Paul challenged the Corinthians to live holy lives because of the promises he had quoted in the previous verses. Then he told of the God who comforts the downcast and had lifted his spirit by the coming of Titus. Not only did Titus' report encourage him, but the comfort Titus had received from the Corinthians receptivity spilled over to comfort Paul too.

The Bible has an emphasis on separation. All throughout the Torah certain things were not allowed to be mixed. Apostle Paul uses a passage from Leviticus to tell us the deeper meaning behind the passage warning us not to be unequally yoked to unbelievers. It is especially applicable to those who teach a different path to God, but is also applicable to joining with anything that is worldly. Holiness is to be separated for God's purposes.

The Apostle Paul describes the heart of his team in an effort to help the Corinthians see who was telling them the truth. He was bearing his heart and asking them to open their heart to him.

In this sermon Pastor Paul describes the issues pastors deal with, what enables them to best serve their congregations, and have longevity in one location. The text deals with the difficulties that Paul and his team endured, but also gives us a perspective on the suffering that is common to all of us.

God sent Jesus into the world to heal the breach between us and God that our sin had caused. God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. Now He asks us to be His ambassadors to the world to invite them to be reconciled to Him. It is a high and holy privilege to work together with God!

The sermon looks at two very important verses. The first reminds believers that we should consider anyone after the flesh. In other words, we need to see others from God's perspective regardless of where they are in their journey. The next verse tells us why. We are new creations. The old may raise its ugly head from the grave, but God has begun His work of transforming all things by starting in the hearts of all who come to Him in faith.

Paul told the Corinthians that sometimes he is out of his senses, beside himself, and at other times in his right mind for their sake. What in the world does that mean? The next verse tells us that it is the love of Christ that controls/constrains him. How does his experience relate to our lives in Christ?

This year's Christmas message looks at one phrase from Gabriel's announcement to Mary: "He will be great!" What is greatness in the eyes of an archangel? Because he was a messenger of God, the expression comes from God. How great is great in the eyes of God? We will count the ways!

We have these amazing bodies to use for the glory of God, and yet they grow old and wear out. But in this passage, Paul tells us that we have a home in the heavens not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. We have so much to look forward to! But we must also realize that we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ to give an account with how we used these temporal dwellings.

In our passage for this sermon, Paul expresses his conviction based on a psalm that spoke to his heart and encouraged his faith. It gave him the assurance that we will all rise together to meet the Lord. Even though the outer man is wasting away, our inner man is being renewed day by day. As we age we can be continually renewed and reconstructed spiritually to be increasingly effective for God's kingdom. What we see with our eyes is passing away, but the Word of our God is forever!