2 Corinthians 6 (2)

Pray Psalm 143.1, 2.
Hear my prayer, O LORD,
Give ear to my supplications!
In Your faithfulness answer me,
And in Your righteousness.
Do not enter into judgment with Your servant,
For in Your sight no one living is righteous.

Sing Psalm 143.1, 2.
(Divinum Mysterium: Of the Father’s Love Begotten)
Hear my earnest prayer, O LORD! Give ear to my pleas for grace!
In Your faithfulness and righteousness, look upon me with Your face!
Enter not to judgment with Your servant, LORD, with Your loving servant, LORD:
None can stand before Your Word.

Read 2 Corinthians 6.1-7; meditate on verses 3-7.

Preparation
1. How did Paul identify himself?

2. What comes with that calling?

Meditation
We must remind ourselves, before unpacking these next eight verses, that all believers are called to the work of ministry. God gives ministers to the churches, so that they can equip all the members of the church for ministry (Eph. 4.11, 12). Every believer is called as a “minister of God” (v. 4) within their own Personal Mission Field. So what Paul says about himself, we must embrace as part of our own calling.

First, do not be an offensive person (v. 3)! God’s ministers are called to be loving servants to the people around them. The word “servant” is, in the Greek, διακονία and refers to someone who waits on tables. While the Gospel may be offensive, we must not be, but must humbly serve the people to whom God sends us (cf. 1 Cor. 10. 31-33). The more we practice loving our neighbors as ourselves, the less likely it will be that we will give offense.

But we must be clear to one and all concerning who we are: ministers of God (v. 4). We are called to the Kingdom and glory of God and the work He has given us to do. We need to read the fine print of our job description and make sure we are ready for everything that comes with that calling.

Such as patience—working with people can be a challenge. A readiness to be afflicted and in want; to work hard and in various capacities; endure sacrifice; grow in grace and knowledge; walk in the Spirit and Word of the Lord; love others selflessly; grow in Christlikeness; and become adept with the weapons of spiritual warfare (vv. 4-7). More to follow in verses 8-10 in our next installment.

If you are a Christian, you are appointed to serve. You are a minister of God. What a privilege! What an exciting calling!

And what an effective way to spread the grace of God throughout your world.

Treasures Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162.
“We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed” (2 Cor. 6.3).

If only this was the heartfelt motto of every Christian, we would not besmirch the Name of Christ or serve Him in vain; nor would we ever be found guilty of hypocrisy. It is a win/win.

“We will try to live in such a way that no one will ever be offended or kept back from finding the Lord by the way we act, so that no one can find fault with us and blame it on the Lord. In fact, in everything we do we try to show that we are true ministers of God” (2 Cor. 6.3, 4 TLB).

“Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD?
Or who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who has not lifted up his soul to an idol,
nor sworn deceitfully” (Ps. 24.3, 4).

“Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean;
put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes.
Cease to do evil,
learn to do good;
seek justice,
rebuke the oppressor;
defend the fatherless,
plead for the widow” (Is. 1.16, 17).

We must be mindful, moment by moment, to live as purely as possible, for we do not want to hear Jesus say to us, as He had to say to Peter, “You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men” (Matt. 16.23).

And as Jesus said to His disciples, “Offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!” (Matt. 18.7).

Really, this is not an offense we want to be found guilty of.

Paul wrote an antidote for this to the church at Philippi, that he would be pleased to know we have adopted for our own ministry: “This I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God” (Phil. 1.9-11).

Do that, and guaranteed, your ministry will be offense-free.

For reflection
1. Do you understand your calling to be that of a minister of God? Explain.

2. Of what does your ministry consist? You may not be a preacher, but how does God want you to minister His grace to others?

3. Whom will you encourage today in working at the ministry God has given them?

For this is the grace of the Holy Spirit, possessing the entire soul and filling the dwelling place with gladness and power, making sweet for the soul the sufferings of the Lord and taking away the perception of the present pain because of the hope of the things to come. Gregory of Nyssa (335-394), On the Christian Mode of Life

Pray Psalm 143.3-12.
Call on the Lord to protect you against the wiles of the devil, to keep His works before your mind throughout the day, to make His Presence known with you, and to teach and empower you to do all His will.

Sing Psalm 143.3-12.
(Divinum Mysterium: Of the Father’s Love Begotten)
See, the enemy pursued my soul; he has crushed and cast me down.
He has made me sit in darkness, LORD, like those dead and in the ground.
Thus my troubled spirit faints within me, LORD, faints within my weary soul,
and my heart is no more whole.

I recall the days of old; on Your works I meditate—
all the wonders of Your mighty hand, works both small, O LORD, and great.
LORD, my thirsty soul cries out for help to You! To You, LORD, I reach my hand
in a dry and weary land.

Answer quickly, O my LORD! Do not hide from me Your face!
For my spirit fails and I am like those who do not know Your grace.
In the morning let me hear Your steadfast love; LORD I trust You, show my way!
I lift up my soul and pray!

Rescue me from all my enemies! LORD, I refuge seek in You.
Let me know Your will, O LORD my God; make me know what I must do.
Let Your Spirit lead me on to level ground; save my life! Preserve my soul!
Rescue, LORD, and make me whole!

T. M. and Susie Moore

Want to learn more about encouragement? Download the six installments of our free ReVision study on “Encouragement” by clicking here.

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter, available by clicking here.