Lesson for July 5, 2023

The Book of II Corinthians

Chapter 1:1-11

Verses 1-2

“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the church of God which is at Corinth with all the saints who are throughout Achaia:Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

This is Paul’s second letter to the church at Corinth. In his first letter, he had many issues to clarify with believers there. Many were in a state of reversionism, and the church had been divided as a result. So, I Corinthians was a stern letter. In the book of II Corinthians, Paul’s tone was more tender. Apparently, many of the reversionistic believers had returned to fellowship with God. However, the threat from the legalistic Judaizers still remained. Therefore, Paul once again confirms his apostolic authority over the churches. (I Corinthians 12:11; Ephesians 4:11-12)

Verses 3-4

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

Blessed means that God merits our praise and our love. The Father of mercies refers to God’s grace in action toward believers who are suffering. Divine comfort always comes from God’s Word. There is not a category of suffering for which God does not have a solution. We can pass on God’s comfort to others through our knowledge of doctrine. (II Thessalonians 2:16-17)

One of the effects of enduring suffering is that a believer can use that experience to comfort others. God always brings us through suffering when we use the doctrine in our souls, to not only endure suffering but to glorify God in the process. If you learn how to handle suffering, you can find comfort, peace, and a relaxed mental attitude in the midst of it. Then you can help others, because you have learned to handle suffering by applying Bible doctrine.

Verse 5

“For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ.”

Some of the greatest blessings you will ever have in this life will be when you are suffering for blessing, if you pass the suffering for blessing tests. Jesus Christ taught us how to suffer for blessings. Every believer will suffer in this life – it is inevitable. How we handle the suffering is the key to spiritual growth and glorifying God. Following the pattern of Christ, we apply the doctrine of sharing the happiness of God amid the suffering, and any other necessary problem-solving devices, and pass the test of undeserved suffering. (II Timothy 3:12)

Verses 6-7

“But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer; and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort.”

When we suffer it can be a blessing for others if we use it to teach others the purpose of undeserved suffering in the Christian life. The word “salvation” means deliverance from suffering. Undeserved suffering is not only designed to bless you – our suffering is also designed to bless others. If someone is suffering, it doesn’t have to be the same type of suffering that you suffered. The key to overcoming suffering is the words “patient enduring.” God will never allow us to be tested to the point that we cannot handle it with doctrine. Patient enduring means to put the problem in the Lord’s hands and leave it there. (I Corinthians 10:13)

And our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort. Paul was confident that the Corinthian believers would be comforted from the same source as he was, the Word of God. Paul did not want people to depend upon him for comfort, he wanted them to depend on the application of Bible doctrine so they would rely on it in times of suffering.

The Greek word for hope is “elpis,” which means confident expectation or confident anticipation. The Greek word for firmly grounded is “bebaios,” which means secure, steadfast, or sure. Paul expected that these believers, who had now turned their spiritual lives around, would be comforted by Bible doctrine. In the midst of suffering, we must exhibit the same mental attitude that Jesus Christ exhibited when He suffered, which was peace, joy, stability, single-mindedness, humility, and obedience to the plan of God. (Isaiah 26:3-4; II Timothy 1:7)

When you are spiritually self-sustaining, it is because you know and use Bible doctrine to problem solve. This means you are using the Faith-Rest Technique in time of suffering as you patiently endure it, resulting in blessing, happiness, and inner peace. Then when you meet another believer who is suffering, they can be comforted like you were if they apply the same doctrine you applied.

Verses 8-11

 ^“For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us, you also joining in helping us through your prayers, so that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the favor bestowed on us through the prayers of many.”

Paul and his fellow workers needed prayer support from the Corinthian believers, so he simply let them know how he and his companions were suffering. The Greek word for affliction is “thlipsis,” which means tribulation. The Greek word for burdened excessively is “bareo,” which means weighed down or pressed down. Beyond our strength means beyond human power to cope with it.

So that we despaired even of life means to be totally without any support, no human solution, and hopeless. It means that Paul could not solve his problems through his own human power or ability.Living in light of eternity was the solution to the problem of despairing even of life.

Indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God Who raises the dead. The intense suffering that Paul and those with him were suffering (the possibility of being executed) made them realize their only solution was found in God Who raises the dead, and not in themselves.

Who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. God had delivered Paul on many previous occasions, and he knew God would do so again. The Greek word for delivered is “rhuomai,” which means to rescue from drowning or to be delivered from a situation that is hopeless. God Himself did the delivering because Paul depended on Him, not some human solution. Paul knew God would deliver him from the suffering of imprisonment. Paul recognized that God’s deliverance was also for all eternity. Paul and his fellow-workers were depending on and had full confidence (hope) that God would once again deliver them from the peril they were facing.

And He will yet deliver us, you also joining in helping us through your prayers, so that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the favor bestowed on us through the prayers of many. Paul considered the Corinthian believers as part of his team. Even though in the past they had failed, they were still on the team. Prayer is a means of being a part of the ministry of others.