Okay, thanks, Kate. Good morning, everyone. Hope you're well. If you have a Bible, come with me to
2 Corinthians. We do this every Sunday. We turn to the Bible. It's our deep conviction here at
Brunsfield, as is many churches throughout the city, that when we open this book, we find that
it is no ordinary book, that it is the voice of the living God. And so we expect to encounter God
by his spirit as we open the pages of the Bible. So please go to 2 Corinthians. If you need to
use the contents page of the Bible, I always think we get ourselves in knots over that. Please feel
absolutely free to do that. This is a letter that we've never been in before at Brunsfield in my time
here. So it's really exciting, and there's so many lessons for us to learn here. I think we're in for
an absolute treat. So we're going to start it this morning. We're going to take a little break for
Christmas, and then we're going to go all the way through to just before Easter next year. And
hopefully that's a way of as many of us as possible getting the whole of this series, accounting for
holidays and stuff, and when people are back. So this is going to be an absolute treat. But let me try
and get us to the big thing that's at the heart of this letter. Here's the question, okay? What kind of
person do you find impressive in life? Do you not love that face? Wish I could make that face. What kind of
person do you find impressive in life? So as you're chewing on it, something I learned recently, one of you
knew this. Every year the co-op funeral directors publish the top 10 songs requested at funerals list.
So I went on this week and I had a look. You've got your classics in there. You've got
Bette Midler, Wind Beneath My Wings. You've got Eva Cassidy, Over the Rainbow. Ed Sheeran somehow
made it in this year as well. But a timeless song that often comes in at number one, and if you trace
it back, has never been dislodged from the top 10, is this song. It is My Way by Frank Sinatra.
Right? Fact for you, between 1969 and 1971, that song stayed in the UK top 40 for a record 75
weeks. Now you bring those two facts together, and I think it shows that we love this song as a
culture. Right? It's a pretty decent song. I'll give him that. Could hit a note in his day. But it's a very
popular song in our day. Do you know the lyrics? I've lived a life that's full. I've traveled each and
every highway. And more, much more than this, I did it my way. And it's a song that's all about
self-confidence. And those are the people that my heart finds so naturally impressive in this life.
Do you find that? The student who can stay out all night and still get straight A's in the exams?
The colleague who can both work hard and play hard, who can burn the candle at both ends and
somehow manage to do it? The dad from Bluey, who seems to have endless fun and boundless energy for
his kids? The parent at the school gate, who has snuck in a little workout before work and dropping
the kids at school, looking polished and clean at 8.50 and looking lean? The person who appears on a
place in the sun, who's saved enough on their pension to comfortably retire to write their memoirs?
The person in bargain hunt, who seemed to make 15 quid on that piece of ornament that no one else
wanted to look at? The family next door who go for the extension on the side of the house, hearing the
story of the self-made man on Dragon's Den? All of these things, I look at it and I think, that's kind of
how I want to be. I want to be impressive. I want to be self-sufficient. And I look at them and I look at my
own life and I think, if only I had it more altogether. And what I do is, as I import that
vision of success in life, and what I do is I just transpose it onto the Christian life and I think
that's how it must work. And so my mind becomes full of words like bigger, better, faster, stronger,
and the one that I think we fall for, hook, line and sinker, busier.
And this letter has been gold for me and I pray that it's gold for us because through it, God has
both exposed the folly of the fact that I'm way too easily impressed. And he's also reminded me of
the things when it comes to the heavenly places, the things that are really impressive in this life.
And it's nothing to do with being self-sufficient. And it's reminded me of how he, the triune God,
Father, Son, and Spirit has shown his power and his wisdom in the things that look like foolishness
in the eyes of the watching world. He's going to flip what we understand impressive to be. He's
going to flip it on its head. You up for it? And it all centers in Jesus.
You remember those black and white movies that you sometimes still get on TV? I'll be honest,
because I sometimes still read the Gospels like that, as if they were black and white film.
The people, the places, the conversations that Jesus has with people, all of them like a black
and white film. Because I remember the moment it occurred to me when I was first reading the
Gospels that Jesus, as he walks in on the scene, he's the only person in 3D color.
Here is a man doing more than just turning the world upside down. Here is a man actually showing
the world what it is to live the right way up. A life not of self-confidence, but a life of walking,
having deep communion with and full dependence on God. You look at Jesus as you read about him in the
Gospels. And if you haven't done that this morning, can I suggest that be a great thing to do after the
lunch this afternoon? If you want to read it to somebody, please grab me. I'd love to do that with
you. You read about Jesus in the Gospels and you think to yourself, here is a man who is fully alive.
And yet his life is marked by what? Unimpressiveness. From cradle to grave,
unimpressiveness, right? Here is the boy from Bethlehem. Here is the man who picks 12
of the most normal ragtag guys to be his disciples. Here is the man who's hanging out with the most
questionable of people, reaching its apex, that foolishness at the cross, the place of utter
weakness and defeat. And yet that is the place to the glory of God, which is the place that God shows
both his wisdom and his power to the watching world. Such is the life of the man from Nazareth.
That's the place in the Bible, isn't it, that people make fun of? You're from there.
Could anything good come from Nazareth? Friends, Christianity will always be from Nazareth.
Following Jesus faithfully, following in his footsteps is really tough.
I take it that when Paul speaks in this passage of the sufferings of Christ here,
that's what he's talking about. The cost of following Jesus.
You come across that. My flatmates think I'm a space cadet.
My family think I'm just going through a phase.
Trying to do the faithful, next right thing, sexually, ethically. It just feels so hard.
My colleagues find my takes strange. And if I really ask them, they really feel sorry for me.
Following Jesus will always be baffling in the eyes of the watching world as we follow the crucified man from Nazareth.
And that's particularly acute in a city like Corinth.
This booming port city, if you find it on the map there, a little southwest of Athens.
How strategic is that city in terms of where it's located?
Here is a total melting pot of peoples.
Here is a place where money and pleasure and making a name for yourself are the name of the game.
Do you know where we were a few weeks ago? Or last week, rather?
We drove past Benidorm.
Right? Alex and I saying to each other in the car.
Here is a city that is just coming out of nowhere huge.
That is just existing for pleasure.
Corinth is like that.
It is like Benidorm and Manhattan rolled into one.
In fact, to Corinthianize was a jokey way of saying that someone was into wild living.
Such is Corinth.
One commentator, and I thought I'd give you this, describes it like this.
Corinth was a city with a Roman face, a Greek heart, a large Jewish minority,
and a deeply, and get this, ingrained universal desire to impress.
And that's why Corinth is not the place that we'd imagine the message about a crucified and resurrected man would get any kind of traction.
Talk about a place that isn't full of low-hanging fruit.
And yet God, because he is this kind of God, because he is the one who works by his spirit to draw all sorts of people to his son Jesus,
from all strata of society.
Jesus has been proclaimed by Paul, and God has birthed a church in the city of Corinth.
And let's never lose sight of the fact that God is this kind of God, and God is working in these kind of places and has done throughout history.
Because God is this kind of God.
Dear friends, this world that we live in is full of what?
Possibilities.
Evangelistic possibilities.
Take that in today.
If God can birth a church in a city like Corinth through the preaching of his words,
then there really is no place that's out of bounds.
There is no person who's out of reach, and there's no prayer that's off the table.
And the amazement of it all is that he uses everyday weak people like you and me and Paul
to reach people with the news about his son.
D.L. Moody, the famous American evangelist, tail end of the 18th century,
who God would use to let thousands of people around the world hear about Jesus,
including in this city.
What was his background?
Shoe salesman.
Love it.
Shoe salesman.
He said this,
The world has yet to see what God can do through a person who is totally dedicated to him.
So, Paul arrives in Corinth, let's call it A.D. 50, just to locate it.
A.D. 50.
And you can read about that in Acts chapter 18,
the first time that Paul rocks up in Corinth.
And all the things that God did there,
typical Acts, both revival and riot.
That's what you get in Acts 18.
And the relationship between Paul and this church is,
well, it's complicated.
So, on the one hand, they drive him absolutely nuts.
And yet, on the other hand, he loves them so, so deeply.
Right?
He's so encouraged by their progress, I think.
And you get this in 1 Corinthians,
where you see a lot of their questions and a lot of their mistakes
as young baby believers trying to work out how they do this Jesus thing
in a place like Corinth.
And in between, you kind of see them making progress.
But here's the thing that's going on in the background of 2 Corinthians.
And it's that a group of false teachers have arrived on the scene in Paul's absence,
and they're peddling a Jesus-sounding message
that downplays suffering and hardship
and emphasizes looking good on the outside.
And what they're trying to do is lure these young believers away from Paul
and Paul's message about Jesus
and his accompanying cross-shaped life.
And they say, come on.
Paul looks so unimpressive.
The way he talks is so unimpressive.
Do you not think that God's got better things for you?
Higher experiences that you can tap into?
Do you not want the world to like you?
Paul means well,
but surely if he had got this message right,
his life would be hashtag blessed all over Instagram.
And that's why this is one of the most raw
and the most affectionate of letters
that we find anywhere in the New Testament.
Because Paul is all heart and all sleeve here.
Unapologetically defending the message and pattern of his life.
But here's the incredible thing.
I want you to tap into this
because this really gets us to the heart of the letter.
Here's the incredible thing.
The way Paul desires to show the legitimacy of his leadership
isn't by holding up his CV
and holding it up against the CV of the false teachers
and say, do you see how I'm better than them?
Do you see how I'm better than them?
No, he does the opposite.
The big thrust of this letter is that he's saying,
what qualifies me to be a leader is not my brilliance.
It's my need.
I always think C.S. Lewis captures this so wonderfully in his Narnia series.
I'm surprised you to hear me say C.S. Lewis gets this so right.
But there's this wonderful scene in Prince Caspian, I think it is,
where Aslan and Caspian, who's on the cusp of becoming king,
are having this conversation.
And Aslan says to Caspian,
do you feel yourself sufficient to take up the kingship of Narnia?
To which Caspian replies, I don't think so, sir.
I'm only a kid.
And Aslan responds, good.
Do you get that?
If you felt that you were sufficient,
if you felt you could do this on your own,
it would be proof that you aren't ready.
Dear friends, here's the thing, okay?
Progress in the Christian life
is not us understanding that we need Jesus less.
It's as if Jesus is some kind of stabilizers on our bike.
No, progress in the Christian life
is realizing that you need Jesus more.
And you need his people more.
You need us someday more.
Paul has tapped into the secret
that we are never more useful to the Lord
than when we are completely dependent on him.
Do you see how he says that in verse eight?
He says, and it's really striking
that he would open his letter with this,
not keep it right to the end.
He would front it with this.
He's unashamed about the hardships
that he goes through
as a result of following Jesus.
His suffering in Asia, make no mistake,
it's not trivial.
In fact, do you see him right?
It burdened him far beyond the limits of his,
do you see it?
His own strength.
So much so that he despaired of life itself.
That ain't trivial.
Read that to say that we were so utterly spent
mentally, emotionally, and physically,
our supplies were utterly gone
and we just didn't know what to do
or where to turn.
Paul's life is the opposite of Instagrammable.
Yeah?
You go on Facebook,
everyone's sitting telling you
about their best moments,
their best photos.
Paul's game for telling you about his toughest.
And here's the point.
And if you want a strapline,
if you remember one thing from this,
I hope you take a lot.
Remember one thing from this, make it this.
Okay, here's the strapline over this letter.
Weakness is the way.
Yeah?
Weakness is the way.
That's what Paul wants these Christians in Corinth
who are being sucked into this whole idea
of Christianity should look impressive
in the eyes of the watching world.
He's saying, no, weakness is the way.
And it's really striking, isn't it?
Because that's not what I would have done.
It's not what I would have done.
I would have kept that at least to the last page
and dropped that in as a PS.
But it's really striking, isn't it?
And you ask yourself, why?
Why is he all heart and all sleeve
about weakness being the way?
Can I just pull out a couple of things
in these first 11 opening verses?
You ready for this?
I want us to see a one and a two.
One and a two.
So here's one big thing that God does
in our times of trouble.
Times of trouble are not a source of shame to Paul.
Do you see if verse three,
ultimately they are a source of praise to God?
Now how?
In verses three to seven,
do you see how often that word comfort crops up?
It's always a great thing to do
when you see a repeated word in the Bible
to ask yourself why?
It's not just that they need a thesaurus
and they couldn't find one.
If a word is repeated,
we ask ourselves why?
How often that word comfort crops up?
Dear friends, Paul wants us to know
and these Christians to know
that we're dealing with the God
who draws near to his people
in their darkest moments.
That it's when we realize
that Jesus is all we have.
When there's nowhere else to go,
that that is when God meets us
in our darkest moments.
Do you see the description of him
there at verse three?
And this is all tied up
with who this God is.
Do you see the description of him
there at verse three?
And I cannot think of a more sweeter
description of God than this.
He is what?
He is the father of mercies.
That word mercy is used
in the Old Testament
to describe the tender way
in which God showers his people
with undeserved kindness.
And he's the God of all comfort.
Comfort there is an Isaiah 40 word.
Isaiah 40, God saying in the future,
what's he going to do to his people?
Comfort, comfort my people,
says the Lord.
There's coming a new day
when God's comfort
is going to be so much more tangibly real.
I cannot think of more sweeter
sounding descriptions of God's heart
than this.
Our father has the finger,
his finger on the pulse
of every single detail of our lives
as we take daily steps of faith.
Dear friends,
he hears our cries of distress.
And he sees our tears of despair.
And one of the things
that this invites us to do surely
is to embrace a more honest
and a more raw prayer life.
One in which we come to this God
and tell him exactly
how we are feeling
and what it is that we are going through.
We don't surprise him when we do that.
What we're doing right now
is fighting the temptation
to believe that God by his spirit
cannot offer us
the perfect comfort
that we so desperately need
in our lowest moments.
Jesus is the most sovereign
and the most willing of saviors.
in the words of Dane Ortlund
in his lovely little book
Gentle and Lowly
he says,
When you come to Christ
for mercy and love
and help
in your anguish
and perplexity
and sinfulness
you are going
with the flow
of his deepest wishes
not against them.
Truly in Jesus
we have one
a bruised reed
he will not break
and a smoldering wick
he will not put out.
And flowing from that one big thing
that God does
in our times of trouble
says Paul
here are two great ways
that God uses
our times of trouble
that God uses
our times of trouble.
Now even with that
do you see how we are
swimming against
the stream of our culture?
Friends,
you and I are breathing
in the air
every day
just like osmosis
of our highly
individualistic culture
that is saying to us
the thing to really get
in life
is happiness
and comfort.
Everything in our world
is set up
to provide you and I
with as much
cotton wool insurance
around our lives
as we can
with the goal
of being the avoidance
of what?
Discomfort.
Do you see Paul
right after telling them
about his troubles
he keeps using that phrase
do you see it?
It is for.
Do you see that in the text?
It is for.
Verse 6
It is for.
Which tells you what?
That Paul perceives
that even in the hardest
of moments
even in our darkest
of times
God has not
dropped the ball
that more than that
God is
at work
somehow
and it tells us
that our times
of trouble
are not
purposeless
and we don't think
like that do we?
We think tough times
are times to be avoided.
I mean
think about it
what's your instinctive
reaction
when something
in our lives
doesn't go to plan?
When you hit
times of trouble
what is our
instinctive
reaction?
Tell me what mine is
mine is to go
total Bob the Builder
and try and fix it
yes I can
all the time
I can do this
I can fix it
some of us
play the blame game
that's another one
I love to play
it's other people's
faults
many of us
turn to the bottle
we drown our sorrows
some of us
turn to the packet
and we comfort eat
some of us
turn for the TV
remote
and we binge watch
some of us
grab for our phone
and we doom scroll
on social media
looking for that
next dopamine hit
to escape
our world
is offering us
plenty of
ways to try
and cope
with difficult times
and yet Paul says
would you perceive
when times
of trouble
come when you
follow Jesus
it is not
purposeless
because God
because he loves
us
because he loves
us
because he loves
us
do you not love
that
done nothing
to deserve
the grace
of God
the love
of God
means I can do
nothing to lose
the love
of God
because he loves
us
because he loves
us
because he loves
us
he so often
does the deepest
work in our
hearts
during some of
the toughest
moments of
our lives
and the two
ways that God
uses our
hardships
says Paul
do you see
the first
at verse 9
so that we
might become
less self-reliant
and come to
trust in Jesus
more
I remember
chatting to my
good friend
Dave Hampton
who works for
Christians in
Sport
chatting to him
one day about
parenting
we've got kids
the same age
he's got three
and at the time
I had three as
well
and we're talking
about how tired
we are as
parents
it's a game
that we often
play as parents
who's tired
and how do
we cope
when it gets
really tough
and I'm
starting
I'm telling
him about
all our
tactics
as parents
right
I'm telling
him about
sticker charts
on fridges
and I'm
telling him
about limiting
TV time
to an hour
there's nothing
wrong with
those things
but I kind of
tag him in
at this point
and said Dave
what do you
do
and he said
listen
when Joe
and I
are at
wits end
we don't
know where
to go
see
instead of
just trying
harder
we've been
convicted
just to
pray
together
and that's
the point
and Dave's
one of these
guys who
is just
straight back
I remember
hearing it
and thinking
ouch
he's bang
on the money
isn't he
friends no
experience is
wasted in
God's flawless
economy
as he teaches
us not to
just try
harder when
tough times
come to
think that
we can get
ourselves
through it
but as
he weans
us off
takes us
to the
end
weans
us off
our own
resources
and just
faces our
minds towards
him
helping us
understand more
that he is the
God who raises
the dead
you see that
there Paul
just drops
that in
which I
take it
means regardless
how scary
this world
becomes
we can know
that this
God of
power
absolutely
holds our
lives
that's the
first thing
God does
he weans
us off
self-reliance
and the
second comes
at the end
of verse
three
and I
love this
so that we
can share
that same
comfort that
God gave
us with
others
think of
this as a
bit like a
suffering and
comfort chain
so as Paul
experiences God's
comfort through
his spirit
he becomes
perfectly equipped
to pass on
that same
comfort to
the Corinthians
when they
suffer
and it's
always great
you may be
thinking well
I'm not
suffering right
now I'm not
going through a
hard time right
now but the
thing is we
need to put
this in the
tank of our
lives because
one day that we
will suffer and
find times
difficult
as Paul suffers
and experiences
God's comfort
he wants to
pass that on
to others
and I love the
phrase and I
only noticed it
about an hour
before coming out
this morning
verse 4
who comforts
us in all
our troubles
so that we
can comfort
those in
any trouble
and it's the
word any
there
I've never
seen it
before
any trouble
and here's
what I think
I so often
do
I look at
my brothers
and sisters
who are going
through really
hard times
and I think
because I've
not gone
through that
specific thing
that I've
got nothing
to offer
if you ever
feel like that
in our church
life that we've
got nothing
to offer
because we
haven't been
through that
now listen
God might
bring you
into someone's
path
you have
gone through
what they're
going through
and you can
speak specifically
into a situation
as we'll come on
to see in a moment
but just to fight
the temptation
that we have
got nothing
to offer each
other when it
comes to comfort
this would tell
us that that
isn't true
you know
there's
something wonderful
about us
drawing alongside
each other
and saying to
each other
listen I love
you
I don't know
how you feel
what you're
going through
but I'm here
to listen
and I want
to learn
and if nothing
else I want
to be those
who pray
with you
do you see
that in verse
11
friends that
we really
have something
wonderful
let's not
underestimate
God's spirit
and what he
can do
as we draw
alongside each
other
trying to
offer comfort
you know
for making
this place
a community
of comfort
that we
really do
walk side
by side
through all
the ups
and downs
of life
but here's
some quick fire
questions as we
begin to work
this towards a
close
as we think
about passing
that comfort
on to other
people
what are the
biggest things
that God
has taught
you during
the course
of your
life
what are
the hardest
things that
he's brought
you through
what scripture
in those
times became
so precious
to you
that perhaps
that you can
share with
someone going
through a
difficult time
you know I've
got mates like
that in my
life who just
text me random
verses now
and again
one of them
sitting over
there
just text me
random verses
he's got no
idea what's
going on in
my life at
the time
but boy I
tell you see
when I read
it I think
that is just
the verse I
needed this
morning
let's not
underestimate
the Holy
Spirit
what he
does is we
take this
word and
apply it to
each other's
lives
friends who
could you
get alongside
with the
express purpose
of sharing
that
who is God
the Holy
Spirit putting
on your
heart and
who is he
putting in
your path
again let's
not underestimate
his sovereignty
when it comes
to the people
that appear
in our
past
the amount
of great
conversations
I've just
had with
people at
the door
dear friends
have we
stopped to
consider the
possibility
that we
might be
the perfect
way
that God
brings this
comfort
to one of
his own
people
you know our
time is gone
I'm so excited
to journey
through this
letter together
and see everything
that God is
going to teach
us weakness
weakness is
the way
but our
time is
gone
here's what
I want to
do just
as we
close
I want to
tell you about
to bring us
back to the
big thing
why I love
WD-40
this little
magical
bottled
substance
that you
use to
grease the
hinges of
your door
you use
it to
make the
hinges in
your gate
work
you do it
to change
the gears
on your
bike
there are
many signs
in life
that you're
hitting
middle age
and here's
one of
them
when you
get excited
about things
like this
but do
you know
why it's
called
WD-40
I thought
it was a
band at
first but
that's
WB-40
isn't it
WD-40
because the
people who
designed this
formula
they got
it right
on the
40th
attempt
in other
words it
took 39
failed
attempts of
learning
to get
this right
do you know
why I love
that
I love
it because
no one
needed to
know that
yeah
we should
be up
here waxing
lyrical
about
WD-1
but they
chose to
call it
WD-40
here's a
brand that
is wearing
and gladly
telling the
world the
story of
its weakness
and its
need
and that
is the
backing
track of
this letter
that we're
going to
keep hearing
again and
again
wearing it
that
weakness
is the
way
Paul's
letter as
it holds
to us
God's
gospel
is an
invitation to
embrace a
fully dependent
life as we
rest on a
fully sufficient
Jesus
just as we
close in the
words of
Charles Spurgeon
really simply
I have a
great need
for Christ
and I
have a
great Christ
for my
need
1 Peter
chapter 5
in it
verse 6
humble
humble yourselves
therefore
under God's
mighty hand
that he may
lift you up
in due time
cast all
your anxiety
on him
because he
cares for you
and Lord we
just thank you
simply this
morning Father
for that
wonderful
description
and we
don't take
it for
granted
that we
have it
in our
own
language
that you
are the
father of
mercies
and the
God of
all comfort
truly our
only plea
is that you
are the
kind of
God that
you are
and so
Father we
thank you
just for this
time that
we've had
in this
letter
thank you
Lord that
is Kate
prayed at
the beginning
truly your
word is
alive and
active
sharper than
a double
edged sword
and I
pray Lord
as we
spend a
bit more
time together
now as
we close
and then as
we have
lunch
together
Lord that
you would
be working
in our
conversations
Father that
you would
be moving
in
ways to
encourage
and to
strengthen
and equip
thank you
Lord for
your grace
and we
just commit
this time
to you
as we
close in
Jesus name
Amen