2 CORINTHIANS 7 (FIRST READING)
2 CORINTHIANS 7 (FIRST READING)
CAC We have noticed before that these epistles regard the saints as identified with the tabernacle of the testimony; they are a priestly company. I think verse 1 of this chapter answers to the laver.
The object of the Spirit of God in these two epistles was to bring saints into priestly condition; if we were in the good of them we should be consecrated as priests. The saints were not in priestly condition in the first epistle; they had not gone beyond being washed: “Ye have been washed”, 1 Corinthians 6: 11. They were like the priests standing at the door of the tabernacle; they had got no further in consecration. But in this second epistle we get the beautiful garments and the anointing.
Rem Real separation would lead to sanctification,
“Having therefore these promises, beloved, let us purify ourselves”.
CAC Yes, it follows on what has been brought out; the saints have been put in such a marvellous position. Before the apostle speaks of separation or cleansing he gives this wonderful touch of the dignity and blessedness of their position. He puts the beauty of our God on them in chapter 3 and the beauty of Christ on them in chapter 5. Moses said in Psalm 90: 17, “Let the beauty of Jehovah our God be upon us”. Chapter 3 is the answer to Moses’ prayer; saints behold the glory of the Lord and are changed into the same image. It is for testimony that we might be for God in this world. The glory of God is shining out in a Mediator and saints looking at it are changed; that belongs to the priestly company. In chapter 5 the beauty of Christ, the anointed Man, is upon the saints before God in reconciliation; they are brought where there is no stain or spot, nothing but Christ. This is like the priestly garments; if we do not come into it we shall not be qualified for priestly service. All must be in correspondence with Christ. If Christ is everything, if you have the best robe on before God, you cannot go about in rags before men. Whatever is out of accord with Christ is filthiness on the hand or foot of the priest, so he must be constantly coming to the laver. Verse 1 of this chapter is like the priests coming to the laver; it is what we do. In the first epistle, “Ye are washed” is what God has done. It is like the priests being washed by Moses outside the door of the tabernacle (Exodus 29: 4), but here in verse 1 we are to do it ourselves: “Let us purify ourselves”. There are two sorts of cleansing — first by blood, which cleanses in the sight of God, and then by water, the application of divine testimony to the soul.
Ques Was the cleansing continual?
CAC Yes, the priests were to wash [p. 295] when they entered the tabernacle or when they approached the altar to offer; it was an everlasting statute. Twice over it is said, “That they may not die”, Exodus 30: 21; it is very solemn. The laver was the last thing mentioned in God’s instructions to Moses; He began with the ark and ended with the laver.
Ques No dimensions are given. Why is that?
CAC I suppose the cleansing is unlimited; it is for “every pollution of flesh and spirit”, and it was to be for an everlasting statute. There is unlimited cleansing and it is never to be neglected. Neglect of washing leads to downfall. People come to meetings without washing, and even take part in service about holy things without washing, and it is very dangerous; spiritual life declines and a man dies after that.
Rem It is cleansing for the spirit as well as the flesh.
CAC Yes, that is very searching; the pollutions of the spirit are very real. Paul was a transparent man; he tells us in chapter 12 that he had to have a thorn for the flesh, “that I might not be exalted”; that would have been filthiness of spirit. He was caught up to heaven and was entirely absorbed; he did not know whether he was in the body or out of it. Then when he comes down the flesh says to him, ‘What a wonderful man you are, no one has been there but you!’ Think of Paul telling us he was not past that danger; he would have been exalted but for the thorn! We should not normally like to let people know that such an element of weakness was in us! If we do not judge things in private, they will come out in public. J.B.S. used to say, ‘If you do not commit suicide in private, you will be hanged in public!’ Then there might be a feeling of envy if someone had more gift or prominence than we had; that would be filthiness of spirit.
Rem We should only be glad for another to [p. 296] have gift.
CAC Yes, but the flesh would not be glad. If another has gift, it is all for my benefit, it is mine; the more you have, the more I gain.
It is very important for us to look into the perfect law of liberty. The laver was made of the women’s looking glasses; if we really come to the laver we see our blemishes, the proper use of a looking-glass is to see blemishes.
Rem I thought it was generally used for vanity.
CAC People may use it that way because man makes a wrong use of everything, but the proper use of a looking-glass is to show blemishes. James complains that a man looks at himself in a glass and straightway forgets he is not like Christ; he should have gone away and been exercised that he was so unlike Christ, but instead he goes away and forgets what manner of man he is. The looking-glass is the perfect law of liberty; you see the Lord Jesus Christ in it for He always delighted to do the will of God. You can fix your earnest gaze on Him and see everything that is in contrast in yourself. Are we exercised that everything should go that is not like Christ? Everything else is a pollution, whether it is on the hand or foot, whether it comes into service or life, and we have to see to it that we cleanse ourselves from it.
Ques Is it like putting off the old man?
CAC It is on the same line. The christian is supposed to have put off the old man. It is taking up a new position, like a German becoming naturalised as an Englishman; he has put off the old man.
Ques. Are all priests?
CAC All are called to be, all are partakers of a priestly calling.
Rem We are to perfect holiness in the fear of God.
CAC It is most important for a priest, is it not? We could not go on with God and keep something that Christ [p. 297] died to put away. It would be terrible to bring to God what Christ has died to put away.
Rem “Happy is the man that feareth always”, Proverbs 28: 14. Some think that fear does not characterise christianity.
CAC Surely the fear of God does. If we are not walking in the fear of God we are walking in sin.
Ques Would that be fear in the sense of reverence?
CAC Yes, grace never produces carelessness or want of reverence. “There is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared”, Psalm 130: 4. Paul could say, “I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling”, 1 Corinthians 2: 3. These were priestly sensibilities and affections; he was not afraid of them but of himself, lest anything should come in to hinder his carrying out his service in priestly sensibilities. In all this epistle Paul was labouring that what had been made good in him should be made good in the saints.
Then Paul was greatly concerned that there should be complete restoration of confidence. There had been a breach, not on his side, but a breach of confidence on the side of the Corinthians; Paul was so troubled he said, “Our flesh had no rest” (verse 5). He had such great exercise that he could not stop in Troas; he crossed the sea from Asia Minor to Europe; he took a troublesome journey to meet Titus. It is the yearning of priestly affection. God came in with encouragement for his service. God is the source of salvation in chapter 6, and the source of encouragement in chapter 7. Often in the service of the Lord servants are brought very low, but when the lowest point is reached Titus comes along. It is beautiful that Paul speaks so freely of his joy. We do not let out what we feel, but the apostle lets out all the feelings of his heart; there is perfect transparency. You can see all that is in his heart; he does not keep it in the dark; it is so [p. 298] genuine it will bear the light. In reading Scripture I have often thought that we have lost a good deal of the simplicity of christianity. How freely the apostle expresses himself, and how freely Scripture speaks of different saints and servants! We have lost that. The sense of failure and the consciousness of what the flesh is have straitened our affections and we are afraid to express ourselves, but we should gain if we spoke more freely of our exercises. We find often that saints live together in the same meeting, and even in the same house, and know little of each other’s exercises and spiritual joys. “As in water face answereth to face, so the heart of man to man”, Proverbs 27: 19; saints have all gone the same road and had the same exercises, so we can help one another; if we were more free we should gain by it.
Rem James says, “Confess therefore your offences to one another”, James 5: 16.
CAC Of course christians would do that.
Paul had even repented writing a letter inspired by the Holy Spirit. That shows his exercise; he was so troubled that he was afraid he had said too much or put it too strongly. He thought it might make a final breach between them.
Ques Was not that strange that Paul should repent of writing an inspired letter?
CAC That is the beauty of it! When God takes up a servant He does not take him up as an iron vessel but as a living one, and makes him go through great exercises. The prophets in Old Testament times had to go through tremendous exercises in connection with their service. A man might write a severe letter and it would cost him more to write it than it cost people to receive it. So it was with the apostle; it cost him more to write and send that letter than it cost the Corinthians to receive it. They had been grieved in a godly way. The apostle was not happy [p. 299] to think of their being grieved, but it had all worked in a right way; it was sorrow according to God. There are three things — godly sorrow, repentance and salvation. They all go together but they are separate things. You could have godly sorrow without repentance, and both without salvation. Godly sorrow is like Peter weeping bitterly, a deep sense as to the wrong, whatever it is. This leads to repentance — true self-judgment, refusal in mind of the evil so that one does not cherish or hold on to it; in mind one has broken with it. Then the power of God comes in for complete deliverance from it; that is salvation. What we get here is a contrast to chapter 6. There you are set to bring forth fruit; you pray and God’s salvation comes in that Christ may come out practically in you. In this chapter self has been before one, self-gratification, so the first step is deep grief that one has allowed the flesh, then repentance and salvation. The same point is reached but from a different standpoint. In chapter 7 you start with a humbling sense of failure and then you reach salvation. In chapter 6 you start with Christ, and that is the best way, but most of us reach salvation as in chapter 7. It is better to begin with Christ.
The Corinthians proved themselves to be pure; they had got rid of the leaven. When evil has come in among the saints divine love can never rest; Paul said in chapter 2, “I had no rest”. Divine love never rests till things are put right and the point of salvation and purity is reached — “Ye have proved yourselves to be pure”.
Ques Was it restoration of heart towards the apostle?
CAC There were three things that worked together. Firstly, there were the relations of the saints to wicked persons which had to be adjusted: the saints had to come into a proper attitude to the wicked person. Secondly, they were in a bad state all round; they were “puffed up” and leaven was working in the whole company and it had [p. 300] to be got rid of. It was comparatively an easy matter to put away a wicked person, but much more difficult for each one to purge out leaven from his own soul. Thirdly, the enemy had been working to create a breach between the Corinthians and the vessel of divine ministry; if the enemy could do that, he had gained his point. This was most serious, and the apostle spends more time over it than over all the others. He spends chapter after chapter trying to remove the breach. Paul was a special vessel of testimony and if people were separated from him they lost everything distinctive of christianity; they lost the real blessing and virtue of christianity. Paul was delighted when Titus came back and said how they loved him. It was not a question of the man that did the wrong, or of people being puffed up, but Paul says, ‘It all happened that it might appear how you loved me and I loved you’. They did love Paul at bottom; certain wretched men had diverted them for a time, but they did love him and Titus comes back and tells him so.
Paul is so transparent; he lets out all his exercises. ‘I have said a few things about you to Titus’, he says, ‘and I was afraid you might not turn out as I said!’ The apostle’s exercises had been answered by a special working of God. Paul had gone through tremendous travail of soul and God had answered his exercises, so that he can finish by saying he has perfect confidence in them: “I rejoice that in everything I am confident as to you”. On Paul’s side confidence was fully restored.
Satan is always labouring to destroy confidence in any servants who have a distinctive ministry; he labours to bring in some breach of confidence, because he sees that is the most effective way of defeating the Lord. The Lord has raised up a ministry for the comfort and help and encouragement of the saints and Satan labours to defeat it.
[p. 301] The enemy was clearly defeated at Corinth and my impression is that it was through the exercises of the apostle. He went through such anguish and God came in in answer to it and defeated the enemy.