2 Corinthians 1 ~ part 1, Comfort

 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.

2 Corinthians 1:5

Today's post is going to be a small study on 2 Corinthians 1:1-11. If you want to, go ahead and grab your Bible and let's dive in!

1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

To the church of God in Corinth, together with all his holy people throughout Achaia:

2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I want to draw out the significance of this greeting. We've all read Paul's standard greeting over and over, but have you ever really thought about why he greeted believers like this? Grace and peace included both the typical Jew and Greek greeting. Paul uniquely worked this phrase together to not only greet all men but to also denote a very important fact in Christianity. Grace must come first, and then peace. God's grace sent Jesus to the cross to grant us peace and eternal life!

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.

Verses 3-4 can be summed up in one word in my opinion; comfort. Let's take a look at the word compassion (GRK oiktirmos, meaning compassion, pity, or mercy.)

"The word compassion is derived from Latin - “com," which means “with," and “pati," which means “to suffer." When Paul calls God the “Father of compassion” in verse 3, he means that He is not a God who watches our suffering from far off. He is a Father that suffers all things alongside us." (Milne)

How amazing is that? The creator of the universe suffers WITH us. He's not just a bystander who is watching the show, he feels everything right along with us.

The Greek for comfort is paraklésis meaning a "calling for, summons, hence: exhortation, entreaty, encouragement, joy, gladness, consolation, comfort." This word paraklésis is used a lot in the NT, but I want to draw out one specific use. This is the same word used for the Holy Spirit, Paraclete, our comforter, advocate, and helper. God desired to give us comfort so much in this life that He gifted us the most perfect Comforter in the form of the Holy Spirit. God gave us a part of himself (The Trinity: Father, Son, Holy Ghost) in the Spirit and the Spirit offers us SO much aid in everyday life. Because He comforts us, we can then share that with others (vs 4) The comfort God offers us that we can offer others is more than just comfort. It is help, advice, bravery, and strength. (The Latin form of comfort, fortis, lends towards meaning brave. Which is indicative of lending strength and bravery; not solely soothing sympathy)

5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

The Greek for suffering is pathéma, meaning "suffering, affliction, passion, emotion, an undergoing, an enduring." This section tells us that we will suffer, but we suffer for Christ. James 1:2-3 comes to mind when reading this section.

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.

Suffering is apart of the Christian life. It's how we handle it that matters. Suffering produces patient endurance and perseverance. It produces growth and pushing us back towards God when we've drifted. We learn here that the greater the suffering, the greater the consolation.

"As the hotter the day, the greater the dew at night; so the hotter the time of trouble, the greater the dews of refreshing from God." (Trapp)

 “Consider how the wildflowers grow. They do not labor or spin." Luke 12: 27

A flower cannot survive in pure sunlight, it will wither and die. It must have rain to grow. Similarly, if our lives were pure sunshine, our faith would wither and die. The storm-filled times are the times where we grow the most!

8 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. 10 He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us,

Paul and Timothy were struggling at this time. Paul doesn't divulge all that has transpired but he leaves us with a crucial thought. Trials happen to remind us to rely on God, not ourselves. They occur to remind us that He is our deliverer, in every way. He delivered us firstly by sending Jesus to die as a ransom for our sins on the cross! And after that, he continues to deliver us again and again every day. What a relief, to know that the God who raises the dead is the same God who is standing by my side, ready to deliver me in times of need.

11 as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.

I separated this verse because I just want to make a little emphatic point about prayer. Paul is thanking the believers for their prayers because the saints' prayers were what was making a difference in Paul and Timothy's lives. The "gracious favor granted us" because of the prayers of saints. This is just a little plug to remember to pray for others as much as you pray for yourself:)

"Even an apostle felt the prayers of the Church necessary for his comfort and support.  What innumerable blessings do the prayers of the followers of God draw down on those who are the objects of them!" (Clarke)

I know today's post is long, I really loved doing this study and can't wait to share part 2 next week!

xo,

Ais