II Corinthians 2:6-11

1. Intro.
1. these words were spoken by the Paul to the church of Corinth
1. in that church there was a person, who had committed the sin of incest - I Corinthians 5:1
2. like many notorious offenders today, he did not receive the discipline of the church (wealth, power)
3. in his first letter to the church, he severely reprimands them for this neglect of discipline
4. he commanded that they should excommunicate him - I Corinthians 5:3-5
2. the Corinthians were obedient to Paul, as soon as they received the reproof, they submitted to it
1. while they were endeavoring to amend one fault, they unhappily ran into another
2. they had been too mild and negligent, but now they behaved with too much severity and resentment
3. in our text Paul reproves this, and tells them, that the offender had now suffered enough
4. they were to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow
3. now that he had given proof of his repentance, they needed to forgive him, and confirm their love towards him
1. so that Satan, who is trying to tempt him to despair, might not outwit them
2. Satan wants the church to be unforgiving, and to be the source that drives a repentant sinner to despair
3. he wants to represent the church as being merciless and cruel, and to cause the name of Christ to be blasphemed
4. we are to guard ourselves against the many subtle ways Satan has to distract and deceive men
5. Satan has many schemes, and as his quiver is full of poisonous darts
2. who is Satan
1. the word "Satan," means an adversary
1. it is used to point out the chief of the devils, who was found guilty of trying to make himself equal to the Most High
2. for this great sin he was cast out of heaven, and is now prowling around the earth, like a roaring lion looking for men and women to devour and destroy
2. we hear of Satan immediately after creation, when in the form of a serpent, he deceived our first parents
3. in the NT he goes under different titles
1. "evil one" because he is evil in himself, and tempts us to evil
2. "the prince of the power of the air" because he resides chiefly in the air
3. "the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience" because all those who are not born of God, are in league with him
4. he is an enemy of God and goodness; he is a hater of all truth
5. he is full of hatred, envy, and revenge: for why else is he still so restless in his attempts to destroy us, who have done him no wrong
6. he is a being of great power (driving a herd of pigs down a steep bank into a lake)
7. Satan is most known for his remarkable ability to use his cleverness against mankind
1. he is not given power from God to take us by force; he is required to wait for opportunities to betray us, and to catch us by the use of deception
2. he used deceit to tempt Adam and Eve
3. he and his accomplices are described in the NT as being cunning and crafty in their deceitful ways
4. Paul says, "we are not ignorant of his devices" thereby implying, that we are in more danger of being seduced by his deception, than overpowered by his strength - II Corinthians 2:11
8. God is justified in allowing us to be tempted by Satan and his demons
1. we live on this earth in a state of disorder; which was caused by the sin of man, therefore, we are getting what sin deserves
2. God has promised us that He would not let us be tempted beyond what we can bear; and when we have withstood the test, we will receive the crown of life
3. the holy angels themselves, were once put to a test whether they would be faithful or not
4. the first Adam was tempted, even while he lived in paradise
5. Jesus Christ, the second Adam was carried into the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil
6. there is not one single saint in heaven, who was not assaulted by the fiery darts of that wicked one, when on the earth
9. we must not think that we will be exempted from the common experience of all God's children, and of the angels, and even of the Son of God Himself
1. since we can't prevent the temptations of the devil, we should not fret over our condition, but inquire as to when Satan will assault us
2. and what those schemes are, which he commonly uses, in order to "get an advantage over us"
10. as for the first question, when can we expect to be assaulted by Satan
1. we must expect to be tempted by him, in some degree or another, all of our lives, because this life is a continual warfare
2. we must never expect to have rest from our spiritual adversary the devil
3. our fight with the evil one will continue until our spirit is removed from our body and brought into the presence of our dear precious Savior Jesus Christ
4. the moment of our conversion is the most critical time at which Satan assaults us
1. if he can prevent us from getting a good start in the Christian walk, then he can lead us captive to do his will
2. when we determined in your heart to serve the Lord, be prepared for temptation from the evil one
3. some of the devices Satan uses to take advantage of Christians
1. he drive us to despair – II Cor. 2:7
1. when God awakens a sinner to the terrors of the law; Satan will strike to make the sinner doubt that he is able to receive mercy from Christ
2. Satan uses despair in the Christians life as well
1. we saw this in Satan's temptations of the Lord Jesus
2. his scheme was to make Jesus question, whether he was the Son of God (if thou be the Son of God)
3. with many despairing thoughts, Satan attempts to drive the saved person away from God
3. no one should be influenced by Satan, to despair of finding mercy
1. it is not the magnitude or number of our sins, but our unwillingness to repent of our unbelief, that will prove our ruin
2. if our sins outnumber the hairs of our head; still the merits of Jesus' death are infinitely greater
3. faith in His blood shall make them white as snow
4. we should always answer the despairing thoughts of Satan, as Jesus did, with an "It is written"
1. tell him that our Redeemer lives, and is always making intercession for us
2. though we have sinned much, that is no reason for despair, but all the more reason to love more
2. he tempt us to be proud, or to think more highly of ourselves then we should
1. Satan loves to tempt Christians to become proud
1. when a person has tasted the Word of God, and felt the powers of the world to come, he is usually thrilled with the sudden changes he finds in himself
2. then Satan will puff him up with a conceit of his own attainments as if he was some great person
3. he will tempt him to look down on his brothers and sisters in Christ, as if he was holier than they
2. we need to be careful and beware of this scheme from our spiritual adversary
1. before honor comes humility, so a proud spirit generally goes before a fall
2. God is obliged, when under such circumstances, to send us some humbling situation
3. He allowed Peter to fall into some grievous sin, that we may learn not to be egotistical
3. to help prevent spiritual pride, remember that we did not chose Christ, but we were chosen by Him
1. we have nothing but what has been given to us
2. the free grace of God alone has made the difference between us and others
3. if God was to leave us to the deceitfulness of our own hearts for even one moment, we would become weak and wicked, like other men
4. being proud of grace, is the quickest way to diminish it, for God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble
4. what our earnest prayer to Almighty God should be
1. that we may learn to have the humble heart of Jesus Christ
2. that His grace would not become our poison
3. that we may always in humility consider others better than ourselves
3. he tempts us to feel uncertain, and to doubt God when our prayers seem to go unanswered
1. God is often pleased to bestow on new Christians some extraordinary illuminations of His Holy Spirit
2. when we are more mature in Christ, then He will stretch our faith, by permitting a horrible deadness to overwhelm us
1. at times like these, Satan will try to tempt us to impatience, in order to discomfort our souls
2. this was nothing more than our blessed Redeemer has undergone for us
1. witness His bitter agony in the garden, when His soul was exceeding sorrowful, even unto death
2. when His sweat was like great drops of blood that fell on the ground
3. when the sense of His immortality was taken from Him; and Satan was permitted to pour out all his terrors upon Jesus
3. we can rejoice when we fall into similar circumstances; knowing that we are sharing in the sufferings of Jesus Christ
1. it is necessary for such inward trials to come, to wean us from an excessive love for an external means of devotion
2. to teach us to follow Christ, not merely for his loaves of bread, but out of a principle of love and obedience
3. be patient, and do not get terrified by Satan's suggestions
4. persevere by seeking Jesus even though it seems to be cold and useless at the time
5. remember that Jesus is always with us, and He will never leave us nor forsake us
6. when the trial is over, He will be made known to us again, but more sweeter than ever
4. he troubles the believer with blasphemous, impure, unbelieving thoughts
1. of all the schemes that Satan use "to get an advantage over us," there is none more successful than this
1. such evil thoughts can come from the wickedness of man's heart, but many of these wicked thoughts proceed from the wicked one
2. he has been given permission from above to test Christians, even as he did Job
3. many have felt his fiery darts, and can attest to how often he has suggested "curse God and die"
4. many have been pestered with horrid thoughts while in prayer
2. do not marvel at this, as though some strange thing was happening; for this is the common lot of all God's children
1. do not think that God will be angry because of these distracting, He knows it is not us, but Satan working on us
2. He will certainly punish Satan
3. He will both pity and reward us for not allowing the temptations to cause us to sin
3. do not be driven away from the worship service or prayer on account of those abominable thoughts; for then we let Satan gain his desired advantage over us
1. it is all part of his plan, to make us stop worshipping and praying, and to tempt us to believe that we do not please God
2. we should persevere in doing godly activities; and when these temptations have been resisted through the power of the Spirit, then God will visit us with fresh tokens of his love
5. he tempt us by our carnal friends and relatives
1. not only does Satan attack us personally, he also uses our carnal friends and relatives to tempt us
2. when he cannot prevail over us by himself, he will do what he can by the influence of others
1. Satan tempted Eve, that she might tempt Adam
2. he stirred up Job's wife, to suggest that he "Curse God and die"
3. he used Peter, to persuade our blessed Lord to spare himself the death on the cross
4. in our lives, he often stirs up our most powerful friends and dearest relatives, to persuade us not to keep walking down that narrow road, which alone leads to eternal life
3. those who are resolved to serve the Lord, prepare your souls for many such temptations as these
1. it is necessary that such attacks should come, to test your sincerity
2. to teach us to not trust man
3. to see if we will forsake everything to follow Christ
4. if we try to live godly lives in Christ Jesus, we will suffer persecution from carnal friends and relations
6. by not tempting us at all, in order to "surprise" us when we least expect it
1. this scheme is as dangerous as any of the other
1. it is said, that he left Jesus for a season
2. our blessed Lord has commanded us to always watch and pray, that we do not enter into temptation
3. this implies that Satan, whether we think he is or not, is always seeking new ways to devour us
2. if we are to be good soldiers for Jesus Christ, we must be always on our guard
1. we can never lay down our spiritual weapons of prayer and watching, till our warfare is ended by death
2. if we do, our spiritual foe will quickly prevail against us
3. if he has left us, it is only for a season
1. in a little while, like a roaring lion, he will come upon us again
2. Satan is such a evil enemy, that he seldom leaves us after the first attack; he assaulted our Lord with one temptation after another
3. the reason why he does not always renew his attacks, is because God knows our weaknesses
4. sometimes the pause come because our adversary thinks it is better to assault us at a more convenient time
4. if we do not think it is important to guard ourself against the devil, then we will cease being a friend of God
5. these are some of the devices that Satan uses "to get an advantage over us;" but no doubt there are many others as well
6. do not to be discouraged by the fiery trials that are to sure come our way, if we seek to be found faithful servants of Jesus Christ
1. we know that our way through the wilderness of this world to heaven, is beset with thorns
2. there are enemies of the cross to be grappled with, on your way to the promised land
3. do not let these discourage us from going up to fight the Lord's battles
4. say with Caleb and Joshua, "let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it
5. our glory does not consist in being exempted from temptation, but in enduring it - James 1:2
6. why should we fear, for He that is for us, is by far more powerful than all that are against us
7. let us be strong, and very courageous, and let us put on the whole armor of God, that we may be able to stand against the fiery darts of the wicked one
8. let us renounce ourselves, and the world, and then Satan will find nothing in us for his temptations to work upon