WEBVTT 00:00:03.520 --> 00:00:06.719 We're going to be in 2 Corinthians chapter 1. 00:00:06.860 --> 00:00:11.359 We started in 2 Corinthians last week. We'll 00:00:11.359 --> 00:00:14.660 probably be in here for a while. We went through 00:00:14.660 --> 00:00:17.320 1 Corinthians, it's been several years ago now, 00:00:17.399 --> 00:00:21.980 probably five or six years ago. And this takes 00:00:21.980 --> 00:00:25.179 place a little while after the letter was written. 00:00:25.800 --> 00:00:28.460 1 Corinthians, or what we have in 1 Corinthians, 00:00:28.600 --> 00:00:31.339 as we talked about last week, it is believed 00:00:31.339 --> 00:00:34.320 that Paul might have wrote as many as four letters 00:00:34.320 --> 00:00:37.799 to the Corinthians. There are some things that 00:00:37.799 --> 00:00:40.520 are said that leads us to believe that that is 00:00:40.520 --> 00:00:43.579 possible. However, we don't have those letters. 00:00:43.679 --> 00:00:46.399 So we're kind of left to fill in the blanks, 00:00:46.399 --> 00:00:49.640 and we'll see that a little bit tonight. There's 00:00:49.640 --> 00:00:52.579 a couple of things in this passage that we kind 00:00:52.579 --> 00:00:56.659 of have to kind of guess and figure out exactly 00:00:56.659 --> 00:00:59.520 what's going on. I think we can kind of pick 00:00:59.520 --> 00:01:04.420 it out, but it's not abundantly clear, but I 00:01:04.420 --> 00:01:06.859 think we can make sense of what's being talked 00:01:06.859 --> 00:01:11.040 about. So let's pray and then we'll get started. 00:01:11.760 --> 00:01:14.299 God, we come to you. We thank you for your word. 00:01:14.480 --> 00:01:16.780 I pray that your Holy Spirit would be with us 00:01:16.780 --> 00:01:19.939 tonight, that you would keep us free of the distractions 00:01:19.939 --> 00:01:23.319 and the worries and the pains and the things 00:01:23.319 --> 00:01:26.379 of this world. but that in these few minutes 00:01:26.379 --> 00:01:28.319 we would hear from you, that you would help your 00:01:28.319 --> 00:01:30.959 Holy Spirit to speak to us tonight, that we would 00:01:30.959 --> 00:01:34.120 grow in your word, that we would understand your 00:01:34.120 --> 00:01:36.379 word, that we would see the things that are being 00:01:36.379 --> 00:01:39.560 discussed in your word, and help us to see how 00:01:39.560 --> 00:01:41.959 they can apply to our life and how we can grow 00:01:41.959 --> 00:01:44.340 from them. So I pray, dear Lord, that you be 00:01:44.340 --> 00:01:46.900 with us tonight, and I ask these things in Jesus' 00:01:47.079 --> 00:01:53.140 name. Amen. 2 Corinthians chapter 1, we went 00:01:53.140 --> 00:01:55.879 through the first 11 verses last week, and Paul 00:01:55.879 --> 00:01:59.280 gave us an introduction and really a beautiful 00:01:59.280 --> 00:02:02.719 passage where he talks about comfort, that God 00:02:02.719 --> 00:02:06.500 is the God of all comfort. And that is so reassuring 00:02:06.500 --> 00:02:09.139 because there are plenty of times in our life 00:02:09.139 --> 00:02:11.719 where we need the comfort of God. And that comfort 00:02:11.719 --> 00:02:14.849 that we desire... comes from nothing else, no 00:02:14.849 --> 00:02:18.349 one else but from God. And so Paul talked about 00:02:18.349 --> 00:02:21.069 the comfort of God and that we are to use the 00:02:21.069 --> 00:02:23.689 comfort we receive from God to comfort others 00:02:23.689 --> 00:02:26.430 who may be going through difficult situations, 00:02:26.509 --> 00:02:29.449 maybe even situations that we ourselves have 00:02:29.449 --> 00:02:32.490 gone through, and we can offer some words of 00:02:32.490 --> 00:02:35.289 encouragement. And Paul talks about this comfort 00:02:35.289 --> 00:02:38.469 because... He talks about the affliction that 00:02:38.469 --> 00:02:40.969 he has experienced, that as he's doing the work 00:02:40.969 --> 00:02:44.150 of God, that he's experienced a lot of affliction 00:02:44.150 --> 00:02:46.750 along the way. And as we read through the Scriptures 00:02:46.750 --> 00:02:50.129 and Paul's journey and Paul's work, we see that 00:02:50.129 --> 00:02:53.539 the work that he does is not easy. Now he is 00:02:53.539 --> 00:02:56.439 certainly all about preaching the gospel of Jesus 00:02:56.439 --> 00:03:00.960 Christ, but he faces much opposition along the 00:03:00.960 --> 00:03:03.860 way, much physical harm along the way, imprisonment 00:03:03.860 --> 00:03:07.479 along the way. But nonetheless, he finds comfort 00:03:07.479 --> 00:03:10.539 in God, and he finds comfort in knowing that 00:03:10.539 --> 00:03:13.539 his brothers and sisters in Christ are praying 00:03:13.539 --> 00:03:16.819 for him. And we saw that in the first part of 00:03:16.819 --> 00:03:20.099 the introduction of the book last week. And now 00:03:20.099 --> 00:03:23.319 we're moving on to verse 12. And he's kind of 00:03:23.319 --> 00:03:25.780 shifting gears a little bit. And he's going to 00:03:25.780 --> 00:03:29.840 deal with what appears to be an issue that's 00:03:29.840 --> 00:03:32.699 going on between him and the Corinthians. And 00:03:32.699 --> 00:03:35.780 it's not spelled out super clearly for us here. 00:03:35.840 --> 00:03:37.379 So we're going to have to kind of fill in the 00:03:37.379 --> 00:03:40.659 blanks as to what's going on. In 2 Corinthians 00:03:40.659 --> 00:03:45.520 1, verse 12, he says this. For this is our confidence. 00:03:45.840 --> 00:03:48.840 The testimony of our confidence is that we have 00:03:48.840 --> 00:03:52.139 conducted ourselves in the world, and especially 00:03:52.139 --> 00:03:56.379 toward you, with God -given sincerity and purity, 00:03:56.719 --> 00:04:02.159 not by fleshly wisdom, but by God's grace. Now 00:04:02.159 --> 00:04:04.360 we are writing nothing to you other than what 00:04:04.360 --> 00:04:07.800 you can read and also understand. I hope you 00:04:07.800 --> 00:04:11.039 will understand completely, as you have partially 00:04:11.039 --> 00:04:15.240 understood us. That we are your reason for pride 00:04:15.240 --> 00:04:20.959 as you are ours in the day of our Lord Jesus. 00:04:21.660 --> 00:04:24.959 Now Paul, it sounds like, is making a bit of 00:04:24.959 --> 00:04:28.000 a defense for himself here. He's saying, look. 00:04:28.560 --> 00:04:32.300 This is our confidence. I have confidence in 00:04:32.300 --> 00:04:35.279 that I have been a good example for you and that 00:04:35.279 --> 00:04:38.720 I have steered you right, that all of the things 00:04:38.720 --> 00:04:40.680 that I have said and done when I was with you, 00:04:40.759 --> 00:04:43.180 all of the things that I have said and done when 00:04:43.180 --> 00:04:46.420 I was apart from you, I have walked in the ways 00:04:46.420 --> 00:04:49.500 of the Lord. I have done right. I have served 00:04:49.500 --> 00:04:52.079 God. I have been done right by you. I have done 00:04:52.079 --> 00:04:55.680 right by God. And for that reason, you can take 00:04:55.680 --> 00:04:58.519 some pride in knowing us. You can take some pride 00:04:58.519 --> 00:05:00.920 in saying that you are brothers and sisters in 00:05:00.920 --> 00:05:03.519 Christ with us. You can take some pride in knowing 00:05:03.519 --> 00:05:06.379 that you know Paul. And you can tell others that 00:05:06.379 --> 00:05:09.279 you know Paul. And that the work he does is honorable 00:05:09.279 --> 00:05:12.800 and respectable. And he is a man who serves the 00:05:12.800 --> 00:05:14.959 Lord. And that's what Paul is saying here. That 00:05:14.959 --> 00:05:17.959 I've got a clear conscience. I'm confident in 00:05:17.959 --> 00:05:20.639 the work that has been done and the things that 00:05:20.639 --> 00:05:24.709 have been done. And he says, We are your reason 00:05:24.709 --> 00:05:28.370 for pride as you are ours. That is, we have lived 00:05:28.370 --> 00:05:30.769 for the Lord and we hope that you are proud of 00:05:30.769 --> 00:05:33.209 the way in which we have been living and we want 00:05:33.209 --> 00:05:35.490 to be proud of the way in which you have been 00:05:35.490 --> 00:05:38.209 living. That when we are out and about among 00:05:38.209 --> 00:05:40.610 the other cities, among other Christians, that 00:05:40.610 --> 00:05:43.649 we can say of the people of Corinth, look at 00:05:43.649 --> 00:05:46.089 what they are doing. Look at the stand they are 00:05:46.089 --> 00:05:48.410 taking for the Lord. Look at how they are living 00:05:48.410 --> 00:05:51.629 for the Lord. Look at how they are serving the 00:05:51.629 --> 00:05:56.040 Lord. And this is Paul's desire, but things in 00:05:56.040 --> 00:05:59.220 Corinth are not really that good. Now, we saw 00:05:59.220 --> 00:06:01.300 that when you look back at 1 Corinthians. If 00:06:01.300 --> 00:06:03.560 you want to go back and read that, you'll see 00:06:03.560 --> 00:06:07.259 that Paul really has to address some issues there. 00:06:07.379 --> 00:06:09.660 He's really calling out several different things 00:06:09.660 --> 00:06:13.259 that are going on in the church in Corinth that 00:06:13.259 --> 00:06:16.819 must be dealt with. He has to bring some discipline 00:06:16.819 --> 00:06:19.959 about in the first letter. And at the end of 00:06:19.959 --> 00:06:22.639 the first letter, he says, I'm going to come 00:06:22.639 --> 00:06:26.279 back and see you. And that appears to be part 00:06:26.279 --> 00:06:30.000 of the problem here with the next few verses 00:06:30.000 --> 00:06:32.519 that we're going to read. Now, Paul was going 00:06:32.519 --> 00:06:35.800 to come back and see him, and two times he was 00:06:35.800 --> 00:06:38.180 going to come back and see him, but he had only 00:06:38.180 --> 00:06:41.439 come once. And it doesn't say in the text exactly 00:06:41.439 --> 00:06:49.850 what the problem is, He said he was going to 00:06:49.850 --> 00:06:52.610 come back. And he gives his reason why as we 00:06:52.610 --> 00:06:55.470 continue to read through the text. But Paul starts 00:06:55.470 --> 00:06:59.069 by offering this defense, saying, look, I've 00:06:59.069 --> 00:07:01.589 been doing the Lord's work, and I'm doing what 00:07:01.589 --> 00:07:05.069 God wants me to do, and I have a clear conscience 00:07:05.069 --> 00:07:07.870 about that. And even though the people of Corinth 00:07:07.870 --> 00:07:11.410 don't appear to be too happy with Paul, maybe 00:07:11.410 --> 00:07:13.189 some of them, maybe a lot of them, maybe just 00:07:13.189 --> 00:07:16.269 a few, I'm not sure, but some are questioning 00:07:16.269 --> 00:07:19.379 Paul and the things that he said. Because he 00:07:19.379 --> 00:07:22.480 hasn't made that second trip to Corinth. And 00:07:22.480 --> 00:07:24.680 that's what we see as we continue to read in 00:07:24.680 --> 00:07:29.500 verse 15. I planned with this confidence to come 00:07:29.500 --> 00:07:32.259 to you first so you could have a double benefit 00:07:32.259 --> 00:07:36.139 and go on to Macedonia with your help, then come 00:07:36.139 --> 00:07:40.019 to you again from Macedonia and be given a start 00:07:40.019 --> 00:07:44.360 by you on my journey to Judea. So when I planned 00:07:44.360 --> 00:07:48.060 this, was I irresponsible? Or what I plan, do 00:07:48.060 --> 00:07:52.079 I plan purely in a human way so that I say yes, 00:07:52.120 --> 00:07:57.500 yes, and no, no simultaneously? Now, he explains 00:07:57.500 --> 00:08:00.779 what's going on. I was coming to you. I was going 00:08:00.779 --> 00:08:03.000 to come to you twice. I was going to come see 00:08:03.000 --> 00:08:04.399 you. I was going to go on my way. I was going 00:08:04.399 --> 00:08:07.480 to come back and see you. But something had changed. 00:08:07.720 --> 00:08:11.459 Paul's plans had changed. And Paul says, look. 00:08:11.870 --> 00:08:14.509 I'm not flip -flopping. I'm not just acting in 00:08:14.509 --> 00:08:17.389 a human way. When I tell you something, I'm not 00:08:17.389 --> 00:08:19.170 just saying, oh, yeah, I'm going to do that, 00:08:19.250 --> 00:08:21.230 but I don't have any desire to really do it. 00:08:21.310 --> 00:08:24.269 He says, I'm not telling you yes and no at the 00:08:24.269 --> 00:08:26.430 same time. That's an interesting way to put it. 00:08:26.550 --> 00:08:29.930 But he's saying, look, I had every intention 00:08:29.930 --> 00:08:32.470 to come back and see you. I was going to come 00:08:32.470 --> 00:08:35.049 back and see you, but my plans have changed. 00:08:35.289 --> 00:08:37.870 I wasn't leading you on. I wasn't just saying, 00:08:37.929 --> 00:08:39.169 oh, yeah, I'm going to come back and see you 00:08:39.169 --> 00:08:41.759 all. I can't wait. And then not coming back, 00:08:41.799 --> 00:08:44.000 he's saying, look, don't be upset with me for 00:08:44.000 --> 00:08:47.340 not coming because things changed. And there's 00:08:47.340 --> 00:08:51.379 a reason why I have not come back. So it appears 00:08:51.379 --> 00:08:54.440 as though some are questioning Paul. Maybe it's 00:08:54.440 --> 00:08:56.639 motive. Maybe it's heart. Maybe it's love toward 00:08:56.639 --> 00:08:59.860 him. And Paul is trying to defend himself, saying, 00:08:59.940 --> 00:09:02.580 look, what I say is true. What I say I mean. 00:09:02.659 --> 00:09:05.639 And you can hold on to the words that I say. 00:09:06.139 --> 00:09:08.440 I am one who is trustworthy. I am one who has 00:09:08.440 --> 00:09:11.379 loved you. And even though my plans have changed, 00:09:11.740 --> 00:09:15.519 don't let this be a problem between us. If there 00:09:15.519 --> 00:09:18.200 were some, maybe a lot, maybe a few, who had 00:09:18.200 --> 00:09:20.740 a problem with this, then obviously this is something 00:09:20.740 --> 00:09:23.659 that was an issue and Paul is addressing it here. 00:09:24.000 --> 00:09:26.379 Even though we don't have a lot of detail, we 00:09:26.379 --> 00:09:29.360 see that he's trying to deal with this issue 00:09:29.360 --> 00:09:34.960 in some way. He says in verse 18, As God is faithful, 00:09:35.559 --> 00:09:39.860 Our message to you is not yes and no. For the 00:09:39.860 --> 00:09:43.360 Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among 00:09:43.360 --> 00:09:47.480 you by us, by me and Silvanus and Timothy, did 00:09:47.480 --> 00:09:52.340 not become yes and no. On the contrary, a final 00:09:52.340 --> 00:09:57.480 yes has come in him. And so, for whatever reason, 00:09:57.700 --> 00:10:00.919 it appears as though, because Paul didn't make 00:10:00.919 --> 00:10:03.919 that return trip, that some are questioning Paul. 00:10:04.279 --> 00:10:06.720 And so he makes this defense at the beginning 00:10:06.720 --> 00:10:09.139 part of this passage we look at. And he's saying, 00:10:09.220 --> 00:10:11.600 look, I'm not flip -flopping. I'm not just opening 00:10:11.600 --> 00:10:13.879 my mouth. I don't say one thing and do another. 00:10:14.139 --> 00:10:17.299 You can trust me. You can trust everything that 00:10:17.299 --> 00:10:19.799 I've told you. You can certainly trust the gospel 00:10:19.799 --> 00:10:22.960 of Jesus Christ. The things that I said are true 00:10:22.960 --> 00:10:26.539 and trustworthy and reliable. And you need to 00:10:26.539 --> 00:10:29.360 listen to the words that I and others who have 00:10:29.360 --> 00:10:32.059 been with me have taught you about Jesus Christ. 00:10:32.299 --> 00:10:34.860 They are true. We're not changing our mind. We're 00:10:34.860 --> 00:10:37.679 not causing any trouble. We're not saying one 00:10:37.679 --> 00:10:39.779 thing and doing another thing. We've lived our 00:10:39.779 --> 00:10:41.779 life in a way that we've lived for the gospel. 00:10:42.000 --> 00:10:44.019 And you can look at that and you can see that 00:10:44.019 --> 00:10:46.759 and you can take some pride in that. And you 00:10:46.759 --> 00:10:51.720 can hold fast to what we say. You can listen 00:10:51.720 --> 00:10:53.840 to my words. Even though I haven't made this 00:10:53.840 --> 00:10:56.299 other trip, when I said I was going to make it, 00:10:56.360 --> 00:10:58.970 even though I haven't come back to see you, Don't 00:10:58.970 --> 00:11:01.889 throw me out quite yet. Don't be done with me 00:11:01.889 --> 00:11:04.669 quite yet. Listen to the words that I've said 00:11:04.669 --> 00:11:08.149 and know that the words that I've said are true 00:11:08.149 --> 00:11:12.309 and good. And he uses this language of yes and 00:11:12.309 --> 00:11:17.029 no and not having a confusion there between the 00:11:17.029 --> 00:11:19.570 two. He doesn't say both of them at the same 00:11:19.570 --> 00:11:22.649 time. And so that's kind of an interesting way 00:11:22.649 --> 00:11:25.240 to phrase it. That's the term that he chose to 00:11:25.240 --> 00:11:29.240 use. And then in verse 20 he says this, For every 00:11:29.240 --> 00:11:36.220 one of God's promises is yes in him. Therefore 00:11:36.220 --> 00:11:40.620 the amen is also spoken through him by us for 00:11:40.620 --> 00:11:43.919 God's glory. Now that's a beautiful verse right 00:11:43.919 --> 00:11:47.840 there. For every one of God's promises is yes 00:11:47.840 --> 00:11:52.009 in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the yes and 00:11:52.009 --> 00:11:55.549 amen. He has done everything that was to be done. 00:11:55.690 --> 00:11:58.309 Everything that God had talked about. Everything 00:11:58.309 --> 00:12:01.769 in God's word pointed to Jesus Christ. It has 00:12:01.769 --> 00:12:05.830 been fulfilled by Jesus Christ. He is the yes. 00:12:06.149 --> 00:12:09.590 Is Jesus the Messiah who was to come? Yes. Is 00:12:09.590 --> 00:12:13.049 Jesus the Son of God? Yes. Is atonement for our 00:12:13.049 --> 00:12:16.129 sins made through Jesus Christ? Yes. Are all 00:12:16.129 --> 00:12:18.610 the promises in the Old Testament fulfilled in 00:12:18.610 --> 00:12:23.389 Jesus Christ? Christ yes so everything is yes 00:12:23.389 --> 00:12:26.830 in Jesus Christ And that's the argument that 00:12:26.830 --> 00:12:29.669 Paul is making. You can trust what we say because 00:12:29.669 --> 00:12:32.330 we've preached Jesus Christ to you, and Jesus 00:12:32.330 --> 00:12:36.370 Christ is the yes and amen, and all things are 00:12:36.370 --> 00:12:39.009 yes through Jesus Christ. That's a beautiful 00:12:39.009 --> 00:12:43.350 verse. That really sums up a lot because there's 00:12:43.350 --> 00:12:45.370 a lot of things in the Old Testament that were 00:12:45.370 --> 00:12:47.570 talked about, a lot of things that were prophesied, 00:12:47.610 --> 00:12:51.269 and Jesus Christ, Paul tells us here, has fulfilled 00:12:51.269 --> 00:12:55.850 all of those things. So Paul says my words are 00:12:55.850 --> 00:12:59.669 trustworthy, especially the words of Jesus Christ. 00:13:00.690 --> 00:13:04.929 Verse 21. Now it is God who strengthens us with 00:13:04.929 --> 00:13:08.950 you in Christ and has anointed us. He has also 00:13:08.950 --> 00:13:13.190 sealed us and given us the Spirit as a down payment 00:13:13.190 --> 00:13:16.169 in our hearts. Another beautiful verse there. 00:13:16.269 --> 00:13:18.850 Paul says, look, I'm a brother in Christ. I'm 00:13:18.850 --> 00:13:21.830 serving alongside you. You are brothers and sisters 00:13:21.830 --> 00:13:24.070 in Christ. You are the church in Corinth. You 00:13:24.070 --> 00:13:25.870 are the ones who have followed Jesus Christ. 00:13:26.090 --> 00:13:29.950 And it is Jesus who strengthens both of us. And 00:13:29.950 --> 00:13:32.190 Paul had just talked about that strength earlier 00:13:32.190 --> 00:13:34.409 on in what we looked at last week. And all of 00:13:34.409 --> 00:13:37.919 those afflictions. Paul recognizes that it is 00:13:37.919 --> 00:13:41.600 Jesus who is his strength. He tells the Corinthians 00:13:41.600 --> 00:13:45.220 here that it is Jesus who is their strength. 00:13:45.480 --> 00:13:49.340 And then he says in verse 22, He has also sealed 00:13:49.340 --> 00:13:52.700 us and given us the Spirit as a down payment 00:13:52.700 --> 00:13:56.360 in our hearts. So how can we know that we are 00:13:56.360 --> 00:13:58.600 saved? How can we know that we are Christians? 00:13:58.799 --> 00:14:01.820 How can we know that we are receiving that strength 00:14:01.820 --> 00:14:04.799 of Christ? What is the evidence? The evidence 00:14:04.799 --> 00:14:07.559 is that God has given us the Holy Spirit as a 00:14:07.559 --> 00:14:10.240 down payment. The Holy Spirit dwells within us. 00:14:10.299 --> 00:14:14.299 The Holy Spirit guides us. The Holy Spirit convicts 00:14:14.299 --> 00:14:17.399 us and helps us to understand the Word of God 00:14:17.399 --> 00:14:20.360 and to grow in the Word of God and to live by 00:14:20.360 --> 00:14:23.350 the Word of God and produces fruit. The fruit 00:14:23.350 --> 00:14:25.669 of the Spirit, peace and patience and love and 00:14:25.669 --> 00:14:28.230 kindness and gentleness. And all of these things 00:14:28.230 --> 00:14:31.889 come from the Holy Spirit. So that is the evidence 00:14:31.889 --> 00:14:35.629 that we have been saved through the precious 00:14:35.629 --> 00:14:39.389 blood of Jesus Christ. And Paul says here, look, 00:14:39.490 --> 00:14:42.149 we have strength through Christ and we are sealed 00:14:42.149 --> 00:14:44.389 with the Holy Spirit. That is, we have received 00:14:44.389 --> 00:14:48.409 God's Holy Spirit. So we know that we are God's 00:14:48.409 --> 00:14:53.860 people. Verse 23. I call on God as a witness 00:14:53.860 --> 00:14:57.779 on my life that it was to spare you that I did 00:14:57.779 --> 00:15:00.919 not come to Corinth. I do not mean that we have 00:15:00.919 --> 00:15:05.820 control of your faith, but we are workers with 00:15:05.820 --> 00:15:10.919 you for your joy because you stand by faith. 00:15:11.620 --> 00:15:16.159 Now, our Bibles will end in chapter 1 right here. 00:15:16.220 --> 00:15:19.059 We have to remember. that when this letter was 00:15:19.059 --> 00:15:21.200 written, it wasn't written in multiple chapters 00:15:21.200 --> 00:15:24.659 and multiple verses. These are things that were 00:15:24.659 --> 00:15:27.759 added later. And sometimes I wonder why the people 00:15:27.759 --> 00:15:29.620 that added the verses and chapters broke them 00:15:29.620 --> 00:15:32.899 off where they did, because this whole thought, 00:15:33.000 --> 00:15:35.600 this whole idea that Paul is talking about, it 00:15:35.600 --> 00:15:38.360 actually continues on into chapter 2. And we're 00:15:38.360 --> 00:15:41.559 fixing to turn there and look at it. how this 00:15:41.559 --> 00:15:43.620 all flows. So even though your Bible stops in 00:15:43.620 --> 00:15:45.960 chapter 1, we really have to read into chapter 00:15:45.960 --> 00:15:49.519 2 to see what's going on. But he says here in 00:15:49.519 --> 00:15:54.220 verse 23, I call on God as a witness on my life 00:15:54.220 --> 00:15:58.059 that it was to spare you that I did not come 00:15:58.059 --> 00:16:01.919 to Corinth. So Paul says, look, I've got a good 00:16:01.919 --> 00:16:04.100 reason for not coming to you. There's a reason 00:16:04.100 --> 00:16:07.080 why I did not come, and the reason that I did 00:16:07.080 --> 00:16:11.429 not come, it was for your good. He says here 00:16:11.429 --> 00:16:13.330 it was to spare them. Well, what does he mean 00:16:13.330 --> 00:16:15.590 by that? Well, let's read a little further into 00:16:15.590 --> 00:16:20.610 chapter 2, verse 1. In fact, I made up my mind 00:16:20.610 --> 00:16:24.049 about this. I would not come to you on another 00:16:24.049 --> 00:16:27.649 painful visit. For if I cause you pain, then 00:16:27.649 --> 00:16:31.009 who will cheer me other than the one being hurt 00:16:31.009 --> 00:16:34.549 by me? I wrote this very thing so that when I 00:16:34.549 --> 00:16:37.009 came, I wouldn't have pain from those who ought 00:16:37.009 --> 00:16:40.809 to give me joy. Because I am confident about 00:16:40.809 --> 00:16:46.269 all of you that my joy will also be yours. So 00:16:46.269 --> 00:16:48.710 Paul says, here is the reason why I didn't come. 00:16:49.049 --> 00:16:51.809 He says, I knew it would be a painful visit. 00:16:51.950 --> 00:16:54.269 What does he mean? Well, I think he means more 00:16:54.269 --> 00:16:56.909 of the same about 1 Corinthians. He had already 00:16:56.909 --> 00:16:59.330 written the letter of 1 Corinthians and maybe 00:16:59.330 --> 00:17:02.210 even another letter or two between this. And 00:17:02.210 --> 00:17:05.210 obviously things in Corinth were still not good. 00:17:05.759 --> 00:17:07.880 They were still not doing good. There were still 00:17:07.880 --> 00:17:10.380 some who were in sin. There were still some who 00:17:10.380 --> 00:17:12.480 were causing trouble. There were still some probably 00:17:12.480 --> 00:17:15.319 who were doubting Paul or questioning Paul, which 00:17:15.319 --> 00:17:17.299 is why he's making a little bit of a defense 00:17:17.299 --> 00:17:20.279 for himself here. And he says, this is the reason 00:17:20.279 --> 00:17:23.380 why I did not come because if I would have come, 00:17:23.539 --> 00:17:26.480 I would have disciplined you and it would not 00:17:26.480 --> 00:17:29.000 have been a good thing. He says, I would not 00:17:29.000 --> 00:17:31.680 have taken any joy in that and you would not 00:17:31.680 --> 00:17:34.150 have taken any joy in that. and it probably would 00:17:34.150 --> 00:17:36.549 have affected our relationship, so I thought 00:17:36.549 --> 00:17:39.029 it better that I should not come to you right 00:17:39.029 --> 00:17:41.750 now. I told you that I was going to come to you 00:17:41.750 --> 00:17:44.470 at this time, but I'm not going to come, and 00:17:44.470 --> 00:17:47.410 it is for your good because I love you, and I 00:17:47.410 --> 00:17:49.930 don't want to cause you pain, so I'm going to 00:17:49.930 --> 00:17:52.230 keep my distance for a while. Now, this is good 00:17:52.230 --> 00:17:56.069 advice for us. This is good advice for us. There 00:17:56.069 --> 00:17:59.369 may be times in our life where we need to keep 00:17:59.369 --> 00:18:02.019 our distance. Maybe it's a time when you're having 00:18:02.019 --> 00:18:04.740 a problem with your spouse, or maybe it's a time 00:18:04.740 --> 00:18:06.779 you're having a problem with a co -worker or 00:18:06.779 --> 00:18:09.460 a family member, and maybe they're doing wrong, 00:18:09.480 --> 00:18:11.839 or maybe you're doing wrong, and maybe there's 00:18:11.839 --> 00:18:13.900 some confrontation that needs to take place, 00:18:13.960 --> 00:18:17.539 a discussion that needs to be had, and boy, when 00:18:17.539 --> 00:18:20.019 we're in the midst of our anger and we are just 00:18:20.019 --> 00:18:22.619 mad, that's not a good time to discuss things. 00:18:23.440 --> 00:18:25.440 And it appears as though maybe that's what's 00:18:25.440 --> 00:18:28.480 going on with Paul. He's not really happy about 00:18:28.480 --> 00:18:31.319 what's taking place. He knows that discipline 00:18:31.319 --> 00:18:34.240 needs to take place, but he does not want to 00:18:34.240 --> 00:18:37.640 do that. That's not his desire to do that. He's 00:18:37.640 --> 00:18:39.539 already done that in 1 Corinthians. He's not 00:18:39.539 --> 00:18:42.839 afraid to. He's not afraid to say, these things 00:18:42.839 --> 00:18:44.859 have to be dealt with, and this is how they have 00:18:44.859 --> 00:18:46.859 to be dealt with. He's not afraid of discipline, 00:18:47.059 --> 00:18:50.339 but he wants that to be the last resort. Because 00:18:50.339 --> 00:18:53.599 anytime you have to discipline someone, it causes 00:18:53.599 --> 00:18:56.240 a little bit of tension. It causes a little bit 00:18:56.240 --> 00:18:58.720 of separation. Now maybe for a little while, 00:18:58.779 --> 00:19:01.319 maybe for a long while in some circumstances, 00:19:01.680 --> 00:19:05.440 but discipline is difficult. And Paul says, I'm 00:19:05.440 --> 00:19:08.160 going to keep my distance. Now maybe he's keeping 00:19:08.160 --> 00:19:10.779 his distance because he don't want to act rashly 00:19:10.779 --> 00:19:13.220 and he don't want to say something out of anger. 00:19:13.630 --> 00:19:15.690 Maybe he's keeping his distance to give them 00:19:15.690 --> 00:19:18.569 an opportunity to get their ways right. Maybe 00:19:18.569 --> 00:19:20.309 he's written in some of these other letters that 00:19:20.309 --> 00:19:22.710 we don't have things that they need to do, and 00:19:22.710 --> 00:19:25.009 maybe he's trying to give them a chance to do 00:19:25.009 --> 00:19:27.910 it. And that's good for us to consider too in 00:19:27.910 --> 00:19:30.970 our life. Most of the time, it's probably not 00:19:30.970 --> 00:19:33.269 going to hurt us to wait a little bit before 00:19:33.269 --> 00:19:35.509 we make a big decision or before we confront 00:19:35.509 --> 00:19:40.480 somebody. And I suspect, hopefully, Hopefully, 00:19:40.500 --> 00:19:42.539 none of us have a desire that we just want to 00:19:42.539 --> 00:19:44.779 attack people and discipline people all the time. 00:19:44.900 --> 00:19:48.660 If we do, we're already in a bad place. But nonetheless, 00:19:49.000 --> 00:19:52.299 sometimes discipline is necessary, and we should 00:19:52.299 --> 00:19:55.420 pray about that and think about that and do everything 00:19:55.420 --> 00:20:00.519 we can before we do what sometimes has to be 00:20:00.519 --> 00:20:03.680 done. We want to check our own self, as the scripture 00:20:03.680 --> 00:20:05.920 says, take the log out of your own eye before 00:20:05.920 --> 00:20:07.920 taking the speck out of your brother's. We want 00:20:07.920 --> 00:20:11.200 to consider scriptures like that. But ultimately, 00:20:11.259 --> 00:20:14.599 there are times where discipline has to occur, 00:20:14.859 --> 00:20:17.680 where things have to be done, where people have 00:20:17.680 --> 00:20:20.240 to be confronted. And that is one of the worst 00:20:20.240 --> 00:20:23.359 things in life. At least I think it's one of 00:20:23.359 --> 00:20:25.859 the worst things in life. I hate it when those 00:20:25.859 --> 00:20:29.299 situations come. But Paul also recognizes... 00:20:29.720 --> 00:20:32.119 For those who are in the church, who claim to 00:20:32.119 --> 00:20:34.380 be Christians, who are living in sinful ways 00:20:34.380 --> 00:20:36.980 and doing things that are destructive to the 00:20:36.980 --> 00:20:39.680 church and the gospel of Jesus Christ, those 00:20:39.680 --> 00:20:44.019 things have to be dealt with. And he talks about 00:20:44.019 --> 00:20:46.180 that in 1 Corinthians, I believe, chapter 5, 00:20:46.240 --> 00:20:50.579 where he says, look, what job is it of ours to 00:20:50.579 --> 00:20:52.740 judge those outside of the world? That's not 00:20:52.740 --> 00:20:56.200 our concern. But Paul says we do have to judge 00:20:56.200 --> 00:20:59.490 those in the church. Those who profess to be 00:20:59.490 --> 00:21:02.470 Christians, who profess to be followers of God, 00:21:02.609 --> 00:21:06.049 but are living in blatant, unrepentant sin. And 00:21:06.049 --> 00:21:08.309 Paul has to deal with that in 1 Corinthians chapter 00:21:08.309 --> 00:21:11.589 5. And he gives some pretty harsh instruction 00:21:11.589 --> 00:21:15.289 on how a particular person in that instance needs 00:21:15.289 --> 00:21:18.630 to be dealt with. So Paul knows about discipline, 00:21:18.910 --> 00:21:22.369 but his heart is not to enact discipline. He 00:21:22.369 --> 00:21:25.670 doesn't want to do that. And so he says, look. 00:21:26.170 --> 00:21:29.349 I have not come to you because I knew it would 00:21:29.349 --> 00:21:31.849 cause me pain. And I don't want to cause you 00:21:31.849 --> 00:21:35.170 pain because if you're in pain and our relationship 00:21:35.170 --> 00:21:37.730 is fractured, he says the only thing that's going 00:21:37.730 --> 00:21:40.710 to make me happy is for you to be happy. And 00:21:40.710 --> 00:21:42.910 if I come and cause you pain, then I'm not going 00:21:42.910 --> 00:21:44.710 to be happy and you're not going to be happy. 00:21:45.250 --> 00:21:50.069 And so Paul says, I have delayed my visit. I 00:21:50.069 --> 00:21:53.569 have postponed coming to see you. And it is for... 00:21:53.819 --> 00:21:57.539 your good. And then he closes this idea, this 00:21:57.539 --> 00:22:01.940 section here in verse 4. For I wrote to you with 00:22:01.940 --> 00:22:05.579 many tears out of an extremely troubled and anguished 00:22:05.579 --> 00:22:09.539 heart, not that you should be hurt, but that 00:22:09.539 --> 00:22:13.220 you should know the abundant love I have for 00:22:13.220 --> 00:22:17.859 you. So we see in this verse that Paul really 00:22:17.859 --> 00:22:21.230 does care about these people. Now he says here, 00:22:21.329 --> 00:22:24.650 I wrote to you with many tears. Whatever he wrote, 00:22:24.849 --> 00:22:28.049 maybe it's referring to this letter. Maybe he's 00:22:28.049 --> 00:22:30.109 referring to a letter that's already been written. 00:22:30.150 --> 00:22:32.730 It sounds as though that may be the case. Maybe 00:22:32.730 --> 00:22:35.829 it was what we know in 1 Corinthians. Maybe there's 00:22:35.829 --> 00:22:38.470 another letter. Regardless of what letter it 00:22:38.470 --> 00:22:42.480 is, we see the heart of Paul. That when he writes 00:22:42.480 --> 00:22:45.539 these things that are difficult, these disciplinary 00:22:45.539 --> 00:22:48.000 things, these things where he's trying to instruct 00:22:48.000 --> 00:22:51.660 the people and get them to do what is right and 00:22:51.660 --> 00:22:54.099 to not live in sin and to deal with the sinners 00:22:54.099 --> 00:22:57.319 who is among them, he is heartbroken over this. 00:22:57.640 --> 00:23:01.019 He says, I wrote to you with many tears out of 00:23:01.019 --> 00:23:05.210 an extremely troubled and anguished heart. his 00:23:05.210 --> 00:23:08.470 heart was broken over whatever it was they were 00:23:08.470 --> 00:23:11.450 doing. His heart was broken that he was having 00:23:11.450 --> 00:23:15.589 to deal with this situation. But listen to the 00:23:15.589 --> 00:23:20.650 beautiful language at the end. He says, Paul 00:23:20.650 --> 00:23:29.769 says, I want you to know more than anything that 00:23:29.769 --> 00:23:33.269 I love you. And that's why I'm doing this. That's 00:23:33.269 --> 00:23:36.410 why I'm disciplining you. And that's a hard thing 00:23:36.410 --> 00:23:39.549 to do. It's a hard thing to discipline someone 00:23:39.549 --> 00:23:42.569 you love. But if you don't discipline someone 00:23:42.569 --> 00:23:44.910 you love, you have to ask yourself the question, 00:23:45.069 --> 00:23:48.140 do you really love them at all? Now, I don't 00:23:48.140 --> 00:23:50.599 have a child. I can imagine that it would be 00:23:50.599 --> 00:23:53.259 unbelievably difficult to discipline a child. 00:23:53.420 --> 00:23:55.660 I would really struggle with that. Maybe that's 00:23:55.660 --> 00:23:58.099 why God didn't give me a child. But on the flip 00:23:58.099 --> 00:24:01.119 side, I also know that if a child is not disciplined, 00:24:01.359 --> 00:24:04.700 they will turn into a hellion. There are plenty 00:24:04.700 --> 00:24:08.160 of kids who don't receive any discipline whatsoever. 00:24:09.220 --> 00:24:12.079 And the kids tell the parents what to do, and 00:24:12.079 --> 00:24:15.450 the parents say, okay. And that's not good for 00:24:15.450 --> 00:24:18.450 your kid. You want your kid to be raised where 00:24:18.450 --> 00:24:21.089 they can function in society and have respect 00:24:21.089 --> 00:24:23.950 for people and know they won't always get their 00:24:23.950 --> 00:24:26.910 way and know that there are limits and know that 00:24:26.910 --> 00:24:29.089 there are things that are not right and that 00:24:29.089 --> 00:24:32.289 there are consequences and they learn those lessons 00:24:32.289 --> 00:24:34.859 through discipline. That's how they learn those 00:24:34.859 --> 00:24:37.900 lessons. And if they don't receive any discipline, 00:24:38.099 --> 00:24:40.380 then they don't learn those lessons. And they 00:24:40.380 --> 00:24:44.299 grow into adults that are unproductive and unprepared 00:24:44.299 --> 00:24:47.440 for the world and will crumble at the least little 00:24:47.440 --> 00:24:51.220 thing the world throws at them. And so some people 00:24:51.220 --> 00:24:53.460 may say, well, I can't discipline my child. I 00:24:53.460 --> 00:24:56.480 love him too much. Well, you don't love him too 00:24:56.480 --> 00:24:59.519 much or you would discipline him. The Bible says 00:24:59.519 --> 00:25:03.279 that God disciplines those who he loves. I don't 00:25:03.279 --> 00:25:05.839 suspect any of us like discipline. I mean, did 00:25:05.839 --> 00:25:07.700 anybody like getting a whipping when they were 00:25:07.700 --> 00:25:10.519 a kid? No. We didn't like getting a whipping 00:25:10.519 --> 00:25:13.940 when we were a kid. We hated it. But it probably 00:25:13.940 --> 00:25:15.900 didn't take you many whippings. Some of you maybe 00:25:15.900 --> 00:25:18.299 more than others, but it didn't take me many 00:25:18.299 --> 00:25:21.460 whippings until I learned that I didn't like 00:25:21.460 --> 00:25:23.359 that. I learned that there were consequences 00:25:23.359 --> 00:25:26.079 to the things that I would do. I remember one 00:25:26.079 --> 00:25:28.759 day we had a birthday party. I was probably like 00:25:28.759 --> 00:25:30.240 seven or eight years old, and we were having 00:25:30.240 --> 00:25:33.160 a birthday party at my grandma's house. and I 00:25:33.160 --> 00:25:34.720 was standing at the door, and some people didn't 00:25:34.720 --> 00:25:37.880 have a present, and I told them that if you didn't 00:25:37.880 --> 00:25:39.400 have a present, you couldn't come to the party. 00:25:40.180 --> 00:25:43.039 And my mother took me in the back room and took 00:25:43.039 --> 00:25:47.140 care of that, and I never did that again. But 00:25:47.140 --> 00:25:49.500 I needed to learn that lesson, because if she 00:25:49.500 --> 00:25:52.180 hadn't done that, I'd be 41 years old telling 00:25:52.180 --> 00:25:53.720 people, you can't come to my party if you don't 00:25:53.720 --> 00:25:58.079 have a present. And that's not very cute. You 00:25:58.079 --> 00:25:59.859 know, we laugh at things that kids do. It's cute 00:25:59.859 --> 00:26:01.259 when a kid does something when they're three 00:26:01.259 --> 00:26:02.900 years old. It's not cute when they do it when 00:26:02.900 --> 00:26:06.579 they're 40 years old. So discipline takes care 00:26:06.579 --> 00:26:09.319 of that. And discipline, I believe, comes with 00:26:09.319 --> 00:26:12.480 anguish. I don't believe that God takes any joy 00:26:12.480 --> 00:26:15.759 to discipline us. We don't like to be disciplined 00:26:15.759 --> 00:26:19.200 by God. But praise the Lord that He does. If 00:26:19.200 --> 00:26:21.640 you ever felt disciplined by God, it's not a 00:26:21.640 --> 00:26:24.319 good feeling, but we can rejoice in it because 00:26:24.319 --> 00:26:27.440 God disciplines those that He loves. And so if 00:26:27.440 --> 00:26:29.720 we feel the hand of God and the conviction of 00:26:29.720 --> 00:26:32.680 God and the discipline of God, then praise God 00:26:32.680 --> 00:26:36.319 that he loves us. And he does that so we won't 00:26:36.319 --> 00:26:39.299 be a bunch of fools running around. And sometimes 00:26:39.299 --> 00:26:41.839 he may have to discipline us more than we would 00:26:41.839 --> 00:26:46.059 like to admit. But Paul is saying here, look, 00:26:46.259 --> 00:26:50.480 I'm doing this to you because I love you. I have 00:26:50.480 --> 00:26:54.160 an abundant love for you. I love you too much 00:26:54.160 --> 00:26:57.200 to just go on to the people of Galatia and Philippi 00:26:57.200 --> 00:26:59.599 and just send them letters and visit them and 00:26:59.599 --> 00:27:01.819 the people of Ephesus. He says, I love you too 00:27:01.819 --> 00:27:04.160 much just to leave you behind. I love you too 00:27:04.160 --> 00:27:06.000 much for you to keep doing what you're doing. 00:27:06.099 --> 00:27:08.900 I love you, and I write these things to you, 00:27:08.940 --> 00:27:10.940 and you may be questioning why I'm not here, 00:27:11.059 --> 00:27:14.039 and there may be people questioning what I'm 00:27:14.039 --> 00:27:16.579 saying and is it true or not, but he says, look. 00:27:16.880 --> 00:27:19.559 You can take confidence in me. I have done the 00:27:19.559 --> 00:27:22.559 Lord's work. I've been serving the Lord. My yes 00:27:22.559 --> 00:27:26.160 is yes. It's in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is 00:27:26.160 --> 00:27:29.700 who we preach. Listen to him. Listen to me. Trust 00:27:29.700 --> 00:27:33.160 me and know that I love you. But you can't keep 00:27:33.160 --> 00:27:36.279 doing the things that you're doing. And that's 00:27:36.279 --> 00:27:40.480 why I haven't come back to see you yet. And that's 00:27:40.480 --> 00:27:44.140 one thing that we need to remember too. is that 00:27:44.140 --> 00:27:46.119 there may be times in our life where discipline 00:27:46.119 --> 00:27:50.599 is necessary. One, we need to remember that sometimes 00:27:50.599 --> 00:27:52.700 we're on the receiving end of that discipline, 00:27:52.859 --> 00:27:56.559 and we don't like it, but sometimes it's necessary 00:27:56.559 --> 00:28:00.160 for us to receive that. But even when we are 00:28:00.160 --> 00:28:03.200 on the giving end of discipline, and never should 00:28:03.200 --> 00:28:06.259 it be done so without a lot of prayer and a lot 00:28:06.259 --> 00:28:09.539 of guidance by the Lord, but if we are in those 00:28:09.539 --> 00:28:12.079 situations where we are the one bringing discipline 00:28:12.079 --> 00:28:15.930 in some way, it needs to be abundantly clear 00:28:15.930 --> 00:28:19.609 that we do this because we love the one that 00:28:19.609 --> 00:28:22.009 we are disciplining. It's not that we're trying 00:28:22.009 --> 00:28:24.569 to pretend like we're holier and now. It's not 00:28:24.569 --> 00:28:26.789 like we're pretending like we are not sinners. 00:28:26.990 --> 00:28:32.390 It's not any of that. Sometimes we have to do 00:28:32.390 --> 00:28:36.049 these difficult things. And Paul is having to 00:28:36.049 --> 00:28:40.069 do a difficult thing. But he's doing it out of 00:28:40.069 --> 00:28:44.740 love. Let's pray. God, we thank you for these 00:28:44.740 --> 00:28:48.740 words. And even though it takes a little work, 00:28:48.900 --> 00:28:51.019 dear Lord, for us to try to understand what's 00:28:51.019 --> 00:28:53.359 going on here, God, I pray that you help us to 00:28:53.359 --> 00:28:56.200 get what Paul's saying, dear Lord. That he has 00:28:56.200 --> 00:28:59.579 been a faithful servant. That he has been faithful 00:28:59.579 --> 00:29:01.720 to do your work, dear Lord. All of the writings 00:29:01.720 --> 00:29:04.839 that we see in Scripture of Paul are all trustworthy, 00:29:05.119 --> 00:29:08.140 dear Lord. His yes is yes, dear Lord. He's not 00:29:08.140 --> 00:29:10.299 one that flip -flops and goes back and forth 00:29:10.299 --> 00:29:13.279 and is uncertain, dear Lord. He speaks with authority 00:29:13.279 --> 00:29:15.420 that comes from you, dear Lord, through Jesus 00:29:15.420 --> 00:29:19.200 Christ. And so, God, I pray that we would read 00:29:19.200 --> 00:29:21.920 the words of Paul and know that you have inspired 00:29:21.920 --> 00:29:24.039 those words, that we would grow in those things, 00:29:24.160 --> 00:29:27.200 dear Lord. Maybe we are like the people of Corinth, 00:29:27.240 --> 00:29:30.059 and maybe there are some things in our life that 00:29:30.059 --> 00:29:34.019 just aren't right. They're not good. And maybe 00:29:34.019 --> 00:29:36.400 you've been working on us, dear Lord. through 00:29:36.400 --> 00:29:38.460 other people, maybe through your Holy Spirit. 00:29:38.920 --> 00:29:41.579 But God, I pray that in the midst of the discipline 00:29:41.579 --> 00:29:45.460 that we feel your love, because God, we can't 00:29:45.460 --> 00:29:48.220 go on without your love, dear Lord. And so I 00:29:48.220 --> 00:29:50.380 pray, God, that we would learn, that we would 00:29:50.380 --> 00:29:52.960 repent, that we would grow in you, dear Lord. 00:29:53.039 --> 00:29:55.579 I pray that you would help us to be patient with 00:29:55.579 --> 00:29:57.680 others. God, maybe there are times in our life 00:29:57.680 --> 00:30:00.019 that... Like Paul, we need to pump the brakes 00:30:00.019 --> 00:30:02.119 a little bit. We need to keep our distance. Maybe 00:30:02.119 --> 00:30:04.740 there are times that if we act rashly in our 00:30:04.740 --> 00:30:07.339 anger, we'll say things that we don't want to 00:30:07.339 --> 00:30:10.119 and would regret. So maybe, dear Lord, sometimes 00:30:10.119 --> 00:30:13.420 it's better for us to take a moment before we 00:30:13.420 --> 00:30:16.279 speak, just as Paul did, dear Lord. And whenever 00:30:16.279 --> 00:30:19.519 the moment comes for us to speak or to bring 00:30:19.519 --> 00:30:22.079 discipline in whatever way is necessary in our 00:30:22.079 --> 00:30:26.480 circumstances, that it is always done with love, 00:30:26.559 --> 00:30:28.710 dear Lord. that we would seek you, that you would 00:30:28.710 --> 00:30:30.769 guide us in the process, dear Lord, that you 00:30:30.769 --> 00:30:33.730 would help us to be those who love like Paul 00:30:33.730 --> 00:30:37.049 loves, that we would have such a heart and such 00:30:37.049 --> 00:30:39.430 an anguish for people in our heart, dear Lord, 00:30:39.509 --> 00:30:42.250 that we would shed tears for them just as Paul 00:30:42.250 --> 00:30:45.450 did, God, that we wouldn't take any delight in 00:30:45.450 --> 00:30:47.789 discipline, dear Lord, but that it would break 00:30:47.789 --> 00:30:51.829 our heart and bring us to a place of love that 00:30:51.829 --> 00:30:55.049 will be evident to those that we have to discipline. 00:30:55.660 --> 00:30:58.740 And I ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen.