Job 20:1-22:30, 2 Corinthians 1:1-11, Psalms 40:11-17, Proverbs 22:2-4
Today is the 26th day of August welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I’m Brian it’s great to be here with you today as we continue forward on our journey through the Scriptures. Our journey lately has been bringing us through the book of Job, which is what we will continue to do. And then when we get to the New Testament, we will be beginning another of Paul’s letters, and we’ll talk about that when we get there. But first, we’re reading from the New Living Translation this week. Job chapters 20, 21, and 22 today.
Introduction to second Corinthians:
Okay, so yesterday we finished the letter, known as first Corinthians, which leads us to begin today a letter from the apostle Paul known as second Corinthians. Oddly, this is probably at least Paul’s third letter to the Corinthian church. There…there is a letter in first Corinthians referred to, an earlier letter that Paul wrote that we don’t have at least now or yet. It…it’s not preserved or it hasn’t been discovered, but there is generally consensus among scholars about the authenticity of this letter written by Paul. There are certain Pauline letters that…that are disputed among scholars whether Paul actually wrote it, or whether it was like a second generation in the Pauline way of thinking. And that is vigorously debated amongst scholars. And as with a lot of things about very very ancient texts we don’t have all of the answers, but most scholars agree that Paul wrote second Corinthians, as well as first Corinthians. There is some division about whether second Corinthians is a full and complete letter or if it’s actually a combination of more than one letter, possibly two or more letters. That’s because the way that the letter begins and them the way that the letter and ends, there’s a different tone. So, there are many scholars who would argue that this is a combination of more than one letter, while others would debate, no, it’s not. And that’s the way it is when you’re trying to reconstruct and pull together everything you could possibly know about the origin and about the…the time of something being written, what was actually going on to better understand how the original readers would’ve understood the letter so that we can then look through that lens and understand, that’s probably the lens we need to look through. So, second Corinthians was probably written on Paul’s third missionary journey. That would be somewhere in the very late 50s A.D. We know that Titus, who was a son in the faith of Paul’s along with his beloved son in the faith Timothy. Titus had visited the Corinthians and met up with Paul during Paul’s travels and then he was able, Paul, was able to get a first-hand accounting on how the letter that we just read had been received in the church in Corinth, which prompted him to write this letter that we’re about to read, second Corinthians. And if we remember first Corinthians, we remember that there were some power grabs, some divisions, some things being allowed to happen in the church that probably…well…not probably…that certainly shouldn’t have been happening. So, Paul is writing in that environment to instruct about those things, while also giving instruction about questions that he had been asked. As we approach second Corinthians, we see that there are still things going on. If we remember, Corinth was a cosmopolitan area full of all kinds of ideas, a large, secularized city, a melting pot. And a number of things had found their way into the church and there was plenty of division to go around in the church. There were a group of people actually in the Corinthian church that were absolutely playing church politics in a very early sort of way, but they were attempting to gain power and they were doing this by questioning Paul’s authority over the church, questioning whether he’s really an apostle, questioning the rules that he’s putting in place, and even questioning what he’s calling the gospel. And that is the backdrop for this letter known as second Corinthians. And as we read through this we can certainly notice this is ancient this is a couple thousand years old, but it doesn’t sound all that unfamiliar. So many of the things that were going on in Corinth are going on where we live. The issues of the heart remain the same. And, so, there is much opportunity for us to open ourselves to the Holy Spirit as we read this letter and examine our own lives and examine the things that we’ve experienced and observed. And, so with that, let’s begin. Second Corinthians chapter 1 verses 1 through 11.
Prayer:
Father, we thank You for Your word and we thank You for Your Holy Spirit, who leads us into all truth and amplifies the Scriptures in our lives, changing us, transforming us as we meditate upon the Scriptures and what we’re learning. And, so, we thank You for that. We thank You for the book of Job that we are moving through and all that it brings up inside of us as we listen to Job and his friends arguing with one another and even insulting one another. We also look forward with great anticipation to this brand-new letter from the apostle Paul that we are moving into, second Corinthians. And Holy Spirit we ask that You will help us to recognize things that are still going on and to question our own involvement. We love You. It is our desire to, day by day step-by-step be transformed so that we are like You and that our thoughts and our words and our deeds honor You. Come Holy Spirit into this we pray. In the name of Jesus, we ask. Amen.
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And that’s it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.
Community Prayer and Praise:
So, this is Juan from the Philippines. I wanted to pray first for Brooke. She seems to be dealing with a lot of struggles right now with regard to her decision and with regard to moving forward. I pray that even if she feels that she’s not able to love, if she’s not able to reciprocate anyone’s love, remind her Father that Your love for her is more than enough, more than everything she needs. Please help her to feel accepted. Please help her to remember Your love for her and help her to move on, help her to continue to abide in Your love and to grow strong in You so that she will be able to love others in return. I also wanted to pray for a BJ from New York who feels like she’s stuck and she’s dealing with a lot right now. I pray that you’ll continue to remind her that Your love for her is…though she doesn’t deserve it…Your love for her is greater. Your love for her is given as a gift. Please help her to find a way out of her struggle right now and help her to trust in You to take her moment by moment through everything. Please bless them both. Bless the both of them. And pray for myself guys. Please pray for me as I study for this exam __ step two. And I pray that I’ll be able to make it on time for this year’s application cycle for medicine. Thank you.
Hey what’s up family this is Nathan from North Dakota I’ve been incarcerated for nine years now and I’ve been listening to DAB for everyday for the past two years. I want to thank Brian and his wonderful family for the Daily Audio Bible. I love you guys. This podcast has changed my life in a lot of ways. My father and I listen to it every day and it’s brought us so much closer. I’m actually asking for prayer for my…my dad. He suffers with blindness. He’s legally blind and he has diabetes. So, I just, you know, I hope he hangs in there for a while. You know, I’d also like to have some prayers for my…my three children. You know, I’ve got a son and two daughters, and I haven’t been able to embrace them for nine years now like I said and it's…it’s taken a toll on me. I just…I pray for a healthy reconciliation with them not only them but, you know, with their mother as well. I appreciate the Global Campfire and I keep all of you in my prayers. Thank you so much. I love all you man.
South Carolina Tina, longtime longtime listener and prayer warrior. Just weeping with Mario in Liberia and sending the great peace of God and love of God to surround you in you and remember that you are a lighthouse where you are, that your light is being spread everywhere you walk. And also praying for that grandmother, that you will be a light that will shine in a way that will convict her and give her the peace to deal with what she has done. And just remember that little girl is with Jesus now that will teach her and guide her in all that she is. Let your wholeness come from the light that is within you to shine brightly wherever you walk wherever you breathe in the mighty and powerful and healing of Jesus.
Hi this is New Envision girl out of New York this prayer is for Margo in Liberia. I heard your message today. I actually had to rewind just to make sure that I heard what I heard. And if it was devastating for me, I cannot imagine what you’re going through. And I just wanted you to know I’m praying for you. I also pray for our vulnerables, which are elderly people, disabled people, and babies. And I pray each and every day that God would just continue to have his angels surround them and keep them from neglect, harm, and danger. I want you to know I heard you say, you know, you just want to kind of escape. Unfortunately, as believers and as the word says I believe it’s first John 5:19 that, you know, we are surrounded by evil, that the whole world lie in wickedness. And I want you to know that that thing that harmed that baby was not of this world. That was pure evil. And, you know, I don't…and I pray that you do not feel at all guilty. And my encouraging word would just be just to know that that 4-year-old baby is with Jesus right now. Right now, I just really pray for your heart, and I pray O God that God will give you a peace that surpasses all understanding during this time and that you would be a prayer warrior for God and just against this evilness of this world. Know that I love you, that I’m praying for you, and I’m praying for all of our vulnerables.
Margo this is your sister Betty. For a moment there it was a shock. My heart is broken for you sis. And I pray the Lord will give you courage and calm your heart and just replace it with hope. I am truly sorry that this has happened to you. I cannot even begin to imagine what you’re going through on account of this child. But it is my prayer Jesus’ name, and I’m sure brothers and sisters who are listening or who heard you will pray along with me, that the Lord will keep you, give you wisdom and courage and just show you and direct you as to what to do while we continue to pray for you. And in all this know that at the very least or the very most the baby’s safe in the hands of the Lord and she’s not suffering anymore. God keep you; God bless you and God direct you. In the name of Jesus. Take courage, take courage.
He DABbers it’s Panted Deer in Michigan having a great day and I just wanted to give a piece of wisdom I heard a few years back. And a lot of the prayers seem to have a common theme, they feel people are looking back too much and I heard that if you… there’s a windshield and a rearview mirror. If you look out the windshield, that’s where you’re supposed to be looking all the time and then glance in the rearview mirror now and then to see where God brought you. So, God bless I hope that helps with anyone that it needed to today. And just have a glorious day in Jesus. Amen.