1 Kings 19

• Jezebel (Ahab’s wife) swore to kill Elijah

• Elijah hid for his life
• The Lord appeared to Elijah and told him to anoint two kings and Elisha as prophet.
• Through these kings the Lord wiped out the rest of the Baal followers.

1 Kings 20

• Ahab, King of Israel in the north, went to battle but never completed God’s instructions so the prophets warned him of his future.

 
AHAB AND NABOTH’S VINEYARD
1 KINGS 21
1 Some time passed after these events. Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard; it was in Jezreel next to the palace of King Ahab of Samaria.

• Map
• Ahab’s winter palace.
• A vineyard, like an olive-orchard, is not just land that may have been in the family for a long time.
• It represents a high investment in many years of unfruitful care before it reaches maturity.

2 So Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, “Give me your vineyard so I can have it for a vegetable garden, since it is right next to my palace. I will give you a better vineyard in its place, or if you prefer, I will give you its value in silver.”

• Israel is sometimes portrayed in the OT as a vine under God's special care (e.g., Isa. 3:13-15; cf. Mark 12:1-12 and parallels; John 15:1-17).
• Ahab's desire to replace a vineyard with a vegetable garden is meant to be seen as symbolic of a deeper desire.
• This is a king who wants to make Israel like Egypt [see Deut. 11:10].

3 But Naboth said to Ahab, “As the Lord is my witness, I will never give my ancestors’ inheritance to you.”
4 So Ahab went to his palace resentful and angry because of what Naboth the Jezreelite had told him. He had said, “I will not give you my ancestors inheritance.” He lay down on his bed, turned his face away, and didn’t eat any food.

• His couch in front of the buffet table.

5 Then his wife Jezebel came to him and said to him, “Why are you so upset that you refuse to eat?”
6 “Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite,” he replied. “I told him, ‘Give me your vineyard for silver, or if you wish, I will give you a vineyard in its place.’ But he said, ‘I won’t give you my vineyard!’ ”
7 Then his wife Jezebel said to him, “Now, exercise your royal power over Israel. Get up, eat some food, and be happy. For I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”

• Jezebel believed that Ahab was the supreme authority in Israel, an opinion that he shared (cf. 20:42).
• They failed to acknowledge Yahweh's sovereignty over Israel.

8 So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal. She sent the letters to the elders and nobles who lived with Naboth in his city. 9 In the letters, she wrote:
Proclaim a fast and seat Naboth at the head of the people. 10 Then seat two wicked men opposite him and have them testify against him, saying, “You have cursed God and the king!” Then take him out and stone him to death.

• Jezebel apparently knew something of the Mosaic Law.
• It required two witnesses in capital offense cases (Deut. 17:6-7).
• Cursing God was a capital offense (Lev. 24:16).
• Since the king was God's anointed authority, Jezebel in effect elevated cursing the king to a crime on the same level with cursing Yahweh.
• This was inappropriate but consistent with her concept of Israel's king.
• She formed her plot in conscious disobedience to God's revealed will.
• "Every legal system can become the tool of politicians, if the values of those responsible for it have been sufficiently corrupted."

11 The men of his city, the elders and nobles who lived in his city, did as Jezebel had sent word to them, just as it was written in the letters she had sent them. 12 They proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth at the head of the people. 13 The two wicked men came in and sat opposite him. Then the wicked men testified against Naboth in the presence of the people, saying, “Naboth has cursed God and the king!” So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death with stones. 14 Then they sent word to Jezebel: “Naboth has been stoned to death.”

• Jezebel evidently executed Naboth's sons at the same time.
• 2 Kings 9:25-26 - Jehu said to Bidkar his aide, “Pick him up and throw him on the plot of ground belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. For remember when you and I were riding side by side behind his father Ahab, and the Lord uttered this pronouncement against him: 26 ‘As surely as I saw the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons yesterday’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘so will I repay you on this plot of land’—this is the Lord’s declaration.[1] .

15 When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, “Get up and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite who refused to give it to you for silver, since Naboth isn’t alive, but dead.” 16 When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite to take possession of it.

• When Ahab heard what his wife had done, he did not reprove her but took advantage of her actions and in doing so approved them.
• The most heinous act of Ahab came in the matter of Naboth.
• A king's primary responsibility was to render justice in the land [cf. 3:9].
• Ahab shockingly violated this requirement by stealing from a man he had murdered (through Jezebel)."

 
THE LORD’S JUDGMENT ON AHAB
17 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: 18 “Get up and go to meet King Ahab of Israel, who is in Samaria. He’s in Naboth’s vineyard, where he has gone to take possession of it.

• Samaria was King Ahab’s capitol.
• Jezreel was his winter palace.

19 Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Have you murdered and also taken possession?’ Then tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: In the place where the dogs licked up Naboth’s blood, the dogs will also lick up your blood!’ ”

• Even though Jezebel was behind the murder of Naboth, God held her husband Ahab responsible for it, since he should have prevented it.
• Murdering someone and taking possession of his property was a capital offense under the Law of Moses (cf. 2 Sam. 11; 12:13).
• It would be a great shame for Ahab to have his blood flow in the streets of his winter capital: Jezreel.
• It would be an even greater disgrace to have it licked up by wild scavengers, as Naboth's blood had been.

20 Ahab said to Elijah, “So, my enemy, you’ve found me, have you?”
He replied, “I have found you because you devoted yourself to do what is evil in the Lord’s sight.

•  Elijah was Ahab's "enemy" because the prophet was God's representative whom the king had decided to oppose.
• Ahab had given himself over to do evil in that he had sacrificed his own life and future to obtain what he wanted.

21 This is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to bring disaster on you and will eradicate your descendants:
I will wipe out all of Ahab’s males,
both slave and free, in Israel;
22 I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha son of Ahijah, because you have angered me and caused Israel to sin. 23 The Lord also speaks of Jezebel: ‘The dogs will eat Jezebel in the plot of land at Jezreel:
24 Anyone who belongs to Ahab and dies in the city, the dogs will eat, and anyone who dies in the field, the birds will eat.”

•  As for Jezebel, wild dogs, which normally lived off the garbage in cities, would eat her.
• Furthermore, all of Ahab's descendants would experience dishonorable deaths

25 Still, there was no one like Ahab, who devoted himself to do what was evil in the Lord’s sight, because his wife Jezebel incited him. 26 He committed the most detestable acts by following idols as the Amorites had, whom the Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites.

•  The writer's assessment of Ahab was that he was the worst ruler in Israel yet.
• He was as bad as the Amorites whom God drove out because of their wickedness (cf. Lev. 18:25-30).
• Nevertheless, Ahab was a king over God's chosen people, though not of the Davidic line.

27 When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put sackcloth over his body, and fasted. He lay down in sackcloth and walked around subdued. 28 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: 29 “Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? I will not bring the disaster during his lifetime, because he has humbled himself before me. I will bring the disaster on his house during his son’s lifetime.”[2]

• Ahab's genuine repentance, when he heard of his fate—from Israel's true King—resulted in God's relenting and lightening His sentence.
• Not Ahab but his son Joram (i.e., Jehoram) would die on Naboth's land in Jezreel (v. 19; 2 Kings 9:25-26).
• There is no indication here or elsewhere that Jezebel ever repented.

 

• The story of Naboth warns against the use of piety and legality to cloak injustice.
• It teaches that those who support the plots of a Jezebel, whether by silent acquiescence or overt complicity, share her crime.
• It is a resounding affirmation that injustice touches God, that 'as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me' (Matt. 25:40, 45), that in the cosmic order of things there is a power at work that makes for justice.
• And the story attests that there is awesome power in the conscience and protest of the individual servant of God.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 2 Ki 9:25–26.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 1 Ki 21:1–29.

David's family life was fraught with turmoil.

• His son Amnon committed a grievous act against his half-sister Tamar, leading to further family strife when Absalom, Tamar's brother, avenged her by killing Amnon (2 Samuel 13:1-29).
• Absalom later led a rebellion against David, temporarily seizing the throne.
• David fled Jerusalem but eventually regained his kingship after Absalom's death (2 Samuel 15-18).

Despite these personal and political challenges, David remained a man after God's own heart, seeking God's guidance and showing repentance when confronted with his sins.

ACTS 13
16 Paul stood up and motioned with his hand and said, “Fellow Israelites, and you who fear God, listen! 17 The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors, made the people prosper during their stay in the land of Egypt, and led them out of it with a mighty arm. 18 And for about forty years he put up with them in the wilderness; 19 and after destroying seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance. 20 This all took about 450 years. After this, he gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. 21 Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. 22 After removing him, he raised up David as their king and testified about him, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse to be a man after my own heart,, who will carry out all my will.’
23 “From this man’s descendants, as he promised, God brought to Israel the Savior, Jesus.[1]
 
David is remembered for his deep devotion to God, as reflected in the Psalms he authored.
 
PSALM 51
A PRAYER FOR RESTORATION
For the choir director. A psalm of David, when the prophet Nathan came to him after he had gone to Bathsheba.

• This is the first of fifteen consecutive psalms in Book II (42-72) attributed to David.[2]

 
 
Cleanse Me
1 Be gracious to me, God,
according to your faithful love;
according to your abundant compassion,
blot out my rebellion.
2 Completely wash away my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I am conscious of my rebellion,
and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you—you alone—I have sinned
and done this evil in your sight.
So you are right when you pass sentence;
you are blameless when you judge.
5 Indeed, I was guilty when I was born;
I was sinful when my mother conceived me.
6 Surely you desire integrity in the inner self,
and you teach me wisdom deep within.
7 Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

• “Hyssop” was a shrub with hairy stems that could be dipped into liquid, and the priests used hyssop to sprinkle blood or water on people needing ceremonial cleansing (Lev. 14:4, 6; Num. 19:6, 18; see Ex. 12:22).
• Today’s believers find their cleansing in the work Jesus accomplished on the cross (1 John 1:5–10; Heb. 10:19–25).[3]

Restore Me
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
9 Turn your face away from my sins
and blot out all my guilt.
10 God, create a clean heart for me
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

• 1986 – Wedding – Brown Bannister

11 Do not banish me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore the joy of your salvation to me,
and sustain me by giving me a willing spirit.
Use Me
13 Then I will teach the rebellious your ways,
and sinners will return to you.
14 Save me from the guilt of bloodshed, God--
God of my salvation--
and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
15 Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.

• David’s sins had affected his whole person:
• his eyes (v. 3),
• mind (v. 6),
• ears and bones (v. 8),
• heart and spirit (v. 10),
• hands (v. 14),
• and lips (vv. 13–15).
• Such is the high cost of committing sin.
• David knew this, so he asked for more than cleansing, as important as that is; he wanted his entire being to be restored so he could serve the Lord acceptably.
• He wanted the joy of the Lord within him (see v. 12) and the face of the Lord smiling upon him.[4]

 
16 You do not want a sacrifice, or I would give it;
you are not pleased with a burnt offering.
17 The sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken spirit.
You will not despise a broken and humbled heart, God.

•  David was wealthy enough to bring many sacrifices to the Lord, but he knew that this would not please the Lord and that their blood could not wash away his sins.
• David wasn’t denying the importance or the validity of the Jewish sacrificial system; he was affirming the importance of a repentant heart and a spirit yielded to the Lord (Isa. 57:15).
• God could not receive broken animals as sacrifices (Mal. 1:6–8), but He would receive a broken heart![5]

18 In your good pleasure, cause Zion to prosper;
build the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then you will delight in righteous sacrifices,
whole burnt offerings;
then bulls will be offered on your altar.[6]
 

• David was a man after God’s own heart.
• David’s sin was forgiven entirely.
• David’s lineage was the one through which God chose to send the Messiah.
• But David never got to build a home for God.

 
His reign laid the foundation for the future prosperity of Israel under Solomon.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ac 13:16–23.
[2] Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Worshipful, 1st ed., “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries, 2004), 186.
[3] Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Worshipful, 1st ed., “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries, 2004), 187.
[4] Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Worshipful, 1st ed., “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries, 2004), 188.
[5] Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Worshipful, 1st ed., “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries, 2004), 189.
[6] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ps 51.

Review:

• Genesis 12-37 - Matthew 1:1-2 - 1 An account of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:
• Abraham fathered Isaac,

Isaac fathered Jacob,
Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers,[1]

• Genesis 37 - Joseph sold into slavery by his brothers
• Genesis 38 - Matthew 1:3a – 3 Judah fathered Perez and Zerah by Tamar,[2]
• The central problem with which the chapter deals is childlessness.
• The events of the chapter must span at least 20 years, probably during which Joseph was lost to his family.
• One gets the distinct impression that ever since the Dinah incident (ch. 34) Jacob has less and less control over his family's behavior.
  
  

GENESIS 39:1-20
1 Now Joseph had been taken to Egypt. An Egyptian named Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and the captain of the guards, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him there. 2 The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master. 3 When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made everything he did successful, 4 Joseph found favor with his master and became his personal attendant.

• Joseph put in charge of a little. – go-for
• Joseph proved faithful in the little.

Potiphar also put him in charge of his household and placed all that he owned under his authority. 5 From the time that he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house because of Joseph. The Lord’s blessing was on all that he owned, in his house and in his fields. 6 He left all that he owned under Joseph’s authority; he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate.
Now Joseph was well-built and handsome.

• Son of Rachel – in his mid 20’s

7 After some time his master’s wife looked longingly at Joseph and said, “Sleep with me.”
8 But he refused. “Look,” he said to his master’s wife, “with me here my master does not concern himself with anything in his house, and he has put all that he owns under my authority. 9 No one in this house is greater than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. So how could I do this immense evil, and how could I sin against God?”
10 Although she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her. 11 Now one day he went into the house to do his work, and none of the household servants were there. 12 She grabbed him by his garment and said, “Sleep with me!” But leaving his garment in her hand, he escaped and ran outside.

• The typical male clothing in patriarchal times consisted of mid-calf-length shorts and a tunic that resembled a long tee-shirt (cf. 3:21; 37:3).
• Success in temptation depends more on character than on circumstances.
• Character rests on commitment to the will of God.
• We can see Joseph's character in his loyalty to Potiphar with regard to what his master had entrusted to his care (v. 9).
• We also see it in his responsibility to God for what belonged to someone else (v. 9).
• It is further obvious in his responsibility to God respecting his special personal calling (37:5-9; 45:5-9).
• Additionally we see it in his responsibility to God concerning his sacred vocation as a member of the house of Israel.

13 When she saw that he had left his garment with her and had run outside, 14 she called her household servants. “Look,” she said to them, “my husband brought a Hebrew man to make fools of us. He came to me so he could sleep with me, and I screamed as loud as I could. 15 When he heard me screaming for help, he left his garment beside me and ran outside.”
16 She put Joseph’s garment beside her until his master came home. 17 Then she told him the same story: “The Hebrew slave you brought to us came to make a fool of me, 18 but when I screamed for help, he left his garment beside me and ran outside.”
19 When his master heard the story his wife told him—“These are the things your slave did to me”—he was furious 20 and had him thrown into prison, where the king’s prisoners were confined. So Joseph was there in prison.[3]
 
JOSEPH IN PRISON
21 But the Lord was with Joseph and extended kindness to him. He granted him favor with the prison warden. 22 The warden put all the prisoners who were in the prison under Joseph’s authority, and he was responsible for everything that was done there. 23 The warden did not bother with anything under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him, and the Lord made everything that he did successful.[4]
 
JOSEPH INTERPRETS TWO PRISONERS’ DREAMS
GENESIS 40

• Pharoah (King of Egypt) got mad at his cup bearer and baker and had them put in prison where Joseph was.
• Joseph was assigned as their attendant for some time.
• The cupbearer and baker had dreams on the same night.
• Joseph told them the interpretation of their dreams come from God and they told him their dreams.
• The cupbearer’s dream was about a vine with 3 branches that produced grapes.
• The cupbearer squeezed the grapes into Pharoh’s cup and handed it to him.
• Joseph told him that Pharoah would restore him to his position in 3 days and he would hand him his wine.
• Joseph asked the cupbearer to remember him for this positive message because he didn’t belong there.
• The baker told Joseph his dream of 3 baskets of bread on his head the birds ate them.
• Joseph told the baker that Pharoah would hang him in 3 days and the birds would eat the flesh from his body.

20 On the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, he gave a feast for all his servants. He elevated the chief cupbearer and the chief baker among his servants. 21 Pharaoh restored the chief cupbearer to his position as cupbearer, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. 22 But Pharaoh hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had explained to them. 23 Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph; he forgot him.[5]
 
JOSEPH INTERPRETS PHARAOH’S DREAMS
GENESIS 41
1 At the end of two years Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing beside the Nile, 2 when seven healthy-looking, well-fed cows came up from the Nile and began to graze among the reeds. 3 After them, seven other cows, sickly and thin, came up from the Nile and stood beside those cows along the bank of the Nile. 4 The sickly, thin cows ate the healthy, well-fed cows. Then Pharaoh woke up. 5 He fell asleep and dreamed a second time: Seven heads of grain, plump and good, came up on one stalk. 6 After them, seven heads of grain, thin and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up. 7 The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven plump, full ones. Then Pharaoh woke up, and it was only a dream.

• The next morning, no one Pharoh’s court could interpret his dreams.
• Then the cupbearer finally remembered Joseph and told Pharoah about Joseph interpret his and the baker’s dreams and he was spot on in his interpretations.

14 Then Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and they quickly brought him from the dungeon., He shaved, changed his clothes, and went to Pharaoh.
15 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said about you that you can hear a dream and interpret it.”
16 “I am not able to,” Joseph answered Pharaoh. “It is God who will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.”,

• Pharoah tells Joseph both of his dreams and explains that no one could interpret the dreams for him.

25 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “Pharaoh’s dreams mean the same thing. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. 26 The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads are seven years. The dreams mean the same thing. 27 The seven thin, sickly cows that came up after them are seven years, and the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind are seven years of famine.
28 “It is just as I told Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do. 29 Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt. 30 After them, seven years of famine will take place, and all the abundance in the land of Egypt will be forgotten. The famine will devastate the land. 31 The abundance in the land will not be remembered because of the famine that follows it, for the famine will be very severe. 32 Since the dream was given twice to Pharaoh, it means that the matter has been determined by God, and he will carry it out soon.
33 “So now, let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man and set him over the land of Egypt. 34 Let Pharaoh do this: Let him appoint overseers over the land and take a fifth of the harvest of the land of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. 35 Let them gather all the excess food during these good years that are coming. Under Pharaoh’s authority, store the grain in the cities, so they may preserve it as food. 36 The food will be a reserve for the land during the seven years of famine that will take place in the land of Egypt. Then the country will not be wiped out by the famine.”[6]
 
JOSEPH EXALTED
37 The proposal pleased Pharaoh and all his servants, 38 and he said to them, “Can we find anyone like this, a man who has God’s spirit in him?”

• "It can hardly be accidental that in all of Genesis only Joseph is described as one who is filled with the Spirit of God."

39 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one as discerning and wise as you are. 40 You will be over my house, and all my people will obey your commands., Only I, as king, will be greater than you.” 41 Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “See, I am placing you over all the land of Egypt.” 42 Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, clothed him with fine linen garments, and placed a gold chain around his neck. 43 He had Joseph ride in his second chariot, and servants called out before him, “Make way!” So he placed him over all the land of Egypt. 44 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh and no one will be able to raise his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt without your permission.”[7]

• Pharaoh gave Joseph a wife and freedom to roam Egypt.
• Joseph began his illustrious career at the age of 30.
• Interestingly, Jesus was "about 30 years old" when He began His public ministry (Luke 3:23).
• This is only one of many similarities between Joseph's life and Jesus' life.
• By accepting Joseph's interpretation of his dreams and his advice, Pharaoh chose to humble himself under Joseph's God.
• God rewarded this humility by preserving the land of Egypt during the coming famine.
• Joseph proceed with his plan and for 7 years of abundance he stored food in all the cities of Egypt.
• They couldn’t even measure it because it was so great.
• During this 7 years of harvest, Joseph had two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.
• Then 7 years of famine came to Egypt and the people pleaded with Pharoah who quickly pointed them to Joseph.
• Joseph opened the storehouses and sold grain to all of Egypt and lands around because the famine was severe.

 
JOSEPH’S BROTHERS IN EGYPT
GENESIS 42
1 When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why do you keep looking at each other? 2 Listen,” he went on, “I have heard there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us so that we will live and not die.” 3 So ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt. 4 But Jacob did not send Joseph’s brother Benjamin with his brothers, for he thought, “Something might happen to him.”
5 The sons of Israel were among those who came to buy grain, for the famine was in the land of Canaan. 6 Joseph was in charge of the country; he sold grain to all its people. His brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the ground. 7 When Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke harshly to them.
“Where do you come from?” he asked.
“From the land of Canaan to buy food,” they replied.
8 Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him.

• Twenty-one years after his brothers sold Joseph into slavery, they "bowed down to him with their faces to the ground," in fulfillment of his youthful dreams 

9 Joseph remembered his dreams about them and said to them, “You are spies. You have come to see the weakness of the land.”
10 “No, my lord. Your servants have come to buy food,” they said. 11 “We are all sons of one man. We are honest; your servants are not spies.”
12 “No,” he said to them. “You have come to see the weakness of the land.”
13 But they replied, “We, your servants, were twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan. The youngest is now with our father, and one is no longer living.”
14 Then Joseph said to them, “I have spoken: ‘You are spies!’ 15 This is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here. 16 Send one from among you to get your brother. The rest of you will be imprisoned so that your words can be tested to see if they are true. If they are not, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies!” 17 So Joseph imprisoned them together for three days.
18 On the third day Joseph said to them, “I fear God—do this and you will live. 19 If you are honest, let one of you be confined to the guardhouse, while the rest of you go and take grain to relieve the hunger of your households. 20 Bring your youngest brother to me so that your words can be confirmed; then you won’t die.” And they consented to this.
21 Then they said to each other, “Obviously, we are being punished for what we did to our brother. We saw his deep distress when he pleaded with us, but we would not listen. That is why this trouble has come to us.”
22 But Reuben replied, “Didn’t I tell you not to harm the boy? But you wouldn’t listen. Now we must account for his blood!”
23 They did not realize that Joseph understood them, since there was an interpreter between them. 24 He turned away from them and wept. When he turned back and spoke to them, he took Simeon from them and had him bound before their eyes. 25 Joseph then gave orders to fill their containers with grain, return each man’s silver to his sack, and give them provisions for their journey. This order was carried out. 26 They loaded the grain on their donkeys and left there.
 
THE BROTHERS RETURN HOME
27 At the place where they lodged for the night, one of them opened his sack to get feed for his donkey, and he saw his silver there at the top of his bag. 28 He said to his brothers, “My silver has been returned! It’s here in my bag.” Their hearts sank. Trembling, they turned to one another and said, “What has God done to us?”

• The brothers returned to Jacob and told him everything Joseph had said to them.

35 As they began emptying their sacks, there in each man’s sack was his bag of silver! When they and their father saw their bags of silver, they were afraid.
36 Their father Jacob said to them, “It’s me that you make childless. Joseph is gone, and Simeon is gone. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything happens to me!”

• Each time Jacob's sons had left home, they returned with more money—but minus a brother.
• Did Jacob think they had sold Simeon?

37 Then Reuben said to his father, “You can kill my two sons if I don’t bring him back to you. Put him in my care, and I will return him to you.”
38 But Jacob answered, “My son will not go down with you, for his brother is dead and he alone is left. If anything happens to him on your journey, you will bring my gray hairs down to Sheol in sorrow.”[8]

• This story is about repentance.
• Repentance is still necessary for today.
• Repentance is the changing of the mind about something.
• God leads us to repentance through his kindness.
• Romans 2:4

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Mt 1:1–2.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Mt 1:3.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ge 39:1–20.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ge 39:21–23.
[5] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ge 40:1–23.
[6] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ge 41:1–36.
[7] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ge 41:37–57.
[8] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ge 42:1–38.

67 AD (4 years later)

• Paul is in prison in Roman
• Nero has been persecuting the believers in Rome.
• Believers are staying clear of Paul.
• No one came to support Paul in his preliminary hearing.
• Luke visits Paul and pens the letter for Paul.
• Paul knows his time is near.
• Paul warns Timothy about those who will fall away from the faith.
• Needs to encourage Timothy to keep discipling.

 
BE STRONG IN GRACE
2 TIMOTHY 2
1 You, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
 -   Be

• strong (dunamus = power) – empowered with grace
• To be enabled
• We are empowered by Jesus… not our own strength.
• Continuous active cooperation & dependence with Jesus

2 What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
 -   Thankful to be gone occasionally.

• Keith, Matt, Doug, Phil, Shannon, Luke, Scott and others are incredible at teaching.
• We had 16 people at our Logos class on Tuesday.
• “Faithful”… not ordained.
• We do not test modern teachers by popularity, education, or skill.
• We test them by the Word of God, particularly the doctrines of grace given by Paul.[1]
• You are encouraged to do ministry here.
• Hand off… Figure this thing out… Go… Go…

3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

• We are in a spiritual battle.
• It is all around us.

4 No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the concerns of civilian life; he seeks to please the commanding officer.

• Stay focused… don’t be distracted with nonsense.
• Our time can be consumed with “good things”…
• Bump that up to “excellent things”.
• Choose the right priorities.

5 Also, if anyone competes as an athlete, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.

• Romans were enthusiastic about their sports.
• Fishers Basketball won Sectionals – Rob Bell
• An Olympic athlete swore an oath to a statue of Zeus that they had physically trained for at least ten months.

6 The hardworking farmer ought to be the first to get a share of the crops.

• Planting and nurturing leads to a harvest.
• All three illustrations teach us that faithfulness is a huge portion of the formula that leads to reward.

7 Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

• Caught vs Taught
     - Avitar –
              Neytiri: Why save you? 
              Jake Sully: Yeah, why save me? 
              Neytiri: You have a strong heart. No fear. But stupid! Ignorant like a child! 
              Jake Sully: Well, if I'm like a child, then maybe you should teach me. 
              Neytiri: Sky People cannot learn, you do not see. 
              Jake Sully: Then teach me how to see. 
              Neytiri: No one can teach you to see

8 Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead and descended from David, according to my gospel,

• The mention that Christ 'descended from David' shows that Christ has messianic qualifications and is the heir to the glorious promises of God for David.
• 2 Samuel 7:11-14 - “ ‘The Lord declares to you: The Lord himself will make a house for you. 12 When your time comes and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up after you your descendant, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son.”[2]
• “my gospel” – This message had been entrusted to Paul.
• The Truth is being distorted… among the Church… Facebook

9 for which I suffer to the point of being bound like a criminal. But the word of God is not bound.

• Paul had been the chief suppressor & oppressor of Christianity.
• Now he has suffered the most due to his gospel.

10 This is why I endure all things for the elect: so that they also may obtain salvation, which is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory. 11 This saying is trustworthy:
For if we died with him, (positive)
we will also live with him; (positive)
12 if we endure, we will also reign with him; (positive)
if we deny him, he will also deny us; (negative)

• Great White Throne Judgment (nonbelievers) of the Judgment Seat (believers).

13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful,
for he cannot deny himself. (negative)

• Jesus will fulfill His Word either way.
• No matter what your choice may be.

 
AN APPROVED WORKER
14 Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to fight about words. This is useless and leads to the ruin of those who listen.

• What are subjects that are causing Christians to “split hairs”?
• Reformed Theology; Evolutionism, End times/
• What about Law & Grace?

15 Be diligent to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth.

• Just as a construction worker can point out “bad work”… so can a teacher.

16 Avoid irreverent and empty speech, since those who engage in it will produce even more godlessness, 17 and their teaching will spread like gangrene. Hymenaeus (Hi-ma-knee-us) and Philetus (fill-eat-us) are among them.

• Paul had already turned Hymenaeus over to satan in 1 Timothy 1:20.
• Get to a point where you can distinguish “religious talk” vs truth.
• Gangrene is described as a sore that eats at the flesh.
• There is a difference between “getting into the weeds” of the Word vs the Word being active in nourishing others.
• How are we helping people (each other) if we just sit here on Sunday morning and study the Word?
• Spiritual constipation.

18 They have departed from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and are ruining the faith of some.

• Certain carryovers from their pagan religions.
• Spiritual resurrection – sinless perfection?

19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, bearing this inscription: The Lord knows those who are his, (Numbers 16:5) and let everyone who calls on the name of the Lord turn away from wickedness.

• We still have to make choices.
• Repentance – change your mind about your behavior.
• Who leads us to repentance? Romans 2:4 – “Or do you despise the riches of his kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?”[3]

20 Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also those of wood and clay; some for honorable use and some for dishonorable. 21 So if anyone purifies himself from anything dishonorable, he will be a special instrument, set apart, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.

• Those who become students of the Truth vs.
• Those who have a lack of commitment to study & even proclaim false truths.
• There will be a separation here on earth… not a salvation issue.

22 Flee from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.

• Youth movements: Veganism, peace, etc. Passion, reformed theology…
• 18-34 years old are more agenda driven
• Typically, in relation to the media/social networks
• They determine what is cool, what is right/wrong and what we tend to focus on in the world.

23 But reject foolish and ignorant disputes, because you know that they breed quarrels.

• These questions are going to be brought before you…
• Calvinism vs Arminianism
• Predestined vs Free Will
• Preterist vs Futurist
• Law vs Grace

24 The Lord’s servant must not quarrel, but must be gentle to everyone, able to teach, and patient, 25 instructing his opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance leading them to the knowledge of the truth. 26 Then they may come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.[4]

• Who grants repentance? God does…

Through His kindness…

• Should I defriend blatant sinners on Facebook?
• There is a difference between acceptance & teaching with gentleness.
• How will those who have a sinful nature or are walking in their flesh ever come to know how much Jesus loves them?
• How will the addicted ever come to know how much Jesus loves them?
• How will a left-wing liberal tree-hugging hippie ever come to know how much Jesus loves them?
• How will the staunch right-wing, good doing, 10 commandment card carrier ever come to know how much Jesus loves them?
• It certainly will not be because of the Westboro Baptist Church in Kansas City.
• Why would the younger generation want to have anything to do with that type of religious condemnation?
• How do I engage them in conversation enough to intrigue them?
• The focus has to remain on Jesus alone.

[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 245). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 2 Sa 7:11–14.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ro 2:4.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 2 Ti 2:1–26.

• We start today with the 2nd part of Paul’s “Fool’s Speech”.
• Paul is continuing to explain his weakness.

 
PAUL AND THE FALSE APOSTLES
2 CORINTHIANS 11
32 In Damascus, a ruler under King Aretas guarded the city of Damascus in order to arrest me. 33 So I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped from his hands.[1]

• Paul had to escape the city in one of the lowest forms of exiting guarded city.
• There was no parade for Paul.

 
SUFFICIENT GRACE
2 Corinthians 12
1 Boasting is necessary. It is not profitable, but I will move on to visions and revelations of the Lord.

• Paul was “boasting” in the previous verses because that is what the professional speakers did.
• But Paul chose to boast about his weaknesses rather than his strengths which is totally opposite of the talented speakers.
• But now Paul is actually boasting about something positive.

2 I know a man in Christ who was caught up to the third heaven fourteen years ago. Whether he was in the body or out of the body, I don’t know; God knows.

• Paul is referring to himself but speaking in 3rd person because he doesn’t want to talk about himself like the “super Apostles”/false teachers.
• The Jews of the day in apocalyptic literature believed that there was a heavenly Jerusalem, and that heavenly Jerusalem had a heavenly tabernacle or temple, and it was laid out like the earthly tabernacle or temple.
• In fact, Hebrews talks about this in Hebrews 8, saying that when Moses built the tabernacle, he did it on the basis of looking into heaven itself, seeing the heavenly tabernacle, and kind of sketching that out and using that as the design for the earthly tabernacle.
• So here, Paul is giving that kind of Jewish apocalyptic idea of making this trip to heaven, and it seems that when he describes this experience, he is snatched up into the very presence of God, right into the throne room of God in heaven.
• God also honored Paul by taking him to heaven, and then sending him back to the earth again.
• This marvelous experience had taken place fourteen years before the writing of this letter, which would place the experience in about the year 43 AD.
• This would be the period in Paul’s life between his departure for Tarsus (Acts 9:30) and his visit from Barnabas (Acts 11:25–26).
• There is no record of the details of this event, and it is useless for us to speculate.[2]
• That’s the significance of the third heaven.[3]

3 I know that this man—whether in the body or out of the body I don’t know; God knows--4 was caught up into paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a human being is not allowed to speak. 5 I will boast about this person, but not about myself, except of my weaknesses.

• Paul says the words are inexpressible because he does not want to focus on this story being about him and his experience.
• This is opposite of what the false teachers would have spoken about.
• The false teachers would have spoken about all the things they have experienced first-hand.
• It could also mean that God spoke words that could only be heard in heaven.
• If most people experienced this visit to heaven, they would have told people immediately.
• Paul waited 14 years to mention it.

6 For if I want to boast, I wouldn’t be a fool, because I would be telling the truth. But I will spare you, so that no one can credit me with something beyond what he sees in me or hears from me, 7 especially because of the extraordinary revelations. Therefore, so that I would not exalt myself, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to torment me so that I would not exalt myself.

• The word “thorn” is actually referenced a few other times in the Scripture.
• In every case these refer to some form of opposition[4]
• It could have been a physical ailment: malaria, epilepsy or even an eye disease… or even a speech impediment.
• Possibly a psychological or mental health issue. Such as anxiety, depression or even sexual addiction.
• I personally believe that Paul is referring to his constant battle of teaching truth and being falsely accused by the Judaizers everywhere he went.
• When you look at this broader context in 11:22–12:10, if you’ll notice, the list is primarily talking about hardships involving persecution.[5]

8 Concerning this, I pleaded with the Lord three times that it would leave me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness.”

• God did not give Paul an explanation, but He gave him a promise.

Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me. 10 So I take pleasure in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and in difficulties, for the sake of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

• A beautiful ending to Paul’s “Fool’s Speech” is referring to his power is perfected in his weakness so the Good News could be advanced.
• When you get down to bottom and realize the only option you have is God… you are probably in a great spot.
• When you no longer have the ability to make the same unsuccessful choices… repeatedly…
• Then maybe it’s time to give up on you making the choices and let the holy living God who resides in you… to make your choices for you.

 
SIGNS OF AN APOSTLE
11 I have been a fool; you forced it on me. You ought to have commended me, since I am not in any way inferior to those “super-apostles,” even though I am nothing.

• Paul is speaking to a minority in the Church at Corinth.
• The majority have already gotten on board with Paul.
• He’s just referring to a few people who have continued to listen to the false teachers.
• So Paul had to speak “foolishly” because that is what they have been attracted to.
• Paul is directly saying to them, “You should have already got in line and not made me deliver this foolish message.

12 The signs of an apostle were performed with unfailing endurance among you, including signs and wonders and miracles. 13 So in what way are you worse off than the other churches, except that I personally did not burden you? Forgive me for this wrong!

• What validated great speakers/teachers in the Corinth society (an even today) is the amount of money that was given to support their ministry.
• Paul did not do this.
• He did not take money from the Church in Corinth and they saw this as an insufficiency in Paul’s ministry.
• If he would have taken the money, he would have more credibility in society.

 
PAUL’S CONCERN FOR THE CORINTHIANS

• We can understand the whole structure of 2 Corinthians on the basis of them getting ready—getting ready by embracing his authentic ministry, getting ready by taking up the collection for Jerusalem, and getting ready by dealing with the false teachers in 10–13.[6]

14 Look, I am ready to come to you this third time. I will not burden you, since I am not seeking what is yours, but you. For children ought not save up for their parents, but parents for their children.

• Paul is not planning on changing his ministry ways.
• He wants to support and give to the Church at Corinth.

15 I will most gladly spend and be spent for you., If I love you more, am I to be loved less? 16 Now granted, I did not burden you; yet sly as I am, I took you in by deceit!

• Paul is being sarcastic here.
• He is actually saying that he did opposite of what the false teachers did.
• He did not use their tactics… which they thought were honest.

17 Did I take advantage of you by any of those I sent you? 18 I urged Titus to go, and I sent the brother with him. Titus didn’t take advantage of you, did he? Didn’t we walk in the same spirit and in the same footsteps?

• He sent others to minister to them as well and they patterned their ministry after Paul as well.
• Titus and others did not take anything from the Church at Corinth.
• Everything Paul and his team of ministers did was done with integrity.

19 Have you been thinking all along that we were defending ourselves to you? No, in the sight of God we are speaking in Christ, and everything, dear friends, is for building you up.

• Paul wanted to clarify that he was not defending his ministry or style of ministry.
• He was explaining how they have done ministry with authenticity and integrity.
• It was more about the ministry to the Church than it was about Paul’s personal ministry.

20 For I fear that perhaps when I come I will not find you to be what I want, and you may not find me to be what you want. Perhaps there will be quarreling, jealousy, angry outbursts, selfish ambitions, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorder.

• Paul is wanting the Church at Corinth to all be on the same page when he arrives.
• The Church is less than 5 years old.
• The Church is made up of many different house churches and many different teachings.
• He wanted them all in unison.

21 I fear that when I come my God will again humiliate me in your presence, and I will grieve for many who sinned before and have not repented of the moral impurity, sexual immorality, and sensuality they practiced.[7]

• Paul is encouraging transparency and community.
• Moral impurity, sexual immorality and sensuality are not just Corinth’s issues.
• They seem to be every society’s issue.

This is a basic plea by Paul to stay focused on Jesus by the renewing of our minds.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (2 Co 11:1–33). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 673). Victor Books.
[3] Guthrie, G. H. (2018). NT337 Book Study: Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. Lexham Press.
[4] Guthrie, G. H. (2018). NT337 Book Study: Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. Lexham Press.
[5] Guthrie, G. H. (2018). NT337 Book Study: Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. Lexham Press.
[6] Guthrie, G. H. (2018). NT337 Book Study: Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. Lexham Press.
[7] Christian Standard Bible (2 Co 12:1–21). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.

2 CORINTHIANS 6
16 For we are the temple of the living God, as God said:
I will dwell
and walk among them,
and I will be their God,
and they will be my people.,
17 Therefore, come out from among them
and be separate, says the Lord;
do not touch any unclean thing,
and I will welcome you.,
18 And I will be a Father to you,
and you will be sons and daughters to me,
says the Lord Almighty., [1]
 
2 CORINTHIANS 7
1 So then, dear friends, since we have these promises, let us cleanse ourselves from every impurity of the flesh and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

JOY AND REPENTANCE
2 Make room for us in your hearts. We have wronged no one, corrupted no one, taken advantage of no one. 3 I don’t say this to condemn you, since I have already said that you are in our hearts, to die together and to live together. 4 I am very frank with you; I have great pride in you. I am filled with encouragement; I am overflowing with joy in all our afflictions.
5 In fact, when we came into Macedonia, we had no rest. Instead, we were troubled in every way: conflicts on the outside, fears within. 6 But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the arrival of Titus, 7 and not only by his arrival but also by the comfort he received from you. He told us about your deep longing, your sorrow, and your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced even more. 8 For even if I grieved you with my letter, I don’t regret it. And if I regretted it—since I saw that the letter grieved you, yet only for a while--9 I now rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because your grief led to repentance. For you were grieved as God willed, so that you didn’t experience any loss from us. 10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly grief produces death. 11 For consider how much diligence this very thing—this grieving as God wills—has produced in you: what a desire to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what deep longing, what zeal, what justice! In every way you showed yourselves to be pure in this matter. 12 So even though I wrote to you, it was not because of the one who did wrong, or because of the one who was wronged, but in order that your devotion to us might be made plain to you in the sight of God. 13 For this reason we have been comforted.
In addition to our own comfort, we rejoiced even more over the joy Titus had, because his spirit was refreshed by all of you. 14 For if I have made any boast to him about you, I have not been disappointed; but as I have spoken everything to you in truth, so our boasting to Titus has also turned out to be the truth. 15 And his affection toward you is even greater as he remembers the obedience of all of you, and how you received him with fear and trembling. 16 I rejoice that I have complete confidence in you. [2]

[1] Christian Standard Bible (2 Co 6:16–18). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (2 Co 7). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.

Review:

• 1) The division in the church based upon who was better (Paul, Apollos, etc.) – Answer was message is greater than the messenger.
• 2) Worldly wisdom vs spiritual wisdom
• 3) Walking according to the flesh vs walking by the Spirit
• 4) True apostles vs false apostles
  
  

THE FAITHFUL MANAGER
1 CORINTHIANS 4
1 A person should think of us in this way: as servants of Christ and managers of the mysteries of God. 2 In this regard, it is required that managers be found faithful. 3 It is of little importance to me that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I don’t even judge myself. 4 For I am not conscious of anything against myself, but I am not justified by this. It is the Lord who judges me.

• The point is, he is devaluing that which is merely human judgment.
• And it’s in that light that he says, “I don’t even judge myself,” which hardly means that he doesn’t periodically take stock of what he’s doing and how he’s doing it, but in the sense of the ultimate Judge, the only one who can declare things to be as they truly are.
• He realizes that his conscience could be clear, and yet that would not necessarily acquit him in God’s eyes.
• “A clear conscience was a sign of a faulty memory.”
• And if we were honest, we would all say that that’s true, unless we’re speaking of the conscience that is clear because we know we’ve been forgiven for our sins by Christ.[1]

5 So don’t judge anything prematurely, before the Lord comes, who will both bring to light what is hidden in darkness and reveal the intentions of the hearts. And then praise will come to each one from God.

• Our task is not to do God’s rewarding and condemning work for Him;
• Of course we are to judge others in the sense of assessing but not in the sense of the ultimate judgment reserved for God.
• We can leave the master to do His job. We can be faithful stewards.[2]

 
THE APOSTLES’ EXAMPLE OF HUMILITY
6 Now, brothers and sisters, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying: “Nothing beyond what is written.”

• If anyone can understand this popular proverb that Paul is quoting, it would be Paul himself.
• The man who not only knew God’s law but he also knew the oral law.
• But in light of the context, Paul is speaking about add-ons to the Gospel message.
• Jesus alone

The purpose is that none of you will be arrogant, favoring one person over another. 7 For who makes you so superior? What do you have that you didn’t receive? If, in fact, you did receive it, why do you boast as if you hadn’t received it?

• I have a seminary degree… that doesn’t make me any better than…
• Don’t you realize that everything you have was given to you by God?

8 You are already full! You are already rich! You have begun to reign as kings without us—and I wish you did reign, so that we could also reign with you! 9 For I think God has displayed us, the apostles, in last place, like men condemned to die: We have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to people. 10 We are fools for Christ, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are distinguished, but we are dishonored! 11 Up to the present hour we are both hungry and thirsty; we are poorly clothed, roughly treated, homeless; 12 we labor, working with our own hands. When we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; 13 when we are slandered, we respond graciously. Even now, we are like the scum of the earth, like everyone’s garbage.
 
PAUL’S FATHERLY CARE
14 I’m not writing this to shame you, but to warn you as my dear children. 15 For you may have countless instructors in Christ, but you don’t have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

• In a culture of honor and shame, the perception that Paul would have been intentionally shaming the Corinthians would have been a very serious charge; though, because of his special relationship with them, he had the right.[3]

16 Therefore I urge you to imitate me. 17 This is why I have sent Timothy to you. He is my dearly loved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you about my ways in Christ Jesus, just as I teach everywhere in every church.

• Any believer, after a number of years and life experiences and growth in Christianity, should be able to say to a young Christian or someone exploring the possibility of faith, “You want to see how a Jesus-follower lives? Watch me. Better yet, “Come, stay with me.
• Watch me 24/7, not because I am perfect in my behavior—but perfect in my Spirit.”
• Paul’s made that point powerfully. “Watch me repent.
• Watch me apologize when I have to and seek forgiveness and pick up the pieces and move on.”[4]

18 Now some are arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. 19 But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I will find out not the talk, but the power of those who are arrogant. 20 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. 21 What do you want? Should I come to you with a rod, or in love and a spirit of gentleness?[5]

• The power of the Kingdom of God is love and a spirit of gentleness.
• It is the love and gentleness that earns you the audience to hear the truth.
• Paul has earned the right to speak truth and judgment to the church at Corinth.
• Ephesians 4 talks about speaking the truth in love, and historically, Christians have not always done well with both halves of that mandate.
• Perhaps they have spoken the truth but not done so lovingly, or perhaps they have been very loving but recoiled from speaking the entire truth.[6]

 
IMMORAL CHURCH MEMBERS
1 CORINTHIANS 5

• These are difficult topics.
• These are topics that would’ve been very difficult for Paul to address in a Graeco-Roman world, where there were very few sexual taboos.
• They’re very difficult issues for us to address today as well, and the most that we can hope to do is to be faithful to Scripture as best as we understand it, recognizing that, on many controversial topics, other well-intentioned and godly believers will take different approaches.[7]

1 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and the kind of sexual immorality that is not even tolerated among the Gentiles—a man is sleeping with his father’s wife.

• The specific case at hand is a kind of incestuous behavior.
• The fact that Paul speaks of a man having his father’s wife suggests not his biological mother but probably a stepmother, and because second wives—even at times, first wives but certainly second wives—in the ancient Graeco-Roman world were often considerably younger than their husbands, it’s very possible that this is a woman who is closer in age to the father’s son than to the father himself, which could explain a sexual attraction between the two.[8]
• “Not even tolerated”
• What does our society tolerate?

2 And you are arrogant! Shouldn’t you be filled with grief and remove from your congregation the one who did this?

• The Corinthian church has not reacted, not reacted properly.
• In fact, they have reacted profoundly improperly by being proud of the fact that this is going on.
• By what contorted logic could they see this as a matter of pride?
• “Love is love.” = I can do whatever because it is love. (agape, philo, eros, etc.)
• TV – Lucy & Ricky, Soap, Cuties…
• What do we tolerate?
• And probably, it has to do with an issue that will come to the fore in chapter 6—namely, their misunderstanding of freedom in Christ.
• Paul will quote what appears to be a kind of a Corinthian slogan in 6:12 when he says, “All things are lawful.”
• And there is a sense, in the age that is not now under the law the way the old covenant or Mosaic period was, that that’s true, but it needs qualification as 6:12 also does: “Not all things are expedient.… Not all things build others up.”
• Clearly, this is an example that is far from a healthy exercise of any kind of Christian freedom.[9]

3 Even though I am absent in the body, I am present in spirit. As one who is present with you in this way, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who has been doing such a thing. 4 When you are assembled in the name of our Lord Jesus, and I am with you in spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus, 5 hand that one over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.

• Ancient communities were so tightly knit that formal ostracism of a disfellowshipping or even excommunicating nature was often such a shock to the system that it caused people to repent when nothing else did the trick.[10]
• Isolation

6 Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little leaven, leavens the whole batch of dough? 7 Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new unleavened batch, as indeed you are. For Christ our Passover lamb has been sacrificed.

• If it becomes “accepted behavior” it then comes with an agenda.
• The agenda will infect the whole bunch.
• One agenda here… among perfect believers who sometimes display imperfect behavior.
• Jesus

8 Therefore, let us observe the feast, not with old leaven or with the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

• So then the question is asked, if we all still sin, how can we “turn one over to Satan”?
• 1 Corinthians 4:5 - So don’t judge anything prematurely, before the Lord comes, who will both bring to light what is hidden in darkness and reveal the intentions of the hearts.
• It is a matter of the heart.
• I personally believe the difference is repentance.
• Is Jesus the agenda or is your sexuality?
• Is Jesus the agenda or is self-indulgence?
• Is Jesus the agenda or is greed?

 
CHURCH DISCIPLINE
9 I wrote to you in a letter not to associate with sexually immoral people.

• It’s here also that we learn for the first time that there was a previous letter that Paul had sent to the Corinthian church.
• We don’t know its contents beyond what is disclosed in this paragraph, and it may have been a very short letter dealing only with this topic, and because it becomes clear that it was misunderstood and corrected in what we call 1 Corinthians, it may have seemed unnecessary to anyone to save that original letter.[11]

10 I did not mean the immoral people of this world or the greedy and swindlers or idolaters; otherwise you would have to leave the world. 11 But actually, I wrote you not to associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister and is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or verbally abusive, a drunkard or a swindler. Do not even eat with such a person.

• The fact that he uses the language that he does in this context of people who are certain things, as opposed to just specific actions, suggests that he is not talking about a one-time offense.
• He is not even talking about periodic lapses, possibly over a lifetime, but a prolonged and characteristic and persistent and unrepentant celebration of an overall lifestyle that involves the various sins mentioned here.
• This, he says, is utterly inconsistent with any profession of Christian faith.[12]
• Even when Paul commands disfellowshipping, he is not referring—as the church sadly has sometimes interpreted it—to a total breaking off of contact with a given individual.
• That rarely is rehabilitative, and it rarely was in the ancient world.[13]
• I have friends who practice worldly behaviors and I am still able to say, “I love you” to them.
• I can still eat a meal with them.
• I still try to have an impact on their lives even though I don’t agree with their practices.
• How would they ever hear about the goodness of the Gospel if we totally isolate them?

12 For what business is it of mine to judge outsiders? Don’t you judge those who are inside? 13 God judges outsiders.

• I have friends who practice worldly behaviors and I am still able to say, “I love you” to them.
• I can still eat a meal with them.
• I still try to have an impact on their lives even though I don’t agree with their practices.
• How would they ever hear about the goodness of the Gospel if we totally isolate them?

Remove the evil person from among you.[14]

• Deuteronomy 17:7 – You must purge the evil from you.
• Quoting the story of Sarah with her slave Hagar and her son by Abraham, Ishmael, when they were sent out into the wilderness, Paul speaks of expelling the wicked from among you.
• These are difficult words to apply.
• Complete disassociation usually fails utterly.
• The removal of an offender from a leadership role, even as we tell them we want to be involved in your restoration, is probably the best that we can hope for, in hopes that they will sense our love as well as the seriousness of the situation and be willing to exhibit profound sorrow and a change of behavior over time.[15]
• If we see this simply as a matter of a way to be rid of a troubling person or a troubling issue, we’ve missed the point.
• The point is God’s care for individuals, His concern for restoration.
• Certain issues have to be addressed but in ways that, from the very outset, make it clear that those addressing it want the best for the person who’s being confronted and have thought through a process of restoration, of repentance, of reinstatement into fellowship, perhaps, if appropriate—sometimes it may be, sometimes not—for those in ministry, a restoration to ministry, and maybe that will be in the same congregation;
• Maybe it will be in a different one.
• These aren’t absolutes—one size fits all.
• So much depends on the issue on who has already been affected and how the offending party responds.[16]
• We mourn the sin
• We judge the sin
• We remove the sin
• We  love the person.

[1] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[2] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[3] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[4] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[5] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (1 Co 4:1–21). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[6] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[7] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[8] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[9] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[10] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[11] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[12] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[13] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[14] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (1 Co 5:1–13). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[15] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[16] Blomberg, C. L. (2017). NT334 Book Study: Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

Acts 3
HEALING OF A LAME MAN
1 Now Peter and John were going up to the temple for the time of prayer at three in the afternoon.

• Peter did all the speaking and acting, with John merely standing in the background.
• John’s presence is sometimes explained as based on the Jewish law that at least two witnesses are necessary to confirm any testimony (2 Cor 13:1).
• The practice may be traced to Jesus’ sending his disciples out on mission by pairs (Luke 10:1), a practice that still retains its wisdom and validity.
• John was his intern?
• Peter and John are often found together in Scripture.
• They were partners in the fishing business (Luke 5:10); they prepared the last Passover for Jesus (Luke 22:8); they ran to the tomb on the first Easter Sunday morning (John 20:3–4); and they ministered to the Samaritans who believed on Jesus Christ (Acts 8:14).
• Now that they were filled with the Holy Spirit, the Apostles were no longer competing for greatness, but were at last working faithfully together to build the church (Ps. 133).[1]​
• There were various accesses to the temple, some of which involved a descent.
• Whether one actually ascended or descended to the temple, the customary idiom was to “go up” for worship there.
• The time of the apostles’ visit was the “ninth” hour, three in the afternoon, i.e., the hour of prayer.
• It was also the time of the evening Tamid, one of the two sacrifices held daily in the temple.
• These had become prescribed times of prayer, and people would come to the temple at the sacrifice times to observe the ceremony and pray.
• The largest crowds would thus have been found at the times of sacrifice, as Peter and John must have been well aware; for they went to the temple for prayer and for witness.[2]

2 A man who was lame from birth was being carried there. He was placed each day at the temple gate called Beautiful, so that he could beg from those entering the temple.

• The rabbis taught that there were three pillars for the Jewish faith—the Torah, worship, and the showing of kindness, or charity.
• Alms giving was one of the main ways to show kindness and was thus considered a major expression of one’s devotion to God.
• With their minds set on worship, those who entered the temple for the evening sacrifice and prayer would be particularly disposed to practice their piety by generously giving alms to a lame beggar.[3]
• Almost placed there as “an opportunity”
• This man had been lame for over 40 years according to Acts 4:22.

3 When he saw Peter and John about to enter the temple, he asked for money.

• This sounded like a broken record.
• Repeated his begging hundreds of times a day for years.

4 Peter, along with John, looked straight at him and said, “Look at us.”

• The beggar gave them his total attention.
• He expected something in return.

5 So he turned to them, expecting to get something from them. 6 But Peter said, “I don’t have silver or gold,

• They had already given their resources to the community in Acts 2:44-45

but what I do have, I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!” 7 Then, taking him by the right hand he raised him up, and at once his feet and ankles became strong. 8 So he jumped up and started to walk, and he entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God.

• To invoke the name of Jesus is to call upon his authority and power.
• In a real sense, then, Jesus through Peter continued his healing ministry.
• With a healing touch common to miracle narratives, Peter grasped the man’s right hand and lifted him up.
• It is almost as if at this point the man needed all the encouragement he could get.11
• The man felt the new strength surging through his feet and ankles.
• He jumped to his feet and began to walk.
• With his increasing awareness of the miracle that had happened to him, he entered the sanctuary with Peter and John.
• Before, as the lame beggar, he sat in the court of the Gentiles at the gate to the sanctuary.
• Day by day he sat there at the threshold to the place of worship, but he could not enter.
• He was lame, blemished, and denied access to the inner courts (cf. Lev 21:17–20; 2 Sam 5:8).
• At this time not only had he received physical healing, but he had found spiritual acceptance as well.
• For the first time he was deemed worthy to enter the house of worship.
• This theme will repeat itself in Acts.
• Those who were rejected as unworthy for worship in the old religion of Israel found full acceptance in the name of Jesus, whether a lame beggar, an Ethiopian eunuch, a woman, or a Gentile.[4]

9 All the people saw him walking and praising God, 10 and they recognized that he was the one who used to sit and beg at the Beautiful Gate of the temple. So they were filled with awe and astonishment at what had happened to him.

• Luke (the narrator) has already established the familiarity of local people with the once lame, but now healed, man.
• The people in the temple clearly grasped that a miracle had taken place; there was no doubt about its authenticity.[5]

 
PREACHING IN SOLOMON’S COLONNADE
11 While he was holding on to Peter and John, all the people, utterly astonished, ran toward them in what is called Solomon’s Colonnade.

• Show Map of the Temple
• A shaded area along the eastern wall of the Court of the Gentiles. It was used for commerce, teaching, and conversation. Acts later records that Christians sometimes gathered there (5:12).[6]

12 When Peter saw this, he addressed the people: “Fellow Israelites, why are you amazed at this? Why do you stare at us, as though we had made him walk by our own power or godliness? 13 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our ancestors, has glorified his servant Jesus, whom you handed over and denied before Pilate, though he had decided to release him. 14 You denied the Holy and Righteous One and asked to have a murderer released to you. 15 You killed the source of life, whom God raised from the dead; we are witnesses of this.

• This was just about 8 weeks ago.

16 By faith in his name, his name has made this man strong, whom you see and know. So the faith that comes through Jesus has given him this perfect health in front of all of you.

• In his sermon at Pentecost, Peter had to refute the accusation that the believers were drunk.
• In this sermon, he had to refute the notion that he and John had healed the man by their own power.
• (Paul and Barnabas would face a similar situation after healing a lame man. See Acts 14:8–18.)
• Peter immediately identified the source of the miracle—Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
• Wisely, Peter said that this was the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.[7]
• As at Pentecost, Peter was addressing people who knew the Scriptures and were acquainted with the recent events in Jerusalem (see Luke 24:18).
• It was not a group of ignorant pagans with no religious background.[8]
• There must be conviction before a sinner can experience conversion.
• Unless a patient is convinced that he is sick, he will never accept the diagnosis or take the treatment.
• Peter turned the temple into a courtroom and laid all the evidence out for everybody to see.
• How could two ordinary fishermen perform such a great miracle unless God was with them?
• Nobody would dare deny the miracle because the beggar stood there before them all in “perfect soundness” (Acts 3:16; 4:14).
• To accept the miracle would have been to admit that Jesus Christ is indeed the living Son of God and that His name has power.[9]

17 “And now, brothers and sisters, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your leaders also did. 18 In this way God fulfilled what he had predicted through all the prophets—that his Messiah would suffer. 19 Therefore repent and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped out, 20 that seasons of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send Jesus, who has been appointed for you as the Messiah.

• But Peter did not leave the people without hope.
• In fact, he almost seemed to defend them by pointing out that they had acted in ignorance (Acts 3:17) while at the same time they had fulfilled the Word of God (Acts 3:18).
• In the Old Testament Law, there is a difference between deliberate sins and sins of ignorance (see Lev. 4–5; Num. 15:22–31).
• The person who sinned presumptuously was a rebel against God and was guilty of great sin.
• He was to be “cut off” from his people (Num. 15:30–31), which could mean excommunication and even death.
• The defiant “high-handed” sinner was condemned, but the person who sinned unwittingly and without deliberate intent was given opportunity to repent and seek God’s forgiveness.
• Ignorance does not remove the sinner’s guilt, but it does mitigate the circumstances.[10]
• The call to repentance is always included in the gospel message.
• Acts emphasizes the essential place of repentance in embracing the salvation Christ offers. See 2:38.[11]

21 Heaven must receive him until the time of the restoration of all things, which God spoke about through his holy prophets from the beginning. 22 Moses said: The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers and sisters. You must listen to everything he tells you. 23 And everyone who does not listen to that prophet will be completely cut off from the people.
24 “In addition, all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those after him, have also foretold these days. 25 You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your ancestors, saying to Abraham, And all the families of the earth will be blessed through your offspring. 26 God raised up his servant and sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your evil ways.”[12]

• Having announced the crime, presented the evidence, and explained the nature of their sin, Peter then offered them pardon!
• What a strange thing for the prosecuting attorney to become the defense attorney and the pardoning judge!
• Peter’s burden was to encourage his people to trust Christ and experience His gracious salvation.[13]
• What Peter was concerned to do was to convince his Jewish hearers that God’s covenant with Abraham was fully realized in Jesus.[14]
• What was true for the Jews in Solomon’s Colonnade still holds true today.
• Only in receiving the Christ of God by repentance and turning to him is there forgiveness, refreshing, and restoration.[15]
• It may have taken the apostles some time to fully realize the implications of the missionary imperative, but there it is.
• Peter was primarily concerned with the Jews.
• The gospel was preached to them first.

Soon it would reach far beyond the boundaries of Judaism “to all the peoples on earth.”[16]

[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 412). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[2] Polhill, J. B. (1992). Acts (Vol. 26, p. 125). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[3] Polhill, J. B. (1992). Acts (Vol. 26, p. 126). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[4] Polhill, J. B. (1992). Acts (Vol. 26, p. 128). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[5] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ac 3:10). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[6] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ac 3:11). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[7] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 412). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[8] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 413). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[9] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 413). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[10] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 413). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[11] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ac 3:19). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[12] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ac 3:1–26). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[13] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 413). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[14] Polhill, J. B. (1992). Acts (Vol. 26, p. 137). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[15] Polhill, J. B. (1992). Acts (Vol. 26, p. 135). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[16] Polhill, J. B. (1992). Acts (Vol. 26, p. 137). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.