This message is a sidebar to the short series of message Pastor Matt began last week about the distinction between the church and the kingdom. In this message, we see how useful the Dispensational approach to the Bible is. It explains the differences between the church and Israel, how in earlier ages less was known about God and His ways than in our present era, how future events are going to unfold and thus how we should conduct ourselves today in light of them. Dispensationalism explains how not every promise in the Bible belongs to us today in a direct fashion, and it gives us a framework for interpreting the whole Bible, not just the parts that have to do with future events.

Paul gives the church three more reasons to accept his apostolic authority and teaching. They center on God and God’s work in Paul, not in Paul himself. He explains that God gave him a heavenly vision, that God gave him a thorn to keep him humble, and God also permitted him to exercise apostolic signs. His emphasis is on weakness because God's power is very evident in human weakness. For these reasons, the Corinthians should give Paul a good hearing.

The book of Proverbs offers us many incentives to be truthful, and to put away lying lips. The idea of "truth" in Proverbs--and all of Scripture-- is not relative to one's opinion, circumstances, or culture. Truth is what is revealed in God's Word. We learn that God delights in the truth, and so do those who are recipients of truthful speech. Truth is also irrefutable and necessary for upholding the testimony of the who are just and innocent. Truthfulness arises from a heart that is pure and undefiled. Lying, on the other hand, exposes the sinful and evil intents of the heart. Those who lie are detestable in the sight of others and will only bring shame and ruin upon themselves.