Written ~ 08-28-2024
Read 2 Corinthians Chapter Three
2 Corinthians 3
When Paul begins this part of his letter, he is addressing, once again, the doubts the religious leaders and some believers had in his apostleship. They were requesting letters of recommendation so it would prove to them that he was indeed an apostle. But why would they ask this of Paul and his companions, weren’t they certainly God’s messengers? Well, as we learned from 2 Corinthians 2:17, there were quite a lot of “hucksters” in Corinth who were peddling their wares (so to speak) and trying to pass off what they were teaching as the truth and demanding money for sharing their so-called knowledge. Since there were so many people trying to pass themselves off as apostles, the letter of recommendation from believers in Jerusalem was now required. But Paul, knowing he was commissioned by the Almighty God Himself, did not feel the need to provide such a letter. Now Paul was not opposed to the recommendation letter all together, because he asked for that sort of letter way back before he became a believer. If we look back in Acts 9:2, then again in Acts 22:5, Paul requested letters from the high priest so he could go to Damascus and persecute Christians there. In order to do that he needed their recommendation. Then after Paul’s conversion, we see in Acts 9:26-27, even though it wasn’t a letter in this instance, Paul needed a verbal recommendation that his conversion was indeed true, and he was preaching the Salvation message with great conviction. So, sometimes it is necessary to have believers, who know your heart as a follower of Jesus Christ, to vouch for you when you are trying to spread the Gospel message to those who don’t know you.
2 Corinthians 3:1-3…
1 “Are we beginning to praise ourselves again? Are we like others, who need to bring you letters of recommendation, or who ask you to write such letters on their behalf? Surely not! 2 The only letter of recommendation we need is you yourselves. Your lives are a letter written in our hearts; everyone can read it and recognize our good work among you. 3 Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts.”
It wasn’t Paul and the others traveling with him who needed to promote themselves with self-praise nor did they need letters of recommendation. No, what they had was better than a little ole letter, they had the people, the believers they had brought to Salvation through their Gospel message, that was their “letter.”
Anyone who has been involved in any sort of discipleship or mentorship with a new believer knows what Paul is saying here to be the truth. If you are the vessel in which the Holy Spirit uses to bring someone to the Lord, and you can witness their growth and see their minds churning with the excitement when learning God’s word… that’s better than a recommendation letter. Their experience has now been engraved in your heart. When you see how they are growing in their faith and you see the evidence in how their trust in the Lord has increased, your heart will burst with joy. They will be the testimony; they are all the proof you need to show your “status” as an apostle. This letter of recommendation is written on the hearts of believers by the Spirit of the Living God!
2 Corinthians 3:4-6…
4 “We are confident of all this because of our great trust in God through Christ. 5 It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God. 6 He has enabled us to be ministers of His New Covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death; but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life.”
Jeremiah 31:33 says, “But this is the New Covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
Hebrews 9:14-15 says, “Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered Himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. That is why He is the One who mediates a New Covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.”
Paul understood that the old covenant was obsolete now that Christ had come and established the New Covenant. That’s why he and the other apostles taught the way of the Lord, the way of Salvation through Jesus Christ because it was the New Covenant. The old covenant had been written only on stone tablets, but Jesus resides now within each believer’s heart.
2 Corinthians 3:7-11…
7 “The old way, with laws etched in stone, led to death, though it began with such glory that the people of Israel could not bear to look at Moses’ face. For his face shone with the glory of God, even though the brightness was already fading away. 8 Shouldn’t we expect far greater glory under the new way, now that the Holy Spirit is giving life? 9 If the old way, which brings condemnation, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new way, which makes us right with God! 10 In fact, that first glory was not glorious at all compared with the overwhelming glory of the new way. 11 So if the old way, which has been replaced, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new, which remains forever!”
So, let’s really think about this… Moses was given the commandments on stone tablets by God (please see Exodus 34:29-35) and when he came down the mountain his face shone with such brilliance that the people were afraid to look at him! Because Moses spoke with God and was in His presence his face shone with absolute radiant glory. Ok, this is what I want us to think about… if the face of Moses shone so brightly when he received the engraved stones, how much more should our faces shine because we have the Living God by His Holy Spirit residing within us! We should be so radiant and brilliant with the Glory of God that it causes the world to be afraid! Do you have the radiant Glory of the Lord Jesus Christ shining from your very being? Or are you so caught up with the stress of your daily tasks that you diminish the brilliance of God with a frown or downcast eyes? How can I push this point even further so that we all understand… the world should look upon us with shielded eyes because the Light of Jesus shines so brightly in EVERYTHING we do. Our families should see light, our friends should see light, those we pass by in the grocery store should see light, those we drive past on the road should see the light of Jesus in all of our actions.
2 Corinthians 3:12-15…
12 “Since this new way gives us such confidence, we can be very bold. 13 We are not like Moses, who put a veil over his face so the people of Israel would not see the glory, even though it was destined to fade away. 14 But the people’s minds were hardened, and to this day whenever the old covenant is being read, the same veil covers their minds so they cannot understand the truth. And this veil can be removed only by believing in Christ. 15 Yes, even today when they read Moses’ writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand.”
Did you see what happened there? In verse 3:13 we are told that we are not like Moses! Why? Because he put a veil on his face because the people were afraid, their hearts and minds were hardened, they couldn’t or wouldn’t understand. When we become Born Again believers in Jesus Christ, the veil must be removed! It isn’t the believer who should veil the brilliance of the Holy Spirit, no, if the world doesn’t like the radiance of the Lord, they can be the ones to shield their eyes. Until the hearts, minds and the souls of the unbeliever are unveiled, they will not understand why we shine so brightly.
2 Corinthians 3:16-18…
16 “But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord — who is the Spirit — makes us more and more like Him as we are changed into His Glorious Image.”
Raise your hand if your veil has been removed! Do you reflect the Glory of the Lord? Or do you stay hidden behind that veil because of a lack of confidence in your relationship with the Lord? Do you not realize that He resides within you? Verse 3:12 says, “Since this new way gives us such confidence, we can be very bold.”
I am beyond thankful that the veil was removed from my heart at a very young age. But you know what? There are probably more times than I can count that I decided to put that veil back on. Why would I do that? Maybe because I wasn’t walking by faith, maybe instead I was determined to do “life” my own way, so I chose to place the veil back over my face (my life) so my light would not shine. How many of you tend to do that when you aren’t walking with the Lord as closely as you know you should? Maybe you think, like I did, that if your light doesn’t shine then the things you do won’t seem so bad. No… sorry it just doesn’t work that way. I know from experience. Anytime I thought it was better for me to put that veil back on for a time, the Holy Spirit was right there nudging me to take it back off. Honestly, sometimes it wasn’t easy… in order to shine with the brilliance of the Holy Spirit, my life needed to be in direct communication with my Lord. My time in the Bible needed to increase. I needed to rely on the Lord for the confidence to shine His light. I can say now, with boldness, and confidence, that I will never place that veil over my life ever again.
I hope this challenges you! If you know the Holy Spirit resides within you, are you ready to remove that veil for good? Are you ready to step out in confidence with your face shining brilliantly for all the world to see? We are to reflect the Glory of Jesus, and each day become more like Him. We are the reflection of His Glorious Image, don’t let the world, your family, your friends be the ones who convince you to put your veil back on because you’re just too bright for them to look upon. No… be bold, be confident and shine just that much brighter!
~AMEN~