Gary Gleans

                                                                                  2 Corinthians 11:1-6 I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me!    For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since   I betrothed you to one husband,   to present you   as a pure virgin to Christ.    But I am afraid that   as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts   will be led astray from a   sincere and   pure devotion to Christ.    For if someone comes and   proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept   a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.    Indeed, I consider that   I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles.    Even if I am unskilled in speaking,   I am not so in knowledge; indeed, in every way   we have made this plain to you in all things.   Satan is out to destroy the work of God in the hearts of men.  He will do a

                                                                                  2 Corinthians 10:13-17 But we will not boast   beyond limits, but will   boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us,   to reach even to you.    For we are not overextending ourselves, as though we did not reach you.   For we were the first to come all the way to you with the gospel of Christ.    We do not boast beyond limit in the labors of others. But our hope is that   as your faith increases, our area of influence among you may be   greatly enlarged,   so that we may preach the gospel in lands beyond you, without boasting of work already done in another's area of influence.    “Let   the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”    For it is   not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one   whom the Lord commends.   God is always on mission to bring the lost to Himself.  He gives those whom He calls the privilege of being a part of that mission.  This is what God i

                                                                                  2 Corinthians 10:7-12 Look at what is before your eyes.   If anyone is confident that he is Christ's, let him remind himself that just as   he is Christ's,   so also are we.    For even if I boast a little too much of   our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be ashamed.    I do not want to appear to be frightening you with my letters.    For they say, “His letters are weighty and strong, but   his bodily presence is weak, and   his speech of no account.”    Let such a person understand that what we say by letter when absent, we do when present.    Not that we dare to classify or   compare ourselves with some of those who   are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are   without understanding.   Ministry is vital to the growth of the church and the well-being of the

                                                                             2 Corinthians 10:1-6 I, Paul, myself entreat you, by the   meekness and gentleness of Christ—I who am humble when face to face with you, but bold toward you when I am away!—I beg of you   that when I am present I may not have to show   boldness with such confidence as I count on showing against some who suspect us of walking according to the flesh.    For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh.    For the   weapons of   our warfare are not of the flesh but have   divine power   to destroy strongholds.    We destroy arguments and   every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to   obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience,   when your obedience is complete.   It seems inconceivable to us that anyone would criticize Paul’s ministry.  We stand in awe of his life and testimony as a minister of the Gospel.  He didn’t enjoy suc

                                                                             2 Corinthians 9:10-15 He who supplies   seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and   increase the harvest of your righteousness.    You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which   through us will produce thanksgiving to God.    For the ministry of this service is not only supplying   the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God.    By their approval of this service,   they will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your   confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others,   while they long for you and pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God upon you.    Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!   Like everything else in our Christian lives, generosity is from God and for God.  All praise and thanksgiving for generosity belongs

                                                                                                 2 Corinthians 9:6-9 The point is this:   whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.    Each one must give as he has decided in his heart,   not reluctantly or under compulsion, for   God loves a cheerful giver.    And   God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.    As it is written,  “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor;   his righteousness endures forever.” Motivation is an important consideration in all our lives.  Care must be taken to make sure we are doing the right things for the right reasons.  Paul is striving to give the church in Corinth clear motivation as to why they should give generously.  These same motives continue to be true in our lives.  Paul is not manipulating giving for his own benefit, he is moti

                                                                                  2 Corinthians 9:1-5 Now   it is superfluous for me to write to you about   the ministry for the saints,   for I know your readiness,   of which I boast about you to the people of Macedonia, saying that Achaia has been ready   since last year. And your zeal has stirred up most of them.    But   I am sending the brothers so that our boasting about you may not prove empty in this matter, so that you may be ready,   as I said you would be.    Otherwise, if some Macedonians   come with me and find that you are not ready, we would be humiliated—to say nothing of you—for being so confident.    So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the   gift you have promised, so that it may be ready   as a willing gift,   not as an exaction.   As believers, we sort of just expect other believers to do what is right.  However, Paul demonstrates the need to follow that exp

                                                                                       2 Corinthians 8:16-24 But   thanks be to God,   who put into the heart of Titus the same earnest care I have for you.    For   he not only accepted our appeal, but being himself very earnest he is going to you of his own accord.    With him we are sending   the brother who is famous among   all the churches for his preaching of the gospel.    And not only that, but he has been   appointed by the churches to travel with us as we carry out this act of   grace that is being ministered by us,   for the glory of the Lord himself and to show our good will.  We take this course so that no one should blame us about this generous gift that is being administered by us,   for   we aim at what is honorable   not only in the Lord's sight but also in the sight of man.    And with them we are sending our brother whom we have often tested and found earnest in many matters, but who is now more earnest than ever b

                                                                                         2 Corinthians 8:8-15 I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine.  For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that   though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.    And in this matter   I give my judgment:   this benefits you, who   a year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it.    So now finish doing it as well, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have.    For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable   according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.  For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness   your abundance at the present time should supply   their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fa

                                                                                       2 Corinthians 8:1-7 We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been   given among the churches of Macedonia,   for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and   their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.  For they gave   according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly   for the favor of taking part in   the relief of the saints— and this, not as we expected, but they   gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.    Accordingly,   we urged Titus that as he had started, so he should complete among you   this act of grace.    But as   you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you—see that you excel in this act of grace also.   Those who have experienced the grace of God in the various circums

                                                                                  2 Corinthians 7:13-16 And besides our own comfort, we rejoiced still more at the joy of Titus, because his spirit   has been refreshed by you all.    For   whatever boasts I made to him about you, I was not put to shame. But just as everything we said to you   was true, so also our boasting before Titus has proved true.    And his affection for you is even greater, as he remembers   the obedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling.    I rejoice, because I have complete   confidence in you.   Encouragement is one of the most essential responsibilities we have as believers in our relationships to one another.  This is especially true in the context of discipline.  When discipline becomes necessary it is easy for the person being disciplined to thank that they are no longer of use and that they are no longer loved.  Satan will do all he can to discourage, deceive and destroy.  We must b

                                                                             2 Corinthians 7:10-13 For   godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas   worldly grief produces death.    For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing,   what zeal, what punishment! At every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter.  So although I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of the one   who did the wrong, nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong, but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God.    Therefore   we are comforted.   Discipline is not common or easy but it serves a vital purpose.  It is unfortunate that it is so seldom practiced in a biblical manner today.  Sin must be taken seriously and when it is not the entire body of Christ suffers including the offending parties.  This passage