God prepared a life for me now and then

Since it is God who has prepared life at home with Him in heaven and has even given us His Spirit as a guarantee, therefore (1) we have a renewed inner self that does not lose heart in this evil age and (2) we have a faith-driven, sight-defying courage at all times. For this reason, we make it our ambition to exalt Him whether by life or by death.

Arc

2 Corinthians 4:16-5:10

esv

So we do not lose heart.

f Though our outer self 1 is wasting away,

g our inner self h is being renewed

day by day.

temporal

concessive

ground

For i this light momentary affliction

is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory

beyond all comparison,

ideaexplanation

actionresult

j as we look not to the things that are seen

but to the things that are unseen.

negativepositive

For the things that are seen are transient,

but the things that are unseen are eternal.

actionmanner

For we know that if k the tent that is l our earthly home is destroyed,

we have a building from God,

m a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

For in this tent n we groan,

longing to o put on our heavenly dwelling,

if indeed by putting it on 1

we may not be found naked.

actionpurpose

For while we are still in this tent,

we groan,

being burdened—

not that we would be unclothed,

but that we would be further clothed,

so that what is mortal p may be swallowed up by life.

series

He who has prepared us for this very thing is God,

q who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

So we are always of good courage.

We know that r while we are at home in the body

we are away from the Lord,

for s we walk by faith, not t by sight.

Yes, we are of good courage,

and we u would rather be away from the body

and at home with the Lord.

bilateral

So whether we are at home

or away,

alternative

we make it our aim to v please him.

For w we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ,

x so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

inference

Romans 8:18 James 1:2-4

Your love is better than life.. Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere. In your presence is fullness of joy

The physical body is in the process of decay and will eventually die. On the surface Paul was referring to the normal aging process, but with the added emphasis that his lifestyle sped up that process. While not an old man, Paul wore himself out in ministry, both in the effort and pace he maintained, plus the number of beatings and attacks he absorbed from his enemies

in order to not be found naked or unclothed, which likely refers to the intermediate state in which believers' spirits are with God but they do not yet enjoy their resurrected bodies.

We have a renewed inner self that does not lose heart

“The judgment seat of Christ” determines not status but reward. Christians are already delivered from “the works of the law” (Rom 3:28), or the law that requires works, through justifying faith, and they are presently committed to “work produced by faith” (1 Thess 1:3), which Christ will assess and reward at his tribunal.

Romans 14:8 Philippians 1:20-25 Romans 15:20 Colossians 1:10 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 1 Corinthians 6:20

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