This is a reminder that what Paul wrote, he wrote as a representative of God – one whom God Himself sent.

Paul never ministered alone. He was always developing other ministers. Timothy was one of Paul’s ministry apprentices. He was particularly dear to Paul’s heart, as if he were Paul’s own son (1Ti 1:18 and 2Ti 1:2).

An outcome of that was that this letter to the church at Corinth was sent jointly from Paul and Timothy. Sosthenes had that had that same privilege for the writing of 1 Corinthians (1 Cor 1:1).

...^1bTo the church of God which is at Corinth…

Like Paul, the church belonged to God. They weren’t Paul’s church, and Paul wasn’t their representative. Their existence as a body, and Paul’s relationship to them, were according to God’s design.

Moreover, this congregation was part of a larger body – all the saints in Achaia, who would read this letter after the Corinthian Christians were finished with it.


The gospel by which I am saved is not a Jesus-first gospel. The Son always showed us that He was subservient to the Father. Jesus leads me to the Father, not to Himself. His purpose is always to restore my fellowship with the Father, and the Father sent Him for that very purpose. The Father draws me to Christ or else I would not desire Him (John 5:37-38; John 6:44-45; John 6:65; John 10:3).


All sustainable comfort is from God. I have relatives and friends who have wrecked their lives by turning to alcohol, drugs, illicit sex, food, solitude, anger, and power for comfort in difficult times. All of those can provide a temporary sense of relief that masks the need for the life changing, interminable comfort that can only come from our loving Father and Creator.

But God does not comfort me in His mercy for my own benefit. He comforts me for a greater purpose. He enables me to pass the same mercy and comfort on to others as His minister, His representative.

If I refuse to do this – if I walk past the Samaritan because I am busy and in a hurry with my own agenda – I have accepted God’s merciful comfort tor me in vain. I must live for others and become their loving servant. It would violate everything God created me were I to hold His comfort for myself.

Often I am able and willing to accept affliction, and God’s ready comfort, as part of God’s plan for developing His ministry through me. Sometimes I’m not so able and willing.

What the right thinking require? It requires me to volitionally surrender my mind and my emotions to God’s revelation. Everything in and around me tells me that suffering is bad. I will not be able to accept suffering by logic or reason. I won’t be able to will myself to accept it. My only option is to trust God despite what I feel, reason, or desire.

In his previous letter to this church, Paul spent an entire chapter drilling the point that I must not live for myself (1 Cor 8).

I looked ahead to 2 Cor 7:6-7 and saw this in action in a profound way. Paul there wrote: “But God, who comforts the depressed, comforted us by the coming of Titus; and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted in you, as he reported to us your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me; so that I rejoiced even more.”


When I comfort others, I enable them to patiently endure difficult times. I help develop and firm (“confident”) hope in those who minister to others. And their suffering may contribute to the salvation of others. Paul thinks in exponents.

Paul’s referring to a specific example in His own life. He spent 3 years in Ephesus and Asia Minor before writing to Corinth (see 1 Cor 16:8, 19). While there, he experienced a great deal of suffering (Acts 19:1-20:1). But amid extreme suffering, Paul continued to minister and teach the gospel. For two years in Ephesus he continued to teach - despite fierce opposition.

What was the result of Paul’s suffering? From his perspective, the result was “that all who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks” (Acts 19:10). Israelites found salvation through grace rather than condemnation through Law. Gentiles were converted from idolatry and magic to salvation through Christ alone (Acts 19:17-18). Fifty-thousand silver pieces worth of books about the magic were burned by those who owned them (Acts 19: 19). The “word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing” (Acts 19:20).

There was value to Paul himself from his suffering, too. It caused him to despair of life (v.8). The suffering was greater than his own strength (v.8), so he could no longer trust himself. His only option was to trust God whose strength was so great that He raises the dead (v.9). This dependence renewed Paul’s hope and his awareness of how God delivers His people both in this life and, ultimately, out of this life (v.10).

Finally, Paul concludes that his suffering was also benefited these Corinthian Christians because it caused them to pray to God on his behalf (v.11)!

My suffering should bless to others. If it doesn’t, I am too inwardly focused.

On the evening that I am writing this, there was a terrorist attack outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, London, England. A man armed with a large knife drove a car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge and stabbed an unarmed police officer. Four people have died, including a policeman and the attacker. 29 other people were injured badly enough to be treated in the hospital. Seven of those are in a critical condition.

My prayer: That God will bring comfort to His people through this tragedy, and that those will comfort others who do not know Him. In this way, I pray that the kingdom of God will expand – once again upending Satan’s schemes.

JB

I also liked the statement that "God does not provide comfort for our own benefit," rather he does so for the sake of spreading the gospel.  This is another reminder that not everything in this life is about me but everything the Father has is for my benefit when I let Him into all areas of my life.  May we all grow to be intimate with God, letting Him have access into all areas of our life and be intertwined with us body, mind and spirit.

Blessings!
John