Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God…
2 Corinthians 3
Who can say that the Christian church has ever enjoyed a golden age when sin did not cause problems? No one! The New Testament is clear that the early churches had all manner of difficulties. The church at Corinth, a prime example, proved that the believers in Corinth were capable of serious sin. Paul’s correction, rebuke of the Corinthians did have an impact. In our verses today, Paul calls the Corinthians his letter of recommendation that validated his ministry. Paul’s admonishments did not make them perfect, but it was plain enough that Paul could be confident that the congregation would be adequate evidence of his divinely appointed ministry. Paul writes, in verse 4, that he had confidence “through Christ toward God” because the Corinthians’ lives proved they were letters of recommendation from the Holy Spirit. Yet, Paul does not praise himself or argue that he is sufficient to cause such change. Only the Lord can make the work of His servants effective. Saint Augustine of Hippo, in the fourth century, writes, “Our sufficiency is from God, in whose power are our heart and our thoughts.” Paul then writes that he is a minister of the new covenant. He notes that he is a minister “not of the letter but of the Spirit.” Paul contrasts between written external letters made with ink on stone and internal letters inscribed on hearts by the Holy Spirit’s transforming work. This contrasts the law with the gospel, the Mosaic administration with the administration of Christ. To be a minister of the new covenant in the Holy Spirit is better because the Holy Spirit gives life, but the letter of the old covenant kills. Any reading of old covenant history reveals that he law brought death to Israel. The people as a whole disobeyed it flagrantly, and the end was exile, a “death” regarding God’s presence and the Israelites life in the Promised Land. Of course, sin is the culprit. Sin took God’s good law and twisted it to bring about death. The problem with the old covenant was unregenerate hearts. Many individual Israelites looked to the law not as a way of salvation but as something to obey to thank God for His grace. But the nation as a whole erred by looking to establish their own righteousness by the Law. If we try to earn righteousness by keeping the law, the law will kill us. But if we obey out of gratitude for God’s grace, we show that the Holy Spirit is at work in us.
Source: S C Ball November 26, 2023
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