2 Corinthians 2:1-4

2 Corinthians 2:1-4

For I myself judged this: to not come again to you all in sorrow.  For if I make you all sorrowful, then who is the one who cheers me up except the one who has been grieved out of me?  And I wrote this same thing in order that after coming I should not have sorrow from the ones whom it is necessary to make me rejoice – having placed confidence upon you all that my joy is also of you all.  For I wrote to you all out of great affliction and distress of the heart through many tears, no in order to cause you sorrow but rather in order that you all know the love that I have abundantly in you all.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Paul didn’t want to come and cause grief.  Paul didn’t want to come and yell at them.  After all, remember that he was part of the reason for division among them!  Rather, Paul stayed away and let them settle their differences like the adults they should be.  Paul didn’t want to come in and throw his weight around; he wanted to let them figure it out themselves and then come back – if he was welcome – in the end.  There are times in life where you cannot solve the problems of other people.  Sometimes the best that you can do is to teach people how to make a good decision and then release them to make their own decision.  Anyone who has ever raised children knows this truth.

Is it difficult for you to let other people make their own decision?  When is it easy and when is it hard?  What makes that difference?

Second Thought:

Even after all the turmoil in Corinth, Paul still considers them to be people that should bring him joy.  They can bring him joy because Paul is focused on the eternal.  Paul knows that when the end comes and we are all gathered before His presence, our petty squabbles here on this earth will not mean very much.  The Corinthians can still bring him joy even through all the turmoil because Paul is focused on something other than the here and now.  This is why Paul says “it is necessary for you all to make me glad.”  People who love God should make us glad because we share the same Spirit and the same destination!

Are you made glad by fellow Christians?  What does it feel like to truly be in the presence of another person who is focused on their relationship with God and their eternal destination?

Third Thought:

As we get to the end of these verses we see true spiritual love.  The Corinthian people have fragmented themselves into many divisions.  Many of those divisions have risen up against Paul.  Many of those divisions have been mean to one another and treated each other in unchristian ways.  But in the end, Paul’s greater emotion for the Corinthian church is one of abundant love.  Quite simply, Paul loves them.  Even after all they’ve done and all they’ve said, Paul loves them.  He just wants them to be in a good relationship with the Father.  And that is actually what allows him to love them.  Paul cares more about their relationship with God than their relationship with him.  What they think of Paul matters far less than what they think of God.  It is out of that genuine concern for the other person’s love for God that love is truly seen best.

Are you able to define love this way in your life?  Is love seen best when you care more about the other person’s relationship with God than you care about their relationship with you?

Passage for Tomorrow: 2 Corinthians 2:5-11