Chapter 3

2 Corinthians: Chapters -1- -2- -3- -4- -5- -6- -7- -8- -9- -10- -11- -12- -13-

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3:1 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of reference to you or from you? 2 You are our letter, having been written inside our hearts, being known and read by all humans. • 3 It is fully made visible that you ARE a letter of Christ, with us under your service, having already been written, not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God – not on tablets of stone, but inside tablets of hearts of flesh [c].

4 Moreover, we have such confidence through Christ towards God [connecting always with God], • 5 not that we are sufficient out from ourselves, to reckon anything as out of ourselves, but our sufficiency is always out from God, 6 who also has made us sufficient servants of a New Covenant, • not of letter, but of Spirit; indeed, letter kills, but Spirit gives life.

• 7 Now, if the ministry of death, which was engraved as letters on stones but is now abolished and rendered inoperative, if that ministry came into being inside of glory, to the extent that the sons of Israel were unable to look intently into the face of Moses, because of the glory of his face, 8 how much more will the ministry of the Spirit be inside of glory? 9 For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, the ministry of just innocence abounds in glory much more. 10 Since that former glory was not glorious in this respect, that there is a glory far beyond it. 11 For if that which is abolished and rendered inoperative came through glory, then that which abides and remains is much more inside of glory!

12 Therefore, having such hope, we make use of great boldness of speaking, 13 not as Moses did, who put a veil upon his face so that the children of Israel could not look intently at the end result of that which is abolished and rendered inoperative. • 14 Their minds were hardened, for until the present day, the same veil remains unlifted upon the reading of the old covenant, which veil itself is abolished and rendered inoperative inside of Christ. 15 But unto this day, when Moses is read, a veil is set upon their heart. • 16 However, whenever anyone turns towards the Lord, the veil is stripped away.

• 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. • 18 Having the glory of the Lord unveiled upon our faces, we all are reflecting [c] the same image [to one another] as a mirror • and are being metamorphosed from glory into glory, that is, as from the Spirit of the Lord.

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Gospel Word	Notes
• Ruling Verse 1: God has already symmorphosed us with the Lord Jesus, sharing the same form with Him as the image and revelation of the Father. 2 Corinthians 3:3 is a critical view of how He has done this, His Word written upon our hearts, His Pro-Thesis by which we are made just like Jesus. • Covenant: Our hearts are the actual New Covenant, for in sending Christ Jesus into us, God has already written every Word that He speaks upon our human hearts of flesh. Our hearts are the living Bible, and every Word written there is already fulfilled for Jesus is already triumphant. • Life: The Lord Jesus is our Source, for we are always coming out from His good-speaking. He sustains and carries us by His power-filled Word (see Hebrews 1:3). God is Word; He speaks His Words, the Lord Jesus, and we become. This Flow through Jesus is our Life, for now every Word that God speaks is inscribed all through every pathway of our hearts. • Ruling Verse 2: We have this Treasure, filled with all the fulness of God, in vessels of weakness. God is our sufficiency; God is enough for us. • Definition: The Spirit of the Word is that which receives the words of our Bibles as the Lord Jesus entering into us, living and energeoing (see Hebrews 4:12), and written upon our hearts as the Bond of our connection with God. The “letter of the word” is akin to “Did God indeed say” (see Genesis 3:1), thus turning the words of our Bibles into ideas for our intellects, under our own control, that is, death. • Definition: The ten commandments are death to us, for they place the word outside of our hearts, making it word under our own control. “I believe this, you believe that.” God has abolished and rendered inoperative that ministry of death towards us, yet it retains a “glory” of self some still pursue. • Speak Christ: Our response to the Word God speaks is Mary’s response. “Let it be to me according to [what You mean by] Your Word.” When we receive the Word as the Lord Jesus written upon our hearts, rather than as ideas for our minds, we become just like Jesus (see 2 Cor. 3:18 & John 1:12-13). • Definition: The Law of Liberty is the freedom to be what we are, just like Jesus, with no need to pretend (see James 1:24-25), that is, no attachment to anything else. We know this liberty inside the Spirit, for as we are led by the Spirit now part of us, we know NO shadow of violence or force. • Ruling Verse 1: God has already symmorphosed us with the Lord Jesus, sharing the same form with Him as the image and revelation of the Father. 2 Corinthians 3:18 adds “continuous and ongoing” to “already done,” and 1 John 3:2 adds “always will be.” These three tenses are Jesus to us forever. • Covenant: Christ Jesus is written as every Word God speaks upon our hearts of flesh. We look upon Him, both inside ourselves and on each other’s faces. As we do so, we are always being metamorphosed into His same image. God has sworn, what Jesus IS – we become, the Covenant. • Definition: Glory means two different but related things. It means one’s deepest desire, and it means one’s greatest achievement. God’s deepest Desire is to be known by all – through us as His image, and His greatest achievement is to make us to be just like the Lord Jesus Christ. • Kingdom: Covenant is substance; Kingdom is appearance. To be God’s image is to be His appearance inside of creation, the Kingdom, God free to be Himself among all.	c. The Greek word is “reflecting,” not “beholding.” Consider carefully this wording of verse 18 in the JSV, for it is in harmony with all that Paul is saying.

Gospel Word

Notes

• Ruling Verse 1: God has already symmorphosed us with the Lord Jesus, sharing the same form with Him as the image and revelation of the Father. 2 Corinthians 3:3 is a critical view of how He has done this, His Word written upon our hearts, His Pro-Thesis by which we are made just like Jesus.

• Covenant: Our hearts are the actual New Covenant, for in sending Christ Jesus into us, God has already written every Word that He speaks upon our human hearts of flesh. Our hearts are the living Bible, and every Word written there is already fulfilled for Jesus is already triumphant.

• Life: The Lord Jesus is our Source, for we are always coming out from His good-speaking. He sustains and carries us by His power-filled Word (see Hebrews 1:3). God is Word; He speaks His Words, the Lord Jesus, and we become. This Flow through Jesus is our Life, for now every Word that God speaks is inscribed all through every pathway of our hearts.

• Ruling Verse 2: We have this Treasure, filled with all the fulness of God, in vessels of weakness. God is our sufficiency; God is enough for us.

• Definition: The Spirit of the Word is that which receives the words of our Bibles as the Lord Jesus entering into us, living and energeoing (see Hebrews 4:12), and written upon our hearts as the Bond of our connection with God. The “letter of the word” is akin to “Did God indeed say” (see Genesis 3:1), thus turning the words of our Bibles into ideas for our intellects, under our own control, that is, death.

• Definition: The ten commandments are death to us, for they place the word outside of our hearts, making it word under our own control. “I believe this, you believe that.” God has abolished and rendered inoperative that ministry of death towards us, yet it retains a “glory” of self some still pursue.

• Speak Christ: Our response to the Word God speaks is Mary’s response. “Let it be to me according to [what You mean by] Your Word.” When we receive the Word as the Lord Jesus written upon our hearts, rather than as ideas for our minds, we become just like Jesus (see 2 Cor. 3:18 & John 1:12-13).

• Definition: The Law of Liberty is the freedom to be what we are, just like Jesus, with no need to pretend (see James 1:24-25), that is, no attachment to anything else. We know this liberty inside the Spirit, for as we are led by the Spirit now part of us, we know NO shadow of violence or force.

• Ruling Verse 1: God has already symmorphosed us with the Lord Jesus, sharing the same form with Him as the image and revelation of the Father. 2 Corinthians 3:18 adds “continuous and ongoing” to “already done,” and 1 John 3:2 adds “always will be.” These three tenses are Jesus to us forever.

• Covenant: Christ Jesus is written as every Word God speaks upon our hearts of flesh. We look upon Him, both inside ourselves and on each other’s faces. As we do so, we are always being metamorphosed into His same image. God has sworn, what Jesus IS – we become, the Covenant.

• Definition: Glory means two different but related things. It means one’s deepest desire, and it means one’s greatest achievement. God’s deepest Desire is to be known by all – through us as His image, and His greatest achievement is to make us to be just like the Lord Jesus Christ.

• Kingdom: Covenant is substance; Kingdom is appearance. To be God’s image is to be His appearance inside of creation, the Kingdom, God free to be Himself among all.

c. The Greek word is “reflecting,” not “beholding.” Consider carefully this wording of verse 18 in the JSV, for it is in harmony with all that Paul is saying.