Don’t Give Up Ministering the Gospel (Part 2)
Click here for part 1 of this series.
I’m sure you have observed growing opposition to the Christian gospel and Christian ethics—not only in the culture around you but also within the self-proclaimed evangelical church. No doubt, troubles are hitting closer and closer to home: in our own local churches, families, or communities. There’s no escape into isolation from the growing persecution that we all know is going to impact us, our children, and grandchildren in the coming years. Concern is appropriate; seeking to preserve the freedom to live in peace as we try to live out our Christianity can be laudable.
Nevertheless, the most important work we have that will indeed make the greatest impact is the ministry of the gospel. In the face of growing persecution, we can be growing weary to the point of fainting. How can we not lose heart; how can we not give up? Is your mind focused on what’s most ultimate and real? Such a perspective does not remove us to an other-worldly pious isolation from reality. It empowers us to the boldness we need for the active work of the the gospel cause in this life. The boldness and the perseverance for speaking the gospel is rooted in a steadfast belief that it is true (2 Cor. 4:13)! It is life-giving—the resurrection power of Christ converts the souls and gives us an eternal hope (2 Cor 4:10–12, 14–15; 5:1–10). And thus we focus on winning souls to the life-giving gospel (2 Cor. 5:11, 18–20).
If you are to faint not in this ministry, you must have this perspective of your faith:
“For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2 Cor 4:16–18)
Proposition: An eternal perspective motivates ministry perseverance in the face of perpetual persecution.
Paul provides three reasons not to give up ministering in the face of persecution:
- Inner spiritual renewal is greater than outer physical deterioration.
- The eternal weight of glory surpasses our light, momentary affliction.
- The unseen realities are eternal while our seen experiences are temporary.
Our outer physical deterioration is a reality that cannot be denied (2 Cor. 4:16). Paul concedes: “But though.” “The outer man is perishing.” It is affected. And it is affected to the point of perishing! Paul is not piously disconnected from reality. You may be physically assaulted or mentally exhausted. Your outer self may indeed waste away due to opposition designed to wear you down—tempting you to muddy the truth or appease the godless in other ways instead of taking a clear and bold stand like the Apostles often did in the face of persecution. When this opposition occurs day by day, we can feel the perishing of our frail bodies, which are nothing more than jars of clay (2 Cor 4:7). Should this reality cause us to faint?
We need not faint, brethren! Our inner spiritual renewal more than counter-balances the outer physical deterioration: “Yet, the inward man is renewed day by day.” Paul is not following the Greek idea that the material is bad and the immaterial is good; he is making a contrast of priority. His viewpoint is that his creaturely mortality is less significant than his becoming a new creation in Christ (2 Cor 5:17), conformed into the image of Christ (Rom 8:29; Col 3:10). The effects of the Spirit’s work in us are just as real as the physical decay; He renews our faith to sustain the inner self. Renewal is the opposite of decay. The more Paul ministered even if he suffered for it, the more God’s Spirit renewed Him—sustained and equipped Him to keep on being motivated to persevere. The renewal is a continual work of God that we need day by day—just enough as we need it. We don’t give up ministering because of the Spirit’s work to renew us from within is greater than the destructive effects of persecution on our bodies.
In closing, let me encourage you to meditate on two passages: Ephesians 3:14–21 and Isaiah 40:28–31. In the first passage, Paul prays triumphantly that believers would be strengthened by the Spirit. In the second, Isaiah points to our God who does not faint and who empowers us to not grow weary.
In the next post we’ll continue unpacking Paul’s reasons for why an eternal perspective motivates ministry perseverance in the face of perpetual persecution.
Kevin Collins has served as a junior high youth leader in Michigan, a missionary in Singapore, a Christian School teacher in Utah, and a Bible writer for the BJU Press. He currently works for American Church Group of South Carolina.
Image by Patrick Saliceti from Pixabay