minimum in order that he might use him for the maximum."

You see, if you come into the body of Christ saying, "Hey, Lord, when you saved me, you really got a good one. We're going to do a lot for you," or if you come in saying, "Hey, I got this. I'm going to be a walking advertisement for Jesus. Right on. I can do it," I guarantee you, God is going to bring things into your life to bring you down to the place where you say, "I can't do this."

1 Corinthians 1 says, "Not many mighty, not many strong. He's chosen the weak things of this world to confound the wise, the strong." Why? That our focus would be on Him and not on the people.

In the Old Testament, one of the titles used for God is El Shaddai. How many of you have heard that before? It speaks of the Almighty God. Many ancient rabbis used to describe El Shaddai by saying, "The all-sufficient one." He is the all-sufficient one on behalf of us, the insufficient ones.

We're insufficient, and the quicker we can come to that recognition and say, "I can do nothing apart from Him," the more we come to find the glorious truth that we can do all things through Him who gives us strength. It is there that God gets the greatest glory. Our greatest inability is found when we're unable to recognize our insufficiency apart from God's almighty enabling power.

But when we come to the place where we recognize and honestly say, "Without Him, I can do nothing," it is there that we find the strength needed to be able husbands, wives, parents, employees, Christians, and ministers. Amen?

Let's stand and pray. Amen.

Father, Your word is challenging. It's living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword. It cuts deep and divides between joint and marrow, soul and spirit. It's a discerner of the thoughts and the intents of our hearts.

Lord, we need, by Your grace and power, the ability, as You supply by Your Spirit, to shine as lights in this world. Enlighten us. Lord, burn brightly through us. Help us to decrease that You would increase, so that people would see and glorify You, our Father in Heaven.

We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Ahead, Faith. Amen. Thank you.