Servant leadership. But all are called to bear hardship in some measure, and likewise to share in the hardships of others. Moreover, he is not going to be judged for his gifts, but whether or not he has been faithful in his stewardship (1 Cor 4:2). The old version of who they were is gone, replaced by the new Christlike version (2 Corinthians 5:16–18). As the apostle of Christ, in suffering and deliverance, Paul offers true comfort to all of us. The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, commonly referred to as Second Corinthians or in writing 2 Corinthians, is a Pauline epistle of the New Testament of the Christian Bible.The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author named Timothy, and is addressed to the church in Corinth and Christians in the surrounding province of Achaea, in modern-day Greece. And here again lies the problem between the Corinthians and the apostle. Their words were his words. Christians around the globe today are called to live in faithful presence among their unbelieving neighbors, influencing them with the love of Christ rather than being infected by worldly patterns of thinking ( Rom. “The word of the cross” is foolishness to those who are perishing. As a cultural phenomenon, Paul’s opponents in Corinth were undoubtedly related to them, especially to the latter. Our understanding God and ourselves does not take place through our own reason and understanding, or by any bare rules of interpretation. The result is that believers all over the world are not required to qualify themselves with any kind of moral goodness or education or family background or anything else they might bring to the table. As an apostle, Paul has been made a “minister” (διάκονος) of the new covenant (3:6) and given the “ministry” (διακονία) of the Spirit (3:8). At least for the moment, the church had been reconciled to the apostle. The question at stake here is the legitimation of an apostle, and not merely any apostle, but the legitimation of Paul as apostle to the Corinthians.2 Precisely in its particularity, 2 Corinthians speaks to the present, and it does so profoundly. It is this paradox that is offensive to the Corinthians. 2 Corinthians 4 MSG - Trial and Torture - Since God has so - Bible Gateway. Viewed with heaven’s eyes, however, it is often precisely in such places of adversity that the Spirit is alive and well and the gospel is advancing (2 Thess. They brought to the Corinthians, “another Jesus, another Spirit, another Gospel” (2 Cor 11:4). God has the first word as well as the last. Reconciliation. Free shipping for many products! The question of Gentile circumcision arises only once in the Corinthian correspondence, and appears as the counterpart to Paul’s urging circumcised Jews not to undergo epispasm (1 Cor 7:18). His calling as apostle cannot be separated from his person. 2 Corinthians reminds me a lot of where we are today. See Ernst Käsemann. The body of the letter concludes with his rejoicing over this happy event, and his expression of confidence in the Corinthians. Now Paul himself stands at the center of the conflict. It is the minds and hearts of the Corinthians for which Paul battles. It is for this reason that Paul already announces in 1 Corinthians that the Gospel is “the word of the cross” and that he proclaims and will know nothing other than Christ crucified (1 Cor 1:8, 23; 2:2). The comfort that the apostle received in his affliction has been passed on through his word to countless others through the centuries, and still comes to us through him even now. They based their apostolic claims on the performance of wonders, ecstatic visions, and rhetorical powers (2 Cor 10:10; 12:1, 12). Where significant financial resources have produced slick programs and impressive services, has dependence on the Holy Spirit been neglected? Universal Themes in 2 Corinthians. That much the Corinthians understand. When Paul explained this motivation to the Corinthians, he wanted them to not be ashamed of either him or the message of reconciliation that brings life to those who embrace it (2 Corinthians 5:11–15). Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians is therefore both heartening and chastening. “For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake” (4:5). As is always the case, we have to read it off of what Paul says about them in the letter. 2 reviews. His argument against them is directed against their claim to apostolic authority based on their personal powers and charisma (especially the “fool’s speech,” 11:22-12:13). Compre online The Message of 2 Corinthians, de Barnett, Paul W na Amazon. Mingled in with these hope-filled prophecies, however, are perplexing predictions of a coming one who would suffer on behalf of God’s people (Psalm 22; Isa. All earthly deliverance is an anticipation of this final deliverance from death itself (cf. The Message of 2 Corinthians – Barnett. When Paul writes 2 Corinthians, matters have become much worse. The sufferings given to him are the sufferings of Christ, just as the comfort given to him comes through Christ (1:5). Of all the suffering that the apostle has to experience, the burden of the churches is the heaviest of all (2 Cor 11:28-29). God Rescued Paul When He Was Suffering. It encourages those who are struggling while cautioning those whose lives may be outwardly impressive. CHAPTER WISE SUMMARY: Chapter#1. In Christ it is revealed that “the old covenant” has been done away (3:14). This is hope-giving, but also humbling. Käsemann’s interpretation of the final chapters applies to the letter as a whole. As God’s triumphant Son, Jesus qualified for God’s favor in a way none of us ever can. Previously, he taught New Testament interpretation for twenty-three years at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky. The power of Christ should be manifest in the power of his apostle. It would do very little good to challenge the opponents if the Corinthians are blind to the issues at stake. 13:4) so that weak sinners can know true strength, by his grace. At the very beginning of its existence, the church had experienced a violent expulsion from the synagogue (Acts 18:1-17). He will not lord over the Corinthians: in their faith, they stand and thus are his equals (1:24). When the apostle Paul heard about the problems facing the church in Corinth, he wrote them an intense and pointed letter. There were parallels to these sorts of figures within the Greco-Roman world of the first century, in both Hellenistic “divine-men” and Jewish exorcists and wonder-workers. The First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians, probably written about 53–54 ce at Ephesus, Asia Minor, deals with problems that arose in the early years after Paul’s initial missionary visit (c. 50–51) to Corinth and his establishment there of a Christian community.The letter is valuable for its illuminations both of Paul’s thoughts and of the problems of the early church. It concludes with a reference to Paul’s dispatching Timothy to Corinth as well as his own subsequent arrival there (1 Cor 4:14-21). The Corinthians have misunderstood the nature of an apostle entirely. Indeed, to fail to reconcile is to be outwitted by Satan (2:11). Paul’s apostolic ministry defines the nature and form of all Christian ministry. He had made an emergency visit to Corinth, in which an individual within the church had openly resisted his apostolic authority, and had received at least tacit support from the church itself. Second Corinthians tells us that comfort comes through affliction (2 Cor. As the Corinthians themselves recognize, the marks of an apostle are the marks of a Christian. In both letters to the church at Corinth but especially in 2 Corinthians, Paul gives a powerful example of what it means to lead the body of Christ. It liberates all those called to ministry from introspection concerning their weaknesses or fear of human judgments. God made Christ to be our sin in order that we might be a new creation in Christ and find our righteousness in him. The letter of 2 Corinthians provides rich comfort and hope for believers today around the world. His word is always a “word on target,” intended to address the needs of his readers at times in which he himself cannot be present with them.1 All of Paul’s letters are likewise personal. It is fundamentally passive. I Corinthians. He is not going to be judged finally by the Corinthians, but by the Lord. Category: New Testament Commentaries Product ID: 2294. Paul does not write abstract theological disquisitions. Second Corinthians returns to similar themes as those Paul mentioned in his first letter to this church. It is not for some regions of the world but not for others. Just as Jesus was crucified on a Roman cross, God leads the apostle to death in a Roman triumph, so that the knowledge of Christ might be manifest everywhere (2:14-17). It is not too likely that it now was ready to return there. 7:13–14; Zech. Paul’s entire message to the Corinthians is bound up with this truth. Throughout the Old Testament we see an ever-heightening anticipation of the coming Messiah—a Davidic king who was expected to wipe out God’s enemies once and for all, restore God’s people, and reign forevermore (2 Sam. Nevertheless, there are clear indications that all is not well in the relationship between the apostle and the church, from his explanation for his failure to visit Corinth (1:15-2:4), to his appeal to them to be reconciled to God—and to him (6:1-7:1; 7:2-4).4 Paul’s tone does not change entirely in 2 Corinthians 10-13, and is in fact correlated to the argument of 2 Corinthians 1-7. This freedom is a freedom of communication between God and the human being in which we share in the divine glory revealed in the crucified and risen Christ (3:18; 4:6). The two final units of the letter serve as the hortatory conclusion to Paul’s argument (8:1-9:15; 10:1-13:14). 52:13–53:12). Apostolic existence is Christian existence as large-screen video, set before the eyes of the world, the angels, and all human beings (1 Cor 4:9). Just the opposite. As we have noted, his life is one of difficulty and deliverance. That was the case for “the sons of Israel” who were unable to look at Moses’ face on account of its glory, and whom Moses prevented from looking upon it by placing a veil over his face (3:7, 13). The Theology and Message of 2 Corinthians. At the same time, it is necessary for Paul to counter criticisms about his personality and legitimacy. Paul’s emphasis throughout this chapter rests on the work of the Spirit within the human heart. In the wake of this disaster, Paul wrote a letter to the church “through many tears” that undoubtedly called upon them to confront this offender themselves (2 Cor 1:23-2:11). The appeal to the Corinthians to separate themselves from unbelievers, which appears here, is most likely directed to their relationship with the apostolic claimants (6:14-18). Paul speaks to the Corinthians in the presence of God (2:17). As a prosperous center of travel and trade, Corinth was also a stopping-off point for early Christian missions, as is evident from the factions in Corinth that Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians (cf. The Corinthians are to exercise judgment in a whole range of matters, and especially with regard to Paul’s opponents. Weakness is not good in itself, yet it is God’s chosen means of displaying his grace and glory and power. It is not too surprising that this fractured church displayed tendencies in opposing directions. That is precisely what is necessary for their salvation. It is the high calling of all who lead God’s people. His authentication rests in those to whom he has been sent and in their faith (2 Cor 3:1). Paul does not require credentials ( 2 Cor 3:1-3; 1 Cor 4:1-5). The life of the apostle is the life of the Christian written large. Servant leadership is not optional for the global church. It is this hermeneutical dimension of God’s saving work that Paul sets before the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians 3. 7:12–16; Psalm 110; Jer. This momentous theme emerges in a dramatic real-life situation. Reviews (0) Reviews There are no reviews yet. Paul gets at this a few verses later, in 2 Corinthians 5:18–21: All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. The Gospel is a “mystery,” even in its open proclamation (1 Cor 2:1, 7). The form of Christ’s saving presence within the world is being tested in him. Only “in Christ” is this divine judgment on the human being done away with, so that we see that “the letter” that brings our death has its end in Christ, in whom the Spirit gives us life. 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