The Moment When Light Exposes the Lie

The Alarm is Sounding in the Great Basin–Our House is on Fire, and our Foundation is a Lie!

Look around you, Great Basin. From the salt flats of Utah to the Sierra Nevadas, from Nevada’s vast expanse to the high deserts of Idaho—a spiritual fire is raging, and most of us are still asleep inside. We think the fire alarm is a false signal, but the smoke is already in our lungs.

This is not a drill.

We have been building a life, a culture, a kingdom on the most toxic soil in the universe: SELF-DECEPTION. We’ve wrapped ourselves in the comfortable lie of self-sufficiency, self-righteousness, and self-made success, believing the whispers that say "I am enough, my way is the truth, and my morality will save me."

We have become the god of our own small world (empire), as the world as we know it is collapsing around us–yet we do not see it.

The air we breathe is the suffocating darkness of a self-serving lifestyle that never considers sin, never demands surrender, and promises peace where there is none.

WE CAN DO NOTHING APART FROM CHRIST. NOTHING. It will all burn. Soon.

I’m not here to negotiate. I’m here to tell you the roof is on fire and it is caving in. I’m ripping open the door, and I’m shouting over the roar of the flames: GET OUT!

To every soul in this region—every man, woman, and child: the time for hiding in the shame of your secret compromises is over. Today I aim to drive the Sword of the Spirit, the Truth, straight into the heart of that terminal, blinding lie called SELF.

This is our moment to choose.

You are invited, right now, out of the darkness and into HIS LIGHT. Not the light of a new program, a better self-help strategy, or a more polished religious mask—but the glorious, terrifying, life-giving light of Christ Jesus the LORD.

Stop building your own tomb.

He has torn down the wall of shame and paid the full price of your lie.

Wake up. Repent. Surrender.

The glory of God is waiting to be revealed in the ash of your ruined self-built kingdom. Step out of the fire and into the only reality that will never perish: The Lordship of Jesus Christ.

A Call to Those Who Feel Stuck

This is an invitation to every soul building their empire built upon the foundation of SELF, to every heart deceived by the god of this age, to every church member who has grown cold and is dead while claiming to be alive—this is our wake-up call before the final trumpet sounds.

Unearthing the Hidden Things of Shame

We begin our dig in the dirt of human deception, where shame hides what truth would expose.

2 Corinthians 4:1-2 “Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.”

Notice the foundation: mercy. We stand here not because we deserve to, but because of His great mercies—His compassion that doesn’t give us what we deserve, His grace that gives us what we could never earn.

And what does mercy compel us to do? Renounce the hidden things of shame.

Let’s dig into what this means. Shame is the condition of being fatherless, nameless, purposeless—abandoned, lost, with no future and no identity. Shame says, “You don’t belong. You have no family. No one claims you. You’re on your own.” Shame is the orphan spirit that makes you hide, cover yourself, live in darkness because you believe the lie that you’re unworthy of the light.

But here’s the archaeological discovery that changes everything: There is no shame in Christ.

Romans 10:11 “For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.’”

When you’re in Christ, you have a Father. You have a name. You have a purpose. You have an eternal future. You belong to the family of God. You are adopted, chosen, beloved, accepted in the Beloved. Shame has no power over you anymore because you’re no longer fatherless—you’re a son or daughter of the Most High God.

So what are these “hidden things of shame”? They’re the secret sins, the private compromises, the darkness we carefully conceal, the image we project that doesn’t match the reality of our hearts. They’re the strategies we use to manipulate people, the craftiness we employ to get what we want, the deceitful handling of God’s Word to build our own kingdoms instead of His.

And mercy says: Renounce them. Bring them into the light. Stop hiding.

Why? Because you can. Because in Christ, there’s no condemnation. Because the truth has set you free. Because shame has no claim on you anymore.

Ephesians 5:11-13 “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light.”

The way we fight darkness isn’t by whispering about it in hushed tones. It’s by exposing it to light. Light reveals. Light manifests. Light shows things for what they really are.

And that’s our job: to shine the light of truth wherever we go.

The Blinding Work of the God of This Age

Now we dig deeper and uncover the most critical verse in this entire chapter—the verse that explains why so many people can hear the Gospel and still reject it, why truth can be proclaimed and still be ignored, why light can shine and people still choose darkness.

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 “But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.”

Let’s excavate this carefully, because every word matters.

“If our gospel is veiled…” Not everyone receives the truth. Not everyone believes. The Gospel is veiled—hidden, obscured, covered—to some people.

”…to those who are perishing…” These aren’t just unbelievers in general. These are people in active rebellion, people on the path to destruction, people who have heard the truth and rejected it.

”…whose minds the god of this age has blinded…” Here’s the shocking revelation: there is a “god of this age.” Not the true God, but a false god—a pretender, a usurper, a deceiver. The Bible calls him by many names: Satan, the devil, the serpent, the dragon, the accuser, the adversary, the prince of the power of the air, Beelzebub, the father of lies.

And what has this false god done? He has blinded their minds.

This isn’t physical blindness. This is spiritual, mental, intellectual blindness. It’s the inability to see truth even when it’s right in front of you. It’s the darkness that looks at light and calls it darkness. It’s the delusion that hears the Gospel and dismisses it as foolishness.

”…who do not believe…” The result of this blinding is unbelief. Not “cannot believe” in the sense that they’re incapable, but “do not believe” in the sense that they refuse, they reject, they turn away.

”…lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.” And here’s why Satan blinds them: because if they saw the light—if they truly comprehended the glory of Christ—they would be saved. So the enemy keeps them in darkness, keeps them blind, keeps them from seeing what would set them free.

Pay attention to what the light is: the gospel of the glory of Christ.

Not just the gospel. Not just information about Jesus. But the glory—the radiant, magnificent, overwhelming, irresistible beauty and goodness and power of Christ Himself, who is the image of God.

Colossians 1:15 “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”

Jesus isn’t just a good teacher or a moral example or a religious figure. He is the image of God—the exact representation, the perfect revelation, the visible manifestation of the invisible God. To see Jesus is to see the Father. To know Jesus is to know God.

And the devil hates this. He hates the truth about Jesus. He hates the glory of Christ. He hates the Gospel. So he blinds minds, distorts truth, spreads lies, creates delusions—anything to keep people from seeing the light.

The Father of Lies and His Domain

Let’s dig deeper into the character and methods of this “god of this age” so we can recognize his work and resist it.

John 8:44 “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.”

Satan is the father of lies. Not just a liar, but the originator, the source, the keeper of all lies. Every deception, every distortion, every trick, every false teaching, every heresy, every delusion—it all traces back to him.

He doesn’t have any truth in him. He can’t speak truth because truth isn’t in his nature. When he opens his mouth, lies come out. That’s who he is.

And notice where he operates: in the darkness.

John 3:19-20 “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.”

Darkness is the domain of evil. People who love sin, who practice wickedness, who embrace lawlessness—they hate the light because light exposes what they want to keep hidden. They prefer the darkness because in darkness, they can continue their evil deeds without being seen.

Satan loves lawlessness because lawlessness is rebellion against God’s order, God’s truth, God’s authority. He hates truth because truth exposes his lies. So he slithers and sinks into the darkness where he resides, unable to come out into the light.

1 John 1:5-6 “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.”

You can’t walk in darkness and claim to be walking with God. You can’t love lies and claim to love truth. You can’t serve Satan and serve Jesus. You can’t build a kingdom of self and claim to be building the Kingdom of God.

The two are incompatible. Mutually exclusive. Completely opposed.

The Great Deception and the Deluding Influence

Now we must excavate one of the most terrifying passages in all of Scripture—a passage that reveals what happens to those who persistently reject truth and embrace lies.

2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 “The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

Read that again slowly. Let the weight of it sink in.

There is coming a time—many believe we’re approaching it now—when Satan’s final masterpiece of deception will appear on earth. The lawless one. The Antichrist. The man of sin. He will come with power, signs, and lying wonders. Supernatural manifestations. Miracles. Deceptions so convincing that if it were possible, even the elect would be deceived.

And who will fall for this deception? “Those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth.”

Notice it doesn’t just say “those who didn’t know the truth” or “those who never heard the truth.” It says those who did not receive the love of the truth. They heard it. They were exposed to it. But they didn’t love it. They didn’t embrace it. They didn’t welcome it into their hearts.

Why? Because they loved something else more. They loved their sin. They loved their self-built empires. They loved their money, their comfort, their reputation, their power. They had pleasure in unrighteousness.

And here’s the shocking part: God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie.

God Himself—not just Satan—will send a deluding influence. Why? As judgment. As giving them over to what they’ve already chosen. As letting them have what they really want. They rejected truth, so God gives them lies. They chose delusion, so God confirms them in it.

This is the ultimate hardening. The final blindness. The point of no return.

Romans 1:28 “And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting.”

When people persistently reject truth, God eventually gives them over to the lies they prefer. He lets them go. He stops striving with them. He confirms them in their delusion.

This is happening right now in our churches. In our culture. In our world.

The Wake-Up Call to the Sleeping Church

Now we must turn our archaeological tools toward the most uncomfortable target: the church itself.

Not the true Church—the Body of Christ, the Bride, the remnant of faithful believers who genuinely know Jesus and walk with Him. But the institutional church, the religious system, the dead, decaying mega-churches that have a form of godliness but deny its power.

Revelation 3:1-3 “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write, ‘These things says He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars: “I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die, for I have not found your works perfect before God. Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.”’”

Jesus speaks to a church that has a name that it’s alive. It has a reputation. It’s well-known. It’s respected. People think it’s thriving.

But Jesus says: “You are dead.”

This is the condition of much of the Western church today. Huge buildings. Big budgets. Impressive programs. Entertaining services. Charismatic speakers. Emotional worship experiences.

But dead.

Why? Because they’ve built empires of self instead of the Kingdom of God. They’ve made Christianity about personal success, prosperity, comfort, and happiness instead of about the cross, death to self, surrender, and the glory of God.

They preach a gospel that never mentions sin, never calls for repentance, never demands surrender to Jesus as Lord. They preach a Jesus who exists to serve their needs, fulfill their desires, bless their plans—a Jesus who is essentially a cosmic butler or a divine vending machine.

This is another Jesus (2 Corinthians 11:4). This is another gospel (Galatians 1:6-9). This is the wide road that leads to destruction that many are traveling (Matthew 7:13-14).

And the most dangerous part? They think they’re alive. They think they’re saved. They think they’re following Jesus. But they’re following a false Christ, believing a false gospel, walking in delusion.

Matthew 7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’”

Many. Not a few. Not a handful. Many will stand before Jesus thinking they’re His followers, pointing to their religious activities, their miracles, their ministries—and He will say, “I never knew you.”

This should terrify anyone who names the name of Christ. This should cause every believer to examine themselves. This should wake up every sleeping church member who’s coasting on a false assurance based on a decision they made years ago without ever truly surrendering to Jesus as Lord.

The True Gospel—Jesus Is Lord

Now let’s excavate what Paul actually preached—the true Gospel that saves, that transforms, that brings people from death to life.

2 Corinthians 4:5 “For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake.”

Notice what Paul preached: Christ Jesus the Lord.

Not Christ Jesus the Helper. Not Christ Jesus the Life-Coach. Not Christ Jesus the Blessing-Dispenser. Christ Jesus the LORD.

Lord means Master. Ruler. King. Sovereign. Owner. Commander. The One who has absolute authority and absolute rights over your life.

Romans 10:9 “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Salvation requires confessing Jesus as Lord—not just as Savior, but as Lord. Not just believing He died for you, but surrendering to His authority over you.

Acts 2:36 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

Peter preached Jesus as Lord. Paul preached Jesus as Lord. The apostles everywhere preached Jesus as Lord.

This is the Gospel: Jesus is Lord of all. Lord of heaven and earth. King of kings. Lord of lords.

And the proper response to this Gospel is not to add Jesus to your life as one more thing among many. It’s to surrender your entire life to His lordship. It’s to die to self. It’s to take up your cross. It’s to follow Him wherever He leads, whatever it costs.

Luke 14:33 “So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.”

Luke 9:23 “Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.’”

This is the Gospel the modern church has forgotten. This is the message that’s been watered down, diluted, compromised, and perverted into something unrecognizable.

And this is why so many churches are dead while thinking they’re alive. They’ve preached a false gospel that requires no repentance, no surrender, no death to self, no cross-carrying, no lordship—just an intellectual agreement with some facts and a prayer you prayed once.

That’s not the Gospel. That’s a lie.

The Treasure in Earthen Vessels

Now we dig into the mystery of how God’s glory works through broken, weak, ordinary human beings.

2 Corinthians 4:6-7 “For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.”

The same God who spoke light into existence at creation—who said “Let there be light” and light was—has shone in our hearts.

Why? To give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

This is what we have. This is what’s been given to us. Not just information about God. Not just doctrinal knowledge. But light—living, radiant, truth-revealing light. The knowledge of God’s glory. The sight of Christ’s face.

We have seen Him. We know Him. We have beheld His glory. And that light has shone in our hearts, illuminating us from the inside out.

But here’s the mystery: this infinite, priceless, glorious treasure is contained in earthen vessels. Clay pots. Fragile, breakable, ordinary, weak human bodies.

Why?

“That the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.”

God deliberately chooses weak, broken, ordinary people to contain His extraordinary glory so that no one can mistake the source of the power. When people see a broken pot shining with divine light, they know the light isn’t coming from the pot. It’s coming from God.

1 Corinthians 1:27-29 “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence.”

This is why God doesn’t use the self-made, the self-sufficient, the self-confident. They would take credit. They would boast. They would point to themselves.

Instead, God uses the broken, the weak, the foolish, the despised—so that when His power flows through them, everyone knows it’s His power, not theirs.

Afflicted but Not Crushed—The Paradox of Power in Weakness

Now Paul describes what it actually looks like to be a clay pot containing the treasure of God’s glory.

2 Corinthians 4:8-9 “We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.”

This isn’t the victorious Christian life that the prosperity preachers describe. This isn’t health, wealth, and happiness. This isn’t ease, comfort, and success.

This is affliction on every side.

- Hard-pressed—under pressure, squeezed, stressed from all directions

- Perplexed—confused, uncertain, not knowing what to do next

- Persecuted—actively opposed, attacked, hunted by enemies

- Struck down—knocked down, beaten, overwhelmed

But notice the second half of each statement:

- Not crushed—the pressure doesn’t destroy us

- Not in despair—the confusion doesn’t lead to hopelessness

- Not forsaken—God doesn’t abandon us in the persecution

- Not destroyed—we get back up after being knocked down

Why the difference? The grace of God keeps us.

John 10:28-29 “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.”

Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:38-39). We’re held in the Father’s hand and the Son’s hand. The Trinity intercedes for us. The Holy Spirit seals us. We cannot be lost.

Not because of our strength, but because of His keeping power.

1 Peter 1:5 “Who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

We are kept. Not by our power, but by God’s power. Through faith—which is itself a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8).

Carrying the Dying of Jesus So His Life May Be Revealed

Now we dig into the purpose of suffering—why God allows His children to be afflicted, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down.

2 Corinthians 4:10-11 “Always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”

We carry the dying of Jesus in our bodies.

What does this mean? It means we follow the pattern of Jesus—the way of the cross, the path of death to self, the road of suffering that leads to glory. We die daily (1 Corinthians 15:31). We take up our cross (Luke 9:23). We’re crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20).

But why?

“That the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.”

Death produces life. Suffering produces glory. Weakness produces power. Brokenness produces beauty.

When people see you carrying the dying of Jesus—when they watch you suffer with faith, endure with hope, love your enemies, forgive those who hurt you, rejoice in tribulation, give thanks in all circumstances—they don’t see your strength. They see His life in you.

BE REVEALED IN OUR BODY.

This is the goal. This is what we’re waiting for. Not just to be glorified at the Rapture—though that’s coming—but to have the life of Jesus revealed in our mortal flesh right now.

This is Romans 8:18-19 in action:

Romans 8:18-19 “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.”

Creation is waiting for us to be revealed—for the world to see who we really are, what we really have, whose we really are. And that revealing happens through suffering.

“For we who live are constantly being handed over to death for Jesus’ sake.”

This isn’t passive suffering. This is active surrender. We’re handed over to death—to crucifixion experiences, to trials, to persecution, to affliction—for Jesus’ sake.

Why? So that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our mortal flesh.

And here’s the beautiful result:

2 Corinthians 4:12 “So then death is working in us, but life in you.”

When death works in us—when we die to self, when we suffer, when we’re afflicted—life works in others. They see His glory shining through our weakness. They see His power sustaining us in impossibility. They see His peace in our storms, His joy in our sorrows, His love in our sacrifice.

And they want what we have. They’re drawn to the light. They come out of darkness. They believe.

This is how the Gospel spreads. Not through slick marketing or entertaining programs, but through the manifestation of Christ’s life in weak, broken, surrendered vessels.

The Same Spirit of Faith

2 Corinthians 4:13-14 “And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, ‘I believed and therefore I spoke,’ we also believe and therefore speak, knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you.”

We have the same spirit of faith that Jesus has. Not our own faith. Not faith we generated or manufactured or worked up. His faith, given to us as a gift of grace.

Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”

The faith we live by is the faith of the Son of God. It’s His faith working in us and through us.

And what does this faith do? It speaks. “I believed and therefore I spoke.”

Faith can’t stay silent. When you truly believe something, you talk about it. When you’ve truly encountered Jesus, you testify. When you’ve truly been transformed by grace, you proclaim it.

This is the antidote to the silent church, the invisible Christianity, the secret discipleship that’s afraid to be identified with Jesus. True faith speaks.

And what do we know that gives us confidence to speak? That He who raised Jesus will also raise us.

We’re not afraid of death. We’re not intimidated by persecution. We’re not silenced by threats. Why? Because death has been defeated. The grave has been conquered. Resurrection is coming.

We will be raised. We will be presented with Jesus. We will receive our glorified bodies. This is certain, guaranteed, sealed.

So we speak. We proclaim. We testify. We preach Jesus as Lord.

Grace Spreading to Produce Thanksgiving

2 Corinthians 4:15 “For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.”

Everything we suffer—all the affliction, perplexity, persecution, and being struck down—it’s all for your sakes. For the sake of others. For the sake of the Gospel spreading. For the sake of more people being saved.

The goal? That grace, having spread to more and more people, will cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.

Grace spreads. It moves from person to person like light spreading through darkness. One person encounters grace, believes, is transformed, and then becomes a vessel through which grace spreads to others.

And as grace spreads, thanksgiving abounds. People who were once dead become alive and burst into praise. People who were once blind see and give glory to God. People who were once slaves to sin are set free and overflow with gratitude.

And all of it—all the grace, all the thanksgiving, all the transformation—brings glory to God.

Not glory to us. Not glory to our ministries or our churches or our programs. Glory to God alone.

Ephesians 1:3-6 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.”

Everything—from election to predestination to adoption to acceptance—is designed to the praise of the glory of His grace.

This is the goal of all things. The glory of God. The display of His grace. The manifestation of His goodness.

Therefore We Do Not Lose Heart

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

Therefore we do not lose heart.

Despite the affliction. Despite the persecution. Despite being struck down. Despite the dying of our physical bodies.

We do not lose heart.

Why? Because of perspective. Because we see what others don’t see.

“Even though our outward man is perishing…” Yes, the body is dying. We’re aging. We’re breaking down. We’re mortal and fragile and weak.

”…yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.” But inside, where it really matters, we’re being renewed. Refreshed. Strengthened. Transformed. Every single day, the Holy Spirit is doing His sanctifying work, conforming us more and more to the image of Christ.

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment…”

Did Paul just call his afflictions “light”? The man who was stoned, beaten with rods, shipwrecked, imprisoned, hungry, thirsty, cold, naked, and in constant danger (2 Corinthians 11:23-28)—he calls this “light affliction”?

Yes. Compared to the glory that’s coming, it’s light. Compared to eternity, it’s momentary. Compared to the weight of glory waiting for us, it’s insignificant.

”…is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory…”

The affliction isn’t pointless. It’s working. Producing. Accomplishing. Creating something.

What? An eternal weight of glory.

Not just glory, but exceeding glory. Not just exceeding, but far more exceeding. Not just glory, but eternal glory. Not just glory, but a weight of glory—something substantial, heavy, real, permanent.

And how do we access this perspective?

”…while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen.”

This is the secret. This is how we don’t lose heart. We look at the right things.

Not at the circumstances. Not at the suffering. Not at the mortality. Not at the temporary.

We look at the things which are not seen. The eternal realities. The spiritual truths. The promises of God. The glory that’s coming. The inheritance that’s waiting. The transformation that’s guaranteed.

“For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

Everything you can see with your physical eyes is temporary. Your body—temporary. Your circumstances—temporary. Your afflictions—temporary. Your bank account, your house, your car, your reputation, your success—all temporary.

But the things you can’t see? Those are eternal.

Your justification. Your adoption. Your sealing. Your glorification. Your inheritance. Your mansion in heaven. Your resurrection body. Your eternal life with Jesus. Your reward. Your crown.

Those are eternal. Those are real. Those are what matter.

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