SATAN’S ADVANTAGE

SATAN’S ADVANTAGE

2 Corinthians 1:23-24 (KJV)

Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not as yet unto Corinth.

Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.

2 Corinthians 2:1-11 (KJV)

But I determined this with myself, that I would not come again to you in heaviness.

For if I make you sorry, who is he then that maketh me glad, but the same which is made sorry by me?

And I wrote this same unto you, lest, when I came, I should have sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice; having confidence in you all, that my joy is the joy of you all.

For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears; not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly unto you.

But if any have caused grief, he hath not grieved me, but in part: that I may not overcharge you all.

Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many.

So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow.

Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him.

For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things.

To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ;

Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.

It seems obvious to me that the last two verses of 2 Corinthians 1 connect with the first 11 verses 0f 2 Corinthians 2.

To remind you of the flow of thought….

The Apostle had experienced some sort of terrible trial – some that had caused him to even fear for his life and had hindered him from returning to Corinth, as he had told them in the last chapter of 1 Corinthians he planned to do.

It concerned him that they might not understand why he had not come to them – mostly because he understood his testimony was a reflection upon the Lord.

He wanted to be known as a man of His word so that those he preached to also thought of God as good for his Word.

Think about how weighty this is:

·   God is true when all men are liars but

·   Many men judge God based on what they see in us

You matter.

And whether you live your spiritual life according to the teaching of the Bible matters.

Now the Word of God transitions in 2 Corinthians 1:23

Moreover….

Onto a different but related topic.

It was good that Paul had not gotten to Corinth. 

And I see these reasons why it had worked out for their good.

*I. TO PROVE HE HAD NO THE DOMINION OVER THEIR FAITH

2 Corinthians 1:23-24 (KJV)

Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not as yet unto Corinth.

Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.

One of the most common problems I see in the Christian world today is a misapplied dependence upon pastors, evangelists and missionaries.

People lean on them as if they are some sort of Gods, or else their human link to God.

And some preachers let them do it, even promote it.

I read an article the other day sent to me from my friend, Pastor Bill Marshall.

The article was titled something like, “The Too Available Pastor.”

This preacher described his day with terms that are common, if not a bit exaggerated.

·   He receives a text at 5 AM Monday from a member of the church who was blessed by the message

·   He receives a phone call at 7 from another member who was offended by the same message

·   After breakfast he receives a phone call from a family whose car was stolen overnight

·   Before lunch he receives another call from someone wishing to share a blessing he had just received.

·   Around 4 he receives a letter from someone resigning their membership in the church

·   At 5 he receives a call from a family asking if he will come over after dinner to tell them how to join the church

I have never had all of that happen in one day

Nor do any of these things happen every day

But I can tell you all of that has happened to me. 

He contrasts that to the early preachers of the United States, Men like the famous circuit riding preacher, Sheffy, who pastored I think ten churches at the same time.

The members of Sheffy’s churches expected to see him about once every three months.

He would: 

·   Come to town on a given day

·   Preach most of the day

·   Share in a meal on the grounds

·   Perhaps visit a sick member

And then be gone to his next congregation.

The interesting thing about it was that, in those days, Baptist churches especially were growing at phenomenal rates.

I think it is because Christians understood that the work of the ministry was their responsibility, not the preachers.[1]

Paul did not make it to Corinth when he said he would be there, and demonstrated that he was merely a helper in their joy and not the head of their faith.

*II. TO GIVE A SEASON FOR HEAVINESS TO EASE

2 Corinthians 2:1-4 (KJV)

But I determined this with myself, that I would not come again to you in heaviness.

For if I make you sorry, who is he then that maketh me glad, but the same which is made sorry by me?

And I wrote this same unto you, lest, when I came, I should have sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice; having confidence in you all, that my joy is the joy of you all.

For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears; not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly unto you.

Admittedly, he said some hard things in 1 Corinthians. 

They had attacked him in some issues, and he had nailed their hides about some errors in their doctrine and practice.

There was plenty of room for

·   Heaviness

·   Sorrow

·   Tears

·   Anguish and

·   Grief

A little bit of time away gave those bruises time to heal.

·   Heaviness could turn to gladness

·   Sorrow could turn to rejoicing

·   Anguish could turn to confidence

·   Grief could turn to love

Listen – don’t let things fester.

Don’t hold on to grudges and bitterness.

It had worked out for good that Paul had not come,

*III. TO PROVIDE OPPORTUNITY FOR REPENTANCE TO WORK

2 Corinthians 2:5-8 (KJV)

But if any have caused grief, he hath not grieved me, but in part: that I may not overcharge you all.

Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many.

So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow.

Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him.

Notice the phrase, “if any have caused grief.”

I am pretty sure that Paul had a specific man in mind, but he chose not to bring up the old wound by naming him.

At one point in Astoria, a GARBC church there approached me about joining our two churches together. Their pastor was about to leave and they had not been able to find a GARBC man to come.

It was a great situation – both congregations were about the same size.

They had a building but no pastor. 

We had a pastor but no building.

We did join together with me as the pastor. But the GARBC pastor remained in town for about 8 months while he candidate for another church.

We had a young couple in our church that had been part of his congregation. 

They came forward one service after I had preached a message on, “Be Sure Your Sin Will Find You Out.”

The other pastor dealt with them and they made a public confession of their sin.

Trouble was, for months after that every time I asked the other pastor to preach, he brought up this young couple’s sin.

I didn’t blame them when they finally couldn’t take it and quit.

When a person repents, everyone should pick up and move on.

Paul’s not coming to Corinth gave the church time to repent and correct their errors. Paul didn’t have to bring it back up with a new visit.

Finally, it had worked out for good that Paul had not come,

*IV. TO PROVIDE AMPLE ROOM FOR FORGIVENESS TO HAPPEN 

2 Corinthians 2:9-10 (KJV)

For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things.

To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ;

Let me just say this, forgiveness and reconciliation are two different things.

· Forgiveness is an act a Christian does on account of Christ.

· Reconciliation is an act that a Christian does on account of repentance

· To forgive is to hold no ill feelings or bitterness toward another

· To reconcile is to have fellowship with the other

I can only reconcile with them when there is sufficient evidence of repentance as to restore my trust.

But I ought to forgive anyone of anything because Christ has already suffered for their sin on the cross.

To refuse to forgive then is to reject the work of Christ on behalf of that person.

Conclusion

This section of the passage ends with this amazing passage

2 Corinthians 2:11 (KJV)

Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.

The reason forgiveness is so important – 

· That they forgive Paul for not being there

· That they make the corrections Paul preached in 1 Corinthians

· That they forgive and restore those who repented

Is because to refuse forgiveness and to hold a grudge.

To refuse fellowship once repentance is established – always works to Satan’s advantage.

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[1] Ephesians 4:11-13 (KJV)

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: