NOTES for Co2 4:17-18

Apostle Paul speaks about "light afflictions" whereas he underwent in reality very heavy trials, few people can undergo such trials. He himself explains what’s the matter here, saying that he sees his afflictions transformed. The apostle sees them already finished, sees how their fruit is- the glory, sees them from the point of view of eternity, because now already - God sees our afflictions - when it is painful and it seems this will never end.

It will finish, and will be taken on in glory, quite as the Cross of the Christ ends with the Resurrection. And we already can approach today such a vision, if we look not "at the things which are seen, but which are not seen ".

We can look at things which are not seen only by faith, which Apostle Paul defines as "evidence of things not seen" (Heb. 11:1: "faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. ").

Faith relieves our afflictions and all that our life consists of. Only by faith, looking at things not seen, that is keeping in our heart, as the greatest jewel trust in God - the Creator, Curator of everything on earth and the Redeemer, that we become sighted, capable of seeing the meaning of our afflictions, and our enjoyments.

Only by faith we can get up until the height of the Divine intention and God’s way of dispensation, up to the firm, solid support, which is not exposed to time, does not disappear, does not change, does not deceive, because this is God.

Apostle Paul speaks about "light afflictions" whereas he underwent in reality very heavy trials, few people can undergo such trials. He himself explains what’s the matter here, saying that he sees his afflictions transformed. The apostle sees them already finished, sees how their fruit is- the glory, sees them from the point of view of eternity, because now already - God sees our afflictions - when it is painful and it seems this will never end.

It will finish, and will be taken on in glory, quite as the Cross of the Christ ends with the Resurrection. And we already can approach today such a vision, if we look not "at the things which are seen, but which are not seen ".

We can look at things which are not seen only by faith, which Apostle Paul defines as "evidence of things not seen" (Heb. 11:1: "faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. ").

Faith relieves our afflictions and all that our life consists of. Only by faith, looking at things not seen, that is keeping in our heart, as the greatest jewel trust in God - the Creator, Curator of everything on earth and the Redeemer, that we become sighted, capable of seeing the meaning of our afflictions, and our enjoyments.

Only by faith we can get up until the height of the Divine intention and God’s way of dispensation, up to the firm, solid support, which is not exposed to time, does not disappear, does not change, does not deceive, because this is God.

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).

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...