2 Corinthians 1:1-7

[0:00] Morning. Good morning. I mean the New Testament this morning in Second Corinthians in the first chapter.

[0:12] The song of Melissa's song was actually a really good segue. We didn't plan that at all.

[0:23] Naturally, before Second Corinthians, we had First Corinthians. I've heard me enough now to know that I'd like to bring you up to where we're going to be preaching or teaching from in the Scriptures.

[0:35] And we have the entire book of First Corinthians leading up to this. We know of at least four letters that were written to the Corinthian Church, two of which we have in the canonized Scripture that we call the Bible, which tells me the other two really weren't too important, too pertinent for us, or otherwise the good Lord would have had them in here.

[0:59] But First Corinthians, those of you that read the Bibles, know it was written to the Church of Corinth. It addressed a lot of issues with morality that the Church of Corinth was having.

[1:14] Now remember though, when we say that it was indeed written to the Church that was at Corinth, it was written to people that had confessed Jesus Christ as their Savior.

[1:25] They had heard the Gospel, they had believed the Gospel, they had accepted the Gospel, they had received Jesus Christ as their Savior. Much the same as some of the things that were addressed in the book of Romans, some of the things that are addressed in the book of Galatians through the churches in Galatia and Ephesus, the letter to the Ephesians.

[1:48] There's bad things that are addressed to each one of these churches, but nevertheless they were written to churches. They were written to believers in Christ. First Corinthians was no different.

[1:59] There were some doctrinal issues that Paul had to address with them. There were some issues with them morality all the way up to the point that there was one of their members that was involved in incest.

[2:10] And the Bible teaches that even the heathen were appalled at that. Why was the church not appalled? Paul had to address all these things in 1 Corinthians.

[2:21] 2 Corinthians rolls around and it's a letter that commends the church at Corinth for some of the things that they have addressed.

[2:33] However, there were some things that they were still confused about all throughout the letter of 2 Corinthians. One of the things that was causing some issues with the church at Corinth was Paul had written them this letter, this other letter, had addressed some of the issues with morality.

[2:53] They had abided by those and yet they were suffering. Yet they were still seeing problems. They were still being persecuted and all kinds of things.

[3:05] That's one of the things that the letter we call 2 Corinthians addresses. That's what we're going to get at this morning in 2 Corinthians in the first chapter.

[3:17] We'll say those words, nobody wants to hear a preacher say, I don't expect to be before you long. But we're only going to do about the first seven or so verses out of 1 Corinthians in chapter 1.

[3:31] So if y'all are Indian Bibles and 1 Corinthians, or 2 Corinthians, I'm sorry, chapter 1, the first verse, says, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God and Timothy our brother unto the church of God, which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are at Akhia, grace be to you in peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

[3:56] Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforteth us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

[4:17] For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so are consolation also abounded by Christ. And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer.

[4:34] Or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. And our hope of you is steadfast knowing that as your partakers of the suffering, so shall you be also of the consolation.

[4:48] So we'll end right there. Back to verse 1 and 2 Corinthians in the first chapter, says Paul and the possible of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother unto the church of God, which is at Corinth, and with all the saints which are in Akia.

[5:04] Grace be to you in peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul here, introducing himself in this letter, as was addressed just this past Wednesday night when Brother Verne started the book, or the letter to the Colossians, this was the normal way that a letter was written in this time.

[5:26] It began with who was writing the letter, nothing abnormal about this 2,000 years ago. But Paul says Paul an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Paul here makes a statement that we all need to consider.

[5:42] And once again, this was written to the church that was at Corinth. It was written to fellow believers, those that had heard the gospel, those that had accepted Jesus Christ, those that had received Jesus Christ, and received the freedom of salvation that comes through believing in Jesus Christ, and repenting of their ways. This letter was written to people that were of a lot faith as Paul had.

[6:07] They had a lot faith as you and I had. They believed in Jesus Christ. They believed the gospel when it was preached to them. Paul here says, he says that he is an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God.

[6:22] And folks, this should bring you and I great comfort. Not so much that Paul was an apostle by the will of God, but that you and I are children of the living God, and we are children of the living God by the will of Almighty God.

[6:39] It is His will that He saved us, and it's His will that He has let us come here to commune with one another. It is His will that He saved our souls from a hell that we so richly deserved.

[6:52] It was His will to do so. The Bible says that it is not His will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. And if it is not His will that any should perish, it is His will that people would be saved.

[7:09] It is His will that you sit here this morning, if you are born again child of God. It is His will that you worship Him. It is His will that you sit under the teach and the preached word of Almighty God.

[7:23] It is His will that you pray to Him. It is His will that you go to Him with every concern, with everything that comes your way, with your glad tidings, with your sufferings, with everything that has to do with your life.

[7:40] It is the will of Almighty God for you to go to Him. Hallelujah! It's His will. Paul was an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God.

[7:55] Paul doesn't say I'm an apostle because there was a group of fellows that I know that appointed me to the apostleship. He doesn't say I'm an apostle because I give myself the title of folks that have slew the people out there right now, that have given themselves the title of bishop, that have given themselves the title of prophet, that have given themselves the title of apostle but folks, it does no good for us to name ourselves these things.

[8:21] But Paul says I'm an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of Almighty God. It doesn't matter what you do, it doesn't matter who you are, if you are sitting here and God has washed your soul clean in the blood of Jesus Christ.

[8:37] I can promise it is not God's will that you keep that in a church house view. It is not God's will that you keep it within the four walls of this house or your own.

[8:49] It is the will of God for you to go out into the world and to preach the gospel to every living creature, to tell people about Jesus Christ, to witness the goodness of God in your life.

[9:03] This is the will of God. There's too many people that say I don't have any talent. I don't have anything to give God. I promise you if God saved your soul, he's got a purpose for doing so.

[9:16] The ultimate purpose is to bring him glory. The ultimate purpose is to glorify God and to exalt the name of Jesus Christ, that name, which is above every name, that name by which men must be saved.

[9:31] God, it is his will that we exalt the name of Jesus Christ. It is not his will that we do nothing with the salvation that he has granted us.

[9:43] Paul was an apostle. He said, Spencer, I'm not an apostle. I'm not either. Spencer, I'm not a prophet. I ain't either. Spencer, I can't do this or I can't do that.

[9:55] I promise you, hey, in 1 Corinthians, I told you all the entire letter of 1 Corinthians leads up to 2 Corinthians. In 1 Corinthians, Paul uses the example of the church of the bride of Christ being the body of Christ.

[10:09] He being the head, of course, but of the church being the body of Christ. It doesn't matter if you're a finger. It doesn't matter if you're a toe.

[10:20] It doesn't matter if you're a stomach. It doesn't matter if you're a bone, if you're a muscle. It doesn't matter what you are. If God has got you in that body, you play a part in that body.

[10:33] You play a part in the body which is referred to as the bride of Christ, which is referred to as the body. We are the body of the church and it's time that we act like we are the body of the church.

[10:48] And it is God's will that we do what He wants us to. God help us all to do that. Help us, Paul, be an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God.

[11:02] Folks, it should bring you comfort that if you have been saved, it was by God's will. And that you are whatever you are for God, whether you're a prayer warrior, whether you're a singer, whether you're a teacher, whether you're a preacher, regardless of what you are, regardless of any of that.

[11:23] It is by God's will that you are that. Every one of us can testify of Jesus Christ that we're born again. Every one of us can witness of Jesus Christ that we are born again.

[11:34] And I promise it is the will of God that we do so. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, on the will of God, and Timothy, our brother, under the church of God, which is at Corinth with all the saints, which are at Acce.

[11:46] Grace be unto you in peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. This was a normal greeting for the apostle Paul when he was greeting any assembly that he was writing to, whether it be a church, whether it be multiple churches, whatever the case was.

[12:04] He would say, grace and peace many times over. And folks, I can think of no other, no better way for a child of God to greet another child of God than to say, grace and peace be unto you, folks.

[12:16] It is by God that we have received grace and it is by God that we can tell someone else, grace be unto you in peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.

[12:27] Peace from God, peace from the very one who is peace, peace from the very one who personifies grace. Peace from the very one that gave peace to me.

[12:39] Hallelujah. What a changed world it might be if the brethren would greet each other in similar manner. What a changed world it would be. It's like in Ruth, you read in the second chapter of the little book of Ruth, when Boas comes into his field, I don't know what he was doing when Ruth first came in on the scene, the Bible don't tell us.

[13:00] But we know that he come, he come to his field and he greeted his laborers out in his field. He said, the Lord be with you and the laborers, what did they say?

[13:11] They said, the Lord bless thee. What a changed world it would be if those of us who were disciples of Jesus Christ by the will of God, if we would start greeting one another as Boas greeted his servants and as his servants greeted Boas.

[13:31] What a changed world if we would just say grace and peace be unto you. But no, how do we greet each other? How you feeling? Well, I'm feeling pretty rough. What's hurting on you?

[13:43] Well, this is hurting in that area. That's how, oops, and all that does is drag one another down. Grace and peace be unto you. I'm not saying don't be concerned with your neighbor, don't be concerned with your spouse or with your children or whatever the case is.

[13:57] But don't make that the focus of your attention. There's too many good things that Almighty God has gifted us. There's too many good things that God has granted us and he has blessed us with for us to concentrate on everything wrong that is happening in our lives.

[14:15] God help us. Amen. God help us. Verse three, blesses be God. Even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comforts.

[14:26] Here begins in verse two with a blessing to his readers. Grace be to you. Peace be to you. And he says, bless it. Bless it be God. In other words, praise be unto God.

[14:39] He said, bless it be God. Even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comforts. And it also is another thing in this scripture that ought to bring us great joy and it ought to bring us great consolation to know that our Father, to know that the one that redeemed us with the blood of his precious son, the one that saved our souls out of hell, the one that called us into his marvelous life out of the deep darkness that we was in.

[15:07] He is the Father of all mercies. Hey, that tells me that he's the Father of mercies, that his mercy isn't like the mercy that this world shows.

[15:24] It isn't like the mercy of the philosopher's show. It isn't temporal. It isn't superficial. The mercy of my God. It goes on forever and ever because my God goes on forever and ever. He is immortal.

[15:35] He is eternal. And every one of his attributes are the same. Hallelujah. If he's the Father of mercies, why do we go elsewhere to find mercy?

[15:47] Why? Where did you go when you were lost to find mercy? Where did you go to find mercy? Where did you go to find mercy and comfort? Such as this verse in the scripture says, he's the God of all mercies and of all comfort.

[16:04] Where did you go when you were lost? Many people went to the bottle. Many people went to pills. Many women, many people hopped from man to man or from woman to woman. Many people went this way and they went everywhere but God in those things.

[16:20] As happy as they seemed to make us for just a little while, eventually that happiness would run out. Eventually it would leave us craving for something more or something stronger or something to do the job.

[16:33] Just a little bit better. Hey folks, if you don't get any higher or any better or any stronger than Almighty God, He is the Father of all mercies. If we went out into the world knowing good and well that the mercy and the comfort that the world would show us wouldn't last very long.

[16:51] How is it that we as children of God, we doubt God and we doubt the mercy that He shows? We say, God, I know you granted me mercy last week or last month, but I just don't know.

[17:02] If you're going to grant it to me this time around, my God is the Father of all mercies. He is the Father of all comforts. Why not go to the living well that we have in Almighty God to obtain mercy, to obtain peace, and to obtain our comfort?

[17:21] Hallelujah. Quit running through the world. Quit running through the things of the world. Some of the things we run to, even as Christians, some of the things we run to aren't necessarily even sinned.

[17:34] But we're running elsewhere. Running elsewhere, I would never tell any of you all not to go to the doctor if you were sick. I would never tell any of you all that.

[17:45] But you remember God created that doctor just like He created you. You remember it is Almighty God that can use the smarts and the knowledge that that doctor has to fix you or to make you feel better, or to make you whole, whatever the case is.

[18:01] And too many times we've been healed. Too many times we'll spend weeks sick and we'll go for a week on this medication or on that medication or doing this therapy or that therapy.

[18:12] And all of a sudden we're better and we're singing the praises to the doctor that made it possible when we ought to be given the praises. God Almighty God, blessed be the God Almighty and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Father of all mercies and of all comforts.

[18:29] Regardless of what man does for you, you remember, dear church, who created those men, who created those women. We might run to our families.

[18:40] Hey folks, listen, it's hard to tell how many times I've let my family down, my own family. It's hard to tell how many times you've let your own family down. Family can only go with you so far. Family can only do so much for your spouses, can only do so much for you.

[18:55] You can only do so much for your children sooner or later. If you haven't already sooner or later, you will let your children down. But folks, there is one. There is one that is the God of all mercy and he is the God of all comfort.

[19:08] He is Almighty God. He is Off and Omega. He is beginning and end. He is the Maker and the Master of this entire universe. He is the one that set it all in motion. He's the one that keeps it all in motion and he is the one that we should concentrate all of our afflictions, all of our blessings and all of our praise on.

[19:28] We should be teaching our families to do the same, whether they listen or not. Whether they listen or not. Hope says mercy and his comfort. It goes on forever.

[19:41] Why not go to that instead of through the world? Who comforted us in all our tribulation? Hope says this is one of those situations where all means all.

[19:52] He comforted us in all of our tribulation. You must say, what's the answer? I've got tribulation. I've had it going on for years or months.

[20:05] And it's still here, but has it comforted you? It doesn't say here in the Scripture. It doesn't say who takeeth away the tribulation, who comforteth us in all tribulation.

[20:19] Now listen, this kind of day we must suffer with the same illness for all of our lives. Folks, I've technically been sick for 40 years in my life. But there's going to be a day.

[20:31] There's going to be a day somewhere out yonder. I don't know when. But there's going to be a day I'm promised by the words of this book. That that sickness will not be there anymore. That that infirmity that I have, it will not be there anymore.

[20:46] Some of you may be in the same shoes. You may have been sick for 30, 40, 50 years of your life. If you were born again, child of God, that same promise applies to you from the God of all mercy and the God of all comfort.

[20:58] As it applies to me that one day we're going to be raised in glorified bodies. One of these days we're going to receive a body that is lack and better than lack unto the Son of man, which is Jesus Christ. Hallelujah.

[21:13] Hallelujah. Folks, that's the mercy I'm looking for. That's the blessing I'm looking for. But right now, right now, it says who comforteth us in all our tribulation.

[21:26] That we're comforted. That's in perfect tense, meaning he continually, he perpetually comforts us in all our tribulation.

[21:37] That we may be able to comfort them, which are in trouble, by the comfort we're with. We ourselves are comforted. Oh God, folks, this is an amazing thing that we're reading about here.

[21:48] If you couple up with the next book, for as the sufferings across abandon us, so our consolation also abound in Christ, and it should be coupled with that. But the Apostle Paul, folks, everywhere in Scripture, and you all have heard it taught and preached just as much as I had.

[22:05] But all kinds of places in the Scripture, we see the cross suffered so that we would not have to suffer. We see the cross died for us so that we would not have to experience death.

[22:16] Is that not what the Scripture here teaches? But here we are learning that we suffer in the God. He comforts us in the midst of all of our tribulation, but he doesn't do it for our health.

[22:29] He doesn't do it for our well-being. He does it because he is God. He doesn't glorify himself. Christ suffered for us, yes, and he died for us, yes, but not just so that we wouldn't have to suffer, so that we wouldn't have to die, but so that we could suffer and die with him.

[22:49] Folks, and it's all in the Scripture, do we not die with Christ? Do we not die with Christ? Paul stated it wonderfully.

[23:00] He said, I'm dead in Christ, never less all day if you do not die with Christ, live within me. We die with Christ, and folks, we are raised in Christ.

[23:13] We are raised in Christ. And I'm not talking about water or baptism, that's all great and wonderful and fine and well, and I encourage any believer in Christ to be baptized.

[23:26] That's not what we're talking about. We are raised with Christ in the new life. Folks, Christ, when he was put in that grave, after he was killed, he was put in that borrowed tomb, but when he raised, he raised in the new life.

[23:42] He raised a new life, and people will say, well, Spencer, he didn't sin. There was no reason for a new life. Hey, folks, while he was here, he suffered. While he was here, hey, my God, my God came here and wrecked himself in a robe of flesh, and he suffered with man.

[23:59] He encountered man. He did everything that man did except for sin, but folks, he was homeless. While he was here, he suffered mockery. While he was here, people rejected him.

[24:12] While he was here, he was lied to. He was accused of lying. He was accused of having a demon. Folks, he was rejected. He was abandoned. Yet he was God.

[24:24] Don't tell me that when he raised a new life, it was unnecessary. Yes, it was necessary. He's the first fruit according to 1 Corinthians 15, chapter 15.

[24:35] He's the first fruit to the resurrection. He's the guarantee of what is to come and what is to come. That's me, and that's you if you're born again. That's every one of us.

[24:46] Every one of us are guaranteed to come after him. Once again, verse 4, who comforted us in our tribulation? Who is comforting us?

[24:58] The Father of all mercies and the Father of all comfort. We have been able to comfort them which are in any trouble. We are comforted by God.

[25:11] We are saved by God through Christ that we might not suffer and that we might not die. Yes, the folks ultimately, we are saved from that for the service of God.

[25:25] We are saved from those things for the service of God. That's what we talked about back in verse 1. That it is God's will that we serve him. It is God's will that we praise him.

[25:36] It is God's will that we tell others about him. We are saved from these things and we are consoled by God himself in all of our tribulations.

[25:47] Not just because God thinks you're a good guy or a good girl and he thinks you deserve it. We are consoled for the service of others. For the service of others, read it.

[26:00] That we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble by the comfort we are with ourselves. We are comforted by God. The folks I'll tell you now, if you're here and you're lost, you don't know much about the comfort of God.

[26:15] This Bible here can't comfort you if you're here and you're lost. It's an impossibility. All this Bible can do is condemn you. And all the Holy Spirit of God will do is condemn you.

[26:26] He'll show you your condemn state. He'll show you your need for salvation that you can only have from God the Father and through Jesus Christ. But there's no real comfort until that happens, until salvation happens.

[26:39] Up to that point, all this Word does is condemn and show people out from underneath the way out from underneath that condemnation.

[26:50] But remember this letter is written to believers. It's written to believers. So when he's saying, who comforted us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, all in any, he comforts us in all of our tribulation so that we may be able to use that same comfort.

[27:11] That doesn't make me a God and it does not make you a God. But God has showed us mercy and God has given us comfort that he can use us to go into comfort others that are suffering in any situation.

[27:25] He comforts us in all of our afflictions that we can comfort those that are in any situation. By the comfort we are with, we ourselves are comforted of God.

[27:37] Whereas the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so are consolation also abound by Christ. The suffering abounds, the suffering of Christ abounds in us.

[27:50] But why does it do it? It tells us, for as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so are consolation also abound with by Christ. Folks, once again, I just went through a list of things that Jesus Christ suffered and that was a very short list of the things that he suffered while he was here on this earth.

[28:08] What makes us think that we're going to suffer any less? What makes us think that we will avoid persecution when it makes you very plain in the Bible that all those that live godly and cross Jesus shall suffer persecution?

[28:22] What makes us think that we're going to avoid suffering? What makes us think we're going to avoid the mockery? We're going to avoid the rejection when the Bible makes it very plain that we will be rejected of men for the sake and for the name of Jesus Christ.

[28:39] We shouldn't think any of those things. So our sufferings, our cross-suffering, for as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds with by Christ.

[28:50] What is our consolation? What's the suffering? Suffering much the same way that Jesus Christ did. So what's the consolation? Folks, if we suffer, all those who've heard the term, all those who've probably heard the hymn that talks about you, to where the crown must bear the cross, all those who've heard that song, all those who've probably heard it talk and preach, and there's a lot of truth in that.

[29:17] Christ said, if any man would fall after him, he must deny himself, pick up his cross, and follow him daily. Where's the consolation in that? Knowing that if we go in the way of Christ, if we go in the patience of Christ, if we go in the suffering of Christ, if we go in all these things of Christ, our consolation will be to be with him forever and forever and forever.

[29:45] One of these days after a while, our consolation, it may not take place completely here in this world, but we have comfort in all of our tribulations. God will comfort us in our tribulations while we are awaiting the consolation, the consolation that will be consummated, that will finally take place at the end of our time, or at the end of the time, the consolation that we are promised to be with Christ and to be with God, and to be in a place of pure love and a place of pure harmony forever and ever.

[30:21] That's the consolation I'm waiting on. That's the consolation that I'm waiting on, and whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation. The folks, Paul is not here saying, I'm being afflicted, therefore you're being saved.

[30:36] That's how some people will read this scripture, that's how it's been twisted some over the years, but that is not what he's getting at, and whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings, which we also suffered, or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.

[30:57] Basically, Paul is getting a lot like what I was talking about several minutes ago. He's showing the church at Corinth, whatever it is that Paul and Timothy and the others are suffering from, those that we read about in verse 1, however it is that they're suffering, they are part of the church.

[31:17] So however it is that the church at Corinth is suffering, they are part of the church as well, folks. And let me tell you, I don't know how many of y'all have ever suffered an injury to your foot or to your hand, but it really affects the rest of the body when that happens.

[31:32] You might hurt a toe, you might hurt a foot or hurt an ankle, but it'll cause other places in your body to hurt. This is kind of what Paul is getting at here in this verse. He says, when a few of us suffer in the church, all of us should suffer in the church, and we should pray for one another, but when a few of us are consoled in the church, the rest of us should be consoled in the church.

[31:56] We should rejoice with them that are happy. We should weave with them that we howl. How many of y'all ever been in a situation like this?

[32:07] I have here fairly recently in the past few months. You hurt your foot. Next thing you know, your back's hurting. Why? Because you're using more leg muscles and you're doing things with that leg and with that foot that you normally don't do.

[32:19] It hurts the rest of your body. Folks, it should be like it with us. If one member of this body, the free gift gospel mission is hurt, we should all do our best to console them, but we should all suffer the same because one member of our body is hurting.

[32:37] I'm not saying go out here and do things to yourself. I'm not saying if they break the phone, go out there and break your phone. I'm saying that the entire body should suffer. The folks that ain't just here within these walls that I'm talking about, if we hear about a brother or sister in Christ that suffered loss, they've suffered a loss in their family and they've suffered some sort of illness, they've suffered some kind of heartache.

[32:56] What are the cases? Hey, we should mourn for that person. We should mourn with them that mourn. We should rejoice with them that rejoice. This is how the people of God should act toward one another.

[33:08] So Paul here again will read it whether we be afflicted is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer, or whether we be comforted is for your consolation and salvation.

[33:25] Verse 7 will be done. And our hope of you is steadfast, knowing that as your partakers of the sufferings, so shall you be of the consolation.

[33:39] He says our hope of you is steadfast, knowing that as your partakers of the sufferings, so shall you be also of the consolation.

[33:51] The main thing here though is Paul says his hope of them is steadfast. Why? Why is his hope of them steadfast? Because he's writing to believers in Christ.

[34:04] The same hope that Paul has. Their hope is in Jesus Christ. And that's all the hope that they have. Lost person if you're here this morning. That's all the hope that you have.

[34:15] It's in Jesus Christ. It's not in this world. It's not in a bottle of liquor. It's not in a bottle of pills. It's not in a man. It's not in a woman.

[34:26] It is in Jesus Christ. That's all the hope anyone else has. Paul here says, and our hope of you is steadfast, knowing that as your partakers of the sufferings, so shall you be also of the consolation.

[34:41] Their hope was in Christ, just as Paul's hope was in Christ. And Paul knew something about suffering for Jesus Christ. Paul knew what it was like to be shipwrecked.

[34:52] Paul knew what it was like to be last. Paul knew what it was like to be stung and left for dead outside the city. Paul knew what it was like to be rejected of his own countrymen and to be rejected of strangers.

[35:04] Paul knew all about these things. He knew something about suffering, but he also knew about the consolation and the hope that he had in Jesus Christ. And this is the very thing that he's saying that he has hope in the Corinthians for.

[35:19] Because they had the same Christ and they had the same hope that Paul has. And Paul knew something about that hope. Folks, I know something about the hope. If you're a brother or sister in Christ, I know something about your hope.

[35:31] And you know something about mine. And just as we suffer through this life, folks, and we will, the Bible makes it plain, we will suffer through this life.

[35:42] Anybody tell you the Christian walk is a cake walk is a lie. Paul, Joe, said it best in Job 14. He said, man, there's a woman who's a few days in full of trouble.

[35:55] My goodness, how much truth there is in that statement. It's few days in full of trouble. All of our days are full of trouble, but folks, we have hope. We have hope in Jesus Christ.

[36:07] We have the same hope that Paul had. We have the same hope that the church of Corinth had. We have the same hope that the Romans, that the churches in Rome had. We have the same hope that everyone that we read about in the scriptures, I believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ, everyone that has been redeemed.

[36:22] We have that same hope and that hope is steadfast. It's immovable. It's immutable. It can't be shaken. It can't be stirred. It can't be intimidated.

[36:33] My God cannot be intimidated. And the hope that He gives me, it cannot be intimidated. This world, they try to come at you. This world may try and tell you that it's all in pain. They might try and they might make fun of you.

[36:46] They might make fun of the Bible, make fun of religion in general, make fun of Jesus Christ. But the folks, don't let that stir your hope. Your hope is still in the one that saved your immortal soul.

[36:57] Keep your hope there. Keep your hope there. That's the message for today. God bless you all. Amen.