Delivered From Despair Series

DELIVERED FROM DESPAIR

II Corinthians 1:8-11

Perhaps you have endured times of troubles and trials to the point that it seemed there was no hope in sight. Maybe you have dealt with disappointment, discouragement and even doubt. You may have even reached a point where you were tempted to throw your hands up and quit. Some of you may be at such a place right now. Tragically there are many who have gone through a time of great difficulty and rather than trusting in the Lord, they gave up and walked away from Him. There is likely someone in attendance today who is standing at a crossroads. You have been fighting a certain battle for a lengthy period of time and you are tempted to give up. Perhaps Satan is whispering in your ear that you should do just that. It is important for you to realize that there is hope, even when your circumstances seem hopeless.

Our selected text tells of a time when Paul and his ministry associates faced a time of great trouble. In fact they were certain that they would soon lose their life, but God showed up and delivered them in a powerful way. As Paul recounts the trouble that they endured, we should be able to see that God is the source of our strength. If we will trust in Him, we will find that there is hope even in the midst of the greatest storms of life. I would like to examine this passage and preach on the thought "Delivered From Despair".

The Apostle Paul paints a vivid picture of the troubles that he and his associates endured as they ministered in Asia. They were burdened and overwhelmed beyond their ability to endure. Things got so intense that they thought they would never live through it; they expected to die. However, God used this time of great difficulty to perform a great work in their lives. Paul says that because of the intensity of their troubles they stopped relying on themselves and learned to rely on God. Notice v9-10 “indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again.”

God had rescued Paul from great danger in the past and he was confident that He would do it again. Because God had been faithful to deliver him from his previous troubles, Paul had learned that he could put his trust in God.

There are times in life when God allows us to go through times of difficulty and trouble; however He never does this without a purpose. One of the greatest benefits of suffering in the life of a Christian is that it serves to strengthen our faith in the Lord. It has been said that "In order to realize the worth of the anchor, one must first experience the storm”. If you are going through a storm today, take heart and realize that there is a refuge in the storm.

- As we consider the thought "Dealing With Despair" I want to examine the fact that:

I. TROUBLES WILL COME IN THIS LIFE

v8 For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia.

Paul and his associates had faced intense troubles in Asia. He doesn’t go into detail as to the source of his troubles, but he makes it clear that they were real and they were severe.

There are many who erroneously teach that if one will simply turn to Jesus, they will be immune to difficulty. Furthermore, they proclaim that if one experiences troubles and hardships it is because they have a “lack of faith”. The problem is this is not taught anywhere in the Bible. In fact, there are many scriptures that contradict this false teaching. Abraham was called to sacrifice his own son on Mt. Moriah. Moses had to deal with thousands of grumbling people who couldn’t be satisfied. Elijah was threatened by Jezebel and dealt with severe depression. David spent many days on the run while being pursued by King Saul. Daniel was cast into a den of hungry lions. Shadrack, Meshach & Abednego were bound and thrown into a fiery furnace. John the Baptist was arrested and eventually beheaded. The apostles were threatened, beaten, imprisoned, and eventually martyred for the cause of Christ.

Paul is likely the greatest Christian who has ever lived. God used him to write the majority of the New Testament. He spent his days planting churches and strengthening Christians. But he faced immense troubles as he proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He was speaking from personal experience when he told Timothy that, “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (II Timothy 3:12)