WEEK SEVEN
MADISON AVENUE CHRISTIANITY
2 Cor. 4:1-6
Living in the Old Covenant and having our sufficiency in ourselves and not in Christ (2 Cor. 3:5) is like driving around town in an old jalopy. It is constantly breaking down and is in constant need of repair. We go from day to day trying to keep it running. Another problem we face with our old jalopy, “our flesh”, is that we are very prone to ad campaigns, “Madison Avenue”, which emphasizes the outward appearance NOT what makes it run. So, we are continually drawn to the new paint job, stereo or fancy rims, all the while neglecting the engine.
I believe we do this because it makes us feel better about what we are driving (our flesh). Of course, the problem with this approach to Christianity is that it doesn’t deal with our problem, which is living life in our own strength. It only temporarily allows us to forget we have a problem. The truth is that life in our own strength doesn’t run well and our pride keeps us from admitting that all our effort in making ourselves “feel” better has not helped how our life is running.
So all our emphasis thus far with our flesh (our jalopy) is success oriented. We just want to feel better about ourselves regardless of how we achieve it. We all get caught up in outward appearances and then find ourselves frustrated when we don’t “feel” fulfilled after we have achieved the goal, we fought so hard for.
In 2 Cor. 4:2 we read, “But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking craftiness not handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.” Paul uses the first person to illustrate that at one time he did this. How unfortunate it is that most of us have fallen into this trap – the desire to be seen and noticed as being spiritual rather than seeing ourselves in the “…sight of God.”
Whenever we start seeing ourselves on the basis of what we are doing rather than what He has done, we become drivers of old jalopies. Often times, those that are pastor-teachers, who are prone to this type of Christianity, will produce congregations who will act the same way.
Let’s now look specifically at some of their techniques:
- “…hidden things of shame…” This is any course of conduct in which we conceal things for fear of being disgraced. The emphasis is upon “hidden” rather than “things of shame”. It was secrecy and concealment vs. openness and transparency that Paul says he renounced. You remember in 2 Cor. 3:16-18, Paul spoke of the liberty he had in Christ to be who he was and not anybody else. Paul had renounced the lack of openness he once had. His goal at one time was to be known, to be a man among men. He even adopted secret methods to accomplish this goal even though they were wrong. He didn’t care as long as they accomplished his desired effect.
- “…not walking in craftiness…” This again describes a person who can, and will, do anything to accomplish his ends. This word “craftiness” is used of the Pharisees and of Satan. It describes someone who is shrewd and willing to employ, without any hesitation, any means necessary to accomplish their purpose.
- “…nor handling the word of God deceitfully…” The word used here, “deceitfully”, not only means to deceive but to do so by falsifying.
All three of these areas are being used today. People making heavy-handed demands or using psychological ploys by playing upon people’s emotions in order to get them to respond the way they want them to. Self-advertisement is a popular method, such as “Dynamic, relevant Bible teaching, exciting, inspirational Holy Spirit filled services.”
Notice that all the adjectives are on the church or minister, not upon Jesus. The way we gauge success in the church today is not based on whether Jesus is the center of worship, teaching, and fellowship, but upon church attendance. How many “showed up” is how the world bases success. This is what Paul calls, in 2 Cor 4:5, “…preaching …ourselves …instead of …Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake.” The result of this type of preaching is that the church will only be stimulated by “external” or “outward” things rather than just by the WORD of God alone.
Psalm 32:8-9 tells us the desire of God is for intimacy “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye. Do not be like the horse or like the mule, which have no understanding, which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, else they will not come near you.” If the people are only stimulated by outward surroundings like, the building, choir or a dynamic pastor, then they are easily overwhelmed when life is not perfect. They, then, tend to look for a new fix that will give them a reason to continue. In this kind of church, the pastor ends up being a cheerleader or superstar that, if something happened to him, they could not exist. The pastor will in turn, whip up the congregation with HIS style of preaching, teaching on those things that are sure to bring about that sought-after emotional response. Some will even tamper with the Word of God to get the desired results. What is sad is that this is what a lot of people in the world see as Christianity and then rejects it on that basis, never seeing the true heart of God as Jesus manifested it.
Jesus is the most captivating person ever! Paul goes on to say, in 2 Cor. 4:6-7, “For it is God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone 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 excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.” In other words, we must not do anything that would take away from Him being the main thing.
In summation, Paul did everything transparently (verse 2) in the sight of God. Paul recognized that the “results” were God’s problem (verse 3) and not his own. As long as he had been transparent, rightly dividing the word of truth and still some were perishing, he understood that this was the work of the god of this age (verse 4). This was why Paul’s goal was NOT to preach himself (verse 5), but Jesus Christ the Lord. Paul also understood his role in this was to be the servant for the sake of Jesus and not for himself.
This is to be what church leadership ought to strive to be like. Our ministry is to be in the sight of God. And Jesus as the center of our ministry does not need to be made more attractive. We won’t always be an instant numeric success, but as He increases and we decrease, fruit will be produced. Success depends upon “who” I am in Christ rather than what “external indicators” say.
SPIRITUAL WARFARE – PART 1
“In Over My Head”
Ephesians 6:10-13, “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
The first thing to note in the passage in Ephesians is how extremely important it is to see and approach reality as it really is. There exists, according to this passage, an invisible army of wicked spiritual opposition against which we fight. And it is very important that we realize this truth, or else we will view reality in a materialistic way, only seeing or perceiving that which our five senses are able to see and perceive.
In 2 Kings 6:8-18, we see the importance of seeing beyond the visible to the invisible. If you remember the story, you’ll recall that the prophet Elisha had gotten himself in trouble with the king of Syria for continually telling the king of Israel where the Syrians would be attacking, so that the king of Israel was able to prepare and avoid defeat. Because of this, the king of Syria sent a very large army to capture Elisha in the city of Dothan, where he was staying. So early the next morning, Elisha and his servant woke up and found the city surrounded by the Syrian’s chariots and horses. 2 Kings 6:15-17, “So Elisha’s servant said to Elisha, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” And Elisha prayed and said, “Lord I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”
Elisha saw all along what his servant hadn’t seen – a whole other realm of existence; a spiritual one in which was Elisha’s deliverance. And so if we fail to perceive life on this level, we’ll be duped into thinking that the visible is all that there is. The greatest possible deception is that there is no deception at all.
Secondly, notice that this passage in Ephesians characterizes life in a certain way. Notice some of the language used – “be strong”, “might”, “armor of God”, “able to stand”, “wrestling”, “withstanding”, etc. Life is summed up with one basic word; it is a “struggle” or “battle”.
Now we’d love to think that life is always a bowl of cherries. A kind of a “Life of Riley” existence, meant to be always enjoyed, in which we can relax and work when we choose. This will be basically true for us one day, perhaps, but not in this life. And there are things which remind us of this from time to time – someone is in the hospital, the vacation ends, Monday comes, and your alarm clock goes off at 6:00am – now that’s a reminder!!
But thank God life isn’t always seen as a struggle for us. Ephesians 6:13 mentions “withstand in the evil day”. The “evil day” may be a small or a large period of time – five minutes or five months; but not every moment is called an evil day. But when times like this appear, we can recognize them for what they are – times of worry over our children’s safety, waking up with a mysterious depression or lethargy, sudden fear of losing your job, intense concern over the world economy, a feeling that God has deserted you. These are all examples of “evil days” and some of the struggles we all will face.
Now we will note a third important thing about these struggles. Ephesians 6:12, “…we wrestle not against flesh and blood.” The real wrestling we’re involved in as Christians isn’t with human beings. It’s not a human problem, not man vs. man. It may be a struggle within man, but not between man. All we need to do is to ask a simple question to illustrate what this means — What do we perceive that gives us the most difficulty in life? From where does our struggle come? From other human beings? The IRS? My ancestry? My temperament? My brothers in my church? My co-workers? My employer? My children? My wife? My in-laws? The answer is none of these according to Ephesians 6:12. These are not our enemies. Our enemies are wicked evil forces which operate in conjunction with humanity (human flesh). But they are not human beings themselves. And unless we understand this, we will be suspicious of others, self-protective, full of spoken or unspoken accusations, bitterness, unforgiveness, and so on. If we don’t learn to stand with each other, with common dependence upon the Holy Spirit, against the real enemy, we’ll be fighting each other or our spouses or whomever, instead of fighting Satan and his hosts.
Only Christians have the capacity to understand spiritual warfare (1Cor. 2:14). And only Christians can participate as victors. Everyone else is a victim. But so often, in the body of Christ, teaching on spiritual warfare has focused on occultism, Satanism, demon possession, and these “exciting aspects of spiritual warfare”, to the neglect of the day to day battle we face as Christians – the enemy working against the flesh and seeking to exercise indirect control through it. Hostilities, fears, uselessness, anxieties, depression; these are the areas in which we need to learn “to stand”. And only by receiving practical help in these areas can we emerge victorious.
So, who are these forces aligned against us? According to passages like Isaiah 14:12-21 and Ezekiel 28:11-19, Satan is a fallen angel who rebelled against God and was cast out of heaven. When he fell, he took one third of the angels with him (Luke 10:18, Rev. 12:4). And they are now organized, in a well-directed attack against God and His people, full of evil purposes. Jesus identified the general character of these forces in John 8:44, “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it”. Jesus called the devil a liar and a murderer. He desires to malign God and cause the Christian to act independently of God. He desires to produce death. Not only physical death, but also death of the issues of our spirit like boredom, restlessness, despair, frustration, lack of purpose, and false guilt. Satan does this through lies and deceit. His power is aimed at destroying all that God has done. It’s ALWAYS totally negative and destructive, never positive, or constructive. He can never build up but can only tear down. And thus, with the Christian, the enemy seeks to negate the glorious position – life and love, which we have all received in Jesus Christ.
Now notice Ephesians 6:11, where Paul mentions the “wiles” of the devil. These wiles speak of his cunning methods, his trickery. Other words used to describe his activity include devices (2 Cor. 2:11) and snares (1 Tim. 3:7); he beguiles (2 Cor. 11:3); resists (Zech. 3:1); deceives (Rev. 12:9); accuses (Rev. 12:10); hinders (1 Thes. 2:18); buffets (2Cor. 12:7); tempts (1 Thes. 3:5); persecutes (Rev. 12:13); blasphemes (Rev. 13:5-6); blinds (2 Cor. 4:4); and devours (1 Peter 5:8). But it is of great encouragement to us to realize that with the whole armor of God we will be able to stand against his wiles. Paul speaks also of “…not being ignorant of his devices” (2 Cor. 2:11). And James even tells us that submitting to God and resisting the devil, he will flee from us (James 4:7). We can understand how he operates and even learn to anticipate areas of attack. This is fundamental to every soldier in warfare. And we can learn the process of victory.
Ephesians 6:10 encapsulates the solution for us, “Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of “His might”.” Our ability, cunning, determination, resources, knowledge, or wisdom are of no avail in this warfare. We must acknowledge that we’re in over our heads. And it is helpful to know that this has always been the way God intended it to be. He never intended that our strength should suffice (the strength of the flesh). Hebrews 11:32-34 speaks of men like Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jepthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, men who “…subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouth of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword and out of weakness were made strong.” There we have it. God’s strength working in conjunction with our weakness equals victory.
2 Cor. 10:3-5 says it this way, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments (false arguments) and every high thing (proud obstacles) that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” Our spiritual weapons are not Old Covenant or fleshly weapons, means or methods, but are mighty IN God.
And in our warfare, we are “casting down arguments”. These are arguments which are aimed at us and are contrary to our faith, hence, false arguments. What are some false arguments? No one really loves me – if I get transparent, I’ll get rejected – what the Bible says is not relevant to “my situation” – I can’t rely on anyone but myself – I deserve better than I’m getting – I’d better build up financial reserves to be secure – God isn’t involved in this area of my life.
Also, in our warfare we are casting down “every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God.” These “high things” are elevated barriers or proud obstacles which come against our knowledge of God. What are some proud obstacles? Independence without any submission – looking out for number one – trusting only “my” view or opinion – my church, town, state, denomination, or liturgy is the best – insisting on one’s “rights” rather than laying them down – the feeling that if they’d have only listened, they’d really have it together. Proud obstacles come from the arrogance of self-centeredness. And as we cling to them rather than cast them down, we’re only “knowing” about God, not really experiencing the true knowledge of God.
What do we do about these things? 2 Cor. 10:5 tells us, “…bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.”
We’ve finally identified the battleground. It’s in the mind, in the realm of our thought lives. That’s where the attack is aimed. Our thoughts will either take us captive or we’ll take them captive. The mental onslaughts which come against us will whip us or we’ll whip them in Christ.
When we become aware of the attack against us, we then make a choice to rely on the power of Christ to defeat that thought. We know where it comes from. Now by faith, we allow Christ to make it His prisoner. “Lord, I don’t have the power within myself to defeat this thought. I choose to trust in Your power to take this thought and defeat it. By the power of the Holy Spirit, I rest on Your promise to deal with it.” False thoughts must then be replaced by scripturally sound thoughts.
I will then go on with my life, doing what I’m supposed to do. I trust that He has taken that impulse and freed me from it. The darts may come again very soon or maybe much later. But whenever they come, I must believe that Jesus Christ is sufficient to deal with them decisively. If I seem to deal with these things in my own power, I’ll either eventually realize how ineffective I am and begin leaning on the Lord in each thought OR give up and become a lifeless spiritual desert.
So I must realize this warfare, and seek to be built up in the strength of Jesus Christ. I must trust Him to give me the right perspective and to cause me to learn a day to day, moment to moment, walk. There will be failure, and there will be times when we are tricked pretty badly. Perhaps it will be days before we even realize we’re in a battle in a certain area of our lives. But if we are going to be real, live Christians, we’re going to need to learn how to effectively deal with these forces we face. And we’re going to need to exercise accountability to the Lord in our thought lives, that we might be strong in the Lord and effective in Him.
GROWTH OPPORTUNITY QUESTIONS
WEEK SEVEN
Madison Avenue Christianity
- Using any source I choose, write below a definition of legalism, as used by Christians.
- Read 2 Cor. 4:1 (Madison Avenue Christianity)
- List 3-5 specific applications of the teaching to my life.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to set apart one of those applications to focus on right now.
- Accountability – Share one specific with my wife/husband/brother or sister and ask him/her to pray for me.
- Report that specific next week.
- Pair up as “muckers”. Share and pray for each other in the following areas:
- My relationship with Christ
- My relationship with my wife
- My relationship with my children
- My attitude toward my job, employer, fellow employees
- My financial situation
- A ministry in which I’m involved
- A confession of sin
- An area where I need to obey the Lord
- A veil behind which I’m hiding
- An area where I’m still Old Covenant (relying on it coming from me, rather that from the Lord)
- An area where I’m changing into Christ’s likeness by His power
Spiritual Warfare: Part 1
- A situation in my life where I need to walk in the Spirit is ____________________.
- Specifically, how can I apply, and use, the two-step process (walk in the Spirit) in my life?
- How can I be accountable to the Lord for my thought-life in this situation?
- Give and write out, an example of how I can pray (or talk to myself) and walk in the Spirit (say “no” to the flesh and “yes” to the Spirit).
- As a result of the teaching, In Over My Head, be prepared to discuss:
- Write a paraphrase of Ephesians 6:12.
- What happens if we don’t understand Eph. 6:12? (Add my own observations)
- How does Eph. 6:10 and 2 Cor. 3:3-5 relate to each other?
- Give at least 3 examples of false arguments in my own thought life.
- Give at least 3 examples of proud obstacles in my own thought life.
- Take 2 examples of mental onslaughts in my own life and write out how I would take that thought captive, etc.
- What insights/helps/discoveries/changes/renewal has occurred within me as a result of this study?
Master Plan of Evangelism
- Read the Preface and Chapters 1-3 (pages 19-60) of The Master Plan of Evangelism and be prepared to discuss the following:
Preface
- What does “form follows function” (page 20) say to me about methods which we use in ministry? Be specific.
- Christ’s clear objective was to (page 23):
- Why did Jesus have confidence in the future (page 24)?
Chapter 1
- What are some listed examples of Jesus’ method?
- What characterized this group of men compared to people who we consider to be of leadership caliber?
- What keys led to Jesus choosing them?
- Why did Jesus concentrate on a few?
- Why didn’t Jesus’ methods result in resentment?
- What is the principle to be learned from a concentrated group size?
- At the same time, how did Jesus deal with the masses and multitudes?
- Why didn’t Jesus capitalize upon His opportunities to enlist “a mighty army of believers”?
- Jesus saw that the people and the leaders had the characteristics of ____________________.
- Our emphasis upon numbers results from?
And results in?
- The first duty of a pastor is to?
- If a pastor followed Jesus’ example diligently, what would I suppose some of His parishioner’s responses to be?