NOTES for Co2 4:14

Faith in the general resurrection appeared in the people of God not immediately. It is maybe impossible today to define the exact hour of its appearance. But we can say with certainty that one or two hundred years before even the coming of the Christ it was already spread everywhere, as well of course as in the evangelic period. But the traditional representations about the general resurrection supposed that this resurrection will become the anticipation of the last judgment and the day of the coming of the Messiah. Actually, it is in particular on the Judgment that had to be decided, who deserves to enter the Kingdom, and who is not. The apostle proposes to us another picture of the general resurrection.

As seen, he comes from the fact that the resurrection of Christ is not a certain supernatural event, exclusive in the history, that it marks by itself the beginning of another history, the history of the Kingdom entering into the world. And this whole history is the resurrection, the resurrection of those who make with the risen Christ a united spiritual whole, dwelling with Him in the same Kingdom. Here, as seen, for Paul, are bound together the history of the Kingdom and the spiritual biographies of its concrete inhabitants: every Christian passes the way of Christ, the way of the local, partial and incomplete losses, of the life for the entrance into a new life, the life of the Kingdom in all its plenitude.

And there, in the Kingdom, there’s already no historical time, such as we know it according to the not transformed world: all the resuscitated get up at the same time before Jesus, not because the time is an illusion, but because the world, becoming the Kingdom in all plenitude, meets around its center - the risen Christ, Who is the foundation of the whole history and the entire life of the Kingdom. So the triumph of Christ becomes the triumph of the Kingdom, and the triumph of the Kingdom – the triumph of everyone, which is involved there.

In its view of history, humanity has still not invented anything beyond the alternative of progressivism or catastrophism. In exactly the same way, in its view of the human being, we stand before a choice between philanthropy and misanthropy. It is not hard to be convinced that the view of history naturally correlates with the view of the human being: a misanthrope will hardly believe in progress leading to universal happiness and prosperity, while one who believes that the human being is originally good will almost certainly also believe that in the life of humanity there are no insoluble problems and that universal happiness is attainable, at least in principle.

The biblical view of history, however, is antinomic: on the one hand, the entire history of the Christian era is nothing other than the history of the advancing and ever more fully revealing Kingdom, the projection of which into the untransformed world is the history of Christian righteousness, or, as it is usually called, Christian holiness; on the other hand, the whole history of the "Christian" world is the history of that evil in which, according to the word of the Gospel, the world lies, and which manifests itself in "Christian" history. The biblical view of the human being is just as antinomic: on the one hand, the path of righteousness was open to the human being in every age, and God gave His people the Torah as a guide on this path; on the other hand, as God says through the author of the Prologue of Genesis, "every intention of the human heart is evil from his youth", and nothing can be done about this before the full transformation of human nature. Thus it turns out that the coming of the Kingdom, neither in the life of an individual person nor in the history of humanity, resembles in the least that progress of which philanthropists of all times and peoples dreamed, being sure that gradual improvements both of technology and of morals would finally bring humanity into a golden age.

On the contrary, the coming of the Kingdom presupposes the polarization of the mutually opposing forces of the Kingdom and the forces of that evil in which the world lies. This is so both in the history of humanity and in the life of an individual person. And the more such a person is rooted in the life of the Kingdom, the more noticeably that evil connected with his fallen nature manifests itself in his life, both inner and outer. As in humanity in the course of world history, it does not, of course, appear anew from nowhere and does not even increase in size; it simply becomes more noticeable, just as its opposition becomes more noticeable.

But this opposition is pushed all the more toward the "external", to the periphery of life, the more the seeker of the Kingdom is rooted in its life. Then less and less periphery remains; it gradually disappears, while there is more and more of the inner, that in which the life of the Kingdom manifests itself. Only this process cannot be completed in an untransformed world wounded by evil. It is completed in the Kingdom, and the one who does not see the Kingdom does not see its completion either. A completion that coincides with the triumph of the Kingdom and the full transformation of creation.

Continuing the discussion of the ministry of a witness, Paul especially emphasizes the need to move the listeners' focus away from the witness's personality and toward God and Christ, so that no one would attribute the power of God and the breath of the Kingdom to the witness himself as a human being (v. 7). It is from this point of view that the apostle considers the persecutions and afflictions that often fell both on him and on his companions (vv. 8-9). Of course, the witness of a true witness would not become false or less significant even if he were surrounded by honor and respect. But in that case there would always be a danger that the minds and hearts of the listeners were being influenced not so much by the witness itself as by additional factors: the force of the witness's personality, the general respect shown to him, and the pressure of public opinion.

Of course, this influence is not dangerous in itself, at least as long as it directs a person in the right direction. But under such conditions a certain kind of self-deception is always possible, when a person considers himself, at times quite sincerely, a Christian not because he seeks the Kingdom and is ready to follow Christ, but because he has fallen under the spell of a famous, respected, and perhaps truly outstanding spiritual leader. It is always psychologically harder to follow a persecuted or at least unpopular preacher, but in that case the chances are noticeably higher that the follower shares the values and convictions of his leader, rather than merely yielding to his charm, though of course there are exceptions.

But another point is important as well: witness to the Kingdom there and then, where and when there appears to be no hope not only for the triumph of the ideas the preacher defends, but even simply for a favorable outcome (vv. 10-12). In such a situation the reality of the Kingdom is either experienced with utmost clarity or, if it remains only an abstraction for the listeners, is not experienced at all. It is no accident that Paul says the death overtaking the apostle and his companions turns into the fullness of the life of Christ and the Kingdom for those to whom they testify, including the Christians of Corinth (v. 12). Nothing is so convincing as the triumph of the Kingdom revealed in the life of a persecuted witness (vv. 13-15). That is what keeps Paul from losing heart: he truly experiences this triumph during persecutions, seeing the Kingdom expand and include ever new inhabitants (vv. 16-18).

The Epistle to the Corinthians speaks not only of the danger of the Christian path but also of suffering and death, without any obvious reward. For the only motive proves to be the desire “that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh,” while “the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many.” How far this is from our usual ideas about a person's calling, about fulfillment in this life, and, finally, about glory!

What does it mean to be a perfect Christian? In the preceding chapter, Paul speaks of humanity’s new, life-giving relationship with God. What, then, becomes of the person from whose heart the veil has fallen, who gains freedom and great boldness through knowing Christ and is transformed into his image? Perhaps that person becomes a model for many to imitate and enjoys universal admiration and trust? Perhaps that person gains vitality, succeeds in everything, develops, and achieves self-realization? Perhaps that person walks confidently along life’s road, where gifts have been laid out here and there...