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Scripture Reading: 2 Cor. 4:1-18
In the foregoing message we pointed out that 2 Corinthians 3 is a chapter on doctrine and that 2 Corinthians 4 is a chapter on experience. Furthermore, we saw that what Paul speaks of in chapter four is a confirmation from his experience of what he says concerning the ministry in chapter three. For each of the major points regarding the ministry in chapter three, there is a corresponding point in chapter four. Thus, life corresponds to the Spirit, renewing to transformation, and the weight of glory to the degrees of glory. But what corresponds to righteousness in 2 Corinthians 3? In order to answer this question properly, we need to say a further word about righteousness.
Righteousness refers to a condition, a state, where everything is in good order. Where there is righteousness, there is no disturbance, confusion, or mixture. For example, in a church meeting we often can see righteousness, for in the meeting everything is right and in good order. As a result, the meeting is in a condition, a state, of righteousness. But suppose the brothers are arguing, the sisters are upset, and the children are running around the meeting hall. What turmoil there would be! In that kind of a situation, a condition of turmoil, there would not be any righteousness. Righteousness refers to a state where everything is in good order.
Second Peter 3:13 says, “Nevertheless, we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” The righteousness dwelling in the new heaven and the new earth indicates that everything will be in proper order, that nothing will be wrong, upset, or in turmoil. Instead of turmoil and confusion, there will be peace and order. In the sight of God, such a state is righteousness. The entire condition in the new heavens and the new earth will be righteousness. Nothing will be disorderly; rather, everything will be in good order. This orderly condition is a condition of righteousness.
In 4:8 Paul speaks of being afflicted in every way, or of being attacked from every side. But no matter how much he was afflicted or attacked, with him there was no turmoil. Instead, there was the manifestation of life. This manifestation of life produced a condition of peace and calm.
Suppose you are troubled on every side by your husband or wife, by your children, and by your in-laws. Nevertheless, instead of being disturbed or in turmoil, you manifest life. This means that life comes out of you in that situation. As a result, your condition will be one of peace and order. In spite of the trouble that comes to you from every side, you remain in such an orderly and peaceful condition. The processed Spirit, the “cooked” Spirit, within you experienced as life calms down the whole situation. This is righteousness.
In 4:8 and 9 Paul speaks of being afflicted, perplexed, persecuted, and cast down. We would expect such a situation to result in turmoil. But if you find yourself in that kind of situation and yet everything becomes calm and orderly, that is the manifestation of life. Furthermore, that orderly state is a state of righteousness.
Whenever the Spirit is expressed as life, there will be righteousness. When there is righteousness, everything will be calm, peaceful, and orderly. If you experience this in your family life, your children will be calmed down, and your husband or wife will be subdued. Such a life always calms down turmoil. When others receive this life from you, they also will enjoy a peaceful state.
The church life is a life of righteousness. In the church life everything should be calm, peaceful, and orderly. To be sure, the millennium, the thousand-year kingdom, will be filled with righteousness. Because there will be righteousness in the kingdom, there will also be peace. The kingdom is simply a realm of righteousness with peace. This righteousness is the result of life.
According to the Bible, in the millennium death will be greatly reduced and restricted (Isa. 65:20). There will be abundance of life. As a result, the environment in the millennium will be peaceful. The Bible uses the term righteousness to denote this peaceful state and condition.
After the millennium, there will be the new heavens and the new earth with the New Jerusalem. In the New Jerusalem, there will be no death, and life will flow to maintain a peaceful condition (Rev. 21:4; 22:1). This will be an eternal righteousness. Then we all shall live out the divine life in a state of righteousness. The church life today should be a miniature of this kind of condition. The same should be true of our family life. By the Lord’s mercy and grace, our church life and family life should be full of life and righteousness.
A living that is full of life and righteousness is a confirmation of the new covenant ministry. According to Paul’s word in 2 Corinthians 3, the new covenant ministry is a ministry of the Spirit and of righteousness. This ministry supplies Christ as the Spirit and as righteousness to others. In 2 Corinthians 4, Paul presents the experience of the Spirit and of righteousness. When we experience the Spirit, life is manifested. When life is manifested, we are brought into a condition of peace, where nothing is wrong or out of order. This is righteousness, a state where everything is living, right, and orderly. In the sight of God, this is righteousness. The apostles experienced the Spirit, manifested life, and lived in a condition of righteousness. Once again we see that their living and their ministry were one.
We have seen that renewing in chapter four corresponds to transformation in chapter three. In 4:16 Paul says, “Wherefore we do not lose heart, but if indeed our outward man is decaying, yet our inward man is being renewed day by day.” The rendering “our outward man is decaying” is a correct translation. However, many of us would prefer to say that our outward man is being consumed, wasted away, worn out. The difference is that “is decaying” is active, whereas “being consumed” is passive.
We may use the falling of leaves from a tree as an illustration. In the autumn, many trees lose their leaves, and during the winter these trees are dormant. On the one hand, the falling of the leaves from a tree is an active matter, but in another sense, it is passive. It is active in the sense that the trees drop their leaves. No outside force causes the leaves to fall. It is the tree itself that drops its leaves. We may say that when a tree drops its leaves, the tree is decaying. This is active. But in another sense, the trees are forced to drop their leaves. If a tree could speak, it might say, “Help me! I don’t want to lose my leaves. I would like the season to change from autumn directly to spring. Then my leaves will not be lost.” A tree’s losing of its leaves may also be regarded as passive. Paul’s word, “our outward man is decaying,” is active. But it can also be understood as if it were in the passive voice. Hence, we can speak of our outward man being consumed or being wasted away.
Let us now apply this understanding to our daily experience. Suppose a brother is afflicted on every side. Surely one who is afflicted, attacked, in this way would be worn out, consumed. If you were the one suffering such affliction, would you not cry out and say, “Please rescue me. I am being consumed. All of you are wearing me out and wasting me away. I am being consumed by you all.” Nevertheless, this brother, along with all of us, needs to realize that just as a tree is destined to lose its leaves, so our destiny is for the outward man to be consumed.
The One who created the trees destined that many kinds of trees would drop their leaves. As Christian “trees,” we also have been destined to “drop our leaves.” Because our destiny is to drop our leaves, eventually something or someone will compel us to drop them. God never intended that our outward man would survive such a long time. Rather, He has determined that our old man, our outward man, will decay, will be consumed. The destiny, therefore, for our outward man is to die. You may live to be very old, but eventually your outward man will die. It is not God’s intention to prolong the life of your outward man. Therefore, do not cry out for help to preserve your outward man, and do not ask to be rescued from those things or persons who are consuming you. Instead, you should say, “Lord, I thank You. All these persons and things are helping me to drop my leaves earlier and faster. Lord, I want to cooperate. I want to let go of my leaves quicker, for then I shall mature earlier. Lord, I praise You for this help!”
The Lord uses our married life to consume our outward man. Before a young brother gets married, he may dream about the kind of sister he will marry. Then he will look for the sister who will be the fulfillment of his dream. Likewise, the young sisters are looking for a “hero” to be their husband. All young people have a dream regarding their future married life. Some may travel from one local church to another hoping to find the brother or sister of their choice. But, young people, no matter how clever you are, you cannot defeat God. He has already determined your destiny regarding married life. There is no need for you to expend so much energy searching for the wife or husband of your dreams. Instead, you should simply pray, “Lord, You have already determined my destiny. I don’t need to travel from place to place, looking for a spouse. I would rather be today’s Isaac, waiting for You to send me the one You have destined for me.” However, it is doubtful that very many young people will follow this way or take this word. But I am certain that after some years of married life, they will worship the Lord and say, “Lord, You are sovereign. It has not been a matter of my choice, but of Your destiny.”
Brothers, I assure you that the Lord will give you the wife most suitable to bring you affliction and even attack you so that your outward man may be consumed. Every wife knows the best time to attack her husband. This certainly is sovereign of the Lord. Sometimes when you make a mistake, your wife will be very kind to you and tell you not to be concerned about it. But when you are not mistaken, she may attack you strongly for no reason. Actually, there is a reason: God in His sovereignty allows her to do so in order that you, as a tree, may drop your leaves.
On the one hand, a tree drops its leaves on its own; on the other hand, the season and the environment force a tree to do this. When autumn comes, a tree must drop its leaves, no matter how green and flourishing it has been during the summer. In like manner, when the autumn and winter seasons come in the Christian life, we may be afflicted by the members of our family. During a time of severe cold, we shall be forced to drop our leaves. This means that, on the one hand, our outward man is decaying and that, on the other hand, it is being consumed.
When we experience the decaying of our outward man, we may tell the Lord that we are not able to take it any longer. The Lord, however, may indicate that we shall take it much longer, for our destiny is to have the outward man consumed. This is my understanding of this matter according to my experience.
Also from experience I can testify that something issues from this decaying, this consuming — the renewing of the inward man. Yes, our outward man is decaying, but our inward man is being renewed. If we had a choice, we would of course choose the renewing and avoid the decaying. But if we could avoid the decaying of the outward man, there would not be any renewing of the inward man. We all would prefer to be like evergreen trees. In a sense, when springtime comes, an evergreen tree is not very fresh. But those trees who drop their leaves and are dormant during the winter are fresh when spring arrives. In the same principle, when we experience the decaying of the outward man, we enjoy the renewing of the inward man.
In 2 Corinthians 3 Paul speaks of transformation. In the process of transformation a divine element is added into our being, and we are constituted of this element. This constitution produces transformation. As we have seen, in 2 Corinthians 4, transformation becomes renewing. This renewing does not merely involve the addition of the divine element into our being. Our old nature, the outward man, is actually taken away so that the life within us, that is, the Spirit of life, may have the opportunity to develop. This development of the life within is the renewing. Once again we may use trees as an illustration. During the winter they are dormant, but in the springtime we can see the development of the inner life. This is not only transformation; it is renewing.
Transformation is a matter of constitution; renewing involves replacement. To be renewed means that the outward man is being consumed. As a tree drops its leaves, so the old element of the outward man decays. The result is that the inner life develops in a fresh way. When spring arrives, the tree becomes lively, fresh, and vigorous. New leaves come out, and eventually the tree blossoms and brings forth fruit. This is a picture of the renewing of our inward man. By the experience of this renewing, we go on from glory to glory. The glory is uplifted from one level to another, from the present glory to the eternal glory.
