Welcome to the REST Podcast. The REST Conference is designed to refresh, encourage, strengthen and train the Lord's servants. The messages and lessons you will hear have been taken from the past REST Conferences. It is our prayer that God will use this episode to encourage you in His work. All right, let's take our Bibles and go to the book of 2 Corinthians chapter number 3. 2 Corinthians chapter number 3. And as Brother Paulie mentioned, we have taken these chapters, chapter 3 and chapter 4, as our theme. And we looked at this text last night in 2 Corinthians chapter number 3. And let's look at verse five. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God. And as we learned last evening, our sufficiency is of God. He makes us sufficient. We are not sufficient in and of ourselves, and we have come to realize that. And if you haven't fully come to realize that yet, you will in the days ahead and the years ahead. Our sufficiency then is of God, who also hath made us able ministers of the New Testament, not of the letter, but of the Spirit. For the letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life. But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses, for the glory of his countenance, which glory was to be done away, how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect by reason of the glory that excelleth. For if that which is done away was glorious, Much more, that which remaineth is glorious. Now, I want you to look with me, if you would, into chapter four. We'll look at verse one. Therefore, seeing we have received this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not. but have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth, committing ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost, in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure. in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us. I want you to notice back in chapter three in verse number six, as we noted last night, our sufficiency is of God. I want you to note here this morning in verse six that that same God who is our sufficiency has also made us able ministers. of the New Testament. I want to speak to you on that subject, able ministers of the New Testament. Would you pray with me? And let's ask for the Lord's blessing. Father, we thank you for your word. We pray, God, that you would help us today as we've come together. Thank you for what we've already heard this morning. The men and the ladies, as you have spoken through your servants, I pray God that you will strengthen us and instruct us through your word. May our time together be a time of refreshing and encouragement and renewing. And Father, we pray that through your spirit you would speak to us in this hour. Thank you, God, that you have made us able ministers. And as we explore this passage together, as we see how you have made us able ministers, I pray that you would strengthen us for the work that you've given us to do. Thank you for our friends, our fellow servants, our co-laborers. God, you know the need of every husband, every wife, every servant in this room. And Lord, we pray that you'll encourage them in a mighty way. In Jesus' name, amen. We're able ministers, not because we are able within ourselves. We're already discovering that, right? And our sufficiency is of God. And Paul, of course, is writing this because Paul is under heavy fire. The Judaizers who perhaps have followed Paul from Jerusalem, who once stood beside Paul in their religion of the Jews, perhaps filled with envy and hatred now for him, the one who has really betrayed their cause and has become an apostle of Jesus Christ. They have followed him to Corinth, and they've followed him everywhere he's gone, and they're seeking to sow the seeds that would destroy and diminish the fruit of his labor. They were relentless in their attack on Paul's character. They were relentless in their attack on Paul's doctrine and on his person. They sought to diminish his authority as a teacher while at the same time boasting in their own credentials because they carried with them letters of commendation. They brought letters from the Jewish leaders saying, these are people who know the law and are certified to teach the law, and they sought to re-engage the people of God who had been set free. Jesus said, come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. I'll remove the yoke of the law from you, and I'll give you a new yoke, and I'll bear it for you and with you. Well, they're seeking to re-engage the shoulders of those people who've been set free underneath the burden of the law. They're adding to the gospel the requirements of the law. And Paul is dealing with this. They're attacking Paul on the basis of his character. They're saying there's some secret sin that he has. They're attacking Paul on the basis of his personality and his appearance. They say he is weak. Paul was not perhaps a man of great stature. He was not perhaps a handsome man to look at. The Bible, as we study the life of Paul, we get the idea that perhaps Paul had some infirmity, maybe some deformity physically that affected his eyes. He said to those Christians who heard his message, he said, you would have given me your own eye. So they're trying to diminish his credentials, they're saying, listen, he's not an impressive speaker, apparently he wasn't a great orator. And he wasn't much to look at. And so they're attacking Paul on every hand. And Paul comes to them in 2 Corinthians here in chapter three, as we read last night. And he begins to give defense, a defense of his doctrine, a defense of his office as an apostle because Paul is concerned with the church. Because not only is Paul under attack, the church is under attack. We hear a lot about deconstruction in this era. There is an effort to deconstruct the faith and that is something that especially the younger generation is dealing with today. I want you to know that's not a new concept, that's existed since the beginning. Satan has been working to deconstruct the faith from day one. And so Paul is the recipient of the attacks of those who would seek to deconstruct the faith. And so Paul says here in verse number one, do we begin again to commend ourselves, chapter number three, Or need we as some others epistles of commendation? Do I need a letter? Do I need some credentials to prove to you my authority? Or letters of commendation from you? Verse two, ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men. If you want to know where the proof of my credentials are, look in the mirror, Church of Corinth. the fact that you're here, the fact that you know the Lord, the fact that God has saved you from your sin and delivered you, you then become our epistle. Verse three, for as much as you are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God, not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart. You see, Paul has told us that his sufficiency is of God, and now he is telling the church that it is God who has made him an able minister. And if we are able ministers, it is because God has made us able ministers. Isn't it wonderful that the Lord Jesus claims us? And that he not only claims us, but he called us. Do you remember when the Lord was dealing with your heart and he called you into ministry? And you surrendered to that call, not knowing all that the Lord would have for you, but yet he called you. And you weren't really that impressive. No, you really were. Most of you were more impressive than me, but that's still not very impressive. But God called us, not many mighty, not many noble, but yet God called us. He chose the foolish things to confound the wise. Aren't you glad? He claimed us. He saved us. He lifted us up out of the miry clay. He called us. He's commissioned us, we have a job to do. I appreciate what Brother Pope said this morning. Don't leave, don't quit. And I can hear Brother Bobby saying that time and time again. And all the times I had an opportunity to hear him preach, I think he said that more than anything. Don't quit, don't leave, keep working, keep fighting, serve the Lord. And that's helped me over the years. He claimed us, he called us, he commissioned us, and he keeps us. What a glorious Savior. and he makes us able ministers. But we know within ourselves we're not able. And Paul said, you can attack me. You can say, that guy's not much to look at. You can say he's not that impressive. You can talk about his lack of oratory, and Paul would say, you're right, I'm not much. But he is. and He has made me and He has made you an able minister. Now let's note some things about how He has done that in our lives and what specifically He has done to enable us in this ministry. I want you to look in chapter three again in verse six. Who also hath made us able ministers of the New Testament, not of the letter, but of the Spirit. For the letter killeth. but the Spirit giveth life. I want you to look, if you would, in verse nine. For if the ministration of condemnation, what is he talking about there? He's talking about the Old Testament law. These Judaizers were seeking to bring these Christians under the yoke and the bondage of the Old Testament law. They were saying Paul was a false prophet. He didn't have it right. He didn't have any authority. You guys need to listen to us. If you really want to be close to God, then yes, you must believe in Christ, but you must be under the bondage of the law. And that, he says, is the ministry of condemnation. For if the ministry of condemnation be glory, much more does the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. He's saying, wait a minute, the ministry of the New Testament exceeds in glory, surpassing over the ministry of the old. And the word exceeding means exceedingly exceeding. Super surpassing. The Old Testament law was glorious. Remember when Moses came off the mountain and he shined with the glory of God and they had to veil his face? He said there's a greater glory than that in the face of Jesus. In fact, that glory is so glorious in verse 10, for even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect by reason of the glory that excelleth. Jesus far outshines Moses. And he said, we are not ministers of the Old Testament, we are ministers of the New Testament. And notice again, verse six, it is a ministry of the Spirit, for the letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life. And then notice in verse 18, Not only is a ministry of the Spirit, but he says in verse 18, but we all with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord are changed into the same image from glory to glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord. It's a ministry of the Spirit. It gets in the soul and spirit of a man. And it is a ministry by the Spirit of the Lord, the Holy Spirit, working in our spirit. It's a glorious ministry that Jesus has given to us. And through that ministry, he has empowered his ministers. So how does he make us able? Well, number one, the Lord Jesus empowers his ministers. Most of us, if we had been in Paul's shoes, would have, as Brother Pope mentioned this morning, we would have entertained the notion of resigning, right? After all I've done for these people, I went there and stayed two years, I invested in them, I poured my life out for them, I suffered, and Paul suffered, did he not? We'll look more at that, God willing, tomorrow, but he suffered. He brought those people to faith in Christ. They didn't know the Lord. They were lost without God and no hope. And now they know the Lord Jesus and they're on their way to heaven and their sins are forgiven. But now because some Johnny-come-latelys have come in introducing some new doctrine and trying to tantalize them with their credentials and maybe with a more gifted way of speaking, they're ready to turn their back on Paul. But more importantly, and more seriously, to turn away from Jesus. To turn to, as Paul said to the church at Galatia, another gospel. And so Paul is writing here, speaking of this glorious ministry that God has given to him to empower him. And he is no doubt, perhaps, tempted, at least to some degree, to think, is it really worth it? Just as you and I are often tempted to think. There was a Methodist preacher who wrote to Alexander White, who was a great Scottish preacher, and he asked Alexander White for some advice, and he said, do you think I should leave the ministry? And I love White's response. He said, never think of giving up preaching. The angels around the throne envy your great work. The Bible says that the angels desire to look into this thing. and you and I get to do it. But maybe not to the people we thought we would or to the crowd we thought we would and we encounter things that we never thought we would and we lose sight, we lose sight of the glorious power of the ministry of the New Testament. It's the only thing. that can change this world. It's the only thing that can save a soul. It's the only hope that we have. And so we find it is a ministry of the Spirit and by the Spirit. It is exceedingly exceeding in power over the ministry of the law and the Old Testament because the law presents the problem, but it has no solution. And so Paul points that out in chapter three. In verse number seven he says, but if the ministration of death written and engraven in stones was glorious so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance, which glory was to be done away, how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? He's beginning to point them to the ministry of the New Testament the ministry of the Spirit, over the ministry of the law. And here's what we find. We find that the ministry of life, notice again in verse six, for the letter killeth, but the Spirit does what? Gives life. This ministry that the Lord has committed to us is a life-giving ministry. The ministry of life is exceedingly more glorious than the ministry of death. What does the law do? The law teaches me that I'm on my way to hell. The law offers me no life because I cannot keep the law. But through the ministry of the Spirit, I can receive life. Jesus said, Nicodemus, you must be born again. You must have life. And God has given you and I the ministry of life. and it is exceedingly more glorious than the ministry of death. Look in verse number nine. If the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more does the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. Here's the second thing about this ministry that God uses to enable us. It is the ministry of justification, and the ministry of justification is exceedingly more glorious than a ministry of condemnation. Because again, what does the law do? The law says to me and to you and to all who hear us, you are a sinner. But there's no solution. The gospel of Jesus Christ in the New Testament says you're a sinner, but Jesus is the answer. He makes us righteous. He makes us just. And then thirdly, We won't read verses 12 through 18, but we will note again verse 18, but we all with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord are changed into the same image from glory to glory. The ministry of transformation, that's the New Testament ministry, is exceedingly more glorious than a ministry of conformity. You see, outwardly, what would happen? The Jews would try to keep the law, and many of them walked around in these long robes like the Pharisees, and they said, we're righteous, but inwardly, what did the Lord say to them? He said, you're like a sepulcher. You're like a grave. You're full of dead men's bones. There was no life in them. Outwardly, they were conforming, but inwardly, they were dead. And Jesus transforms us. He doesn't call us to conform. He, by His Holy Spirit, transforms us. He makes us new creatures. He changes us from the inside out. This is a glorious ministry, and the Lord has empowered His servants to be able ministers by the Holy Ghost. But we see secondly, not only does the Lord Jesus empower his ministers, but the Lord Jesus encourages his ministers. Look at chapter four and verse one. Therefore seeing we have this ministry, we have a powerful ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not. Have you ever felt like fainting? Certainly. All of us have. And all of us have fainted. But thanks be to God, he doesn't let us stay there long. Because we have the word, we have the Holy Spirit, and we have a wife. Who keeps us? We faint not. That means we don't lose courage. We don't lose heart. We don't throw up our hands in despair and walk away. And how do we find the strength to stay in the midst of it? Because the Lord Jesus encourages us. He's given us a powerful ministry that enables us and empowers us to serve him, but he also extends to us his mercy. None of us deserve to be here. None of us deserve to stay here. And it is of the Lord's mercies that we're not concerned. His mercies are new every morning, they fail not. Praise be unto God for his mercy. And underneath the stress of the heavy burdens of pastoral ministry, you and I are often tempted to lose heart. Nevertheless, Paul said, we faint not. Now how do we keep from fainting? I think the better question is, how does the Lord keep us from fainting? By extending to us mercy. Oftentimes, like Peter, we find ourselves sinking down, don't we? Lord, if it be thou. You remember when you were trying to decide if God was calling you to that church or calling you to ministry? And you go through that struggle. Now, is this what I want? Is this what the Lord wants? That's a good struggle to go through. and over a series of events and prayers and days and conversations, God will begin to confirm, this is what I am doing. Peter said, Lord, if it be thou bid me come, and the Lord said, come. And Peter stepped out on the water, looking at Jesus, walking to Jesus, The disciples are watching. And it's not long, right, before the waves splash in Peter's face, and he feels a strong gust of wind, and the rain is pelting down, and he begins to sink. How long did it take you to start to sink? to realize I can't do this. I don't know what I was thinking. Are you sure, Lord, it's what you wanted me to do? And down And Peter said, Lord, save me. I'm in trouble. It was good for a minute. But I realized I can't do this. And I'm going down. I'm going under. Lord. Save me. And immediately, Jesus stretched forth his hand and caught him. He caught him. Do you know that you are not beyond his reach? My oldest daughter's in here, she was. And I remember one time we were on vacation, and she was about two, and she was standing on the edge of a swimming pool, and I was in the swimming pool, and I said, jump. Somebody's gonna write me about being in the swimming pool. Anyway, that's all right. I said, jump. You know how your mind just takes you places. And I said, jump. And she was afraid to jump. And my hands were there and I said, I'll catch you. I won't let you go under. And nervously, she finally did it. And her dad caught her. And she liked it so much, she wanted to do it again. And again. And again, to the point I wish I'd never invited her to do that, right? The Lord said, jump. Step out. Obey me. I won't let you fall. I won't let you go under. I'm holding you up. You're in my hands. He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. It is the Lord which worketh in you both to will and to do. Lord if it be thou bid me come. It is the Lord which worketh in you both to do and to will. Will and to do rather of his good pleasure. The Lord encourages his ministers. He's cheering us on. He's with us. Later, he would say to Peter, Peter, he would say this, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan, Luke 22, verse 31, hath desired to have you. May I say this to you? Satan desires to have you. I realized that on a whole nother level when I came to be the pastor of the Tabernacle Baptist Church. Satan desires to have you that he may sift you as wheat, and by the way, he can. He has the ability to do it, doesn't he? But Jesus said, I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not. And when thou art converted, Isn't it amazing that the devil desires to sift us? And the Lord knows that, of course. And the Lord says, oh, you think, devil, that you're gonna sift him, but really what you are is a tool in my hand to convert him. To change him. Paul said, there's a messenger of Satan that's come against me to buffet me. I prayed and asked the Lord three times to remove it, but God said, wait a minute, I'm not gonna remove it, but my grace is sufficient for thee. And in your weakness, Paul, my strength is made perfect. When you are converted, Peter, strengthen thy brethren. Oh, the Lord encourages His ministers. He's praying for us right now. Isn't that amazing? Aren't you encouraged when a member of your church gives you a text and says, I'm praying for you? We had a dear lady in our church, we've had many dear ladies in our church, but Judy Custer is among the dearest. Some of you may know Judy. She was in Winchester, Virginia, and she had roots here in Hickory, and her kids in Greenville, South Carolina. She decided to come back to Hickory after her husband went home to be with the Lord, and she was in our church, and man, I didn't know what a blessing that was gonna be, because every Sunday, I got a text from Judy Custer. It took a little minute to read it. But it was a prayer. It was encouragement. It helped me greatly. Judy got cancer. Now she's with the Lord. She witnessed to every doctor and every nurse in the place. She came to as many services as she could. She walked around. She put her hands on the face of our teenagers. She looked them right in the eye. She said, God has something special for you. Will you follow him? I'm praying for you and I love you. She did that countless times until the Lord took her home. You and I both know that God has blessed us, not just because of who we are, but because of the faithful prayers of God's people. But there's one greater praying for us. His name is Jesus. He sits at the right hand of the Father. He was in all points tempted like as we are yet without sin, and he ever liveth to make intercession for us. Peter, Satan desires to sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you. And when thou art converted, strengthen Hi, brethren. You see, God uses encouragement in our lives to strengthen us so that we can strengthen the people that we minister to. So, how have we become able ministers? Well, number one, the Lord Jesus empowers His ministers. Number two, the Lord Jesus encourages His ministers. Number three, the Lord Jesus enriches His ministers. Again in chapter four, in verse one, therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not, but have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth, commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost, in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. Look again in verse two, we have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty. And then he says, but by manifestation of the truth, we've commended ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. You see, in order for God's ministers to declare the true riches, they must denounce the counterfeit. If we're going to declare the true riches, we must first denounce the counterfeit. Now notice what Paul says in verse two, but have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty. Who's he speaking of in particular? Those Judaizers. They have a motive. What is their motive? Not to build up the congregation at Corinth, but to tear it down. What is their motive? Not to pull those people, to help lead those people closer to Christ, but no, to drive them away from Christ. That's their motive. And ultimately, here's their motive. Their motive is to build a following unto themselves. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who call themselves pastor who have the same motive. They're more concerned with building a following of themselves. than they are with Jesus. And by the way, there are times when we get more concerned with that. And we have to deal with that in our own hearts. I am a people pleaser by nature. And there's a strength perhaps to that, but there's a great tendency of temptation there. And I've had to recognize I have a responsibility to please God, even if it means I displease people. Paul said, look. We're not here being deceptive. We're not walking in craftiness, trying to deceive, you know, underneath the radar, saying little underhanded things. We're not handling the Word of God deceitfully. No, we are coming out openly, preaching the truth of God's Word to you. And some of you question in verse 3, Well, if our gospel is so effective, why isn't everybody in Corinth getting saved? And by the way, there are people who look at the crowds and say, well, pastor, you know, if we would change some things around here, we'd have a bigger crowd. And in fact, oftentimes we think that way too, if we're honest, right? But if our gospel, he says, be hid, well, how did it happen? Well, the God of this world has blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. We need to understand that Satan has blinded the minds. of a Gentile pagan lost world. Just as he veiled the eyes of the Jewish people, Satan is working to oppose the gospel. And then Paul says in verse five, for we preach not ourselves. We're not here to build a following. We're not here to declare our credentials. We're not here to build up our name. We preach not ourselves. Well then what do we preach? Christ, Jesus, the Lord. Well, what about us? Well, he answers that, right? And ourselves, your, what's the next word, church? Do you know what that word literally means? Slaves. I'm the pastor. No, you're a slave. How could they ever question me? Well, your kids question you when you make a decision on where you're going to eat. Right? We're servants. We're slaves. So we have to make a decision to denounce the counterfeit so that we can declare the true riches. Look at verse six. For God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness has shined in our hearts to give light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we see Jesus. That's our job. Our job is to see him. and our job is to show him. Verse seven, but we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us. Do you know what we are? We're just clay pots. Do you know what a clay pot's made of? Dirt. In fact, it's the kind of dirt you don't want in your yard. Red clay mud. Well, we can't grow nothing on this. It's red clay mud. We're gonna get some topsoil in here. We're not even topsoil. We're red clay mud. The Lord said, that's okay. I love that red clay mud. So I'm gonna reach down my hand and get a fistful. And I'm gonna make a little clay pot. And that's who we are. This one's a little more impressive than what I had in mind. This is who we are. Just a clay pot. And he said, I'm gonna pour my glory in that clay pot. And I'm gonna use that clay pot to reveal my glory to a lost and dying world. He has made us able ministers. Let's thank him for it. Let's look to Him in it when the temptation is to say, I can't believe this. After all I've done, I think I'm just gonna walk away. I think I'm gonna lose heart. Lord, I'm sinking down. I'm going under. Lord, save me. You're not beyond His reach. He'll pull you up. Thank you for listening. The Rest Conference takes place around Labor Day each year on the campus of the Tabernacle Baptist Church in Hickory, North Carolina. To access more resources, visit our website, therestconference.com, or follow us on social media.