2 Corinthians 1
This chapter started with greetings from Apostle Paul to the Church in Corinth and to the believers in Greece.
This shows how importance courtesy is, I know it may seem trivial but it shows the morals of a person when they greet others.
We now live in the era where people can just come to you and start full blown conversation without greetings.
Also, I can relate this with how we start our day, do we just wake up and just get out of bed with no bother about greeting the one who kept us all through the night. The Bible says He never sleep nor slumber according to Psalms 121. So I urge you always appreciate God in and through your quiet time each day you wake up to witness another time on this part of eternity.
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. We are confident that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in the comfort God gives us.
2 Corinthians 1:3-7 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/2co.1.3-7.NLT
Verse 3 to 7 of 2 Corinthians, Apostle Paul after extending his greetings to the people of Corinth Church and Greece, he went ahead to encourage them with assurance of the comfort of God. The opening verses of the scripture was necessary and it made it easy for him to share the message of encouragement even in the trying times.
He was able to assure the people that they share in the suffering God will comfort them.
I find this to be very important as a believer, you cannot share the love or comfort of Christ if you come in with rod to whip people.
This is not to say that when we need to pass some messages that might not be friendly we can't, yes, we can through the grace, mercy and wisdom God gave to us.
However, we must be ready to give strength to the weak in a way that they will be encouraged in their faith and their stand in God even in the face of trial. Any trial can make anyone give up, some coming trials will even make believers to stop believing how do we ensure that through it we still hold on firm unto Christ?
In verses 8-11, he then explained how they almost lost their life in Asia and the importance and effect of the intercessory prayers held by the church in Corinth. You see as a Christian in as much as this salvation journey is personal, your life and mine are connected to the lives of other believers, either those already in faith or those yet to come to know Christ. This is why we can't give up on praying for the salvation of the world and praying that God upholds all believers even in the face of unforseen trails of life.
We can say with confidence and a clear conscience that we have lived with a God-given holiness and sincerity in all our dealings. We have depended on God’s grace, not on our own human wisdom. That is how we have conducted ourselves before the world, and especially toward you.
2 Corinthians 1:12 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/2co.1.12.NLT
Apostle Paul made a very important note in 2 Corinthians 1:12, that they lived in God-given holiness and sincerity in all their dealings. Hmm! Holiness is not just by the works and ability of man, for it to meet the standard of God, it must be given or orchestrated by God.
So if you struggle with living a life of holiness and you desire it, you need to ask God and be willing to let go and abide in His will even when it's uncomfortable.
From verse 13-15, Apostle Paul mentioned how their letters have been true, ensuring that it's not too complicated for the people to understand and he addressee fact that even if they don't understand as at the time they were reading he prays that when Jesus comes they will understand the journey Apostle Paul went through and be proud he did.
I see confidence in this, Apostle Paul was so certain that he would reign with Christ. He put it out there that he didn't dilly dally in ungodly things that will make him second guess his chances of reigning with Christ.
The question here to you and I is, are we certain that if Jesus comes now we will reign with Him. Are you strictly abiding in Him as He wants you to or you are just living and following the trends and the flow of life now?
You may be asking why I changed my plan. Do you think I make my plans carelessly? Do you think I am like people of the world who say “Yes” when they really mean “No”? As surely as God is faithful, our word to you does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” For Jesus Christ, the Son of God, does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” He is the one whom Silas, Timothy, and I preached to you, and as God’s ultimate “Yes,” he always does what he says. For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory. It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us. Now I call upon God as my witness that I am telling the truth. The reason I didn’t return to Corinth was to spare you from a severe rebuke. But that does not mean we want to dominate you by telling you how to put your faith into practice. We want to work together with you so you will be full of joy, for it is by your own faith that you stand firm.
2 Corinthians 1:17-24 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/2co.1.17-24.NLT
From verse 18 to 24, Apostle Paul made it clear that he has changed his plan to return to Corinth instead he was heading to Macedonia. I like the fact that he showed that he was a man under authority of Christ and a man of integrity. He did not just say I am coming and just show up against the will of God. He had to follow what God said even if it means man is disappointed.
How many of us will obey God even when we disappoint man? How many of us will constantly align with following the authority of God? Paul was an Apostle, He could have said well I am a man with great calling, I will just do this and go back to God in my secret place to ask for mercy. He didn't, because He is aware that God's authority is the final. Is God's authority the final in my life or your life?
2 Corinthians 2
So I decided that I would not bring you grief with another painful visit. For if I cause you grief, who will make me glad? Certainly not someone I have grieved. That is why I wrote to you as I did, so that when I do come, I won’t be grieved by the very ones who ought to give me the greatest joy. Surely you all know that my joy comes from your being joyful. I wrote that letter in great anguish, with a troubled heart and many tears. I didn’t want to grieve you, but I wanted to let you know how much love I have for you.
2 Corinthians 2:1-4 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/2co.2.1-4.NLT
The 4 opening verses depicts the selflessness of Apostle Paul. He in his own trial wrote letter without expressing his pain in order not to grieve the fellow believer. It can be very hard to see people who think of how their lives will affects others faith if they constantly build pity party due to their current situation. How do you express yourself in the face of trials to others, do you always want people to feel and know the pain you go through just so they can sympathize or empathize with you even when God says that you should keep it away from them.
How many people have lost their faith just because you couldn't just allow God to carry you through the trials instead you made sure everyone knew how much faith you have and why the trials is almost sinking you.
As recorded in the closing verses of chapter 1, Paul was a man under the authority of Christ and he ensured he obeyed what God was asking him to do rather than display his leadership by building pity party.
Verse 5-13 explains the importance of forgiveness.
When you forgive this man, I forgive him, too. And when I forgive whatever needs to be forgiven, I do so with Christ’s authority for your benefit, so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes.
2 Corinthians 2:10-11 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/2co.2.10-11.NLT
Verse 10 to 11 breaks down how unforgiveness can hold a man under the dictates of Satan. He said they should forgive the man that caused him (Apostle Paul) pain, when they do that he will forgive them so they can enjoy the benefits of Christ and Satan will not outsmart them.
Apostle Paul was a man of integrity and God fearing leader. We often find some leaders who weaponize their position by asking their followers to fight anyone that has done anything against them the leader. The truth is such leader is not doing the will of God as we can see in these verses and in turn the devil turns them indirectly into his tools by outsmarting them.
We serve the God of Vengeance even when people have done your leader wrong hand them over to God, don't fight for God. Leaders in this context doesn't necessarily mean the church leaders only. I pray God gives us wisdom to know when to act and how to act especially in the faces of trials of faith in Jesus name amen.
But thank God! He has made us his captives and continues to lead us along in Christ’s triumphal procession. Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume. Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God. But this fragrance is perceived differently by those who are being saved and by those who are perishing. To those who are perishing, we are a dreadful smell of death and doom. But to those who are being saved, we are a life-giving perfume. And who is adequate for such a task as this? You see, we are not like the many hucksters who preach for personal profit. We preach the word of God with sincerity and with Christ’s authority, knowing that God is watching us.
2 Corinthians 2:14-17 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/2co.2.14-17.NLT
The closing verses talks about how we are followers of Christ's triumphal procession, which basically means we are not driven by the waves of this world but we are led by Jesus Christ. We are not doing things based human gratification it's is according to the leading of Jesus Christ.
To ordinary man, it smells like death and doom but to God it's Christ like perfume. Preaching the word of God for true believers is for sincerity not to profit, not for human gain but so the kingdom of God will be populated and God will be glorified at the end of it all.
I pray that God will grant us all grace to abide in Christ to the very end in Jesus mighty name amen.
