Letters to the Corinthians
If we want to grow together in Christ, we have to be willing to both give and receive truth in love. That means confronting each other with the right heart—and being open when others speak into our lives. Correction isn’t a threat to unity; it’s a tool God uses to build it. But it only works when our hearts are open to Him and to one another. (Click here for sermon and notes)
Footnotes
- Visits and letters. A servant of Christ is no stranger to pain and suffering (Matt. 5:10–12; John 15:18–20; 1 Peter 2:21). Paul had his share (cf. 2 Cor. 1:4–10; 11:16–32) which he did not shirk. But he was no fool. If he could avoid it and still accomplish his work he would do so. This belief led to his change of plans with the Corinthians. When his first painful visit occurred is an unsettled issue. It could have taken place after his founding visit but before the writing of 1 Corinthians, as many suggest. It is odd, however, if that was so, that no mention or intimation of such a visit is found in that letter. More likely, he went to Corinth from Ephesus after writing 1 Corinthians. His “painful visit” may be linked to the projected double visit previously mentioned (2 Cor. 1:15–16) and may thus refer to the first part of those unconsummated plans. During that visit some painful event transpired which grieved the Corinthians and Paul (see comments on 2:5). To spare further grief for both of them Paul deferred his visit. He decided instead to write a letter, a daring venture in view of the Corinthians’ propensity for misunderstanding (cf. 1 Cor. 5:9–10). If his “painful visit” (2 Cor. 2:1) had occurred before he wrote 1 Corinthians, the letter here referred to (I wrote as I did) would be that letter. But if, as seems more likely, the “painful visit” occurred after he wrote 1 Corinthians, the letter Paul referred to followed 1 Corinthians and is now lost (not having been intended by God as a part of the inspired Scriptures). (See point 5 under “Contacts and Correspondence” in the Introduction.) What that letter contained can only be conjectured from the comments which follow in 2 Corinthians 2:5–11 and 7:5–12. What is clear was Paul’s depth of feelings for the Corinthians and the level of his own discomfort experienced in writing the letter (great distress [thlipseōs; “troubles or pressures”; cf. 1:4] and anguish of heart and with many tears) and in his waiting for news from Titus concerning its reception (cf. 7:5–8). David K. Lowery, “2 Corinthians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 557–558.
Supporting Scriptures
Exhortation for the Week
Be courageous - begin to open your heart wider to your brothers and sisters in the church.
Be courageous - begin to open your heart wider to your brothers and sisters in the church.