We continued the morning's service sermon in 2 Corinthians 12 by completing the discussion of Paul's hesitancy to visit, particularly with regard to how the Corinthians are not going to like how Paul has to handle things. We then jumped into chapter 13 verses 1-4 and saw how the apostle Paul resolved that he will powerfully deal with the sin in the Corinthian church, for the sake of the church. Despite the apostle’s misgivings about his upcoming visit, he has to carry through for the good of the church. He does not seem inclined to give up on them!

We completed last week's notes, focusing this time on Paul's hesitancy about the upcoming visit to Corinth. Things were very awkward between Paul and the church because of serious sins being committed there. He again implicitly calls them to repent and we reminded ourselves of God's mercy to cleanse and restore any sinner who turns to him in repentant faith. God is very kind and gracious!

This message introduces Pastor Matt's proposal to include the kingdom of God alongside Israel and the church as distinctives in the dispensational system. For this part 1, we introduced the very basics of dispensational theology. Next time we will state the proposal itself and then support it from Acts 1:3-8.

In this lesson from Proverbs, we contemplate what the sages say about the heart of a man. The heart is the "control center" of a man. The heart is most often used in Scripture to refer to the immaterial aspect of a man, as opposed to the organ in the body. Terms such as mind, soul, and spirit are practically synonyms for the heart in the Bible when it is referring to the immaterial aspect of man. The heart is the seat of man's emotions or passions, as well as the seat of man's volition, choices, and intellect. The book of Proverbs makes the observations that emotions are personal and not easily understood by others, emotions can be concealed and hidden, and emotions are affected by desires of the heart. Scripture does not condemn all emotions, but Scripture ought to cultivate, guide, and at times restrain man's emotions.

For our Lord's Table service, we thought through how our love for God should be a warm, close love, like that of the Lord for His people. If our love is cold and distant with little conversation (prayer) and time spent in worship, then we really need to ask God's help.

Paul wraps up the defense he has been offering, in which we see that Paul is not merely defending himself as if he is irked that his name has been run through the mud. His personal reputation is by far secondary to the apostolic office invested in him by Jesus Christ and the gospel message that comes with it. His defense is of the Lord’s work in and through him. He has made his whole appeal to the church “before God” and “in Christ” with the purpose to build them up. And even though Paul was an apostle, he was willing to sacrifice himself for the spiritual benefit of the Corinthians.

In this lesson we review the Synoptic Gospel accounts of Jesus asking His disciples about His identity. He first asked them who others were saying that He was. He then directly questioned them, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” as revealed to him. It is important for each person to come to the same recognition as Peter.

The book of Proverbs offers us many incentives to be truthful, and to put away lying lips. The idea of "truth" in Proverbs--and all of Scripture-- is not relative to one's opinion, circumstances, or culture. Truth is what is revealed in God's Word. We learn that God delights in the truth, and so do those who are recipients of truthful speech. Truth is also irrefutable and necessary for upholding the testimony of the who are just and innocent. Truthfulness arises from a heart that is pure and undefiled. Lying, on the other hand, exposes the sinful and evil intents of the heart. Those who lie are detestable in the sight of others and will only bring shame and ruin upon themselves.

Paul gives the church three more reasons to accept his apostolic authority and teaching. They center on God and God’s work in Paul, not in Paul himself. He explains that God gave him a heavenly vision, that God gave him a thorn to keep him humble, and God also permitted him to exercise apostolic signs. His emphasis is on weakness because God's power is very evident in human weakness. For these reasons, the Corinthians should give Paul a good hearing.

Pastor Postiff briefly discussed the matter of doctrine unites. He gave a number of reasons why this is true in rebuttal to some in evangelical circles who content that doctrine divides. He also spoke on the topic of Christian character, particularly the virtue of faithfulness. The idea of faithfulness is a critical one in Christian theology and practice. The purpose of this lesson is to encourage us to be faithful in the things God wants us to do. Without faithfulness, we will not have a functional family or church family.