“Nothing is certain in this world but death and taxes.” So goes the famous saying. And though this is a rather modern phrase, Paul seemed to have something like this in mind as he continues his second letter to the Corinthians in the reading we heard just moments ago. But Paul’s unquestionable intent here is to speak of another reality in which he has come to believe. “I had faith, and so I spoke,” Paul says. But what was it that Paul was speaking about? What new reality did he hope to share with the Corinthian community? To begin to answer that question, though, we need to look back at this scripture Paul is quoting at the beginning. As it turns out, this little sentence, “I had faith, and so I spoke,” comes from Psalm 116, and Paul intends that his reference would call that to mind, and all it means. Here’s how Psalm 116 reads:
“I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. 2Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. 3The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was overcome by trouble and sorrow. 4Then I called on the name of the Lord: “O Lord, save me!”
5The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. 6The Lord protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, he saved me. 7Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you. 8For you, O Lord, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, 9that I may walk before the Lord in the land of the living. 10I believed; therefore I said, “I am greatly afflicted.” 11And in my dismay I said, “All men are liars.”
12How can I repay the Lord for all his goodness to me? 13I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. 14I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people. 15Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. 16O Lord, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant; you have freed me from my chains.
17I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord. 18I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people, 19in the courts of the house of the Lord—in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord.”
We don’t have to stretch our imaginations too far to see how Paul saw himself and his situation fitting surprisingly well with what the Psalmist was describing. Paul’s work and ministry was far from easy. And late now in his ministry, Paul is reminded of the struggles he has faced -- the traps of death were around him, the bitter smell of the underworld seemed to be coming for him, dragging him down. But there, down in the depths, the Lord, Israel’s God, came to his rescue; the God Paul now knew as the father of Jesus, the one by whose power the Messiah himself had gone down into death and been brought up to new life. So it was with Paul: “For you, O Lord, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.”
As Paul now writes this letter, he is reflecting on his whole experience, he finds himself in the same position as the Psalmist, and so he says with the Psalmist, “I have stayed faithful, so now I speak.” It’s as if Paul were standing in our midst saying, “There’s more to this than death and taxes. The story doesn’t end with defeat and death because of the power of God that is able to raise us up and give us new life! Let me tell you about this new reality!
Have you ever asked the question, “Where is God?” This is a question that gets raised often, I believe, especially in the midst of tragedy. “Where is God in all this?” we wonder. A year or so ago when my brother-in-law was doing a rotation in a pediatric ICU, he and my sister called Ken and I one night after a particularly hard day when at least one young child had died. “Where is God?” they wanted to know. That question is nearly impossible to answer in a satisfying way when we are facing tragedy. But still, we often try...God is in the strength that carries us through. God is with our lost loved ones and they are more comfortable now. These are the things we often hear and say to one another.
But if someone were to ask us today, “Where is God?” Our answers might be a bit simpler. There was a Benedictine Monk who, in his travels around the world asked just this question, “Where is God?” Hindus and Buddhists in the East, he discovered, would typically point to their heart, while Jews Christians, and Muslims in the West would point outside of themselves to the heavens. How would you answer this question? Perhaps some of us would point up to the heavens and say, “Out there.” Others of us might point to our hearts and say, “Right here.”
In our reading for this morning, Paul suggests that, amid the trials of life and ministry, in the midst of the struggles we face—whether tragedy or trial—we can take comfort in a resurrected Christ living inside us. “Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed every day.” Now, don’t misunderstand what is happening here. Paul is not talking about “physical” and “non-physical” things, but about the present world as contrasted with the future world. Paul knows that at some point we all die, and he doesn’t contest that simple fact. In time, everything human will crumble and perish, whether it is a city, a home, or even our own life. But in the face of that, in the face of our struggles and even death, Paul steers his readers to the hope found in the “eternal.” And here’s what he means; just as there is an inner nature grounded in a resurrected Christ, there is also a divinity “outside of us,” another reality to restore us, but one not easily seen. How’s that for confusing? If Paul were asked the question, “Where is God?” He might have pointed at first to his heart, and then with his other hand to the world and the stars above. “God is everywhere,” he might say, “Let me tell you about this new reality!”
There is an old story about a disciple and his teacher. “Where shall I find God?” this disciple once asked. “Here,” the teacher replied.
“Then why can’t I see God?”
“Because you do not look.” the teacher answered simply.
“But what should I look for?” the disciple continued.
“Nothing. Just look,” the teacher said.
“But at what?”
“At anything your eyes alight upon,” the teacher responded.
“But must I look in a special kind of way?” the disciple persisted.
“No, the ordinary way will do.”
“But don’t I always look the ordinary way?” The disciple was getting agitated now.
“No, you don’t,” the teacher said.
“But why ever not?” the disciple pressed.
“Because to look, you must be here. You’re mostly somewhere else,” the teacher said.
Even in this place, we must embrace the reality of God’s new work! Paul’s writings might best be summed up by saying that Paul underscores the triumph of God. And the triumph of God is discovered when we come to understand fully and completely that the Christian already lives in the dawning of God’s coming reign. And since the coming of Christ and his victorious resurrection, suffering is all the more bearable. In other words, God’s presence and triumph is both internal and external. The resurrected Christ renews us from the inside out day by day, but at the very same time, God is continually creating in our midst, and before our very eyes, a new heaven and earth! Paul wants us to understand what’s going on within ourselves, he wants us to see what’s happening all around us, and then he wants us to talk about it! “So that grace, as it extends to more and more people, may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.”
Paul is speaking from within his own heart and now to those who read his letter, and he is keen, like the Psalmist, that the end result would be more praise arising to the living God. The more people are praising God, the more the world is taking the shape it was meant to have, and the more God’s power goes out to save and heal where those generous blessings are still needed.
You know, often in Christian discipleship, we emphasize things like serving the poor, visiting the imprisoned or shut-in, and praying for the sick. And these things are vitally important, not only for our own discipleship, but for others as well. But what Paul is emphasizing today is something that is equally important, but probably a lot easier too. To speak! Paul says, in essence, “If you believe, you have to talk about it! If you have faith that God in Christ Jesus really has changed your life, you have to tell people what has happened!” I think it’s fair to say that we would not be sitting here today if we didn’t believe Christ has changed our lives and continues to renew us every day! So Paul’s word for us today is to go, speak, talk about our faith and share the glory of God so that others might glorify God too!
Paul says that we can discover God’s presence all around us – inside and out – if we have the eyes and heart to see. So what is your reality? Are you stuck in the “death and taxes” mode, is everything glum and difficult and depressing, or do you know a different reality? God in Christ Jesus active in your life, renewing you inside and out every day! It is not good enough that we just soak that up on our own. Our faith obligates that we speak “because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and will bring us with you into his presence.”
We serve a risen Savior! We are a resurrection people! We are renewed every day, and there is life abundant to come! “I believed, and so I spoke—we also believe, and so we speak.” Will you speak too?
