Skip to main content

Corinthian Comfort

 

I'm doing something different this year and listening to the New Testament. I want to compete it each month and so far I'm on track. Of course it is only February. It has been fascinating so far. It has been amazing to hear Jesus talk and to hear Paul's seemingly constant scoldings mixed with tender comments about his tremendous love for the church and his Lord Jesus. 


Just this morning he was giving some hard love instructions to the folks at the Corinthian church. It was his second letter and it was as stern and tender as his first. That church was a piece of work. 


You have to think about context when you think about Corinth. The context is weighty and necessary because it reveals how artistically Paul communicated with his beloved flock there in that port city. 


Port cities were receptacles for all sorts of diversity. Sailors, often a rough subset of society in those days, were ubiquitous. Where there were sailors there was all sorts of debauchery. Corinth plus sailors equalled lots of trouble. Corinth's infamy had spread throughout the region and even in other areas of the world, prostitutes were called, "Corinthian girls". 


So when Paul begins his second letter using the word, comfort (παράκλησις) ten times, other things could have come to a Corinthian dweller’s mind. I find it fascinating that Paul uses this word in a burst of exuberance at the beginning of this letter in which he will call his followers to task on several important issues. Giving to others to meet their needs was one of Paul's main points.


 Paul highlights what we need to know about comfort in just seven verses. 

Here is what we discover from the man of velvet and steel:

  • Our God is the source of All comfort

  • He comforts so that we might comfort others

  • When we share suffering we must share his comfort

  • That comfort will help others endure suffering

  • Which will help others comfort others


This is not exactly the comfort that most of the Corinthian population expected nor even wanted. They wanted the quick gratification of a Corinthian girl or boy. But praise be to God for his unspeakable gift. 


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Tottering!

I was watching my one year old grandson, Brandon, today. He had on some baggy little shorts, weird flip-flops over his socks, and he was tottering. It made me think about how I often feel these days. Funny how that when we are little and "innocent" and tottering in our baggy pants, with our little potbelly sticking out from under our t-shirt we look precious. When we are older and tottering in our low slung trousers and the same potbelly, we looks pathetic! I guess that the two drastically opposite points of view are based on the viewer's chronological perspective. Brandon is growing and I'm dying. He is cute because the little guy has a lot to learn and we love to see him progress. The old guy has already had his chance at learning and what he is progressing toward is not quite so much fun to ponder. When I have these weird thoughts I praise my God because He never lets go of my hand whether a tottering little guy or an old one. And I found this verse to prove my po...

What Are You Worth?

What are you Worth?  Have you ever thought about what you are worth? In investing circles there is a term used to gauge this exact question, it's called Net Worth. You take all of your assets, like property owned, funds in your bank account, clothes, jewelry, car, etc.. You total all of these things. You then take everything you owe, like mortgage, car loan, and credit card debt, and you subtract these items from the first total. This gives you your net worth. That number represents where you are financially. Most people never stop to think about this number because they don't understand anything about it. They never have two nickels to rub together. They live from hand to mouth and know (or at least believe) nothing will ever change so, they fall into the "daily grind" mentality. Psalm 49 should be a great encouragement to such as these. The sons of Korah write about them. These sons write about all of us. They call all people everywhere to listen to their wisdom. Bo...

Church Isn't a Place

  Many times we say, I'm going to church on Sunday. What some fail to understand is that "church" isn't a building. I remember our pastor saying, "the church is an organism, not an organization." He was teaching us the Bible truth about the church. Jesus Christ is the head of the body, and the church is his body on earth. Another pastor once said, "God's hands have human fingers." This is a difficult concept for some to grasp, pun intended. However, it is important to understand that God accomplishes his work through human beings. He uses us, the church, to do his will and work. It's not that if we don't do his will that he is stymied. But he does use willing servants. To be in the church, one must be a part of the family. You cannot be in the church if you don't have the Savior. The church is not for the lost; it is for the edification of the saved. The lost can come and hear the message of salvation. But the church is made up of t...