(remember, these are unedited/draft show notes, not a transcript — listening is always better…and if you listen AND follow along below, you’ll see how)
Focus Question:
What’s the nature of Christian argument?
Intro:
One of the things you might remember from history class is that Greeks loved ideas and even in biblical times had a centuries-long history of loving sages from Pythagoras to Plato. And in a way that might sound rather familiar, all this pursuit of knowledge and wisdom didn’t mean they didn’t also end up with a culture — such as in Corinth — of utter lasciviousness.
The tone and topic of 2 Corinthians today makes a turn. You’ll hear him responding to apparent arguments from opposers who’ve attacked his apostleship, even suggesting they were closer to Jesus. But it’s a passing reference that I want you to also hear as we go, because today our focus question is, “What’s the nature of Christian argument?”
New Testament segment:
Passage: 2 Corinthians 10
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 33
Words: ~700
Before we answer today’s focus question, “What’s the nature of Christian argument?,” let’s make sure we’re clear on this idea of argument. An argument is a line of reasoning, and this is quite different from what we often associate with the word — which we think of as being argumentative. We’re called to gentleness and respect, which is not being argumentative.
That said, how what do we know about Paul’s description of argumentation?
For although we live in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh, since the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments and every proud thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ. 2 Co 10:3-5, CSB
One, it’s not merely human, it’s spiritual battle.
Two, the opponent isn’t people, it’s ideas — or rather false and proud ones — that are counter to the knowledge of God.
Three, using the metaphor of war, Paul describes what we do and the objective.
Strongholds is an allusion to the towers or raised ramparts used in ancient battles, but here it stands for arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God. It was by the proclamation of the gospel (which involved reasoning and arguing in an effort to remove false barriers thrown up against the truth) that Paul sought to overcome people’s resistance and so to take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. The imagery here is that of a stronghold breached and those sheltering behind its walls taken captive. Paul’s purpose is not only to demolish false arguments but also to bring people’s thoughts under the lordship of Christ. (2)
Finally, there’s one other important aspect to remember, and we’ll get to that at the end of the program. Interestingly, though, as we roll into our OT segment, the context in of Jeremiah shifts to the core of the charges God’s bringing against Judah — false religion and religiosity.
OLD Testament segment:
Passage: Jeremiah 7-8:17
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 51
Words: ~1512
So just like Paul saying that what we fight is ideas that are counter, through Jeremiah God says, “They have rejected the word of the Lord, so what wisdom do they really have?” (Je 8:9a, CSB)
One more thought on this idea of right Christian argumentation after our wisdom segment.
Wisdom segment:
Passage: Psalm 130
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 8
Words: ~131
The bottom line:
In a world often overly focused on feeling, the Christianity stands in stark contrast — it’s first and foremost a knowledge tradition. As we heard in today’s NT reading, we’re reminded that
Christian ministry involves a battle for the mind. False arguments need to be demolished, so that people might yield to the truth of the gospel and find life under the lordship of Christ.(1)
What’s the nature of Christian argument? It’s both sharing truth and refuting falsehood.
Love you!
Roger
ForTheHope is a daily audio Bible + apologetics podcast and blog. We’ve got a passion for just keepin’ it real, having conversations like normal people, and living out the love of Jesus better every single day.
Roger Courville, CSP is a globally-recognized expert in digitally-extended communication and connection, an award-winning speaker, award-winning author, and a passionately bad guitarist. Follow him on Twitter -- @RogerCourville and @JoinForTheHope – or his blog: www.forthehope.org.
Sources and resources:
(2) Colin G. Kruse, “2 Corinthians,” in New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, ed. D. A. Carson et al., 4th ed. (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994), 1201.