I wonder what Paul means by this?

I sometimes wish Paul was more plain is his writing.  He tends to be a bit "flowery" and I think that sometimes obscures his meaning.  Here is an example.

2 Corinthians 8:9(NKJV)

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.

In what way did Jesus become poor?  He and His family, in an earthly sense weren't poor.  They received a lot of expensive gifts from the wise men when Jesus was born.  In addition the Bible seems to indicate that they were gainfully employed as carpenters.

Could it be that He became poor by becoming human?  If so then that may put a new twist on the whole the poor inherit the earth thing.  This will bear further study. 

"…exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation."

Here is Paul fulfilling part of my foundational verse; Romans 5:3-5.  Glory on our tribulations.  Paul uses joyful in place of glory but it is the same meaning.  As I've said before, I believe being joyful in our tribulations is simply an outward manifestation of our inner faith.   

2 Corinthians 7:4(NKJV)

Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my boasting on your behalf. I am filled with comfort. I am exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation.

"…the ministry of reconciliation…."

 

2 Corinthians 5:18-19(NKJV)

Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 

that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

What do you think that means?  How does one become reconciled to God?  Is it by continually lowering God's standards so as to attract more people?  Or is it maintaining the standards that God set and then explaining to others why it is in their best interest to submit to doing things God's way?

If you have been reading what I write for very long you already know which side of this question I am on.  God was very consistent throughout the Old Testament that He is a jealous God.  That is He will not tolerate divided loyalties; people who think they can worship the One True God and at the same time worship other gods. 

Jesus said very clearly that He did not come to bring peace.  He came to force people to choose. 

Matthew 10:34-39(NKJV)

“Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. 

For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; 

and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’  

He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 

And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 

He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

 

So in my view the ministry of reconciliation is about bringing the truth to people and encouraging them to choose Jesus.  For those who don't want to choose let them know that "not choosing" is a choice.  It is a rejection of Jesus.  The only way to become reconciled to God is through accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior. 

Have you done that yet?  If not, why not do it right now?  Just have a conversation with Jesus.  Let Him know where you are at in life and what you are looking for.  Allow Jesus into your heart and let Him guide you.  "Dear Jesus……"

"Even though the outward man is perishing…."

Man, as I age this Scripture has new meaning. 

2 Corinthians 4:16-18(NKJV)

Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 

For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 

while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

It's amazing how the body begins to break down over time.  Now I'm not deathly ill or anything.  I'm just talking about the normal process of aging.  Things begin to hurt for no reason.  Some of my joints don't work as well as they used to.  I'm not as flexible as I once was.

I thought it was just me.  Gail and I were talking the other day and it is happening to her too.  We are more careful when we bend over to pick things up.  We are more careful to make sure we don't fall, etc. 

But through it all the "inward man is being renewed day by day".  It still all goes back to the foundational verse in my life.  Romans 5:3-5.  Take joy in your tribulations!!!!!  It's just not that big of a deal in the greater scheme of things.  My grandson Rico has heard me say it so many times that it comes out of his mouth automatically as well.  No matter what happens, the response is "no big deal". 

Take joy in your tribulations!!!!!  Every day thank God for the blessings in your life and thank Him for each and every opportunity He gives you for growth (tribulations).  I believe it is that spirit that gives us the continued growth if the inward man. 

God is….Near

Just a reminder about this word study.  I couple of years ago I was contemplating the Character of God.  I was at some point in the Bible where there were multiple passages that started with God is near, God is peace, etc. 

God whispered in my ear and said "Hey, I bet this would be a good place to start in discerning my character.  I found that many of the words were only used a handful of times.  There was one word however that was used more than 30 times to describe God.  The next closest word as far as usage was only used 11 or 12 times.  I took that to mean that the word used way more than any of the others must indicate the biggest or most significant character of God.  I will reveal what that word is at the end of the God is series that I am doing.

So what I started doing is taking each phrase like God is near and reading every verse in the Bible that has the word near in it.  Many of the verses using near weren't applicable.  I have copied below a handful of verses that I thought were applicable.

One of the best things about building a relationship with God is that He will draw nearer to you as you draw nearer to Him.  He will be right there with you.  I have had experiences where I have felt like God had His hand on my shoulder and was whispering in my ear.  That is how near He can be! 

Let's take a look at some of the verses.  Some I will comment on and some I won't.

Exodus 19:14-15(NKJV)

So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and sanctified the people, and they washed their clothes. 

And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not come near your wives.”

This is an example of one that I thought wasn't applicable.  It had the word near but it really had nothing to do with God being near.

Exodus 24:2(NKJV)

And Moses alone shall come near the Lord, but they shall not come near; nor shall the people go up with him.”

In the Old Testament there was a bit of a separation from God.  Only Moses was allowed to go meet with God in person.  Now since Christ has paid the price for us all we can all come near to God.

Deuteronomy 4:7(NKJV)

“For what great nation is there that has God so near to it, as the Lord our God is to us, for whatever reason we may call upon Him? 

Psalms 75:1(NKJV)

    We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks!      For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near.

Psalms 85:9(NKJV)

    Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him,     That glory may dwell in our land.

Psalms 119:151(NKJV)

    You are near, O Lord,     And all Your commandments are truth.

Psalms 145:18(NKJV)

    The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,     To all who call upon Him in truth.

Notice this one.  God isn't near to everybody.  Only those who call on Him.  That is why it is so important to accept Christ and then spend time daily building that relationship with God. 

Isaiah 46:13(NKJV)

    I bring My righteousness near, it shall not be far off;     My salvation shall not linger.     And I will place salvation in Zion,      For Israel My glory.

Isaiah 50:8(NKJV)

    He is near who justifies Me;     Who will contend with Me?     Let us stand together.     Who is My adversary?     Let him come near Me.

Jeremiah 23:23(NKJV)

    “Am I a God near at hand,” says the Lord,      “And not a God afar off?

Lamentations 3:57(NKJV)

    You drew near on the day I called on You,     And said, “Do not fear!”

Malachi 3:5(NKJV)

    And I will come near you for judgment;     I will be a swift witness     Against sorcerers,     Against adulterers,     Against perjurers,     Against those who exploit wage earners and widows and orphans,     And against those who turn away an alien—     Because they do not fear Me,”     Says the Lord of hosts.

James 4:7-10(NKJV)

Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 

Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

Once again notice the order.  Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.  We have to make the initial invitation and the ongoing effort to build that relationship.  God will not force Himself on us.  He has too much respect for our free will.

So dig into the word and start building that relationship.  You won't believe how cool and comforting it is to have God always right there covering your back!

"If anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed. "

In case anyone is still under the mistaken impression that God takes a "live and let live" attitude towards those who don't believe in Jesus. 

1 Corinthians 16:22(NKJV)

If anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed. O Lord, come!

Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

I found this interesting.  There seems to be a cause and effect here.  Notice that we need to seek and try to draw near to God before He will draw near to us.  In other words God will not force himself on us.  He will always wait for an invitation.  We have to seek Him before He will reveal Himself to us. 

And although I don't have any Scripture to back this up right now I think that the amount of Himself that God reveals to us is in direct proportion to the amount of effort we put forth in seeking Him. 

James 4:7-10(NKJV)

Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 

Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.