I think this is the first time I've preached here probably for the year. So I just want to thank you all for coming out and coming to listen to me and just supporting me. I'm really grateful for the opportunity. So if you would, please turn to your Bibles to 2 Corinthians 2. And we'll be reading from verse 12. 2 Corinthians 2, beginning at verse 12. Now before we read our text, I want to kind of set this up for you guys. Now I'm sure you know, I'm confident that you're aware of this, but in thousands of churches across America, there is a kind of moralistic gospel being preached. This kind of gospel is saying that the Christian life is one of constant victory, one of constant improvement, continual and upward progression. If you're a good enough person, if you believe enough, then God will bless you with health, with wealth, with prosperity, all sorts of external blessings. See, the fact that you struggle with sin or temptation or affliction, the fact that you experience various difficulties in your life is evidence of the fact that you just lack discipline. You need to try harder. You need to do more. You need to dig deeper. This kind of theology is what I like to call triumphalism, Christian triumphalism. Triumphal theology is very appealing to the world because it offers immediate and visible success. It offers visible success if you do the right things. This is why you often hear about and some books published or some Christian authors talking about five steps to live your best life or here's some tips to unlock your true potential. 12 steps to grow your church immediately, to grow your congregation faster and have immediate success. Here's some self-care tips, some tricks to be a better, stronger Christian. You just need some chocolate. You need some me time. You need a massage. You need to go to the movies. You need to look within yourself and find something. Take care of yourself. See, triumphalistic theology does not point you to Christ and his transformative grace. It does not point you to the need for regeneration and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Triumphalism tells you to look deep within, and then you will be happy. There will be no affliction, no suffering, no pain. Now, of course this isn't biblical, but don't get me wrong, there is a kind of triumphalism in scripture. There is a kind of guaranteed victory, upward progression, progress, improvement in scripture. this success looks much different than moralistic triumphalism. In fact, success in the Christian life really doesn't depend on you at all. Now, in 2 Corinthians, in the entire epistle, Paul finds himself in a situation that looks opposite to moralistic triumphalistic victory. In chapter two in 2 Corinthians, beginning at verse One, Paul says, for I made up my mind not to make another painful visit to you. For if I cause you pain, who is there to make me glad but the one whom I have pained? Now, we don't read anywhere in the New Testament about some painful visit except right here. But evidently, between 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians, something happened between Paul and the Church of Corinth, something painful, something grievous. Now, knowing how messy the Church of Corinth was, I can guess, and we can all guess, that probably the Church of Corinth rebelled against Paul's apostolic authority. And maybe Paul, well, definitely Paul, corrected them very sternly because he tells us, not only in person did he correct them pretty sternly, but he also wrote a letter. In chapter seven, in the same letter, Paul says, this is verse eight, for even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it, for I see that letter grieved you, though not only for a while. So, not only was there this awkward tension between Paul and the Corinthians, but even false teachers found their way into the Church of Corinth, and they were trying to discredit the ministry that Paul had. In chapter 11, Paul says, for such men are false apostles, deceitful, workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. So Paul had tension between him and the Corinthians. He had false teachers discrediting his doctrine. And then he had false teachers claiming that he was a liar. You see that in chapter one, because Paul had promised to the Corinthians that on his way to Macedonia, he would visit them again. But after Paul corrected them for pastoral reasons, he decided to wait. So now these people are claiming that Paul was a liar. He was dishonest. He was not credible in what he said. But Paul simply wanted to give them time to repent. So Paul intended to meet Titus in Troas. And Titus was gonna tell him how this painful letter was being received. Now, this brings us up to our text. And now Paul is gonna kinda explain what's going on in his mind as he's waiting for Titus to meet him in Troas. So let's read in verse 12, 2 Corinthians 2, verse 12. We're going to read to verse 14. When I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, even though a door was open for me in the Lord, my spirit was not at rest because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I took leave of them and went on to Macedonia. but thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. Now, it's interesting, because Paul breaks out in this random thanks and praise for God, even though he paints this picture of outward failure. Look at Paul having to defend the sincerity of his ministry. He's having to defend the doctrine, the gospel against false apostles. He's having to explain his lack of skill in speaking. Remember the Corinthians thought that he was weak in presence but strong in letters. You have false teachers discrediting him. He just explained the emotional turmoil. His spirit was not at rest as he was in Troas. Yet Paul says, but thanks be to God. Now, either Paul is crazy and he likes suffering, or our concept of triumph and victory is completely different from the biblical concept of triumph and victory. Maybe because our concept is man-centered, worldly, we can't understand why Paul would break out in thanks and appreciation for God, despite everything looking like absolute failure. So I hope to prove to you by the end of my message, and it will be a short message. I know this is round two, so we just had a wonderful sermon this morning, so this is gonna be a short message, but I hope that by the end of my message, I can prove to you that no matter what the Christian life looks like, no matter what you're going through, if you are indeed a Christian, that God is leading you in triumph. But there are two things you have to always remember about this triumph. that number one, this triumph, this victory belongs to God. And number two, God leads you in victory through suffering. Now let's begin with that first point, that victory belongs to God. Let's look again at verse 12 and 13. Paul says, when I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, even though a door was opened for me in the Lord, My spirit was not at rest because I did not find my brother Titus there. So Paul decided to visit Troas to preach the gospel, to do the Lord's work as he waited for Titus to deliver the letter to Corinth and then meet him in Troas with news of whatever happened, whether they accepted the letter or whether they rejected. So Paul's intention was not to take a vacation, it wasn't to relax. It wasn't a clear his head, but he went to Troas to do the Lord's work. Now, not only was this Paul's intention, but the text tells us that a door was opened for Paul in the Lord. So God had provided some sort of unique opportunity for ministry success in Troas. If Paul went there, if he preached, there was going to be success. A door was opened by the Lord. But now here's what verse 13 says, that Paul, his spirit was not at rest because he did not find Titus there, his brother. See, Paul was so overcome with anxiety, with worry, with concern, that his spirit could not rest. Titus visited Corinth on Paul's behalf and delivered this letter. On Paul's waiting on him, he wants to know what happened. Did Corinth accept it? Did they repent? Or did they reject him? And the false teachers won. And they wanted to kick Paul out. And there was just chaos and sin. Titus' absence in Troas suggested to Paul that maybe he failed. So Paul is concerned. He's worried. He's anxious. And so what did he do? Well, it says, so I took leave of them and went on to Macedonia in grief. Paul left Troas. He left this unique ministry opportunity, this door that was opened for him by the Lord in Troas. Now, don't miss the significance of what's happening here, because if you read too fast, you're gonna miss it. Paul is actually confessing weakness here. Out of grief and worry, anxiety, understandable pastoral concern, but out of worry, Paul abandoned a God-given opportunity, he left. Now, Paul's weakness is understandable, but it led to a missed opportunity. It led to a failure to respond to the work of the Lord. Now, I hope this isn't shocking. Of course, we follow Paul. Of course, Paul is a model for the Christian life, but Paul is not Christ. Paul was a sinful man like you and I. And so Paul could not function like his normal self because he was so consumed with worry. Outwardly, this was a complete and utter failure. Outwardly. Paul was a weak man. He was weak. But can we not relate to Paul? What does your life look like? Is it a straight and easy path to success? Are you always on top of your game, always disciplined, never emotional, never downcast? Or are you weak like Paul, sometimes at the end of your rope, struggling with sin, struggling with getting thoughts out of your mind that are causing you to worry, unable to respond to the goodness of God, the clear goodness of God? Does your life outwardly sometimes look like failure? Yet in verse 14, Paul says, but thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession. See, the word there that Paul uses for triumphal procession literally refers to the Roman triumphs. It was these big military, grand military parades where, and this is kind of cool. I thought this was fascinating, so don't fall asleep on me. But it was these grand military parades where a successful Roman general who won either a battle by sea or a battle by land by killing at least 5,000 enemy soldiers, they would have a parade for him. And in the procession, all the Roman dignitaries would walk through the streets, and they would ride in on these chariots. And then all the streets were decorated with garlands. And then you have people standing on both sides yelling, Hail Triumph! Hail Triumph! And then the Roman Senate would come out first. Then all the musicians. I don't know what kind of musicians they had, but I'm sure it was some good music. All the musicians would come out afterwards. Then they would have animals that were meant to be sacrificed. And all the spoils of war would come out after the animals. All the money, the gold, the silver, the treasures of the conquered enemies. They would display that in these triumphs. And after the spoils of war, they had the captured prisoners walking behind in chains. that Victoria's general would come in, and he's decked in purple and gold robes. He has a scepter in one hand, and then he has a garden or a laurel branch in the other hand. And then he has a slave, a captured slave, holding a crown over his head, not putting a crown on his head, holding a crown over his head the entire time. And then last behind the general came the Roman soldiers, and I'm guessing they were probably marching behind the general. Now, here's the question. Was Paul led as a slave in God's triumphal procession, or was he led as a soldier celebrating in the victory of God's triumph? That's something to think about. See, the word itself describes, literally, the leading of defeated captives. That's what the word means. In fact, the revised English Bible translates this verse like this, who continually leads us as captives in Christ's triumphal procession. Paul uses it in this way. This is the only other time the word appears in the New Testament. Paul uses it this way in Colossians 2, verse 15. He says, He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame by triumphing over them in him. And so the word itself suggests a triumphing over. But then again, how could Paul be given thanks to God for being conquered? That seems rather odd. So there's a bit of tension here. There's kind of like a paradox. But I think Paul is aware of this. Now, if you want my answer to the question, my scholarly expert opinion, whether Paul was a captive or was he a soldier, my answer is yes. He's both, right? We are both. You are a soldier in God's army, but without any fighting skills and without any weapons on your own. And Paul talks about Christians as being soldiers fighting a spiritual war in the New Testament, right? But you are also a captive to God without any ability to resist his conquering grace in your life. Now, whether you're a soldier or a captive, really, it's not the point. It's not the main point here. It's pretty irrelevant, to be quite honest, because the main point here is that God in Christ is the victor. So we can thank God with Paul, because there will be victory in our lives despite weakness, victory in our lives despite sins, failures, despite how many times we mess things up. God will always, not sometimes, always lead us in triumph. In chapter one, in 2 Corinthians, verse eight, Paul says, for we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. for we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death, but that was to make us rely not on ourselves, but on God who raises the dead. And this is a picture of the Christian life, affliction beyond what we can bear with our own human ability. The Christian life is war, and Paul himself was burdened beyond his ability. So I'm sorry, I don't have any self-help techniques. I can't tell you how to make things easier. I don't have any secret knowledge to help you bear the burden on your own. I don't have any tips for success to help you reach deep within and make everything better. But I do have one thing to tell you, to look outside yourself, look externally, look to Christ who guarantees the victory. You see, where there is warfare, where there is a spiritual fight, where there is a burden, a burden in your life, a burden in your marriage, a burden in your family, a burden with finances, a burden with the degradation of culture all around us, where there is that fight, God will be victorious. You may stumble. You may look like a failure. You may be disappointed. feel like a failure. It really doesn't matter how you feel. You may look like you are messing everything up, but the text tells us that Christ always leads us in triumphal procession. See, even the weakest Christian in here, if he is a Christian indeed, if she is a Christian indeed, is a victorious Christian. It is through weakness that the victory of God is most glorifying to him. In chapter 12 in 2 Corinthians, Paul says, this is Christ speaking to Paul, he says, my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. So brothers and sisters, that is the only advice that I can give you, to go to Christ, to flee to him. And if Christ guarantees us the victory, then who are we to rob Christ of his glory? Go to him. Now, this leads me to my second point, that where there is victory, there is suffering, because Christ leads you in victory through suffering. And that second part of verse 14, here's what Paul says. and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. Notice he says through us, us, not through me. In other words, this isn't for some special sect of Christianity. This isn't for the Christian pastor. This isn't for the street evangelist or the missionary. This isn't for the seminary student who thinks he's going to change the world. This is for the stay-at-home mom, wives. This is for children. This is for the weak Christian. This is for the entire church. This is for us. Now, when the Roman general rode his chariot through the streets in his triumph, they would have incense. They would burn these, the incense. And then, remember I mentioned that they would have animals. and they would sacrifice those animals just before the captives that were led in this triumph were executed. And in the Lord's temple, in the Temple of Solomon, whenever the sweet aroma came from the burnt sacrifice, you knew animals were just slain for the sins of the people, right, typifying Christ and his death for us. Now if you were a captive in the Roman triumph, if you were led in chains in this march and you smelled those incense, then you knew what was about to happen. You knew they were about to kill you. And if you were near the temple and you smelled that aroma, you knew the animals were just slain by the priest. So the fragrance of the knowledge of Christ is often spread through the affliction of the church. martyrdom, death. Now, you may not face death. You may not even face imprisonment. We are quite blessed in where we live. But if you are a Christian, I guarantee you, you will suffer for your faith. Paul tells us about his suffering. In chapter 11, he says, are they servants of Christ? I am a better one. I am talking like a madman. With far greater labors, far more imprisonments with countless beatings and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the 40 lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. A night and a day I was adrift at sea on frequent journeys in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, Danger at sea, danger from false brothers, in toil and hardship through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And apart from other things, apart from other things, what more could you say, Paul? There is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. See, the Corinthians thought that a true Christian, especially an apostle, should never suffer like Paul did, never. That was almost blasphemous to them. An apostle like Paul, a Christian like him should be blessed. He should have money, he should have fame, he should have power, all the credentials. Suffering to them was an indication that Paul was cursed. that he was not blessed by God. See, they looked on the outside. They looked on the appearance of a man. They wanted to see external strength, worldly wisdom, great oratory skills. They wanted to see visible ministry success, blessings. Now, here comes Paul, and he says this in Philippians 129, for it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ, you should not only believe in him, but also suffer for his sake. You see, victory and suffering flow to us because we are united to Jesus Christ. And didn't Jesus suffer? But was he not also victorious? The same man that suffered on the cross, even to the point of death, we can turn around and say in scripture that every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that he is Lord, but he suffered. And visibly, it looked like he failed, like he died like a criminal, right? And so ultimately, the victory of Christ isn't always visible in our lives. You may look like you're being defeated constantly in your life. The church collectively may feel like we are losing the battle. But the recognition of God's victory isn't a matter of perceiving visible success. It's not a matter of looking with the naked eye at the blessings of God. See, though our momentary suffering is occurring, it is also spreading the knowledge of God himself everywhere. It is the scent of Christ that proclaims victory, not the sight, the scent of Christ. So don't think that visible appearances are the only thing that matters. We need to stop being so concerned with what the naked eye sees. This is why Paul is not afraid to confess weakness. He's not worried about the external appearance. He knows where his true victory lies. He knows the scent of Christ is upon him. My wife and I, we live in an apartment. And in that apartment, it's kind of in an L shape. So we live here, and then our neighbors, kind of their door is like right here. And I've never met them, but whatever she's cooking in that laboratory, I mean, the scent permeates the air around my front door. And I've never seen her, but I know she's there whenever I smell that food. It's a rather unusual scent, by the way. But my point is that scents, a scent, an aroma, a fragrance, it's quite important. So I'm not too concerned that the church is losing cultural influence. I don't lose my mind if liberal pseudo-Christianity is outpacing the growth of true biblical Christianity. I'm not worried about people bad-mouthing our church or our seminary. I know that as long as the gospel of Christ is proclaimed by this church, and as long as we live the Christian life in unity as a body, the scent of Christ is upon us, the aroma of Christ is upon us, no matter what things look like, and we are spreading the knowledge of him everywhere. Now, I haven't even discussed what the aroma does to those who hear it. That's verse 16. I haven't even discussed that. It says, to one a fragrance from death to death, and to the other a fragrance from life to life. I don't have enough time to go there, so we're not going to talk about it. That's for my sermon you're going to hear six months from now. But it's really not important because the point is that suffering is appointed for all of us, but God is leading you in victory through suffering. Ultimately, and I'll conclude with this, Reread of the fruit of God's victory through Paul in 2 Corinthians chapter seven, beginning at verse five. Paul says, for even when we came into Macedonia, our bodies had no rest, but we were afflicted at every turn, fighting without and fear within, suffering. Now verse six, but God who comforts the downcast comforted us by the coming of Titus, and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted by you, as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced still the more. Victory. Paul, a man afflicted almost to death, was comforted by the grace of God through his suffering. His suffering was not meaningless. but God was leading him in triumphal procession through his suffering. This, brothers and sisters, is Christian triumphalism. This is guaranteed victory, not because of something that we do, but what God does for us in Christ. Let's pray. Dear Heavenly Father, Lord, we are weak and we are frail and we are needy people, Lord. But God, this doesn't limit you at all, because you are so powerful, so great, Lord, that you accomplish victory even through weak people like us. And God, I want to ask that you help us to rest in you, to find comfort in your son, Jesus Christ, and to understand that our suffering is not meaningless, but you are leading us in triumphal procession, always, Lord. In Jesus' name, I pray.