2 Coríntios 3
Arthur Pink · Citado em PreceptAustin
2 Coríntios 3:5-6
Pink comments on John's humility in Jn 3:30 (in Christ Magnified by His Forerunner - scroll down)... Blessed climax was this to the lovely modesty of John, and well calculated to crush all party feeling and nip in the bud any jealousy there might be in the hearts of his own disciples. In principle this is inseparably connected with what he had just said before in the previous verse (Jn 3:28, 29). The more I “decrease” the more I delight in standing and hearing the voice of that blessed One who is Altogether Lovely (Play Here I am to Worship - "You're Altogether Lovely"). And so conversely. The more I stand and hear His voice, the more will He “increase” before me, and the more shall I “decrease.” I cannot be occupied with two objects at one and the same time. To “decrease” is, we take it, to be less and less occupied with ourselves. The more I am occupied with Christ, the less shall I be occupied with myself. Humility is not the product of direct cultivation, rather it is a by-product . The more I try to be humble, the less shall I attain unto humility. But if I am truly occupied with that One who was “meek and lowly in heart,” if I am constantly beholding His glory in the mirror of God’s Word, then shall I be (continually) “changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Co 3:18-commentary). Ron Mattoon - If we are going to be what Christ wants us to be, we must be empty of selfish desires and totally yielded to the will of God. It's the man that bows the lowest in the presence of God that stands the straightest in the presence of sin. Someone said, "Swallowing pride is good for you. It won't give you calories or indigestion." Benjamin Whichcote said, "None are so empty as those who are full of themselves." If we are to have victory in our life, SELF needs to be removed from the throne of our heart and Christ needs to be enthroned. He must increase and I must decrease (John 3:30). Dave
2 Coríntios 3:5-6
Pink comments that beginning in 2Co 3:6 Paul presents "a series of contrasts...between the two covenants, that is, between Judaism and Christianity. That which pertained to the former is called “the letter” that relating to the new, “the spirit,” i.e., the one was mainly concerned with that which was external, the other was largely fraternal: the one slew, the other gave life—this was one of the leading differences between the Law, and the Gospel. (Gleanings in Exodus) Ray
2 Coríntios 3:18
Pink comments that "as faith beholds in the mirror of the Word, the "glory of the Lord," the soul itself is "changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord" (2Corinthians 3:18). The world gains the victory over the unregenerate by captivating their affections and capturing their wills; but the Christian overcomes the world, because his affections are set upon Christ and his will yielded to Him. (Faith as an Overcomer) J R Miller - Where do we find the truest, noblest life? There is no smallest fragment of our humanity, which retains the absolute perfection and beauty that were in human life as it came first from the Creator's hand. If we would see life in its wholeness, unmarred, undebased—the highest, purest, truest life—we must look at Jesus. We are to become like Christ. We should never, therefore, lose sight of him. Keeping the ideal always before our eyes will, unconsciously yet powerfully, draw us toward it. "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus!" Hebrews 12:2+. Oswald Chambers exhorts each of us to… Allow nothing to keep you from looking God sternly in the face about yourself and about your doctrine, and every time you preach see that you look God in the face about things first, then the glory will remain all through. A Christian worker is one who perpetually looks in the face of God and then goes forth to talk to people. The characteristic of the ministry of Christ is that of unconscious glory that abides. "Moses wist not (did not know) that the skin of his face shone while he talked with Him." (Ex 34:29KJV+) We are never called on to parade our doubts or to express the hidden ecstasies of our life with God. The secret of the worker's life is that he keeps in tune with God all the time. (Excerpt from My Utmost for His Highest) Thomas Vincent on beholding the glory of the Lord… Christ is the glory of the Lord, the brightness of His Father's glory. Would you have much love to Him? Be often looking, viewing, and beholding Him in the looking-glass of the Scriptures! By much beholding of Him, you may be transformed more and more into the likeness of His holiness, and into the likeness of His love—which is glory begun. The Scriptures have the image of Christ engraved upon them; the image of the Father is upon the Son, and the image of the Son is upon the Scriptures. There you may see the picture of Christ, the beauty of Christ; at least some lineaments are there drawn by the hand of God, although not fully, and to life. I mean, such you will see in Him when you come to behold Him face to face in heaven; yet His beauty is drawn is such proportions, and with such shadows, as you are now capable of beholding. Would you have much love unto Christ, whom you have never seen? Look much upon His picture and image in the Scriptures. The Scriptures are Christ's love-letters. (Love to the Unseen Christ) J