Regeneration-2 Cor 4:7-17

• What is your treasure (2 Cor 4:6)? Your jar of clay (2 Cor 4:7)? How much time and thought do you give to each?
• Do you suffer/die [forfeit your life] to give life (2 Cor 4:8-9)? What should you “always” do (2 Cor 4:10-12)? How? What will it cost you? With what result?
• Do you speak what you believe (2 Cor 4:13)? What do you believe?
• What is your basis of confidence? Your eschatology (2 Cor 4:14; 5:10)? Your purpose of life? Your doxology (2 Cor 4:15)?
• Is there a difference between your “outwardly” and “inwardly” (2 Cor 4:16-17)?
• How do you fix your eyes on the invisible / eternal and not the visible / temporary (2 Cor 4:18)?

[Dying Gives Life] Always choose suffering, death and judgment; (2 Cor 4:10-12; 5:10). Acknowledge the certainty of your own death. But if you don’t confront the painful reality of death, decay and suffering, you’ll be unprepared when [not if!] you or a loved one suffers or dies. Don’t avoid, but face and choose how you suffer and die daily. God wants to meet you at these points of your deepest need. But He can’t if you choose not to face this glaring reality.

How to be a blessing. We can never be a blessing to others in terms of our natural abilities and gifts. We need to have a deep union and communion with the crucified and risen Christ (1 Cor 2:2), so that the communication to others, although it comes through us (2 Cor 5:11), is really a communication of Christ himself. There can be no fruitfulness in service for Christ until we are prepared to die (Lk 9:23; Jn 12:24).

A brief summary of what the Christian life is: “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;to be made new in the attitude of your minds;and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body.’In your anger do not sin‘” (Eph 4:22-26).

4 things no one can ever avoid in life–regardless of whether you are rich or poor, gifted or not. This Sun (4:7-18) and next Sun (5:1-10) we will adress these 4 fun topics: suffering, dying, death and judgment. I use the word “fun” not as a joke but intentionally because they are positive elements that enhance and enrich your life. How so? Any suffering–even unjust suffering and tragedy–makes you stronger/better and death no longer has any power over anyone who is in Christ (1 Cor 15:54-55).

[Paradoxical] Contrasts (4:7-5:9):

1. Preach not ourselves but Christ as Lord (2 Cor 4:5).
2. Darkness and light (2 Cor 4:6).
3. Treasure in jars of clay (2 Cor 4:7).
4. Death and life (2 Cor 4:12).
5. Outwardly / inwardly (2 Cor 4:16).
6. wasting away / renewed
7. Light / far outweighs them all (2 Cor 4:17).
8. momentary / eternal
9. troubles / glory
10. Earthly tent / building from God (2 Cor 5:1).
11. destroyed / eternal
12. Unclothed / clothed (2 Cor 5:2-4).
13. mortal / life (2 Cor 5:4).
14. Being at home in the body and away from the body (2 Cor 5:6, 8).
15. Being away from the Lord and at home with the Lord (2 Cor 5:6, 8).

Contrast a priceless jewel with an earthen jar. A fragile brittle jar is what our body is. It’ll completely break one day. This is a stark reality as I age. My mind slows. My body aches. I feel weaker. It’s harder to drive at night. It’s hard to fall asleep. I can’t do any pull ups any more. My body is decaying and dying before my eyes. But Christians have a priceless treasure (2 Cor 4:6), which displays the power of God (2 Cor 4:7).

What is “this treasure“ (2 Cor 4:7a)?

• “the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ” (2 Cor 4:6).
• “the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ” (2 Cor 4:4).
• Paul’s ministry of proclaiming the gospel of the glory of God (2 Cor 4:4,6).

What are “jars of clay” (2 Cor 4:7b)? It implies somthing fragile, inferior, expendable, prone to breakage, chipped and cracked. It is weak. What then is Paul’s picture of himself?

• His own pitiful weakness and the great power of God. A defeated but joyous prisoner marching in God’s triumphal procession (2 Cor 2:14).
• His lowliness like a small, cheap pottery lamp, lacking beauty and value.
• His expendability. Once broken no one would mend them, but simply discard them.

Present suffering and future glory (4:7-5:10). Paul’s glorious ministry is of the Spirit (2 Cor 3:7-11) with the glory of God shining in his heart (2 Cor 4:6). Next he explains the power of God in man’s weakness–his life in the context of suffering and weakness (2 Cor 4:7-5:10): he has this treasure in a fragile jar of clay.

• He states this as a general principle (2 Cor 4:7),
• illustrates it (2 Cor 4:8-9), restates it as a principle (2 Cor 4:10-12), and
• despite all difficulties he continues with a ‘spirit of faith’ (2 Cor 4:13-15).
• Sufferings -> outwardly wasting away, yet inwardly renewed day by day with eyes fix on ‘an eternal glory’ (2 Cor 4:16-18). What it means (5:1-10).
• If ‘the earthly tent’ we now live in is destroyed, God will provide us with ‘an eternal house in heaven’ (2 Cor 5:1-5).
• He confidently aims to please God, because ‘we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due to us’ (2 Cor 5:6-10).

Power [made perfect] in weakness (2 Cor 12:9) is the chief theme that unites 2 Cor. “But we have this treasure in jars of clay” (2 Cor 4:7a). It’s in every Ancient Middle Eastern home. They’re cheap and easily broken. Unlike metal (can be repaired) or glass vessels (can be melted down and reused), once broken, clay jars are discarded. They had little intrinsic value, like earthenware oil-lamps sold cheaply in the market-places. So, ‘the light of the knowledge of God‘s glory displayed in the face of Christ‘ (2 Cor 4:6) is the treasure, while the frail apostles are the earthenware lamps from whom the light shines. If Paul claims such a glorious ministry, why is his life marked by weakness and suffering? Paul says, “we have this treasure in jars of clay.”

Power is from God, not us. Treasure cf. clay jars “show that this all–surpassing power is from God and not from us” (2 Cor 4:7b). From his afflictions in Asia Paul knows ‘not to rely on ourselves  but on God, who raises the dead’ (2 Cor 1:9). So ‘our competence comes from God‘ (2 Cor 3:5). What does this all-surpassing power coming from God mean?

4 paradoxical statements illustrate this principle (2 Cor 4:7) in 4 seemingly hopeless situations/difficulties (2 Cor 1:8-9). It shows Paul’s own incapacity/limitations [fragile jar] and God’s transcending power [priceless treasure].

1. “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed” (2 Cor 4:8a) reflects the vulnerability of Paul/his coworkers and the power of God which sustains them. “Hard pressed [pressured]…crushed” are similar in meaning. So, while God allows him to be hard pressed, by his power God saves Paul from being completely crushed.
2. “Perplexed, but not in despair” (2 Cor 4:8b). So, while he is often perplexed [cornered], because of God’s power at work in him he doesn’t succumb to despair. He learnt from past experience (2 Cor 1:8) not to despair, as ‘this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God’ (2 Cor 1:9).
3. “Persecuted, but not abandoned” (2 Cor 4:9a). ‘to abandon’ (enkataleipo): Demas abandoned Paul in prison (2 Tim 4:10); those who abandoned him at his defence before Caesar (2 Tim. 4:16); and Jesus abandoned by God on the cross (Mt 27:46). While Paul was often persecuted in his ministry, he was never abandoned by God.
4. “Struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Cor 4:9b) – like a soldier struck down but not killed by his opponent. It may be physical violence, but God hadn’t allowed him to perish (2 Cor 1:10; 11:22-33; Acts 14:19-20).

What are you willing to lose for Christ?

1. “We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body” (2 Cor 4:10). Death (nekrosin)–dying or dead [Sarah’s infertility: ‘Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead – since he was about 100 years old – and that Sarah’s womb was also dead‘ (Rom 4:19).] As Paul carries around the dying of Jesus in his body, he experiences the life of Jesus. All Paul’s sufferings would lead to his martyrdom, as Jesus’ afflictions led to his death. Thus, Paul’s sufferings (2:8-9) are similar to Christ’s (Col. 1:24), except his vicarious death as an atoning sacrifice.
2. “For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body” (2 Cor 4:11) is similar: “being given over to death for Jesus’ sake” (2 Cor 4:11) is to ‘carry around in our body the death of Jesus’ (2 Cor 4:10), and so that “his life may also be revealed in our mortal body” (2 Cor 4:11) parallels ‘so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body’ (2 Cor 4:10).

Paul “given over to death for Jesus’ sake” (2 Cor 4:11)–verb (paradidomi): God handing Christ over to death for our sins (Rom 4:25; 8:32). Paul’s suffering and death were caused by those who persecuted him (unbelieving Jews and Gentiles). But just as God handed Christ over to suffering and death for our salvation, so God handed Paul over to the same so that the life of Jesus may be revealed in him, and when death was at work in him, life was at work in them (2 Cor 4:12).

“So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you” (2 Cor 4:12) advances 2 Cor 4:10-11. Daily exposure to death was Paul’s life and Jesus’ life. This worked through him to bring life to others. ‘Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church’ (Col 1:24). It was through Paul preaching the gospel in the power of the Spirit, in the midst of persecution and suffering, that Jesus’ life was mediated to others. Believe and speak. “It is written: ‘I believed; therefore I have spoken‘” (2 Cor 4:13a; Ps 116:10). The psalmist trusted that God heard his cry for mercy in his distress and sorrow. So “since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak” (2 Cor 4:13b). Despite difficulties in ministry, Paul operates with the same spirit of faith as the psalmist in the midst of his distress, and in this faith Paul speaks–proclaiming God’s word (2 Cor 2:17). The “spirit of faith” (2 Cor 4:13b)–like the psalmist–is his faith in God unshaken despite his sufferings.

Rise from death. “Because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus” (2 Cor 4:14a). Paul’s faith was strengthened by “knowing” that if his sufferings intensify and results in death, God who raised Jesus from the dead will also raise him along with Jesus. ‘For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him’ (1 Th 4:14). Jesus’ resurrection is the firstfruits–the sign of the full harvest to follow (1 Cor 15:20-23). God, who raised Jesus as the ‘firstfruits’ from the dead, shall surely raise us as part of the ‘full harvest.’ This encouraged Paul in the midst of his difficulties (Rom 8:11, 17).

“And present us with you to himself” (2 Cor 4:14b). God will present us, not to himself, but to Christ as ‘a pure virgin’ to Christ, their ‘one husband’ (2 Cor 11:2). Resurrection is not an end but leads to immortality. Paul looks forward to the day when, being raised up, he will be presented along with his converts to Christ in the presence of God (2 Cor 1:14; Phil 2:16; 1 Th 2:19).

Purpose of Paul’s preaching and suffering: “all this is for your benefit so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God” (2 Cor 4:15). It’s both the penultimate (for your benefit) and the ultimate (to the glory of God) purposes of Paul’s ministry. We do not lose heart (4:16-18). “Therefore we do not lose heart” (2 Cor 4:16a, 1) refers back to 2 Cor 4:14-15–Paul’s confidence that the one who raised Jesus from the dead will also raise him on the last day, and in his ministry, accompanied though it was with many afflictions, was the means by which God’s grace was reaching more and more people.

Outer man dies. “Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day” (2 Cor 4:16b). Lit.: ‘But if our outward man wastes away, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.’ Dualistic view of ‘outer man,’ ‘inner man’–inner nature (soul) is good and destined for immortality, but the outer nature (body) is evil and destined to pass away. Cf. Paul’s eschatology, not a disembodied soul, but as a whole person with a resurrected body (1 Cor 15:35-38; 2 Cor 5:1-5). ‘The outer man’ wasting away is being hard pressed, perplexed, persecuted, struck down, and given over to death (2 Cor 4:8-11); great pressure beyond his ability to endure, despairing of life itself (2 Cor 1:8-10); imprisonment, floggings, exposure to death, 40 lashes minus 1, beaten with rods, pelted with stones, shipwreck, constant journeying, dangers from rivers, bandits, his fellow Jews and Gentiles, dangers in the city and country, at sea, from false believers, hard labor, sleeplessness, hunger, thirst, cold, lack of clothing, and besides all this the daily pressure of his concern for all the churches (2 Cor 11:23-28). Such afflictions contributed to Paul’s ‘outer man’ wasting away–his physical body, which also afflicts his mind and spirit. The ‘outer man’ is the whole person from the standpoint of one’s creaturely mortality, whereas the ‘inner man’ is the whole person as a new creation (2 Cor 5:17), the renewed being of the believer.

“Inwardly … renewed day by day” (2 Cor 4:16b) cf. losing heart because of outwardly wasting away. Paul’s debilitating afflictions affect him ‘outwardly’: he’s hard pressed, perplexed, persecuted, struck down, being given over to death (2 Cor 4:8-11). Yet he experiences a daily renewal ‘inwardly.’ What is this inward renewal? It’s expressed in Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians: “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (Eph 3:16-19).

Why Paul doesn’t lose heart in affliction: “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Cor 4:17). Lit.: ‘For our temporary lightness of affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory that is out of all proportion [to the affliction].’ Paul’s troubles were not light nor momentary, but burdensome. They constantly accompany his ministry. Yet cf. the weighty eternal glory, they were light and momentary (Rom 8:17-23). The affliction ‘is producing‘ the glory to be revealed. Why? How? The messianic age is ushered in by the afflictions of God’s people–the birth-pangs of the Messiah (Mk 13:3-8, 17-20, 24-27; Mt 24; Lk 21). God’s gracious blessing are believers who suffer for the sake of his Son. ‘Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us’ (Rom 8:17-18; Mt 10:32-33; 2 Tim 2:11-12). It’s not that ‘by afflictions we can merit the inheritance that comes to us only by the gracious adoption of God’ [Calvin].

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Cor 4:18). Though exposed to persecution and is outwardly ‘wasting away’ (2 Cor 4:16), Paul doesn’t lose heart. He’s continuously renewed inwardly, as his eyes are fixed not on what is seen but on what is unseen. Paul isn’t contrasting things visible with those invisible, but between what is now visible and not yet visible but about to be revealed, i.e., at the revelation of Christ and his kingdom at the 2nd coming (Rom 8:24-25; Col 3:1-4; Heb 11:1-3). Resolve to not lose heart. What is now seen is transient, cf. what is presently unseen but soon to be revealed is eternal. The present world, including the Christians’ ‘outer nature,’ is subject to decay and/or corruption. The world to come–the glorious resurrection body of believers–is eternal and incorruptible (Rom 8:19-23; Phil 3:20-21).

“Afflictions are light when compared with what we really deserve. They are light when compared with the sufferings of the Lord Jesus. But perhaps their real lightness is best seen by comparing them with the weight of glory which is awaiting us.” — Arthur W. Pink.

Reference:

1. Charles Hodge. 1 & 2 Corinthians. A Geneva Series Commentary. The Banner of Truth Trust. 1857, 1859.
2. Colin Kruse. 2 Corinthians. Tyndale NT Commentaries. 1987, 2005.
3. Geoffrey Grogan. 2 Corinthians. The Glories & Responsibilities of Christian Service. 2007.
4. David Garland. 2 Corinthians. The New American Commentary. 1999.
5. Paul Barnett. The Message of 2 Corinthians. 1988.