The Blessed Hope Podcast -- with Dr. Kim Riddlebarger

"Every Thought Captive" Season Four/Episode 13 (2 Corinthians 10:1-18)

Episode Synopsis:Paul is in Macedonia preparing to head south to Corinth.  So far, he has written to the Corinthians about his office and authority and he has encouraged them to wrap up their efforts to collect an offering to be sent to the struggling church in Jerusalem.  The Corinthians have been a difficult bunch for Paul, but when he wraps up the letter we know as in 2 Corinthians in chapter 9 he is both joyful and confident that the Corinthians understand his office and role in the apostolic churches.But then Paul gets news which can only be described as infuriating.  A number of men–apparently Jews claiming to have the blessing of the Jerusalem church, yet who use Greek rhetorical gimmicks, and who brag about visions, revelations, and who claim to have performed miracles–have infiltrated the Corinthian church in his absence.  Paul is understandably upset and the apostolic gloves come off.  He describes these men as false teachers and apostles who preach a different gospel, a different Jesus, and a different Holy Spirit than he has taught the Corinthians.  He even identifies them as agents of Satan.  How can the Corinthians be so foolish and gullible?  We can only imagine Paul’s frustration with these people.  R. C. Sproul’s words come to mind here–”what is wrong with you people?!”So before Paul returns to Corinth, he adds chapters 10-13 to what he thought was his completed letter.  He will send Titus and the others south, while he wraps up his remaining business in Macedonia.  Unlike the specious charges raised against him by the false teachers and gospel peddlers, Paul will demonstrate that he is every bit as tough in person as he is in his letters–a charge which has been leveled against him by the false apostles.  He will challenge these agents of Satan and their false gospel by reminding them that divine warfare is conducted in the power of the Holy Spirit (not grounded in the flesh as these men were doing) and that Paul’s gospel can destroy all lofty opinions and take every thought captive to the knowledge and Lordship of Christ.For show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

"The Inexpressible Gift" -- Season Four/Episode 12 (2 Corinthians 9:1-15)

Episode Synopsis:Paul expressed concern that the Corinthian church would not have their offering ready upon his upcoming visit to Corinth.  As we saw last time, this offering had two important purposes.  The first was that there was a genuine need in Jerusalem as a result of an extended famine.  Gentile churches in Macedonia and Achaia were spared from the famine and had the means to send a significant gift to the struggling church in Jerusalem.  The second reason this mattered was that once the debate over justification had been settled at the Jerusalem Council, Jewish Christians accepted Gentile believers as their brothers and sisters–but there was still tension between the two groups who had a long and mutual history of distrust.  An offering from Gentile Christians during a time of great need in the mother church would go a long way to alleviate these tensions.But as we read in chapter 9–a continuation of the previous section of 2 Corinthians–it became clear that although the Corinthians planned to collect such an offering previously, they never followed through on their promise to contribute.  Paul was in Macedonia when word came from Corinth that the offering was not ready.  Apparently, Paul’s critics and opponents in Corinth raised questions about both Paul’s integrity and the true purpose of the offering.  Meanwhile, Paul had been telling the Macedonians (literally boasting) that the Corinthians promised to do likewise.  The Macedonians gave beyond their means assuming the Corinthians would do the same.  The Corinthians hadn’t yet given at all.  This was shameful and embarrassing to all concerned.In chapter 9, Paul discusses the proper motives behind Christian charity.  He does away with the tithe and reminds his readers that Christians are to give as much as they can–if they can do so freely and joyfully.  He tells the Corinthians that Christians do not “give to get”–no prosperity gospel here.  Rather they are to give what they can when there is a genuine need.  The model for such giving is God’s grace as manifest in the cross of Jesus Christ, the proof that God loves us and cares for us.  Christian giving does not appease an angry god (as the pagans taught), it does not ensure that we’ll prosper financially or regain health (as the prosperity gospelers claim), and giving is always to be done simply because it is good to give–especially to those in need.  While there is a spiritual blessing for the cheerful giver, the Christian offering is but an act of gratitude in response to the inexpressible gift God has given to us in the person of his son. For show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

"This Act of Grace" -- Season Four/Episode 11 (2 Corinthians: 8-1-24)

Episode Synopsis:About the time Paul began his second missionary journey, a serious famine swept through Palestine–greatly impacting the Jerusalem church.  Those who lived in the region knew how serious such things could be and so they prepared for it–stockpiling grain, spices, and animal feed, etc.  But as soon as a church was organized in Jerusalem–after Pentecost–Jewish Christians found themselves cut off from the synagogue and its well-established relief system.  Now on their own, the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem were apparently suffering horribly and were in desperate need of relief–specifically funds to buy food and supplies locally.Tensions between Jewish Christians and recent Gentile converts to Christianity were apparent from the moment the gospel spread into Gentile regions–as indicated during the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15).  At that council, the church renounced the Judaizers and affirmed that God had blessed Paul’s efforts to take the gospel into Gentile regions–which began in earnest after the Macedonian vision (Acts 16:9).  Paul planted churches in Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, and Corinth.  While these new churches aided and encouraged each other, Paul understood that if the Gentile churches–who had means–took an offering for the Jerusalem church, it would go a great way toward helping fellow Christians in genuine need.  It would also de-escalate the worry and anxiety that Jews felt toward Gentiles who were until quite recently godless pagans and often persecutors of the Jewish people.When Paul arrived in Macedonia, he tells us that there was some unspecified serious trouble and that he would strive to get things cleared up before he traveled south to Corinth.  Despite the troubles in the churches in Macedonia, they had taken up a surprisingly generous offering for the Jerusalem church–so much so that it was a major sacrifice, even beyond their means, which Paul describes as an act of grace.  Now he gets word from Titus that the Corinthians (who had been collecting a similar offering for a year) and had not followed through with their collection.  As a congregation they were far better off materially than the Macedonians, but were so distracted by divisions, the subterfuge of false apostles and other matters, the offering had not been finalized.  In chapters 8-9 of 2 Corinthians, Paul addresses this matter head-on.For show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

"Godly Grief" -- Season Four/Episode 10 (2 Corinthians 7:4-16)

Episode Synopsis:When Paul left Ephesus to visit Corinth in what is known as the “painful visit,” he became the object of a personal attack from an unnamed party.  This was bad enough, but what made the matter worse was the fact that the Corinthians had done little if anything to support the apostle.  This forced Paul to send the so-called “severe letter,” the text of which is lost to us.  We may not have the letter, but we know the effects it had upon the congregation because they are explained to us in chapter 7 of 2 Corinthians.  In the severe letter, Paul called upon the Corinthians to discipline the party who attacked him and caused so much disruption in the Corinthian church.  It is also implied that he addressed the fact that some of the Corinthians were still engaging in practices which were not consistent with their profession of faith in Christ–sexual immorality and pagan idolatry.Paul was forced to wait for word from Corinth to learn of the letter’s impact.  Apparently he was on pins and needles until Titus brought word of the letter’s impact.  Titus’s report gave Paul joy and comfort, especially when he learned that the letter brought about the desired result–“godly sorrow,” which he contrasts with “worldly sorrow.”  The latter is the disappointment of failing to attain worldly things, while the former produced a  sense of grief within the congregation that they had not done the right thing and needed to make things right.  As difficult as this was for all concerned, the “severe letter” led to the repentance of the Corinthians, which was the best possible result.  Once Paul learned of the outcome, there was a great sense of relief that the Corinthians stepped up and did what was required.  Therefore, when Titus brought news of this to Paul, both he and Paul were greatly comforted by this circumstance.  Paul is now able to boast both in Titus’s work in Corinth, as well as in his own efforts in dealing with this issue.  He can boast that the Corinthians were doing the right thing as difficult as that was.  Paul had to confront the Corinthians–which required a painful visit and a severe letter.  But things have changed.  Now he can boast about them.For show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

"The Temple of the Living God" Season Four/Episode Nine (2 Corinthians 6:3-7:3)

Episode Synopsis:Paul continues his defense of his apostolic ministry and office.  In chapter 6, verses 3-10, he lays out an incredible catalog of those hardships which he has endured so as to preach the gospel, along with evidence of how God has sustained both Paul and his Gentile mission throughout each of these difficult trials.  He has been slandered and praised and has experienced just about every possible human emotion along the way.  He is not bragging as his opponents are doing, but pointing out the ways in which God has enabled him to conduct a ministry faithful to the gospel as centered in the cross of Christ and the message of the reconciliation of the holy God to sinners.  None of the false teachers and braggarts in Corinth have such a track record of faithfulness.Paul lets the Corinthians know that he has no secret agenda, nor is he withholding anything from them as their father in the faith.  But he does regard them as children in need of instruction and warning.  He challenges them to consider what it means to be numbered among the people of God.  The Corinthians are to be careful not to ally themselves with those so-called Christians who claim to be believers, but whose conduct shows them to be otherwise.  Paul also reminds the Corinthians not to be unequally yoked together with unbelievers since Christians compose the temple of the Lord as indwelt by his Spirit.  The Corinthians are to break all ties to paganism and separate themselves from it.As the living temple of the Lord, Christians are to strive to demonstrate godliness and holiness of life which reflects their status before God.  As is his practice, Paul distinguishes between the imperative mood (what believers are in Christ) and the imperative (how their conduct should reflect the fact that they are the temple of the living God), and as such are to avoid the defilement of the body typical of Greco-Roman paganism–such as sexual immorality and idolatry.  Christians are to strive to bring holiness to completion–part of which is to embrace Paul as an apostle of Jesus Christ, just as he accepts them as those for whom he cares deeply.For show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/