Aim for Perfection

2 Corinthians 12:11-13:14

Key Verse 13:11

Finally, brothers, good-by. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.

Today we would like to think about the Apostle Paul’s ultimate prayer topic for the ultimate good of the flock of God in Corinth: aiming for perfection. This prayer topic can be expressed as the heavenly call for each person to live up to God’s utmost. Another way to express this prayer topic is to say that it is the prayer for each person to live up to his fullest potential. How then can one live up to his or her full potential? 

First, we need to appreciate what we have already received from the Lord.

In 2 Corinthians 12:11-19, the Apostle Paul asks the Corinthians six questions: 1) How were you inferior to other churches, except that I was never a [financial] burden to you? 2) If I love you more will you love me less? 3) Did I exploit you through any of the men I sent you? 4) Titus did not exploit you, did he? 5) Did we not act in the same spirit and follow the same course? 6) Have you been thinking all along that we have been defending ourselves to you? 

These questions indicate that the Corinthians did not take the necessary steps to reach God’s utmost, first because they did not appreciate the provision the Lord God had already given them through Paul. They did not have a thankful heart for the Lord’s services that came through Paul. Despite the Lord’s graceful provision they remained in the world of disgrace. 

When you think about it, this has been the problem of all fallen men, beginning with the first couple Adam and Eve. The Lord God blessed Adam and Eve with the best gifts from the Lord. God made them as the crown of creation. I do not know exactly how handsome Adam must have been. Most likely, before his fall, Adam looked extremely handsome. In the same way Eve, before the fall, must have looked gorgeous. Aside from their physical appearances, their living environment was perfect. As Genesis 2 describes, the Garden of Eden was the garden of true delight. Most importantly, the Lord God blessed them with the blessed Bible, that is, the command concerning the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. These features were designed to secure perfect happiness for the couple. The Lord’s provision for them had all the components necessary for them to live up to God’s utmost. But they did not fully appreciate the provisions. What happened to them? We know the answer.    

The same thing happened to the Corinthians. In love, the Risen Jesus sent to them a humble servant, Paul. In the meekness and humility of Jesus Christ, Paul preached the gospel to them. They gladly accepted it and took their stand. However, they soon lost thanks and forgot God’s grace. They did not appreciate the full value of the Lord’s provisions.

 

We find the same problem persisting among the people of this nation. Since the Twin Towers in New York came down through the terrorists’ attacks, we have come to pick up a new catch phrase, “God bless America”. But when you think about it, you can quickly admit that God had already blessed America so much. How much more should God bless America? 

The same holds true with each of us individually. If we sat down and counted all the blessings we have already received from the Lord, we can easily recognize that God has done all he could for our happiness. We should give thanks to God for his sufficient grace, because among other blessings, he has blessed us with the Bible, with the Judeo Christian heritage, the ministry of reconciliation, the fellowship with saints in the Lord, and much more. Of all the blessings, we have received Jesus Christ who is the author of life, sustainer of life, and the fulfiller of life, for God gave his Son that we would have life and have it to the full. But how much are we thankful for his provisions? And, are we living a life that is worthy of his loving grace? 

The questions the Apostle Paul addressed to the Corinthians are addressed to us as well. And the message for us is this: we must appreciate the fact that God has already provided us with all the means by which to fulfill the prayer topics he has for us, particularly the prayer topic for us to aim for God’s perfection.  

Second, we need to make the most use of what we have received from the Lord. 

Once we admit that we have received all the means necessary to reach God’s perfection, what do we have to do with it? We can either use it or not use it. 

First of all, we cannot afford to not use it. Why? The answer is obvious. If we do not use it, we will end up losing even what we already have, and then we will go from bad to worse. Just think about what happened to the Corinthians. Although they received the blessings from the Lord, especially the blessing of knowing Jesus Christ, since they did not appreciate this grace, and even trampled upon it, what did they become? Look at verses 20-21, “For I am afraid that when I come I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be. I fear that there may be quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder. I am afraid that when I come again my God will humble me before you, and I will be grieved over many who have sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, sexual sin and debauchery in which they have indulged.” Simply, they did not become what they were supposed to become. Think about what these words mean: quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorder. Consider also what the following expression indicates: “many have sinned and have not repented of impurity, sexual sin, and debauchery in which they have indulged.” Compare these words with the question: “Do you not realize that Christ is already in you?” Although Christ was in them, they still indulged in all kinds of wickedness, simply because they did not appreciate, much less live according to, the power of grace they had already received. 

So what should they do now? Look at 13:3b, “He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you.” Here the expression “in dealing with you,” means “in dealing with all the issues you have among you,” such issues as factions, disorder, the problem of sexual sin, debauchery, etc. Jesus is powerful enough to solve all these problems and help us grow as saintly persons. Speaking of the sanctifying power of Jesus, Paul says, “He is powerful among you.” 

How then does Jesus reveal his sanctifying power?   

In 13:4 the Apostle Paul continues to say “…yet he lives by God’s power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God's power we will live with him to serve you.” In this passage the word “live” is repeated twice: “he lives” and “we will live with him.” The word “live” has to do with “life.” Paul is talking about the new “life” in the Lord, not the old ways of life in sin but the new way of life in God’s righteousness. This life is not available to unbelievers, because in Galatians 5:24 it is written: “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires…”  Speaking of the new life, Paul says, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).

The phrase “by God’s power,” refers to the source of the power for the believers who live a brand “new life” in the Lord. This power is different from man’s power such as man’s muscle power, will power, or brain power. Man’s muscle power is limited. Man’s will power is limited. Man’s brain power is limited. But God’s power is not, for God’s power is the power of the Holy Spirit. What distinguishes the power of men from the power of the Holy Spirit? It is the Holy Spirit’s power of resurrection. In fact, referring to this power of resurrection the Apostle Paul says that although Jesus was crucified in weakness, he now lives by God’s power, that is, by the power of the Holy Spirit, the power that raised Jesus from the dead. This power is not for Jesus alone but for all who put trust in Jesus, as Romans 8:11 reads, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.”

This then brings us to the main point of the message for today: the test of faith. Look at verses 5-6. “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test.” The test is the test of faith. And “faith” is the faith in Jesus Christ who is in the heart of each believer.

This passage shows us that if faith is genuine then it is powerful enough to do what it is given to do. So the question is whether or not faith is real. For this reason Paul uses the term ‘examine’ or ‘test.’ Paul twice says: examine “yourselves” and then test “yourselves.” This is to emphasize that each person can test whether or not he or she is in the faith. Life is a series of tests from God, and all tests boil down to one test, that is, the test of faith. Life comes with good things and bad things. Yet, whether good or bad, all of them come our way as tests of faith in the Lord. 

Abraham in the book of Genesis is a case in point. In the Book of Genesis the Lord God gave Abraham a lot of training. But the points of the training boil down to this: a testing of faith. After the Book of Second Corinthians we would like to briefly visit the Book of Genesis and examine how the Lord God tested Abraham, for the Lord tested Abraham’s faith until his faith proved genuine. When Abraham successfully passed the tests of faith, the Lord God established him as a source of blessing for all peoples on earth. But for our own purpose, as Apostle Paul says, it is not God who has to come and test whether or not we are in the faith, for, according to Paul, anyone can examine himself or herself as to whether or not he or she is in the faith. 

I do not know fully what you went through last week. Standing here I cannot tell what will come your way in the future. But whatever happens to your life in the future, this is what I would encourage everyone to do: pray to live by faith in the Lord and to do so by constantly examining yourself whether or not you are in the faith. If you are in the faith, then, no matter what happens, you will be always victorious. 

Now, faith in the Lord is the only channel by which God releases his power to us, even the power of resurrection. Speaking of the power of faith, the Apostle Paul says, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’”

How powerful is this power of faith? We already know the answer, but in verses 7-14, the Apostle Paul sums it up:

It empowers us to not do anything wrong. 

It empowers us to do what is right.

It empowers us to live for the truth.

It empowers us to be of one mind with fellow believers.

It empowers us to live in peace with others. 

It empowers us to live under God’s love with God’s peace ruling within us. 

These blessings are progressive in that they come in a sequential order. If we do what is wrong, there is no peace with God. If we do not do what is right, we cannot expect God’s favor to fall upon us. If we do not live for God’s truth, we cannot expect God to bless us. If we fight with one another, quarreling, blaming, finger-pointing, and gossiping, we cannot expect God’s kingdom to grow in us. Instead it is guaranteed that the kingdom of hell will grow. 

The other side of the coin is true. As we stand in the faith the Lord empowers us to not do anything wrong; rather, he strengthens us to do what is right. Then he motivates us to live for the truth. Then things get better and better. We are encouraged more and more. Then our righteousness overflows into the lives of our neighbors, so we can go to our neighbors and practice God’s love. As we converse with our neighbors in love, we can get rid of all the barriers; and there are no more misunderstandings. We can then establish a good rapport with them. Literally, we can be of one mind with our neighbors. Then peace rolls like a river within us.

Let us look at verses 11-14, “Finally, brothers, good-by. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints send their greetings. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” 

This passage tells us about God's will for all people on earth, that is, in and through Jesus Christ, God wants all people on earth to secure “complete unity” among all believers, all through the faith in the Lord, through the grace of our Lord Jesus, through the power of the love of God, and through the fellowship with the Holy Spirit. When this happens all of us together can live up to the full potential; the vision to live up to God’s perfection becomes a reality. 

One word: Aim for perfection 

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