“it’s Ok! Take The Veil Off"

Allan Kircher

Shell Point Baptist Church

Oct 26, 2014

“It’s OK! Take it off”

2 Cor. 3:12-18

2 Cor. 3:12…….

Hope makes you look:

• bold, look ridiculous to some people

• Audacious and tenacious

• Mom hang in there and pray for her kid while he’s on drugs.

• You very bold…

• 2 Cor. 3:13-18…..

• Let’s applaud God’s Word in this place today

• Not my most impressive message but the most helpful.

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2 Cor. 3 apostle Paul/sharing a rebuttal against a group/people known/super apostle

• Teachers who claimed superiority over Paul/Other apostles who ministered in the same circle as Paul

• They tried/assert/spiritual awesomeness

• set themselves apart/true spiritual guys/putting others down

2 Cor. 3 you see/human side of Paul

• He’s letting the Corinthian church know

• he’s called/chosen by God…..he’s the real deal.

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Trying show them spiritual leaders claiming epitome of perfection are false

• Problem in our culture with constant comparison.

• Paul is describing that problem

• Using a different analogy/using the analogy/veil.

Last week/Paul/Abraham/case study/Against all hope…

• Abraham/example/someone/held/his hopes us against all odds.

• Now/passage were he’s using Moses

• most revered figure/prophet/Israel’s history

• Moses who said about himself there has never been a man more humble than himself

• That not the most ultimate humble brag?

• most specific he’s talking/ot occurrence/Ex 34

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Moses/meet with God/done meeting

• transference/energy/glory from God to Moses

• so bright/radiant/brilliant/impressive/blinding

• Moses would come out of God presence/people

• put/veil so people not be blinded/glory/God

• they couldn’t handle it head on

• Sort of an act of mercy for Moses to wear this veil.

Paul says hold on “there’s always a story behind the glory.”

• v. 13….watch this church…..prevent the Israelites….

• Paul had some insider information here

• Common folklore is that Moses would wear the veil because Israelites couldn’t stand to steadily behold the glory of God.

• Paul says that was part of it

• another reason Moses would wear this veil

• he didn’t want the people to see when the glory had gone

Old covenant--law written/tablets/stone/couldn’t save you/only instruct you

• didn’t have the power to transform you…Moses knows this

• he knows/people lose their confidence in this covenant

• they won’t follow him anymore

• So he does something pretty slick…..

• he shows the encounters/God but he wears/veil

• don’t want anyone/see/glory fading away—

• Only lasts/short time.

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“It’s OK! Take it off• Paul/I’m the kind of preacher/take the veil off

• let you see my acne/skin broken out/struggles

• I’m very bold…I’m going to show you…

• I love it, he’s one upping Moses/most humble man who ever lived.

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Good advice…“never preach to people who pretend to be”

• “get behind that mask/peel it off/preach/who they really are

• pulpit is not supposed/pseudo religion

• Preachers who only preach from their strength and never from their struggle.

• Please don’t hear me talk down of other preachers

• Process I have to check myself weekly

• people thank me for the ministry of this church

• Typically don’t tell me I’m deep/impressive/funny….

• What they say/thank you for being real…

• That’s/number one thing I hear

• I receive that as a compliment.

• I don’t know any other way to be…….

• It’s too much work to be impressive

It’s the goal of my ministry to be real and genuine with you/take away the pseudo religion this pulpit.

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That’s what Paul is doing when he says 2 Cor. 3:13….

There’s a problem when you try:

• preach that way/live your life like that

• trying to present the image of perfection

• 2 Cor. 3:14…their minds were made dull/repeat

• They lost their power/perception because everything was veiled/they couldn’t see correctly.

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Take your veil off/ unveil yourself show me what it’s really like.

• Tell someone “take the veil off”/helping anyone?

We live/world/driven by/presentation/image that we have manufactured

We manipulate people into thinking were something were not.

• Were dying from the pressure from our own presentation of pseudo perfection.

• 2 Cor. 3:14 ….it has not been removed….

• Every other religious system is about a veil.

• Every other attempt to get to God is about a veil.

• A performance/perfection/presentation

• Paul says only in Christ is it taken away

• You ought to be glad for Jesus.

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He went in and torn the veil, watch this

• he went in and made access for you to get to God

• just like you are…

• broken/dysfunctional/messy/despicable as you are.

He torn/veil and now He invites you to a life beyond the veil

• Take it away

• only in Christ does this crisis management come to an end

• But he says they don’t get it. 2 Cor. 3:15