Dwell in the Word: 2 Corinthians 1:12-2:4

Think on these questions as you dwell in 2 Corinthians 1:12-2:4:

1. Paul's change of plans was seen as vacillating by some in the Corinthians' community. How does Paul's response about making plans according to God's guidance challenge the perception of consistency and decision-making in the Christian life? How might this affect our approach to planning in our own lives?

2. The passage emphasizes how all the promises of God find their "Yes" in Jesus Christ. What significance does this hold in understanding the nature of God's promises? How might this concept impact one's faith and reliance on God's assurances?

3. Paul expresses his deep concern and love for the Corinthians, evident in his anguish over their sinful state. How does Paul's approach to addressing their issues with love and care offer a model for handling difficult situations or confronting others in a Christian context? How can this approach guide our interactions within a community of faith when addressing sensitive or problematic matters?

Transcript:

 So, as we come to this part of 2nd Corinthians, it's very important that we refresh our memories a little on 1st Corinthians.  You will remember that there were some serious moral issues being addressed in the book of 1st Corinthians. There was some hard stuff. There was a lot of sexual immorality and other things going on there.

And while there was a lot of doctrine, there was a lot of exhortation by Paul in that letter, there was this extreme concern over the immorality that was there.  And so, Paul now writing this second letter, as I mentioned on Monday, he's addressing these issues that that he is considered to not maybe be a full teacher, the best teacher that they could have because of this idea that he's suffering.

And it seems from what we've read today that people are also using against him this fact that he changed his mind on whether or not. He was going to come and see them, and we see this that he was, you know, saying that he was going to come and he changed his mind. He says, what was I vacillated vacillating when I wanted to do this, was I blowing with the winds while he's saying, well, I don't make my plans.

According to flesh, I was ready to come, but we'll see a little bit later down why he did not, but he uses this opportunity and Paul does this many times, right? He uses these. Challenges or these difficulties  and he uses them to talk about the gospel to talk about the fullness of god's grace And so we see here in verse 20 when he's talking about these yeses That  all the promises of god find their yes in him,  so what Paul is saying is that all the promises of God, the prophecies, the hopes, the assurances that they have in the gospel, they all find their yes in Jesus.

He is the one that all of this is about. And so, then he continues, that is why it is through him that we utter our Amen. To God for his glory and then we look here and it said it says it is god who established us with you in Christ And has anointed us who's also put his seal on us and has given us his spirit in our hearts as a guarantee He's talking about the fullness of salvation that we have He's saying while Paul went from a yes to a no and his as he said he wasn't vacillating or anything He wasn't moving around and working according to the flesh He just changed his mind for a good reason again, which we'll see in a second  But he's working through this authority that they have as teachers and through the fullness of the salvation and the assurances That God gives them in Christ  all the promises of God find their yes in him Regardless of if Paul makes a decision yes or no to come and see them  God's promises are always answered.

Yes in the Lord Jesus Christ. So, what was the reason that he didn't go?  He said it was to spare them. He had a painful visit when he visited them before obviously because of their sinful issues and then he writes them this letter because things are not going well there in the church and so he spares them and basically, what he is saying, is he's giving them a chance to repent to turn from their sins.

He doesn't want to make another painful visit. He wants them to turn away from their sin.  And he tells them the heart that he has for them as we look at what he has to say in verse 4 of chapter 2. For I wrote to you out of much affliction and anguish of heart with many tears, not to cause you pain, but to let you know the abundant love that I have for you.

He wasn't trying to guilt them. He wasn't trying to give them bad feelings. He was trying to get them to turn and repent because he loved them. He didn't want to see them living in sin in this way.  And so, as we think about what this passage can mean for us, it's important that we understand the depth of repentance that we need to have this feeling of turning from our sin and It's really easy to say, you know, I shouldn't have done that.

I need to, I need to stop. It's another thing to feel that pain and to feel the urgency of repentance and feeling the need for it. And how do we do that?  We remember the yes that God has given us in Christ. We remember what He has done for us, and we desire to turn away from our sin because He has first loved us.

So may we look to the yeses that God has given us, all the promises that He has fulfilled in Christ, and may it lead us to repentance, that we might bring glory to God.