WELCOME
PRAYER
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SILENCE
2nd Corinthians 3.7-16
September 30th 2018
Meat
Okay, so last week we left off where Paul clearly stated a number of things.
He made it clear that letters written on stone or with ink were inferior to God’s writing on the Hearts of flesh.
He made it clear that the letter kills but the Spirit, which writes the laws on human hearts, gives life.
And he made an admission that is so radical from the way Christians have perceived things in the faith for nearly 2000 years – he said in verse six:
2nd Corinthians 3:6 Who (speaking of God) also hath made us (speaking of the Apostles) able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
And from this we ascertained that we have been living under a historical misnomer for nearly 2000 years –
What we call the New Testament – this gathering of books – is NOT the NEW TESTAMENT at all!
The new testament, given by the apostles who were ministers of it, is NOT of the letter but is OF THE SPIRIT BECAUSE the LETTER KILLS but the SPIRIT GIVES LIFE!
For this reason, I will not refer to what has been called the New Testament the New Testament any more – to me it is the Apostolic Record.
Who was the one who called this collection of books the New Testament in the first place.
His name was Tertullian, a man who lived in the Second Century. He is the first one to reference the collection of writings as the New Testament, and he derived this title from the Latin Novuem Testamentum, and was apparently inspired with this title from the contents of Jeremiah 31:31-34 where God said:
31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
Unfortunately, Christians have allowed Tertullian’s application of the term New Testament to refer to a book when in reality it speaks of GOD writing His laws upon the hearts of individuals.
These things confirm to me what I have believed from way back:
That the faith is subjective lived and NOT objectively directed, and that the Spirit is primary and preferential while the Written Word is secondary and referential.
So lets read on with what Paul wrote here in 2nd Corinthians 3 beginning at verse 7.
7 But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:
8 How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?
9 For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory.
10 For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth.
11 For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious.
12 Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech:
13 And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:
14 But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.
15 But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.
16 Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.
Okay, let’s go back to verse 7:
7 But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:
I think we can be certain that at verse 7 Paul is speaking of the Law of Moses when he says, “the ministration of death.”
We know this because of him saying that it was “written and engraven in stones.”
Remembering that the letter killeth, we can also assume that Paul was speaking of the letters of the Law contained in the Tanakh or Old Testament.
Some may argue that whenever Paul speaks of letters and letters killing that he is always speaking of the Old Testament.
I think that this is probably true and I think we can say this because Paul never intended his epistles to be considered the New Letters of the New Testament.
This was not in His mind when he wrote letters written with ink. His purpose in writing those was to give apostolic instruction to believers living then and there, knowing that the New Testament was that God would write His laws on the hearts and minds of people forevermore.
Furthermore, we have historical support for this stance as what came to be errantly called the New Testament and then came to serve as New Laws written in ink was
Not even remotely collected until 230 years after Christ,
That they were not agreed upon in terms of authorship or content for another 100 years.
That they were not readable by the masses for another 1200 years,
That they were not available for that same amount of time,
And then one they were being reproduced and were readable, and were generally agreed upon, the result of them in the Body of Christ has been disunity, denominationalism, hatred, and because the letter killeth, more death!
So certainly, Paul was speaking of the Old Covenant written on stone because it was never his intention to have his epistles added to a body of books that would serve as new letters of the law.
In the previous verses, Paul had referred incidentally to the institutions of Moses, and to the superiority of the gospel.
He had said that the former were “engraven on stones,” but the latter on the heart, (2nd Corinthians 3:3;) and that the letter of the former lead to death, but the latter to life, (2nd Corinthians 3:6.)
7 But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:
The word “ministration” here is dee-a-konia and it means properly, service or the office of serving in Divine things.
We know that it is typically applied to servers in the Apostolic Record.
But here Paul poignantly applies it to the Old Covenant where those who served in it – from the priests, to the prophets, and all who served it and served in it, were actually serving up death.
Interestingly, Paul, while admitting that it was “a ministration of death,” also admits that “it was glorious.”
How could it be both.
The Law written in stone was a ministry of death because wherever there is a law written in stone or ink, the results will be failure, rebellion, failure – some sort of missing of the mark. And when we miss the mark, the result is death.
The gloriousness of this is that God is proven and shown to be just. This is as important of a principle as His being merciful – for without Him being Just we could not be able to place our trust in Him completely.
Another way that Paul could be calling the ministration of Moses glorious was in the fact that the revelations of God in it – from appearing on Mount Sinai, to the cloud by day and pillar by night, and the heavenly destructions of those who broke the Law was awe inspiring.
So, the model of the Old Testament, under the law, illustrates the glory of His justice, Judgment and presence – which makes His mercy in the face of such judgments, justice and awe all the more wonderful!
Of course, the purpose of the apostle is to show that the ministry of the good news is more glorious than even the ministry of Moses and the Law and prophets.
So speaking directly to the material gloriousness of the Old Covenant Paul says:
7 But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:
It says in Exodus 34 that “when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses’ hand, that when he came down from the mount, that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone, while he talked with him. And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him.”
Paul adds to his description of the glory however, saying,
“Which glory was to be done away.”
I tend to think that he is admitting that the glory of the ministration of death was transitory – it did not last – it was never supposed to last.
I would suggest that all the elements of the glory of that ministration of death was temporary – the glory of His justice, His judgment, and the manifestations – all to cease and be replaced by something or things far more glorious.
Better news, as Hebrews says.
“A better covenant.”
Remember, Paul was writing post Jesus life, ministry, death and resurrection – and all that accompanied that time.
And he was writing at a time when all the former glories of that former age were going to go away.
Why? They had been plainly established in the former covenant. God’s justice and judgment was made plain, was it not?
Didn’t he take Uzzah for steadying the ark?
Didn’t he wipe out all forms of life that were tainted with evil?
Didn’t he take Moses, who have given 80 years serving him and refuse to allow him to enter the promise land?
Didn’t he take the lives of thousands because David counted the hosts of his army.
All through the Old Testament, the glory of God’s justice and judgment were radically observed – as were his manifestations to the Nation as a whole.
Awesome stuff. But something better, something that would balance His justice out with His mercy triumphal was coming around the mountain and would never go away.
So after admitting that the ministrations of death were in and of themselves glorious, Paul asks in verse 8
8 How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?
If the ministration of death, which is synonymous with the letters which kill was glorious, wouldn’t the ministration of the Spirit be glorious too.
Paul is arguing from the less to the greater. Several things to consider.
(1st of all) If the first ministration was one “of death,” then the better ministration (of the Spirit) would have been a “ministration of life.”
But Paul does not call it the ministration of life – he calls it the ministration of the Spirit – which is one and the same and is something he said in verse 6.
Of course the “Spirit” here is manifestly meant the Holy Spirit; which governs over the whole of the New Testament and operates on and in others.
So where in the ministration of death, there were external glories all over the place, in the ministration of the Spirit there is internal glories all over the place – renewed hearts and minds, the Light of God and Christ shining in the hearts of every renewed individual, and formerly dead souls coming to new life through spiritual regeneration.
Moses wrote on stone, in the ministration of the Spirit God writes on fleshy tables of the heart.
The Law makes all people sinners.
The spirit makes all people alive in Christ.
Laws written in stone and ink would, will and did pass away, but the laws written on human hearts will never pass away.
At verse 9 Paul reiterates a point we have already covered, saying:
9 For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory.
And then a bit of a complex verse in 10 – and why don’t we read 11 too, where Paul says
10 For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth.
11 For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious.
For even that which was made glorious.
The Law of Moses, written in stone, was glorious in a number of ways not yet mentioned. In Romans Paul calls these laws perfect.
See, it was glorious first in the way it which it was given;
Then it was glorious in the purity of the law itself;
and then it was glorious in how it caused the COI to worship God – even if it was simply ceremonial.
But note something here: Not Emmanuel, God with us, who too was
Glorious in how He was first given, born of a virgin on a night full of signs and wonders.
That He too, was glorious in purity and perfections, and that His sole purpose was to draw all people to worship God in spirit and truth.
Right?
So in this way, the Law written on stone, though glorious and perfect, was nothing compared to the living Law in Christ Jesus.
And we can say the exact same thing about those who continue to appeal to letters which kill as compared to those who live by the Spirit of God within them
Through the Law written on their heart!
So, in such a comparison, Paul says:
10 For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth.
In other words, by comparison to the Gospel of Christ, the Word made flesh, that which was made glorious among us (the Law) had no glory at all.
And then he says
11 For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious.
Which is self-explanatory. At verse 12 Paul continues and says:
12 Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech:
13 And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:
14 But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.
15 But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.
16 Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.
So back to verse 12
In verse 11 Paul was writing about the gloriousness of the Gospel in comparison to the Law.
And now he adds, in reference to this point:
12 Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech:
Let’s just touch on the biblical idea of hope for a minute.
Hope is comprised of a couple emotions – one is desire for an object, and the other is the expectation of obtaining it.
If there is no desire for a thing, or if the object is not pleasant and agreeable, there is no hope, though there may be expectation of it – like in being spanked by your Dad when he gets home from work.
And then if there is no expectation of it, but a strong desire, there cannot be any hope as in cases where a person desures fame and fortune but really has no expectation of it.
In other words, HOPE is made of both desire and expectation. Remove one of these components and hope does not exist.
Desire but no expectation is a guy shipwrecked on a deserted island who wants to be rescued but in no way whatsoever believes he will.
Expectation but no desire is a woman who is with a lover and expects her husband to discover her affair, but does not desire it to be discovered.
And so it is with our Hope in Christ and the Good News of God – for someone to possess hope – which is one of the three characteristics that wrap up 1st Corinthians 13 – they must desire the promises of the Good News and they must expect them to actually come to pass.
Remove one of the components and poof – hope is gone. Unfortunately, what replaces it is despondency, despair. Paul states that as a result of the hope of the Gospel they – the apostles – use Great Plainness of speech.
In other words, the hope that was in Paul caused him to express himself clearly, not enigmatically; and not in types and figures, as Moses did.
Everything about the gospel was clear and plain; and this led to both a confident expectation and assurance of heaven which created a desire in the hearer, thereby helping to promote hope.
By appealing to openness, simplicity, and freedom from the obscurity which arises from enigmatic and parabolic modes of speaking, Paul was able to increase the hope in those who heard him.
In the next verse he makes a comparison between the apostles teaching style and those from before, specifically Moses – which is why he said (verse 13):
13 And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:
So Paul mentions Moses here – but in what way. He says that they were “not as Moses which put a vail over his face (in other words, we the apostles have made no attempt to conceal anything with regard to the nature, design, and duration of the gospel.
Well how does this relate to Moses putting a vail over his face. Paul tells us, saying:
“that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished.”
Whoaaaaa Nellie! What? That’s what he said! And what does this mean that Moses vailed his face so that the COI could NOT stedfastly LOOK to the end of that which is abolished?
When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, his face was shining and Exodus 34:33 says,
“And till Moses had done speaking with them, he put a vail on his face.”
When Moses spoke to God the vail was removed but it was put on again when he delivered God’s commandments to the people.
Here’s the deal – Moses doesn’t tell us why this was.
Based on what he says in Exodus it seems he did this because of the exceeding brightness of his person or face and it was hard for the COI to look at him.
But it is here in 2nd Corinthians that Paul gives us another reason that he vailed his face – and these are his words:
“Moses vailed his face so that the COI could NOT stedfastly LOOK to the end of that which is abolished?”
So our question is what was “the end” that the COI could not look to” that was shining forth from Moses vailed face?
First, we know that the end Paul speaks about was the “end of that which is abolished.”
So what was abolished in Paul’s day that was connected to the COI in Moses day?
The Law. The Law was abolished.
So what is “the end of the Law that was abolished?”
Let’s let scripture tells us how to understand this. In Galatians 3:23-24 Paul says
23 But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.
24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Putting these together, I would suggest that at the end of the Law, once it was fulfilled, we see Christ.
That is what the Law was for – to bring the Nation of Israel to Christ its Messiah.
Had Moses not veiled His face the COI would have perhaps SEEN the countenance of God with us shining forth, and it would have been too soon.
Perhaps they would have worshipped Moses as the Messiah. Perhaps His glory would have been so overwhelming to their eyes they would not ever be the same, and their freewill in faith would have been marred, or tainted – thereby ruining where God wanted them to get on their own accord.
So Moses, having spoken with God face to face, as a man speaks with a friend, appears to have received His countenance in His face, and that countenance fully expressed the END OF THE LAW – which was Christ, which was consummate love – and it was too much for the COI to see and receive at that time.
The vail over Moses face, therefore, was emblematic of the very Law itself – which a veil separating the Holy of Holies from the rest of the world.
For Moses to take that vail away was to open wide the Holy of Holies, and allow all viewers to see inside to the very presence of God.
Way too early, way too much for them. According to His plans God had so much for them to do (or not do) to accomplish (and to not accomplish) as a means for Him to bring about salvation to the world.
And so Moses refused to allow them a clear view of it all as a whole bunch of history was to occur with God operating in and through them to accomplish His will in the world.
Don’t ever lose sight of the fact that God did certain things in and through the COI – causing, allowing, and keeping some things from their view – so as to bring about salvation to the world. This includes keeping them from the truth.
So building on this Paul now says at verse 14:
14 But their minds (the minds of the COI) were blinded: for until this day (the day in which Paul operated) remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.
The term translated blinded here better means “hardened” – to make hard like stone and/or to make dull or stupid.
It is a word applied to the heart, in Mark 6:52; 8:17; to people in Romans 11:7; and to the eyes in Job 17:7.
Paul refers here to the act that the understandings of the Jews were stupid, dull, and insensible, so that they did not see clearly the design and end of their own institution, laws, and rights.
Paul does NOT reveal the cause of this dullness here – he simply states the fact – a fact that is reiterated all through the Apostles Record as even here Paul says that this dullness was present:
“until this day remaineth the same veil untaken away.”
Now, I have a question for you.
When was the veil over Moses face, which would have revealed the end of the Law to them, removed?
When was the time when the Nation would realize and see the purpose of all that they did under the Law?
When would be the day when they would SEE the end of the Law?
The answer is easy – it would be in that day, the day of the Lord, in the Revelation of Jesus Christ! It would be when He appeared to them and in that day they would know, because they would see, with their own eyes, the end of the Law, which had served as their schoolmaster in ? ? ?
Bringing them to Christ.
Of course you know that I maintain ardently that that day has come to that Nation – and is long since past, and that today there is no difference between bond and free, male and female, Jew and Greek in the Lord.
Up until that time, in fact even in the day when Paul wrote this epistle, the great mass of the Jewish people did not understand the true sense of their own Scriptures. They could not discern its doctrines in regard to the Messiah as a vail was thrown over the Old Testament when they read it, as there was over the face of Moses, so that the glory of their own Scriptures revealing the END of the Law was concealed from their view.
Verse 14 is the ONLY time the Scriptures of the Jews are called the “Old Testament,” (or covenant) in the entire Bible.
It was, of course, not a name a Jew would used – that word is the Tanakh.
Here Paul uses the term to distinguish between the covenant God made with the Nation of Israel (which was quickly passing away with that Age) and the new testament, which he used back in verse six, referring to the age when God would write His laws on the minds and hearts of those who are His.
Now, in this age, the obscurity of the former Testament is removed and any who seek God in spirit and truth can be recipients of His grace. But in Paul’s age, the vail remained as He says in verse 15:
15 But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.
It is comical for us to read what Paul says here in verse 15 and to cite it presently as fact – even if it seems that the people we call Jews continue to be blind.
That is all an assumption based both on who we call the COI and the level of their blindness relative to other people groups (like many middle east people) who also, as a group, continue to appear dull to the Good news.
At verse 16 Paul says:
16 Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.
In other words, Paul was saying that this condition would not always be the case. When would it change? He tells us, saying:
Nevertheless, when it (the COI in his day) shall turn to the Lord then the vail shall be taken away.
So the word “it” here refers undoubtedly to “Israel” and the sense is, that their blindness is not always to remain and there was coming a period or time when they shall turn to God, shall understand his promises, and become acquainted with the true nature of their own religion.
I would strongly suggest that this turning occurred during the horrific persecution they endured as a people prior to 70 AD, when God was calling all, before the wrapping up of that Age, to receive His Son and live, and all of this culminated in His coming to them with reward and judgement.
Romans chapter 11 describes this period or time in detail.
Nevertheless, the vale was taken away and the end of the law was revealed – Christ Jesus – at His coming.
Alright then. Let’s stop here.
Q and A
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