The One Year Bible Club with Teaching
Commentary by Nick Boork
Commentary by Nick Boork
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September 2 – 2 Corinthians 6:1-13
We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 3 We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed. 4 But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, 5 in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings; 6 by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, 7 by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, 8 by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true; 9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things. 11 O Corinthians! We have spoken openly to you, our heart is wide open. 12 You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted by your own affections. 13 Now in return for the same (I speak as to children), you also be open.
OKAY, HERE’S MY TEACHING COMMENTARY
Today we’re going to look at what NOW the accepted time means for us and why Paul said the first thing needed as a minister of Christ is MUCH PATIENCE.
In verse two Paul quotes Isaiah 49:8 “In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Then he adds “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
It’s as if Isaiah set a prophetic time clock set to go off when the Messiah manifested. When Jesus came and began his ministry he started by quoting Isaiah 61 which was recorded in Luke 4:17-21 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor…skip down to verse 19 to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” 20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Wow, can you imagine being present in that synagogue when Jesus said he came to fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah! But what does this mean for us today? Well, firstly it means that the Messiah that God promised to come was fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. If Jesus truly was the promised Messiah then it means both Jews and Gentiles can stop looking for the coming of the anointed one because Jesus is the promised Messiah. What would be the evidence that Jesus was the promised Messiah? Messiah means “Anointed One” and this is what Jesus said the Holy Spirit did, anointed him but for what purpose? To destroy the Romans and restore the Kingdom to Israel? No, however this was what the majority of the Jews back in Jesus day were hoping for but they were ahead of God’s timing for this as Jesus answered the apostle’s question just before ascending back to the father who sent him:
Acts 1:6-8 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Notice how the apostles mind set was still on the Messiah coming to liberate Israel? They asked will you AT THIS TIME RESTORE ISRAEL? Jesus said that yes in fact Israel would be restored to it’s preeminence but not presently. However, Jesus did enlighten them as to the kind of kingdom he was setting up and that was a spiritual kingdom. This is why he told them that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them and that’s exactly what happened when you read Acts chapter 2. The rest of the book of Acts records how the apostles and the early church preached the gospel and continued the ministry of Jesus Christ to save, heal, deliver and disciple people as followers of Christ. We know they finally got it right because the apostle Peter, when sent to preach at the household of Cornelius said this about Jesus. Acts 10:38-40 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. And we are witnesses of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed by hanging on a tree. Him God raised up on the third day…
This was the ongoing ministry of Christ that Paul was writing about here when he said in verse 2 For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. He emphasizes the word NOW twice to communicate the present tense of the time when God is doing his work of redemption in the earth. Let no one rob you of the truth that God is still doing the works of the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ through his Holy Spirit anointed people, you and me all over the earth, when? NOW is the accepted TIME the day of SALVATION, hallelujah!
NOW it the time to:
Next Paul says he gives no offense to anyone that his ministry not be blamed. He maintained his position and testimony in Christ as his ambassador no matter what he experienced. If you’re going to be a servant of Jesus there will be all kinds of difficult people and situations that come your way and plenty of opportunities to lose your cool and fall right into the devils traps to destroy your testimony. It may be surprising but the very first quality Paul mentions as a minister of Christ is MUCH PATIENCE. Why did he talk about having so much patience first? Because when pressures, temptations, trials and persecutions come your way you will have plenty of excuses to quit the ministry.
Understand that in the context of Paul’s letter he was needing to show an extra dose of patience with the believers at Corinth in particular. This was due to Paul having confronted the church over several touchy issues like divisiveness, immorality, drunkenness at the Lord’s supper and the misuse of spiritual gifts in the public worship services to mention a few. Paul was discerning that many in this church we’re having a hard time with him and some questioning and challenging his leadership. Ouch…..Hey I want to tell you this can really hurt! I mean think about it. Paul had invested his life into the planting of this church. He spent a year and a half with them and he gave them everything he had to help and bless them. Now he was thinking they might have been kind of cooling off in their love for Paul. This is why he said you’re not restricted by us but you are restricted by your own affections. In other words, it’s not a matter of me not loving you but it’s a matter of you choosing to allow your own emotions to control you.
Paul felt a parental love for these believers. They came to follow Christ through Paul’s ministry. Ever feel unloved from someone you really love? This can happen as a pastor with a church or a ministry leader in an organization. What do you do? You just have to keep loving people and believing in them but you can’t force relationships. If you’re called to be a minister of Christ serving in some type of leadership capacity then ask the Lord to give you grace to keep loving people because you’re going to need it from time to time working with some that just chose not to be kind or return the same love you give even with a pure heart.
I think this must be how our heavenly father feels after loving the world with his best and then seeing multitudes of people turn their backs on him. What does he do? GOD is LOVE!
WHAT’S THE BOTTOM LINE?
1) Isaiah prophesied the beginning of Christ ministry
2) Jesus announced he fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy as the anointed Messiah
3) The works of Jesus prove he was the “Anointed One”
4) Paul uses the same prophetic declaration of NOW is the accepted time to be saved
5) MUCH PATIENCE is required to be a minister of Christ
6) You have to keep loving people when they stop loving you.
7) Remember God is love and he loves you NOW more than ever.
PRAYER TO APPLY THE WORD OF GOD TO OUR LIVES
ORDINATION
We provide Ministry Credentials and Ordination through Diamond Ministerial Association.
Click to learn more and apply! http://www.diamondinstitute.org/ordination
ONLINE COURSES
For Bible courses and ministry resources see our online school Diamond Institute.
Enroll free today. http://www.diamondinstitute.org/enroll
We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 3 We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed. 4 But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, 5 in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings; 6 by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, 7 by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, 8 by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true; 9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things. 11 O Corinthians! We have spoken openly to you, our heart is wide open. 12 You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted by your own affections. 13 Now in return for the same (I speak as to children), you also be open.
OKAY, HERE’S MY TEACHING COMMENTARY
Today we’re going to look at what NOW the accepted time means for us and why Paul said the first thing needed as a minister of Christ is MUCH PATIENCE.
In verse two Paul quotes Isaiah 49:8 “In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Then he adds “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
It’s as if Isaiah set a prophetic time clock set to go off when the Messiah manifested. When Jesus came and began his ministry he started by quoting Isaiah 61 which was recorded in Luke 4:17-21 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor…skip down to verse 19 to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” 20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Wow, can you imagine being present in that synagogue when Jesus said he came to fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah! But what does this mean for us today? Well, firstly it means that the Messiah that God promised to come was fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. If Jesus truly was the promised Messiah then it means both Jews and Gentiles can stop looking for the coming of the anointed one because Jesus is the promised Messiah. What would be the evidence that Jesus was the promised Messiah? Messiah means “Anointed One” and this is what Jesus said the Holy Spirit did, anointed him but for what purpose? To destroy the Romans and restore the Kingdom to Israel? No, however this was what the majority of the Jews back in Jesus day were hoping for but they were ahead of God’s timing for this as Jesus answered the apostle’s question just before ascending back to the father who sent him:
Acts 1:6-8 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Notice how the apostles mind set was still on the Messiah coming to liberate Israel? They asked will you AT THIS TIME RESTORE ISRAEL? Jesus said that yes in fact Israel would be restored to it’s preeminence but not presently. However, Jesus did enlighten them as to the kind of kingdom he was setting up and that was a spiritual kingdom. This is why he told them that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them and that’s exactly what happened when you read Acts chapter 2. The rest of the book of Acts records how the apostles and the early church preached the gospel and continued the ministry of Jesus Christ to save, heal, deliver and disciple people as followers of Christ. We know they finally got it right because the apostle Peter, when sent to preach at the household of Cornelius said this about Jesus. Acts 10:38-40 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. And we are witnesses of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed by hanging on a tree. Him God raised up on the third day…
This was the ongoing ministry of Christ that Paul was writing about here when he said in verse 2 For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. He emphasizes the word NOW twice to communicate the present tense of the time when God is doing his work of redemption in the earth. Let no one rob you of the truth that God is still doing the works of the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ through his Holy Spirit anointed people, you and me all over the earth, when? NOW is the accepted TIME the day of SALVATION, hallelujah!
NOW it the time to:
- Preach the good news gospel of salvation in Christ alone by faith.
- Come to God and be accepted in His beloved Son Jesus Christ Ephesians 1:6·
- Believe on Jesus death and resurrection 1 Corinthians 15:1-4·
- Be forgiven of all sins Colossians 2:13-14·
- Be born again by the Holy Spirit John 3:3-6·
- Be healed physically 1 Peter 2:24·
- Allow the Holy Spirit to heal you emotionally Luke 4:18·
- Live free from demonic oppression Colossians 1:13·
- Be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit Acts 2:1-4, Acts 19:1-6, Ephesians 5:18·
- Do the works of Christ by faith John 14:12-14, Revelation 2:26
Next Paul says he gives no offense to anyone that his ministry not be blamed. He maintained his position and testimony in Christ as his ambassador no matter what he experienced. If you’re going to be a servant of Jesus there will be all kinds of difficult people and situations that come your way and plenty of opportunities to lose your cool and fall right into the devils traps to destroy your testimony. It may be surprising but the very first quality Paul mentions as a minister of Christ is MUCH PATIENCE. Why did he talk about having so much patience first? Because when pressures, temptations, trials and persecutions come your way you will have plenty of excuses to quit the ministry.
Understand that in the context of Paul’s letter he was needing to show an extra dose of patience with the believers at Corinth in particular. This was due to Paul having confronted the church over several touchy issues like divisiveness, immorality, drunkenness at the Lord’s supper and the misuse of spiritual gifts in the public worship services to mention a few. Paul was discerning that many in this church we’re having a hard time with him and some questioning and challenging his leadership. Ouch…..Hey I want to tell you this can really hurt! I mean think about it. Paul had invested his life into the planting of this church. He spent a year and a half with them and he gave them everything he had to help and bless them. Now he was thinking they might have been kind of cooling off in their love for Paul. This is why he said you’re not restricted by us but you are restricted by your own affections. In other words, it’s not a matter of me not loving you but it’s a matter of you choosing to allow your own emotions to control you.
Paul felt a parental love for these believers. They came to follow Christ through Paul’s ministry. Ever feel unloved from someone you really love? This can happen as a pastor with a church or a ministry leader in an organization. What do you do? You just have to keep loving people and believing in them but you can’t force relationships. If you’re called to be a minister of Christ serving in some type of leadership capacity then ask the Lord to give you grace to keep loving people because you’re going to need it from time to time working with some that just chose not to be kind or return the same love you give even with a pure heart.
I think this must be how our heavenly father feels after loving the world with his best and then seeing multitudes of people turn their backs on him. What does he do? GOD is LOVE!
WHAT’S THE BOTTOM LINE?
1) Isaiah prophesied the beginning of Christ ministry
2) Jesus announced he fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy as the anointed Messiah
3) The works of Jesus prove he was the “Anointed One”
4) Paul uses the same prophetic declaration of NOW is the accepted time to be saved
5) MUCH PATIENCE is required to be a minister of Christ
6) You have to keep loving people when they stop loving you.
7) Remember God is love and he loves you NOW more than ever.
PRAYER TO APPLY THE WORD OF GOD TO OUR LIVES
ORDINATION
We provide Ministry Credentials and Ordination through Diamond Ministerial Association.
Click to learn more and apply! http://www.diamondinstitute.org/ordination
ONLINE COURSES
For Bible courses and ministry resources see our online school Diamond Institute.
Enroll free today. http://www.diamondinstitute.org/enroll