Category: 2 Corinthians

“If I love you more, will you love me less?”

If you’ve ever had your heart broken, you can know how Paul feels when he writes 2 Corinthians 12. In all probability, Paul spent more time on, with, and in the Corinthian church then he did with anyone else. He visited them repeatedly (chapter 13 mentions three visits).

And yet, for all the love he showered on them, their affection lay elsewhere.

I’m reminded a bit of Hosea in the Old Testament who, despite his undying love for his wife, found her constantly seeking affection in the arms of other men.

For the Corinthians, the “man of God” was a show boat, someone who would compliment them, perform for them, tell them what they wanted to hear, and be forever in their debt. Paul however rather acted like a parent who took his job seriously – and he regarded the Corinthian Christians as his children.

To keep the peace, Paul might have decided to simply bypass Corinth and let someone else deal with them. But while Christianity is to be characterized by peace and unity, it is also to be characterized by a changed life with a value system more in keeping with that of God than that of the world. As a preacher, Paul is in the life changing business and his mandate is to cultivate that change in the lives of others.

Preachers must speak the truth of God. It won’t always be popular. We must make sure that the words we speak are accompanied by a love that can be seen by those who hear us – a love for them expressed not just in words – in fact, perhaps seldom in words – but in how we treat our listeners. We must also make sure that we are sufficiently independent that we are never tempted to temper the message of God to fit the mold of worldly Christians – even if they are leaders in the Lord’s church – in order to make our own ends meet. Sometimes, rather than leave where he isn’t wanted, the preacher must stay and use the whip God has given him to effect the change God wants (1 Corinthians 4:21). I can’t imagine that when Paul arrived in Corinth and found the church worldly and unrepentant that he just let it go. On the other hand, he did eventually move on – but probably with a heart still broken.

“Too much talk and not enough action” is a line from an old Paul Revere and the Raiders song about things not going right in the world and why that is. The line always come to mind when I read 2 Corinthians 9.

For over a year, Paul has been planning and encouraging Christians in Greece and Asia Minor to take up a relief collection for their poor brethren in Judea. He has had two goals in mind: first, of course, he wants to relieve the suffering of the brethren there. But second, he hopes to create a bond between the two groups: Jews and Gentiles. His hope is that Jewish Christians will praise God for the obedience that accompanies the gentiles confession of the gospel of Christ (9:13).

The Corinthians seemed eager to jump on the bandwagon. But alas, there has been “too much talk and not enough action.” From each contributing congregation, Paul is also calling for them to send a representative of their church to accompany their contribution to the congregation in Jerusalem. His concern is that the little group will get to Corinth and there will have been no contribution. So . . . he’s sending some representatives early to make sure things go right. This is the practical part of this chapter.

But there is an instructive part. First, a principal from scripture: when it comes to helping the poor, God has high regard for those who give generously (see Proverbs 11:24-25; 22:9 and Deuteronomy 15:7-10). Second, to be generous toward the needy is to adopt the attitude of God (compare verse 9 with Psalm 112:9). Third, Paul suggests a reason God blesses generously is so that the recipients of His blessings can likewise be generous. Finally, he writes that when we are generous with the needy, it results in thanksgiving to God.

The child of God is an heir of God. We should act like the wealthy people we really are.

“It’s amazing what can be accomplished if no one cares who gets the credit.”

But of course, folks do care who gets the credit.  Recognition and status is a huge component in any society and the Corinthian one was no different.  But status, recognition, “face,” only serve to divide, and Christianity is not about division but unity.

Though the Corinthians owed their place in Christ to Paul and his efforts, there was a movement underway to diminish his value.  Other teachers, eager for pre-eminence, were working to discredit him.  In defending himself, and his ministry, Second Corinthians becomes  the most personal of all Paul’s letters.  His personal defense is most focused in the first three, and the final three chapters.  In the last three, there is a focus on weakness.

Totally counter-culturally, Paul, beginning in chapter eleven, exalts weakness.  This is the characteristic Paul’s opponents have attributed to him and rather than rebut the criticism, Paul embraces it.  Unlike his opponents, Paul does not burden his brethren and often goes without to supply what they need.  This is not the action of a status seeker, not the action of a sacrificial ministry.
It is, however, the action of one who follows Christ.  Looking at the list of problems Paul faced at the end of chapter eleven, one might wonder how anyone suffering all this could possible have the approval of God.  And yet, no preacher of the first century accomplished more of lasting endurance than Paul.  It was in his weakness that the power of God could be seen.  There’s no other way to explain Paul’s success.

It is more amazing what can be accomplished if we seek to give only God the credit . . . and the glory.

“I’m not commanding you to do this . . . but get it done.”

This about sums up Paul’s message beginning in chapter eight of Second Corinthians.

The church in Jerusalem is suffering. Whatever money used to be in this church – and there was some – its growth, the ravages of time and circumstance, have all conspired to impoverish the congregation. Along with that is the fact that Jewish Christians and gentile Christians didn’t get along well – especially in Jerusalem. At this stage of his ministry, Paul has two very specific goals. First, he wants to take up a collection to help the brethren in Jerusalem where the Church was born and from which, by the plan of God, the gospel began to be spread. Second, he wants the contribution to come from gentile Christians and in that way, create unity among the brethren.

Paul very much wants this contribution to be from the heart of the givers – not just obedience to a command. It’s why he mentions the example of Macedonian Christians, acting entirely on their own, pleading for an opportunity to be a part of this ministry. It’s why he talks about a gift not “grudgingly” given (9:5), but generous and cheerful.

Paul wants them to give because they want to give, not because they have to give.

So what if they don’t want to? Does that excuse them from the obligation?

Not in Paul’s book. The whole tenor of chapters eight and nine is that not wanting to is unacceptable behavior. It certainly does not follow the example of Christ – the most important example Paul cites (8:9).

In the Old Testament, no one was supposed to come into the presence of God without a gift, and while this specific command is not mentioned in the New Testament, it is the theology that undergirds Paul’s command in 1 Corinthians 16: “On the first day of the week, each of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income . . .” Though the collection was to serve the work of God (and that was always its purpose), the giving is not “for the work,” but rather, a gift to God. God doesn’t need our gifts to do His work. He expects our gifts because He is God, and we are His people.  He expects these gifts to be cheerfully given, because that’s how He gave to us.

Calling, behavior, and hope.

These are three significant themes in Second Corinthians.

As the book begins, Paul asserts that he is living up to his calling, serving faithfully in a ministry that brings life. The Corinthians are recipients of this ministry, and they should live up to the calling they have embraced. “Living up to it” means “watch your behavior.”

Behavior is important if they expect to receive the hope of their calling.

One hope is that they will become more like Jesus, reflecting the Lord’s glory (3:18) revealing to the world the life of Christ in our own life (4:10).
But another hope is the future home in the presence of Christ, what is now unrealized and unseen. This world is troublesome to the Christian. That’s why he looks forward to the next, the heavenly dwelling, the eternal house (5:1ff).

This hope, however, is dependent on behavior. Let’s make no mistake. The hope is not “achievable” by behavior – you cannot earn this heavenly dwelling. It is already ours because we are Christians. We just have not taken possession of it yet. On the other hand, we can lose it if we fail to live up to our calling. We are, after all, new creatures in Christ. That is why, in chapter five, at least three times Paul urges attention to behavior. Our goal should be to please God (5:9). We should no longer live for ourselves, but live for Jesus (5:15).

The final command is in verse twenty: “Be reconciled to God,” which sounds a bit strange since we have already been reconciled to God. Why must we do what has already been done? God has reconciled us to him, but we must act like people who have been reconciled. We may not behave in ways more common to those alienated from the Lord.

Calling, behavior, and hope. They are all connected.