Some Christians view the ministry of the Spirit primarily as a ministry of the Spirit as power. They expect that when they speak in the power of the Spirit, a large number of people will be gained for the Lord. But the ministry of the Spirit in 2 Corinthians 3 is a ministry of the Spirit as life and life supply. My ground for saying this is found in verse 6, where Paul says that God “made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant, not of letter, but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” Here Paul does not say that the Spirit gives power, performs miracles, or imparts gifts. He declares that the Spirit gives life. Elsewhere in this chapter the Spirit is also related to life, not to power, gifts, or miracles.
This understanding of the Spirit as the life supply is confirmed by Paul’s word in Philippians 1:19: “For I know that for me this shall turn out to salvation through your petition and the bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” In this verse Paul does not speak of the bountiful power or the bountiful ability. Rather, he speaks of the bountiful supply of the Spirit.
I emphasize this point because many Christians have a mistaken concept of the Spirit and think of the Spirit mainly as a source of power, ability, or impact. For example, some groups stress the matter of what is called being “slain in the Spirit.” One woman was especially well known in this matter. Is that the Spirit as the life supply? Certainly not.
Not long after I began to minister in this country in 1962, I was invited to speak to a Christian group in San Diego. Some of the people there encouraged me to go to a certain place in Texas where many miraculous things were supposedly happening. The claim was made that, in a miraculous way, someone’s teeth had been filled with gold and that others attending the meeting even smelled the gold. However, when I questioned them, they were not able to confirm that report. Furthermore, I told them that if such a thing actually happened, it would be reported in the newspapers. I went on to say that if our God wanted to fill our teeth, why would He simply not recover them in a proper way instead of using gold? Our God certainly would never heal someone’s teeth by filling them with gold. Do not listen to such false reports.
In 2 Corinthians Paul does not speak of gifts or miracles, but he does say that the Spirit gives life. In 1 Corinthians Paul mentions tongue-speaking, for example, with the intention of limiting this practice in the church meetings. But in 2 Corinthians he does not say a word about speaking in tongues. The emphasis in this book is on the Spirit as the life supply. The ministry of the new covenant is a matter of the Spirit as the supply inwardly and of righteousness as God’s expression outwardly.
In 2 Corinthians 3:8 Paul speaks of the ministry of the Spirit, and in verse 9, of the ministry of righteousness. We may understand what the ministry of the Spirit is, but what is the ministry of righteousness? Do you know what Paul means by this? Years ago, I could not understand what Paul meant by the ministry of righteousness. I thought that by the ministry of righteousness he meant the ministry of justification, since in this chapter there seems to be a comparison between condemnation and justification, which is the opposite of condemnation. But instead of justification, Paul here speaks of righteousness. If he had said that the new covenant ministry was a ministry of justification, it would be easy to understand his meaning. We would immediately see that the ministry of the law was to condemn: that is the ministry of condemnation. But the new covenant ministry is to justify people: this is the ministry of justification. Since Paul in 2 Corinthians 3 says that the new covenant ministry is a ministry of righteousness, not a ministry of justification, we must try to understand his meaning. To be sure, it is a very significant matter that the ministry of the new covenant is a ministry of the Spirit and of righteousness.
If we would understand what the ministry of righteousness is, we must first have a proper understanding of righteousness. Righteousness is a matter of being right. When we have the Spirit living, moving, and acting within us in a way that is real and substantial, we are automatically right with God, with others, and with ourselves. This understanding of righteousness is correct, but it is not adequate. Hence, we must go on to see something further regarding righteousness.