2 Coríntios 5

F.B. Meyer · Citado em PreceptAustin

2 Coríntios 5

Meyer: “London has seldom witnessed a funeral such as was held for him. There was not a single note of grief or tragedy heard. The Scriptures all spoke of the Christian’s hope of immortality; and Easter hymns were sung. As the organ began to play at the conclusion of the service, the vast audience rose and stood with bowed heads, waiting for the funeral march to begin. But to their surprise they heard the triumphant notes of the ‘Hallelujah Chorus.’ What music could have been more appropriate! A faithful soldier of the cross had been ushered into the presence of his King.” Many people are terrified by the thought of dying. It is looked upon as the most tragic of all our human experiences. To be sure, there’s pain in being separated from those who are dear to us. The physical discomfort that sometimes accompanies dying is not pleasant to endure. At times our faith may falter as we lose sight of the glory that awaits us. That’s why we must never forget that death for the Christian is but the doorway to heaven! By: Richard DeHaan When all my labors and trials are o’er, And I am safe on that beautiful shore, Just to be near the dear Lord I adore Will through the ages be glory for me. —Gabriel When a Christian dies, earth’s story ends and heaven’s glory begins. Robert

2 Coríntios 5

Meyer writes of the Spirit IS THE SEAL AND EARNEST OF OUR INHERITANCE… Upon the yielded soul the blessed Spirit descends, bearing with Him the likeness of Jesus, which He imprints and fixes, as a stamp will leave its die upon the softened wax. Only melted gold is minted; only moistened clay is molded; only softened wax receives the die; only broken and contrite hearts can take and keep the impress of heaven. If that is thy condition, wait beneath the pressure of the Holy Spirit; He shall leave the image of Jesus upon thee, and change thee into his likeness, from glory to glory. This gracious operation is God's seal of authentication. It is as though by an act that could not be mistaken, He said: This soul is mine--redeemed and appropriated for my own possession; and it shall be mine in the day when I make up my jewels. We place our seal on that which is unmistakably our own, and deem to be of value; so the likeness of Jesus wrought on us by the Spirit is the sign that God counts us his, and reckons us to be his peculiar treasure. It is also the earnest of our inheritance. The love, and joy, and peace, which are wrought in us by the Blessed Spirit, are fragrant with the scent and beautiful with the hues of Paradise. They are the grapes of Eshcol; the peaches and pomegranates of the Homeland; the first notes of angelic symphonies; the first flowers of the everlasting spring; the herald rays of a morning that shall rise to the meridian glory of a nightless day. We know that there is a land of pure delight, because we have tasted its fruits; just as Columbus knew that he was drawing near land, when the land-birds alighted on his ship, and the drift of the waves told of human habitations. Nay, more: we know, as we experience the gracious work of the Holy Spirit, the quality, though not the infinite measure, of the blessedness of heaven. The Spirit's work is not only the pledge; it is the specimen of our inheritance. INTEREST IN ADVANCE - The Holy Spirit, who indwells every believer, gives us a foretaste of the coming glory of heaven. He is therefore called the “earnest” or pledge of the inheritance we shall receive by God’s grace in eternity (Eph. 1:13,14). In biblical times, the word “earnest” was a trade term for the initial payment on a debt. It was made as a promise that full payment would be forthcoming. In principle, then, when an earnest was given, the final installment was guaranteed. Likewise, the joy we experience now through God’s Spirit is just a kind of first installment of the rich blessings that His children will receive in eternity. A MASTERPIECE IN THE TWINKLING OF AN EYE - Several centuries ago, a Japanese emperor commissioned an artist to paint a bird. A number of months passed, then several years, and still the artist did not deliver the painting. Finally the emperor became so exasperated that he went to the artist's home to demand an explanation. Instead of making excuses, the artist placed a blank canvas on the easel. In less than an hour, he completed a painting that was to become a masterpiece. When the emperor asked the reason for the delay, the artist showed him armloads of drawings of feathers, wings, heads, and feet. Then he explained that he couldn't complete the painting until he had done exhaustive research and study. In a sense, Christians are similar to that piece of art. We are "sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise" (Ep 1:13), and predestined by God "to be conformed to the image of His Son" (Ro 8:29). But the process takes time. The "artist" is the Holy Spirit—sent by the Lord Jesus at Pentecost to indwell believers. Slowly but surely He leads us to spiritual growth and maturity. Our transformation requires years of patience and will not be finished until we enter the presence of our King. GOD'S PURPOSE FINISHED - Every workman takes pride in a project completed and well-done. I thought of this recently when I visited the site of a new house my friend was building. The foundation had been laid, the walls erected, and the wiring and plumbing installed, but the structure still wasn't a house. It needed the finishers. Without the woodworkers, the cabinetmakers, the carpet layers, and the painters, the building was incomplete. We as Christians need a "finisher" too. The sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, which began at conversion, must continue until the One who began the transformation finishes it. And that can happen only by trusting and obeying Jesus, "the author and finisher of our faith," (Heb 12:2) the One to Whom we are being conformed. Keep in step with God. He has planned every step of the way. God's guidance and help that we need day to day Is given to all who believe; The Spirit has sealed us--He's God's guarantee That heaven we'll one day receive. --J D Brannon The greatest joy on earth is the sure hope of heaven. 2 Corinthians 5:6 Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord-- always: 2Co 5:8 Ps 27:3,4 Pr 14:26 Isa 30:15 36:4 Heb 10:35 1Pe 5:1 Rev 1:9 while: 2Co 5:1 1Ch 29:15 Ps 39:12 119:19 Php 3:20,21 Heb 11:13 13:14 2 Corinthians 5 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Related Passages: John 14:1 (REASON FOR GOOD COURAGE) “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. John 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” Matthew 28:20 (REASON WE CAN HAVE COURAGE) teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always (HIMSELF AND THE SPIRIT), even to the end of the age.” FOR IN DEPTH COMMENT ON THIS VERSE CLICK 2 Corinthians 5:6 Therefore (oun) is a term of conclusion so we need to ask what is Paul bringing to conclusion (always pause and interrogate with the 5W/H'S)? In view of the truths just expounded in the previous 5 passages, 2Co 5:1-5, especially the truths that our mortal bodies will be swallowed up by life (i.e., believers will receive resurrection bodies 2Co 5:4+) and in the immediate context God's gift of the Holy Spirit (2Co 5:5+) both of these truths should undergird God's promise of a future glorified resurrection body, and thus we can be confident and courageous in this present life. In short the previous glorious truths were the foundation for Paul's confident conclusion of continual cheerful confidence and courage. This truth is in a sense a prophecy for it speaks of the future hope (not "hope so" but "hope sure," an absolute certainty of future good!) for all believers, a hope that will be fulfilled when our Blessed Hope appears (Titus 2:13+) at His return (Table comparing Rapture versus the Second Coming). This is the believer's firm foundation and solid rock on which we can stand come what may. Truth received and believed about the future stabilizes confidence and courage in the present. Hodge - This verse is introduced as a consequence of what precedes. “Having the deposit of the Spirit, therefore we are confident.” This confidence is not a mere temporary feeling due to some transient excitement, but a permanent state of mind. Homer Kent on therefore - “Therefore” (oun) indicates a logical connection with the preceding material. It was in view of Paul’s possession of the Spirit who provided complete assurance of the future life and resurrection that he could say of himself and his associates “being always of good courage” (tharrountes oun pantote). It was not blind foolhardiness but knowledgeable confidence. Ray

2 Coríntios 5:4-5

2 Coríntios 5:11-13

Meyer wrote that God incarnate is the end of fear, and the heart that realizes that He is in the midst, that takes heed to the assurance of His loving presence, will be quiet in the midst of alarm (cp 1Jn 4:18). John Calvin in describing the fear of the Lord related to contemplation of the Bema Seat of Christ as a motivating influence writes that "the man who seriously considers this (Standing one day before Jesus) must of necessity be touched with fear, and shake off all negligence (All contempt and all carelessness) (Paul) declares, therefore, that he discharges his apostleship faithfully and with a pure conscience, (2Ti 1:3) as one that walks in the fear of the Lord, (Acts 9:31) thinking of the account to be rendered by him (at the Bema seat). Disciple's Study Bible on the fear of God- Knowledge that we must face God in judgment brings reverence and awe into our lives. The fear of the Lord is an important motive in seeking to persuade others to become Christians. Paul Apple - Fear of God Makes Us Urgent Transparent Persuaders...Nothing worse than persuasion that is crafty manipulation and exploitation (2 Corinthians) James Denney explains that... THE Christian hope of immortality is elevated and solemnized by the thought of the judgment-seat of Christ. This is no strange thought to Paul; many a time he has set himself in imagination in that great presence, and let the awe of it descend upon his heart. This is what he means when he writes, “Knowing the fear of the Lord.” Like the pastors addressed in the Epistle to the Hebrews, he exercises his office as one who must render an account (Heb 13:17-+ Ed comment: All of us in ministry need to keep this future accounting continually in the forefront of our mind - Are we feeding His sheep? [Jn 21:15KJV, Jn 21:16KJV, Jn 21:17KJV] We will be held accountable if we preach ourselves and not Christ! See 2Co 4:5-+, 2Co 4:7-+). In this spirit, he says, he persuades men. A motive (Ed: The eschatological motive = Our Future Bema Seat Appearance!) so high, and so stern in its purifying power, no minister of Christ can afford to dispense with. We need something to suppress self-seeking, to keep conscience vigorous, to preserve the message of reconciliation itself from degenerating into good-natured indifference, to prohibit immoral compromises and superficial healing of the soul’s hurts (cp Jer 6:14, 8:11, 14:14, Lam 2:14, Ezek 22:26, 44:23). Let us familiarize our minds, by meditation, with the fear due to Christ the Judge (2Ti 4:1-+, 2Ti 4:8-+), and a new element of power will enter into our service, making it at once more urgent and more wholesome than it could otherwise be. (AMEN!) The meaning of the words “we persuade men” is not at once clear. Interpreters generally find in them a combination of two ideas — we try to win men for the Gospel, and we try to convince them of our own purity of motive in our evangelistic work. The word is suitable enough to express either idea; and though it is straining it to make it carry both, the first is suggested by the general tenor of the passage, and the second seems to be demanded by what follows. “We try to convince men of our disinterestedness, but we do not need to try to convince God; we have been manifested to Him already; and we trust also that we have been manifested in your consciences.” Paul was well aware of the hostility with which he was regarded by some of the Corinthians, but he is confident that, when his appeal is tried in the proper court, decision must be given in his favor, and he hopes that this has really been done at Corinth. Often we do not give people in his position the benefit of a fair trial. It is not in our consciences they are arraigned — i.e., in God’s sight, and according to God’s law — but at the bar of our prejudices, our likes and dislikes, sometimes even our whims and caprices. It is not their character which is taken into account, but something quite irrelevant to character. Paul did not care for such estimates as these. It was nothing to him whether his appearance made a favorable impression on those who heard him—whether they liked his voice, his gestures, his manners, or even his message (Ed: May we all continually obey the present imperative in 1Co 11:1!). What he did care for was to be able to appeal to their consciences, as he could appeal to God, to Whom all things were naked and opened, that in the discharge of his functions as an evangelist he had been absolutely simple and sincere. In speaking thus, he has no intention of again recommending himself. (Expositor's Bible: The Measure of Christ's Love) JESUS IS LORD Lord (master, owner)(2962)(kurios from kuros = might or power) primarily describes one who is supreme (highest in degree or quality), one who is sovereign (supreme in power, possessing supreme dominion), one who possesses absolute authority, absolute ownership and unchallengeable power. Kurios describes the owner, the one to whom a person or thing belongs. Kurios is the one who rightly possesses the power to control or use a person or thing as he wishes. Synonyms include master, superior, supreme (one), sovereign (one). (Mk 7:28) Kurios is used 99x in the epistles to the Corinthians - Clearly Paul placed significant emphasis on the Lordship of Jesus Christ in his letters to the Corinthians. 1Corinthians 1:2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 31; 2:8, 16; 3:5, 20; 4:4, 5, 17, 19; 5:4, 5; 6:11, 13, 14, 17; 7:10, 12, 17, 22, 25, 32, 34, 35, 39; 8:5, 6; 9:1, 2, 5, 14; 10:21, 22, 26; 11:11, 23, 26, 27, 32; 12:3, 5; 14:21, 37; 15:31, 57, 58; 16:7, 10, 19, 22, 23 2Corinthians 1:2, 3, 14; 2:12; 3:16, 17, 18; 4:5, 14; 5:6, 8, 11; 6:17, 18; 8:5, 9, 19, 21; 10:8, 17, 18; 11:17, 31; 12:1, 8; 13:10, 14. (+ how Lord or Kurios and grace or charis are coupled in the closing words of both letters! [1Co 16:23, 2Co 13:14] Aren't we thankful He is Lord, the One Who is supremely able to dispense His all sufficient, multi-colored grace [1Pe 4:10-+ where "manifold" = multi-colored = poikilos] to undeserving saints). Lord is not merely a title, but a name which signifies a call to action so that every saint should willingly, reverently bow down to Jesus Christ. If Christ is our Lord, we should seek to live under His rule, consciously, continually submitting our wills to Him as His loyal, loving bondservants, seeking first His Kingdom and His righteousness (Mt 6:33-+). According to this simple albeit practical "working definition" of kurios, we all need to ask ourselves "Is Jesus Christ my Lord?". "Do I arise each morning, acknowledging that this is the day the Lord hath made and that I am His ambassador in all I do?" (Ps 118:24-+) "Do I surrender my will to His will as I begin each day and throughout the day as choices are presented?" (cp Ro 12:1-+, Ro 12:2-+) Beloved, don't misunderstand. None of us have "arrived" in this area of Jesus as Lord of our lives. And it is precisely for that reason that Peter commands us to continually grow (present imperative) in the grace (unmerited favor, divine enabling power to live the supernatural, abundant life in Christ) and knowledge (not just intellectual but knowledge that transforms, cp 2Co 3:18+) of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. (2Pe 3:18+) So do not be discouraged. Don't "throw in the towel" as they say. Keep on keeping on, pressing (continually = present tense) "on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." (Php 3:14+) Throughout eternity you will rejoice that you made the choice on earth to surrender to Jesus as your Lord. Boice informs us that the first century readers would have fully understood Paul's emphasis on Jesus as Lord writing that the "Citizens of the (Roman) empire were required to burn a pinch of incense to the reigning Caesar and utter the words "Kyrios [kurios] Kaisar" (“Caesar is Lord!”). It is this that the early Christians refused to do and for which they were themselves thrown to the wild lions or crucified. It was not that Christians were forbidden to worship God. They were free to worship any god they chose so long as they also acknowledged Caesar. Romans were tolerant. But when Christians denied to Caesar the allegiance that they believed belonged to the true God only (Ed: In obedience to Ex 20:3, 4, 5), they were executed. (Daniel- An Expositional Commentary) William Barclay (not always thoroughly conservative and orthodox - see critique) says kurios... is the key word of early Christianity. It has four stages of meaning. (a) It is the normal title of respect like the English sir, the French monsieur, the German herr. (b) It is the normal title of the Roman Emperors. (c) It is the normal title of the Greek gods, prefaced before the god’s name. Kurios Serapis is Lord Serapis. (d) In the Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures it is the regular translation of the divine name, Jahveh or Jehovah. So, then, if a man called Jesus kurios he was ranking Him with the Emperor and with God; he was giving Him the supreme place in his life; he was pledging him implicit obedience and reverent worship. To call Jesus kurios was to count him unique. First, then, a man to be a Christian must have a sense of the utter uniqueness of Jesus Christ. It (kurios) was the official title of the Roman Emperor. The demand of the persecutors always was, “Say, ‘Caesar is Lord (kurios).’” It was the word by which the sacred name Jehovah was rendered in the Greek translation of the Old Testament scriptures. When a man could say, “Jesus is Lord,” it meant that he gave to Jesus the supreme loyalty of his life and the supreme worship of his heart. It is to be noted that Paul believed that a man could say, “Jesus is Lord,” only when the Spirit enabled him to say it (1Co 12:3). The Lordship of Jesus was not so much something which he discovered for himself as something which God, in his grace, revealed to him. The phrase for Lord and God (in Re 4:11-+) is kurios kai theos and that was the official title of Domitian, the Roman Emperor. It was, indeed, because the Christians would not acknowledge that claim that they were persecuted and killed. Simply to call God Lord and God was a triumphant confession of faith, an assertion that he holds first place in all the universe. (The New Daily Study Bible: New Testament) PERSUADE MEN OF WHAT? We persuade men - Some commentators feel Paul is saying persuade them or convince them to come to saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. If one takes this passage out of the overall context of this letter, this would not be an unreasonable interpretation; i.e., "To win men to Christ." Such an interpretation would also be supported by comparing some of the other NT uses of the verb "persuade" (peitho), in which the context clearly calls for this "evangelistic" interpretation (Acts 17:4, 18:4, 19:8, 26:28, 28:23, 24). For example in Acts 13:43+ Now when the meeting of the synagogue had broken up, many of the Jews and of the God-fearing proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking to them, were urging (were persuading in imperfect tense = over and over again) them to continue in the grace of God. Henry Alford on the other hand writes that a better Interpretation in context (context is "king" of accurate interpretation) is that Paul sought to convince men "of our own integrity." Wuest paraphrases it as saying that Paul (writing using the plural pronoun "our") was seeking to convince men "of our sincerity and integrity." (Eerdmans Publishing - used by permission) Murray Harris seems to merge these two interpretations writing that Paul was trying to convince men Of the truth of the gospel, and the truth concerning himself; viz., that his motives were pure and sincere (cf. 2Co1:12) and that his apostolic credentials and conduct were sound (cf. 2Co 3:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6-notes; 2Co 4:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6-notes). (Gaebelein, F, Editor: Expositor's Bible Commentary 6-Volume New Testament. Zondervan Publishing) Kent Hughes echoes

2 Coríntios 5:14-16

Meyer has an interesting thought on the love of Christ noting that… As the sunlight strikes the moon, and is reflected from her to the earth, so the love we have to Christ, or to man, is the reflection of His love to us. All love in our cold and loveless hearts is the emanation and reflection of the Love which began in Him, was mediated to us in Calvary, and is reflected from us, as sunlight from a mirror (or the moon). (cp 1Jn 4:19, 2Co 2:14, 15, 2Co 3:1,2,3-+) In his letter to the saints at Ephesus Paul offers one of the great prayers of the Bible (Ep 3:14, 15-+, Ep 3:16, 17-+) asking that the saints might know this incredible love that Christ has for us asking God to make us… able (exischuo = to be fully able = the strongest Greek word available to indicate strength or ability!) to comprehend (katalambano = to take eagerly, to seize, to possess and then to perceive, apprehend, in short to make this great truth --the love of Christ-- one's very own possession!) with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know (ginosko = know by having experienced this truth!) the love of Christ which surpasses (huperballo = Literally = throw beyond the usual mark, describes a degree which exceeds extraordinary. In the present tense = that it might continually surpass) knowledge, that (purpose) you may be filled up (pleroo = completely filled, filled to the "brim") to all the fullness (pleroma = abundance) of God. (Eph 3:18, 19-+) Comment by A W