2 Corinthians 1 - The Ultimate Guarantee of Our Inheritance!
Overview of 2 Corinthians - Charles Swindoll Insight for Living
Paul wrote 2 Corinthians at a vulnerable time in his life. He had learned that the church at Corinth was struggling, and he sought to take action to preserve the unity of that local body of believers. The letter is riddled with personal comments as Paul revealed details about the persecution he had suffered for the sake of Christ as well as about a mysterious thorn in the flesh that kept him reliant on God.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the church of God in Corinth, together with all his holy people throughout Achaia: 2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul gives his standard greeting and adds that this letter also comes from Timothy. This is not written just to the church in Corinth but to all in Achaia, the province where the church was located. Other churches in this area include the church of Thessalonica and the church of Philippi.
Praise to the God of All Comfort
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.
It is not an accident that Paul starts this letter by talking about how God is present in suffering. Paul was no stranger to trials and tribulations.
Paul had a life filled with suffering. He described some of these sufferings in 2 Corinthians 11:23-28: stripes… prisons… beatings… stonings… shipwrecked… perils of waters… robbers… in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Yet, Paul knew that all his sufferings were really the sufferings of Christ. - Guzik
Paul changes his view of suffering from a "woe is me" attitude to showing how when God comforts those who suffer, so they can share the comfort they receive from God with others. Suffering can have a purpose when we realize that it can draw us closer to God. Suffering is also something God uses us to draw near to each other, as we bear each other's burdens.
Where can your own suffering bring you closer to God and also be a consolation to others who are suffering?
Paul’s Change of Plans
12 Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace. 13 For we do not write you anything you cannot read or understand. And I hope that, 14 as you have understood us in part, you will come to understand fully that you can boast of us just as we will boast of you in the day of the Lord Jesus.
Some of the Corinthians were questioning Paul's integrity, since he had to change his travel plans when he would visit him. Paul uses the term "boast", but I don't think he uses it in a prideful way. Maybe another of saying it would be, "We are proud of you, and I think you can be proud of us too!"
Paul's writing is not filled with worldly philosophy or abstract thinking, but straight forward teaching centered on Christ.
“In Paul’s life there were no hidden actions, no hidden motives and no hidden meanings.” (Barclay)
15 Because I was confident of this, I wanted to visit you first so that you might benefit twice. 16 I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia and to come back to you from Macedonia, and then to have you send me on my way to Judea. 17 Was I fickle when I intended to do this? Or do I make my plans in a worldly manner so that in the same breath I say both “Yes, yes” and “No, no”?
Again, Paul defends this travel plans. He had other mitigating factors that affected his schedule. Remember it was not like he could jump on a plane and go anywhere he wanted, whenever he wanted. Paul is not acting like a worldly man. His "yes" means "yes" and his "no" means "no". Jesus said anything beyond this come from the devil in the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5:37
"The Corinthian Christians accused Paul of being unreliable and untrustworthy because he said he would come at a certain time and did not. He was unable to come as planned, so instead he sent a letter." Guzik
It was all right for the Corinthian Christians to be disappointed that Paul didn’t come and visit them. But they were wrong in trying to blame Paul for the disappointment. They needed to see Paul’s heart and God’s hand in the circumstances.
18 But as surely as God is faithful, our message to you is not “Yes” and “No.” 19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us—by me and Silas[c] and Timothy—was not “Yes” and “No,” but in him it has always been “Yes.” 20 For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God. 21 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. 23 I call God as my witness—and I stake my life on it—that it was in order to spare you that I did not return to Corinth. 24 Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm.
The reason the Corinthians can trust Paul and his colleagues, Timothy and Silas, is because they were preaching about Jesus Christ. They were relaying the message that Jesus had entrusted to them. If the Corinthians were questioning Paul's integrity, they were attacking Jesus' integrity.
But, in fact, we can trust all of God's promises. If God were to break a promise, He would surely NOT be God. Jesus fulfilled all the promises of the prophets, when he died on the cross and rose from the dead. It proved once and for all that He was and is the Son of God, the Savior of the world.
Paul doesn't rely on himself for this confidence before them, but because of his position in Christ. Paul shows that both of them have a guarantee of their future inheritance in heaven by the deposit of the Holy Spirit. This language is borrowed from the financial world in Corinth. Just like we put a down-payment on a house to guarantee we will repay the loan, Jesus has given us the Holy Spirit as a guarantee that His promise of eternal life will come true.
The Holy Spirit has been put in "our hearts". We can feel the presence of the Holy Spirit and know the outcome of our life when we die and go to heaven. You can bank on it! The Holy Spirit also reminds us and assures us that we are children of God. We are under new ownership. We are bought with a price, the precious blood of Jesus, the Son of God.
Do you doubt your salvation or that you are truly a Christian? If yes, ask the Holy Spirit to come into your heart and give you a deeper sense of certainty because of what Jesus did for you on the cross. Most of the time when we feel uncertain, it is because we are focused on ourselves and our inadequacies. We are perfect in Christ! Hebrews 10:14, 2 Corinthians 12:9
God did not save us because of our righteousness but because of his love and mercy which he showed by sending His Son to save us from our sin and grant us eternal life!
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