2 Coríntios 3
Ray Stedman · Citado em PreceptAustin
2 Coríntios 3:1-4
Stedman quips it was as if Paul was saying "As for me, I'm nothing but the postman; I just delivered the letter. God did the work." The Savior was the ultimate Author of this living epistle. Being manifested that you are a letter of Christ - The lives of the saints at Corinth were clearly and continually (present tense) visible "open letters" that gave obvious testimony to all men of their radical new life in Christ (2Co 5:17+). Living, breathing, walking, speaking letters were the best letter of commendation any preacher or teacher could present. The clear implication is that these saints were living authentic, transparent lives, out "in the open" for all to see. This statement is quite a testimony to the transforming power of grace in their lives in view of the fact that Paul had previously described a veritable plethora of problems in these saints in First Corinthians. A T Robertson on a letter of Christ - He turns the metaphor round and round. They are Christ’s letter to men as well as Paul’s (2Co 3:2).
2 Coríntios 3:1-4
Stedman quips that Paul was in essence saying "As for me, I'm nothing but the postman; I just delivered the letter. God did the work." Paul wants these Corinthians to understand that the changes that had occurred in their lives, the freedom they were experiencing, the deliverance from evil habits such as immorality, adultery, homosexuality, drunkenness, thievery -- "such were some of you" (1Cor 6:11a+) he said -- all happened because Christ had changed them. When I read the New Testament I am always impressed at the absolute lack of word in the book of Acts and in the letters of Paul concerning the church and its ministry. Those early Christians did not go around, as we do today, talking about what the church can do for you, or about the value of becoming a member of a church. We talk about that all the time in our day, but they did not even mention it because they understood that the church does not do anything for anybody. It is Christ who changes lives. It is Jesus who heals a hurting heart, or touches a lonely spirit, or restores someone burdened with a terrible sense of guilt for all the wretchedness and evil of his past. It is the Lord Who forgives and changes, and this great apostle states that very strongly. He wants them to understand that Christ has written this letter, not him, but they are the witnesses, their changed lives are all the testimony, all the recommendation he needs that what he is doing is authentic Christianity.If we applied that test to our churches across this country today, I wonder how many would have a recommendation in the eyes of the community around? (ED: WOE!)(Have you got What it Takes? 2 Corinthians 3:1-11) d) "SANDWICH BOARDS" FOR THE SAVIOR What are your thoughts when I say, “you may be the only letter from Christ that some people ever read?" --Brian Bell Brian Bell - Every Christian is an advertisement for Christianity. We judge a store by the quality of goods it sells; We judge a craftsman on his quality of work; We judge a Church by the kind of Christians it produces; and therefore the world judges Christ by His Followers!. Dick Sheppard said, “The greatest handicap the church has is the unsatisfactory lives of professing Christians. ” When we step out into our world everyday we are “open letters”, “advertisements” for Christ and His church. We are “Sandwich boards for the Savior”!...What are your thoughts when I say, “you may be the only letter from Christ that some people ever read?" (2Corinthians 3 Sermon Notes) (Bolding added) Being manifested (disclosed, revealed) (5319)(phaneroo from phanerós = manifest, visible, conspicuous in turn from phaino = give light; become visible in turn from phos = light) is literally "to bring to light" and primarily means "to make visible" or to cause to become visible. The basic meaning of phaneroo is to make known, to clearly reveal, to manifest (see Vine's elaboration of "to be manifest" below), to cause to be seen or to make clear or known. Thayer says phaneroo means "to make manifest or visible or known what has been hidden or unknown, to manifest, whether by words, or deeds, or in any other way. Vine summarizes phaneroo "in the active voice, “to manifest”; in the passive voice, “to be manifested”...To be manifested, in the Scriptural sense of the word, is more than to “appear.” A person may “appear” in a false guise or without a disclosure of what he truly is; to be manifested is to be revealed in one’s true character; this is especially the meaning of phaneroo, see, e.g., John 3:21; 1Co 4:5; 2Cor. 5:10, 11; Ep 5:13. (Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary) (Bolding added) MISSIVES OF MESSIAH Missive is a written letter. Letter of Christ - Not a letter of Paul or Timothy but of Christ (cp He 12:2+ "Author and Perfecter"), for they were but servants ("deacons" - see below) of Christ, "Who manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place." (2Co 2:14+). Note that the Spirit of Christ works in us before and in order that He might work through us. Paul uses the picture of a literal letter as a metaphor a figure of speech "in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action (the changed lives of the saints at Corinth) that it does not literally denote in order to imply a resemblance" (See terms of comparison simile metaphor). Rob Salvato asks what is "Our strategy for evangelism as a church? It is You. You as individuals and families influencing your sphere of influence by living for Jesus. Your light is going to shine – period – The question is what is it going to reflect! You will either be drawing people to Christ or pushing them away from Christ by the way you live, by how you conduct yourself. (Sermon Notes) Henry Alford commenting on letter of Christ writes that "He is the Recommender of us, the Head of the church and sender of us His ministers. (New Testament for English Readers) Ray Stedman rightly remarks that what Paul was saying was that ""everybody can see that Christ has done something to you." That is the only effective witness the church has in the world today --- the change that Christ has made so that the people you work with, rub shoulders with, the tradesmen you do business with, the people you talk to in the normal course of carrying out your daily affairs ought to see that change. That is the point. There ought to be such visible evidence of God at work in you that people will say, "What is this? What's going on? I know your name is Bill, or Jane, or Mary, but somehow I get the feeling I'm talking to Jesus." That is what these early Christians exemplified. (Have you got What it Takes? 2Corinthians 3:1-11) R Kent
2 Coríntios 3:5-6
Stedman asks... Have you ever found what a law, a demand, does to you? Have you ever realized how it hits you? I was talking with a young man just a week ago who told me about an experience he had. He got up one morning and was thinking about his dad, how much he meant to him, how he loved him, and how aware he was suddenly, that morning, of all the things his dad had done for him. His heart was filled with a sense of gratitude, so he determined that after breakfast he would go out, without his dad having to say anything, and, out of the sheer delight of pleasing him, mow the lawn and wash the car. So he came down to breakfast, and just as he was about to leave the table, his dad said to him, "Son, before I get back today I would like to have you mow the lawn and wash the car. I really want you to do this. I don't want to come back this evening and find that you haven't done it." Then he left for work. This young man said, "It changed the whole picture. It just turned off all the incentive and motivation in my heart. I did it, but I had no further delight in it." The outward law, making its demand upon us, as Paul describes in Romans 7, always awakens a sense of rebellion. (ED: See what the Law does to the flesh in Ro 7:5+) We all have it; we all dislike being told what to do. That is what the external law invariably does: It kills motivation. Many of us never seem to learn that lesson. We are constantly trying to order people around, make them do things out of pressure, little realizing that that is absolutely the kiss of death to all sense of desire and motivation within someone. This young man realized that there was already a strong motivation, the most powerful of all, in his heart. He was all ready to do these things, to delight in doing them, to feel a sense of life in doing them, when it was a matter of gratitude for what his father's love and grace had meant to him. That is almost an exact picture of what Paul is saying to us here. The Law, the demand of God in the Ten Commandments, perfectly right and just demands, things we ought to do, nevertheless always hits us at that point of our rebellion. We don't like to be told that we have to do these things. But the new covenant is different. There God has found a way into our hearts. There He approaches us with the record of His love, of His willingness to die on our behalf, of His freedom to forgive us and to set us free from the guilt of our past -- the immediate past as well as the ancient past. More than that, to make us aware that He loves us, that we are approved of Him, that He, in Christ, has already taken us into His family and we stand dear to His heart, cherished by Him. Having learned all that about us, then He tells us to serve Him in whatever way our hearts delight in doing, and we go about it with an entirely different motivation. (Have You Got What it Takes - 2 Corinthians 3:1-11) The Pulpit Commentary has an interesting note that 2Co 3:6 "is one of the very numerous “texts” which have been first misinterpreted and have then been made, for whole centuries, the bases of erroneous systems. On this text more than any other, Origen, followed by the exegetes of a thousand years, built his dogma that the Scripture must be interpreted allegorically, not literally, (see Rise of Allegorical Interpretation) because “the letter” of the Bible kills (Ed: Origen falsely reasoned that the "literal letter" killed, missing the fact that Paul's use of the word "letter" referred not to a letter [as of the alphabet] but to the Old Covenant, the Law). The misinterpretation is extravagantly inexcusable, and, like many others, arose solely from rending words away from their context and so reading new senses into them. (ED: THE ESSENCE OF Allegorical Interpretation) The contrast is not between “the outward” and the inward sense of Scripture at all. “The letter” refers exclusively to “the Law” (2 Corinthians 3) Warren
2 Coríntios 3:7-11
Stedman - He says there is a kind of glory about the old covenant, there is an attractiveness about it, symbolized here by the brightness of Moses' face when he came down from the mountaintop with the tables of the Law. God made his face to shine, not Moses; and it was grace, not grease. But God also made it fade, because he wanted to teach something by that. It was a fading glory (Have you got What it Takes 2 Corinthians 3:1-11) Matthew Poole contrasts the coming of the glory of the Law with that of the Gospel writing that "the Gospel did not come into the world as the Law did with thunder, lightning, and earthquakes, but was ushered in by angels (Ed: with the "glory of the Lord" Lk 2:9), foretelling the birth and office of John the Baptist, and of Christ; by the great sign of the virgin’s conceiving and bringing forth a Son; by a voice from heaven, proclaiming Christ the Father’s only begotten Son, in whom he was well pleased. (2 Corinthians 3) SO THAT THE SONS OF ISRAEL COULD NOT LOOK INTENTLY AT THE FACE OF MOSES BECAUSE OF THE GLORY OF HIS FACE, FADING AS IT WAS: hoste me dunasthai (PPN) atenisai (AAN) tous huious Israel eis to prosopon Mouseos dia ten doxan tou prosopou autou ten katargoumenen (PPPFSA): So that: Ex 34:29-35 Lk 9:29, 30, 31 Ac 6:15) (2Co 3:10,11,14 Ro 10:4 1Co 13:10 2 Corinthians 3 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Related Passages: Exodus 34:29, 30+ It came about when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai (and the two tablets of the testimony were in Moses’ hand as he was coming down from the mountain), that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because of his speaking with Him. So when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone (radiated light, was luminous, sent out light), and they were afraid to come near him. EVEN FADING GLORY WAS FEARFUL So that the sons of Israel (nation as a whole) could not look intently - The sons of Israel could not keep their eyes fixed on Moses because of the splendor and radiance of his face which was a reflection of the glory of the Lord. In other words the proof of the glory of the OT is borne out by the fact that the children of Israel could not look at the the face of Moses because of the glory. Could (1410) (dunamai) conveys the basic meaning of that which has the inherent ability to do something or accomplish some end. Thus dunamai means to be able to, to be capable of, to be strong enough to do or to have power to do something. The present tense indicates that they continually were not able to look intently on Moses' face. Look intently (816) (atenizo from from atenes = strained, intent which in turn is from a = intensifies + teino = to stretch, to extend or to strain all of which help to paint a picture of the meaning of atenizo) means to look intently, to fix one's gaze on something, to stare at something, to gaze earnestly, to look straight at something, to fasten one's eyes upon. 2 Cor. 3:13 speaks of God's people being denied the opportunity to "see" the fading glory on the face of Moses after his descent from Sinai. Gilbrant on atenizo - Classical Greek - This verb, which means “to stare at, to fix one’s gaze upon,” occurs from the time of Hippocrates onward (Bauer). Josephus wrote of the Jews who died in the famine created by Pompey’s army: “Each victim expired with his eyes ‘fixed’ on the temple” (Wars of the Jews 5.12.1). Septuagint Usage In the Septuagint atenizō occurs twice in the apocryphal documents (1 Esdras 6:28 and 3 Maccabees 2:26). First Esdras 6:28 seems to be a figurative use which might be translated “especially to see to (the accomplishment of) it.” The Revised Standard Version apparently leaves the word untranslated. Its second appearance in 3 Maccabees 2:26 is also the uncommon figurative use. Here “intent observation” is not optical; rather, it is a close following of the “king’s purpose” (“intently observing,” RSV). New Testament Usage - Atenizō appears often in Luke’s writings; he is credited with 12 of its 14 occurrences (2 in Luke and 10 in Acts). The rest are found in 2 Corinthians. In both Luke and Paul atenizō refers to “intently looking” or “staring” at someone or something (e.g., “heaven”; cf. Luke 4:20; 22:56; Acts 1:10).The “fixed stare” often found in contexts with supernatural events (Acts 3:4; 13:9) should not be perceived as some mesmerizing or hypnotizing stare, or some “evil eye.” The term captures the seriousness and the single-mindedness of the person involved. The optical sense should also be understood in 2 Corinthians 3:7,13 despite the fact that Paul turned the whole story into a simile (verses 13ff.). (Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary) Atenizo describes those who "saw His (Jesus') glory" (Jn 1:14+), Luke recording "And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. (Lk 4:20+) Atenizo - 14x in 14v in NAS: fixed(1), fixed...gaze(4), fixing...gaze(2), gaze(1), gazed intently(1), gazing intently(1), look intently(2), looking intently(2). Lk. 4:20; Lk. 22:56; Acts 1:10; Acts 3:4; Acts 3:12; Acts 6:15; Acts 7:55; Acts 10:4; Acts 11:6; Acts 13:9; Acts 14:9; Acts 23:1; 2 Co. 3:7; 2 Co. 3:13 Not in the Septuagint. The glory of his face fading as it was - Moses the mediator of the Old Covenant manifested a degree of glory, but it was a glory that was fading while verse 8 indicates the glory of the New Covenant was greater. Fading is katargeo in the present tense which means the glory was continually being rendered inoperative or ineffective which emphasizes the temporary nature of the Old Covenant. The glory of Moses’ face was "rendered ineffective" in the sense that its brightness was diminishing and relatively speaking lasted only a short time. Paul will pick continue his discussion of the fading glory of the Old Covenant in 2Co 3:11.
2 Coríntios 3:7-11
Stedman comments that Paul calls the Old Covenant "the ministry of death, a fading glory, it does not last. But when you discover a new principle, a principle of God-dependence, that in using your native skills, abilities, and training, God nevertheless will be at work (cp Php 2:12+, Php 2:13+). In depending on that (Ed: he is referring to the New Covenant ministry of the Spirit), there is an excitement and a glory that is greater than the one you feel when you want to show off what you can do (cp Jn 15:5). (Have you got What it Takes 2 Corinthians 3:1-11) Steve Zeisler explains the ministry of the Spirit and the New Covenant as "the Spirit of God, writing on tablets of human hearts (Jer 31:33, 34+, 2Co 3:3+, He 8:10+ He 10:16+), living inside (Ro 8:9+, 1Co 6:19+), making us different people from inside out (2Co 3:18-note), offering us power to do what we could not do before (Gal 5:16+ cp "freedom/liberty" = 2Co 3:17+), changing us so that we don't even want to do what we did before (Php 2:13NLT+, Ezek 36:26, 27+). (Great and Lasting Glory) Joseph Beet has an interesting thought on the "future tense glory" - From the supernatural brightness which encompassed Moses as he gave to Israel the death-bringing letters, Paul infers that a still greater splendor awaits those through whom is imparted the life-giving Spirit. And, since no such splendor surrounds them now (ED: I MIGHT DISAGREE IN LIGHT OF 2Cor 3:18's "from glory to glory."), he speaks of it as something which shall be. He refers (cp. "hope" in 2Co 3:12) to the brightness in the world to come of those who (Da 12:3+) now "turn many to righteousness." (A Commentary on St. Paul's Epistles to the Corinthians - Chapter 3)
2 Coríntios 3:7-11
Stedman explains the ministry of condemnation this way "Everybody who tries to live a life that is pleasing to God by self-effort always discovers that he never quite makes it because he never knows when he has done enough. A lady said to me just last week, "When I go to bed at night I often wonder if I had tried just a little harder maybe I could have done something that would have made God happy." But she never made it. Every night there was that feeling of, "I didn't quite measure up today." That is the ministry of condemnation. It is the result of trying to do it on your own resources, by your own efforts. (Have you got What it Takes 2 Corinthians 3:1-11) Murray Harris - Well then, argues Paul, if such glory attended the giving of the law under the ministry or administration that brought death and condemns men, how much more glorious will be the ministry of the Spirit that brings righteousness! What was a distinctive and positive feature of the old order must also characterize the new economy, but in greater measure. (Expositor's Bible Commentary) Beet - "The Law pronounces the condemnation (De 27:26) of all who disobey it; and therefore of all men. For none can obey it. Consequently, the only immediate effect of the Law is that just so far as we know it we are condemned by it. For "through law comes understanding of sin": Ro 3:20. By conveying to men such a law Moses was a minister of condemnation.(A Commentary on St. Paul's Epistles to the Corinthians - Chapter 3) Much more does the ministry (diakonia) of righteousness abound in glory - Much more describes going from the lesser, fading glory of the Law to the continually superabounding glory of the Gospel, the ministry of righteousness a synonym for the New Covenant which is proclaimed in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Charles Simeon explains that "the Gospel is called a ministry of righteousness because it reveals a righteousness commensurate with all the demands of the law, and offers that righteousness to every man who will believe in Christ. It declares that “Christ himself is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth” (Ro 10:4) and that the law was given as a ministration of death on purpose to shut men up to this righteousness, and to constrain them to seek salvation in the way provided for them (Gal 3:22, 23)...Thus the Gospel supplies what the law knew nothing of. We have before said, that the law spake nothing of pardon to the guilty, or of strength to the weak: but the Gospel administers both; and that too in such an abundant measure, as is adequate to the necessities of the whole world: it ministers righteousness sufficient to justify the most guilty sinner upon earth; and imparts the Spirit, so that the weakest may be more than conqueror over all the enemies of his soul. (Read his excellent sermon The Glory of the Gospel Above that of the Law - scroll down to verses 7-11) Adam
2 Coríntios 3:7-11
Stedman has a slightly different explanation of righteousness writing that... Righteousness means being fully accepted, having a sense of being approved by God, of being honored and cherished by Him. The nearest word I know to describe this is the word worth. God gives you a standing of worth. You don't have to earn it; you start with it. God tells you who are already in the New Covenant, "I have loved you, I have forgiven you, I have cleansed you. You are my dearly beloved child. I intend to use you; you are part of my program; your life is significant. There is nothing more you can add to that (cp Col 2:10-note). Now, on that basis, with the security of that acceptance (cp Ep 1:6KJV-note), go back to your work." And you go with a sense of approval and security. Psychologists tell us that the only way you can function in the world today is with that sense of approval. If parents do not give their children a sense of security, they are torn apart by life, ravaged by whatever happens. And it is true of us as well. We need it all the time. On a scale of 1 to 10, that is not even an 8; that is a 10! We need all the time that sense of being approved, accepted, loved, cherished. That is the New Covenant. Isn't that a greater glory than the feeling of trying to earn your way to God, feeling guilty because you did not quite make it? (Have you got What it Takes 2 Corinthians 3:1-11) Beet explains that "As minister of the Gospel Paul was a means of imparting to men this righteousness. It is the link connecting the Gospel preached by Paul and the Holy Spirit received by those who believe it. The immediate effect of the Law is to bring men under God’s frown: the immediate effect of the Gospel is that they rejoice in the smile of God. And Paul argues that if, as recorded in Ex 34:29, glory pertains to the former then more abundant glory pertains to the latter. (A Commentary on St. Paul's Epistles to the Corinthians - Chapter 3) Jesus Thy Blood and righteousness My beauty are, my glorious dress; ’Midst flaming worlds in these arrayed, With joy shall I lift up my head. (Play) William Plummer (1867) writes that "Of course Christ is a far better Mediator than Moses (2Cor. 3:9). The mediation of the former (first covenant, mediated by Moses) was temporary; that of the latter (Christ) everlasting. This is the last dispensation. "There remains no more sacrifice for sins." (He 10:26) We may not expect "the bringing in of a better hope." (He 7:19) The mediation of Moses was typical; that of Christ was real. Moses laid many burdensome rites on the people; Christ appointed a very simple worship. The tendency of the Law, through sin, was unto death; through faith the gospel gives life. (He 9:13, 14). The former was the ministry of death; the latter is the ministry of the Spirit. The mediation of Moses prepared men for the gospel; that of Christ prepares men for glory. Christ surpasses Moses in that he is the Mediator of a better covenant established upon better promises (He 8:6). Christ is more kind and compassionate than Moses. Both refused a crown; but Jesus wore a crown of thorns and hung on the Cross. Moses was a servant, but Jesus Christ was a Son. The authority and energy of Moses were both limited; but Jesus raised the dead and performed countless miracles in his own name, and all power in heaven and earth is given unto him. Moses did a good work—but Christ a far better work. The law was given by Moses; but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. (The Rock of Our Salvation) Righteousness (1343)(dikaiosune from dikaios = being proper or right in the sense of being fully justified being or in accordance with what God requires) is the quality of being upright. In its simplest sense dikaiosune conveys the idea of conformity to a standard or norm and in Biblical terms the "standard" is God and His perfect, holy character. In this sense righteousness is the opposite of hamartia (sin), which is defined as missing of the mark set by God. Dikaiosune is rightness of character before God and rightness of actions before men. Righteousness of God could be succinctly stated as all that God is, all that He commands, all that He demands, all that He approves, all that He provides through Christ (Click to read Pastor Ray Pritchard's interesting analysis of righteousness in the Gospel of Matthew). Abound (surpass, overflow) (4052) (perisseuo from perissos = abundant, exceeding some number, measure, rank or need, over and above) means to cause to superabound, to be superfluous, to overflow, to be in affluence, to excel or to be in abundance with the implication of being considerably more than what would be expected. Perisseuo conveys the idea of exceeding the requirements, which in a sense is what the New Covenant did. God's requirement was perfect obedience in order to attain righteousness or be justified. 2 Corinthians 3:10 For indeed what had glory, in this case has no glory because of the glory that surpasses it. (NASB: Lockman) Greek : kai gar ou dedocastai (3SRPI) to dedoxasmenon (RPPNSN) en touto to merei eineken tes huperballouses (PAPFSG) doxes; Amplified: Indeed, in view of this fact, what once had splendor [the glory of the Law in the face of Moses] has come to have no splendor at all, because of the overwhelming glory that exceeds and excels it [the glory of the Gospel in the face of Jesus Christ]. (Lockman) The Living Bible In fact, that first glory as it shone from Moses’ face is worth nothing at all in comparison with the overwhelming glory of the new agreement. NIV For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. ESV: Indeed, in this case, what once had glory has come to have no glory at all, because of the glory that surpasses it. (ESV) KJV: For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth. NET: For indeed, what had been glorious now has no glory because of the tremendously greater glory of what replaced it. (NET Bible) NIV: For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. (NIV - IBS) NLT: In fact, that first glory was not glorious at all compared with the overwhelming glory of the new way.(NLT - Tyndale House)
2 Coríntios 3:7-11
Stedman has an different interpretation/application of this section explaining that... Paul is talking about himself, looking back to the days when he counted on his background, his skill, his sharp mind and dedicated heart for success (Ed: When he was under the Old Covenant of the Law, the ministry of death and of condemnation). He is saying, "I have come now to understand that God at work in me can do so much more than I could ever have done (Ed: cp Gal 2:20-note, 1Co 15:10-note, Php 4:13-note). I have come to understand that Christ's work in me is so far more effective beyond anything I could ask or think (Eph 3:20-note Col 1:29-note), that all the "glory" I once felt coming from the challenge to my self-effort is nothing but a pile of manure (that is the term he uses) (Php 3:8-note "rubbish" = that which is thrown to the dogs = the dregs, refuse, what is thrown away as worthless), compared with the glory of God at work in me (Php 2:13-note). It (The Old Covenant of Law) has lost all its splendor. I don't try to psych myself up in order to accomplish something for God. I know that even in my feeblest weakness God is able to work through me, and that is what I count on (2Co 3:5-note). What happens as a result is far more thrilling and adventurous than anything that ever happened before." That is the Christian life. That is what the world is waiting to see in our day. We are all called to be ministers of the new covenant. (Ed: Functioning under the empowerment of the ministry of the Spirit and the ministry of righteousness) God is making us able, not ourselves (2Co 12:9+, 2Co 12:10+). If we understand that, life will never be the same again. You can count on that! We thank you, heavenly Father, for this glimpse anew at what is true and real in the affairs of this world. We are made aware, Lord, of how many times we have been confused and blinded by the attitudes of the world around us which continually brainwash us to believe that it is something lying within us that is the secret of true power. Grant to us, Lord, that we may understand this truth, and believe it instead and, counting on you, discover your ability to change and heal and restore and forgive, manifest through us. We ask in your name, Amen. (Have you got What it Takes 2 Corinthians 3:1-11) Adam