2nd Corinthians at 11. I feel
very urgent about both the Bible study and the message today. Both of them are going to come
from this chapter and what Paul is saying right here could be
the thing that I want to stress the most throughout my time as
pastor here. However long the Lord would have
me to be the pastor here. Verse two says, for I am jealous
over you with godly jealousy. For I have espoused you to one
husband that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. Now, Paul said I three times
in that verse and God's true called preachers don't really
like to say I. He said, I'm jealous over you. He said, I've espoused you to
one husband that I may present you. Paul knew that he did not
espouse anybody to anything. He knew that. You know, men talk
about going out and winning souls. Paul knew that he did not form
a covenant between anybody. He didn't form the covenant between
God and his people. He knew that he was not going
to present them at the marriage supper of the Lamb. Jude 24 says,
Christ is going to present them faultless before the presence
of His glory. Paul knew that. That's why he
said in verse 1, Would to God you could bear with me a little
in my folly. And indeed, bear with me. Back in chapter 5, he said, we
are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by
us. That's what he said. Paul knew,
I'm not doing any of this. But he said, I am speaking on
God's behalf. An ambassador for Christ. The Corinthians, the believers
that he was talking to, and it happened in many places. They
were being influenced by lying. It says in verse 15, he called
them ministers of Satan. Lying preachers. They were being
turned away from the gospel. turned to doctrines that were
so close to the gospel, if it were possible, even the very
elect could be deceived. And I want to warn us of the
danger of something that's so, so, so, so close. The closer
it gets, the more dangerous it becomes. That message that is so obviously
not in agreement with God's Word, there's no real danger in that.
God's people see it. But that message that's so close
if it were possible and thank God and Paul knew that too. He's
preaching to God's people and he knows God's going to keep
you. But the message they were hearing was close to the gospel
but it was not the gospel. Turn over just a couple of pages
to Galatians 1 verse 6. He said, I marvel that you are
so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of
Christ unto another gospel. That's a fear of any believer. Oh Lord, don't remove me from
what you've shown to me and revealed to me. Verse 7, which is not
another, but there be some that trouble you and would pervert
the gospel of Christ. But though we or an angel from
heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which we've
preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before,
so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto
you than that you have received, let him be accursed. For do I
now persuade men or God? Or do I seek to please men? For
if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.
But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached
of me is not after man, for I neither received it of man, neither was
I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. These brethren
heard this true gospel from him, and they loved it, and they fell
in love with Christ. They really fell in love with
Christ. And now for Paul to see them turned away from that gospel. turned away from him, it's breaking
his heart. It's just breaking his heart.
And back in the text, in 2 Corinthians 11, he said, bear with me, bear
with me as I stress to you my love and concern for you, as
I stress to you what the true gospel really is. as I stress
my motive for preaching it to you. He said in verse 2, for
I am jealous over you. Jealous means a feeling within
a person which demands exclusive loyalty and resents a rival or
competitor from, for the affections or attention. It demands exclusive
loyalty and it resents a rival or competitor for the affections
or attention. Paul said, I have that feeling
over you. My heart's desire is your exclusive loyalty. And he said, I resent any rival
or competitor that tries to steal your affection or attention. But he said, here's the kicker. That jealous desire over you
is not toward myself. My desire for your loyalty and
your affection and your attention is not toward me. He said, I'm
jealous over you with godly jealousy. Verse 2, I'm jealous over you
with godly jealousy. I'm burning up inside. Jealousy is eating me up. over your loyalty and your attention
and your affection toward Christ. It's just killing me. He said
in verse 2, For I have espoused you to one husband, that I may
present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. That is the burning
desire of every God-called messenger of Christ. And it's real. I'm telling you it's real. It
is so real. It's all I can tell you. It's so real. It's like nothing
I've ever experienced. I did not experience it before
I was called to pastor. I enjoyed preaching. I enjoyed
my Lord. I enjoyed the glory of Christ.
I enjoyed all those things. But this is so real. It is so real. It is so all consuming,
all controlling, all burning, all jealousy you ever feel like
a madman because of jealousy my heart's desire is that you
might be consumed with Christ I mean consumed with Christ forget
about me I would I would love it if everybody would ask you
guys who's the pastor down there let's see what is his name forget
about me Forget about me. Let me be no hindrance between
you and Christ. Let none of my faults, let none
of my weaknesses, let none of my everything wrong with me,
let none of that come between you and Christ. Forget about
me. Forget about me. If you love me with all your
heart, forget about me. If I'm getting on your nerves,
forget about me. Forget about me. Who am I? Nobody. Nobody. I just want to
literally shove you to Christ. I mean that. Turn with me to
John chapter 3. John chapter 3 verse 26. And they came unto John and said
unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom
thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men
come to him. The one, the Christ, the one
you said was a lamb of God, the one you bore witness of, everybody's
coming to him. You baptized him. And now they're
not coming to you, they're all running to him. Verse 27, John
answered and said, a man can receive nothing except it be
given him from heaven. You yourselves bear me witness
that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him. He that hath the bride is the
bridegroom. But the friend of the bridegroom,
which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of
the bridegroom's voice. This my joy therefore is fulfilled. If sinners are running to him
and hearing him and rejoicing in him, I've received the desires
of my heart. If that's what's happening, I
have received the reward for my labor. That's all I want.
That's what he's telling them. That's all I want. That's my
goal. Verse 30. He must increase, but I must
decrease. He that cometh from above is
above all. He that is of the earth is earthy.
That's me. I'm earthy. And speaketh of the
earth. He that cometh from heaven is
above all. And what he hath seen and heard,
that he hath testified. He's telling us the things of
God. No man receiveth his testimony. He that hath received his testimony
hath set to his seal that God is true. For he whom God hath
sent speaketh the words of God. For God giveth not the Spirit
by measure unto him. The Father loveth the Son, and
hath given all things into his hand. He that believeth on the
Son hath everlasting life, and he that believeth not the Son
shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him. Whoever
believes on him with the whole heart, the whole mind, the whole
soul has life. Whoever's affections though,
whoever's attention is turned away from him, to anyone or anything
else, shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him."
Paul said, this is why I'm so jealous over you. So jealous. This is why I so adamantly stress
the things that pertain to him. Him. So adamantly push you towards
him. Press toward the mark. It's because I just want you
to be with him. I want you to be with Him. I want you to be
married to Him. Go back with me to 2 Corinthians
11. The end of verse 2 says, I have
espoused you to one husband. that I may present you as a chaste
virgin." Chaste means sacred, pure, immaculate, clean, innocent. Virgin. No other man. Him alone. Paul said, I just
want you to be set apart for Him alone. If you see, there's a reference
right there, as a chaste virgin to Christ, there's a reference
to Ephesians 5. Turn with me over there to Ephesians 5. Ephesians 5 verse 32, it says,
this is a great mystery. But I speak concerning Christ
and the church. Everything that he has said right
here, we can apply this to our physical lives. We would be so
wise, we would be so wise, if we would apply this to our physical
marriages. We would be so wise. He's speaking
directly to husbands and wives. But he said right there in verse
32, everything I'm saying right here is concerning Christ and
his bride. Christ and the church. And what
he's telling me is I'm describing to you who you are espoused to. describing to you the one that
has graciously, lovingly betrothed you to him. How he's dealt with
you, how he's treated you. This is your husband. We'll start
right here, verse 22. Wives, submit yourselves unto
your own husbands as unto the Lord. This is beautiful. This is beautiful. The word submit
Everybody when they hear that word submit, the word submit
is in this book 16 times. Submit 12 times. Submitted 3 times. Submitting 1 time. Submitting is in verse 21. 16 times total. Servants are told
to submit to their masters. David said, my enemies are going
to submit to me. He said, you're my God, the battle
is yours. I know my servants are gonna
submit, my enemies are gonna submit. We're told to submit
to each other. That's what it says in verse
21. We're told especially to submit
to those that administer the word of the Lord, which means
we submit to God's word. The apostle Peter told us to
submit to every ordinance of man, whatever the law of this
land says, whatever laws these wicked men have come up with,
whatever it says, do it. If it says you have to do this,
do it. How do we respond to the law
of the land? Do it. If it says this is illegal against
the law, don't do it, don't do it. Don't do it. We are to be a submissive people. James said, submit to God. Right here, Paul tells us to
submit to Christ. He said, everything I'm saying
right here is about Christ and His church. He said, submit to
Christ. But not one time is it recorded in this word that the
Lord Jesus Christ looked at His bride right in the eyes and said,
You'd better submit to me. Not one time. It's not His way. It's not His way. Now, in my
ignorance, in my absolute... Everybody knows
where I'm about to go, don't you? In my absolute ignorance. I'm so ashamed of this. In my absolute ignorance, at
the beginning of our marriage, I fell into the foolishness of
that. I thought that's what a man was. I'm a fool. I was an absolute
fool. I was an ignorant fool. But God
helped me. He started revealing to me through
this Word, and I still want to see more of it and more of it.
He said, this is not how I treat my bride. And this is not how
men who follow me treat their brides. I know that all of you
men are wiser than I am. I know you're not eating up with
pride like I am. I know you don't have problems
with it like I do. But I'm convicted, it both convicts
me and it causes me to really rejoice to know that our Lord
Jesus Christ has never one time looked his dear precious bride
in the eyes and gritted his teeth at her and said, you better submit
to me. Do his people submit to him?
You better believe it. You had better believe it, but
that's not the way He brings them to submission. Verse 23 says, For the husband
is the head of the wife. God has made that to be so. The
husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of
the church. And He is the Savior of the body.
Therefore, as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives
be to their own husbands in everything." God said, that's how I've ordained
it to be. Well, if I don't tell her to
submit, how am I going to get her to do it? Well, here's what God says to
do, verse 25. Husbands, love her. Love her. Love her. That sounds so nice to hear,
doesn't it, ladies? I tell you this, that is nice
for a sinner to hear from the one that sinner has been espoused
to. He said, love her into it. That is what Christ did for us. The love of Christ constrained
us. Verse 25 says, Husbands, love
your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself
for it. That he might sanctify it and
cleanse it with the washing of water by the word. That he might
present it to himself, a glorious church. Not having spot or wrinkle
or any such thing. but that it should be holy and
without blemish. So ought men to love their wives
as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loves
himself. That's selfish. That's real selfishness. That's a good selfishness right
there. That's a good jealousy. For no man ever yet hated his
own flesh. but nourisheth and cherisheth
it even as the Lord, the church. That's the way the husband has
treated his bride who he espoused to himself. The only way that
Christ has ever looked at his bride is in love and affection. Paul said, let me push you toward
the one you're espoused to. Let me tell you about him. Even
though his bride was so naturally rebellious against him, he loved
her. Honored her. Gave her his all. Gave her everything. He gave
her everything. He gave her his name. Jeremiah
23 says his name is called the Lord our righteousness. This
will never stop being amazing to me. Jeremiah 33 says her name
shall be called the Lord our righteousness. That's holy. That
is holy. He literally gave her His name.
He gave her His life. He gave her His image. Gave her
His inheritance, joint heir. He seated her with Him on His
throne. What right does she have to sit
there? He said, you're going to reign
with me. You're going to rule over angels.
He made her to be just like Him. One flesh. One flesh. He said, as I am, so are you. Who wouldn't want to submit to
that? Who would not want to submit to that? This is the one we have
been espoused to. What a husband. What a husband. I press you to Him. I press you
to Him. He deserves, He's worthy of all
of our attention. He deserves and He's worthy of
all of our affection. And we sincerely, and I mean
this, we sincerely, however much longer the Lord has given us,
it's not much longer. It's not much longer. We sincerely
need to guard against anything or anyone stealing that attention
and stealing that affection away from Him. I pray the Lord will
make it so, and I pray this too, for the rest of my days as pastor
here, however many more days the Lord would have me to be
the pastor here, bear with me. Bear with me in my folly, and
indeed, bear with me. I'm jealous over you with godly
jealousy, and in all of my error, and my ignorance, all of my weaknesses, all of
my immaturities, everything that's wrong about me. I believe the
Lord has given me a desire that you might be espoused to one
husband. And I pray the Lord will help
me to just press you to him. Chaste Virgin of Christ, bear
with me. All right, you're dismissed.