In response to the Corinthians’ rejection, Paul explains that in order to receive comfort from God, we must lean into suffering. Allowing suffering to empty us creates a void that God can fill with life and strength.

Furthermore, suffering enables us to be mediators of God’s comfort to others just as Jesus has comforted us.

Paul also explains that he is choosing suffering in order to serve the Corinthians. This choice mirrors Jesus’ suffering on the cross in order to give us life.

Belief in Jesus’ resurrection is central to our faith. If we believe in the certainty of life after death, then we will be free to take risks and give our resources for God’s kingdom.

Allowing God to rescue us in difficult moments now is merely a foretaste of our ultimate salvation. We can cultivate a deeper faith by leaning into suffering and trusting him with the outcome.

In an effort to reach out to the believers at Corinth, Paul explains that he has chosen a simple, honest form of ministry to them so that they may grow in their faith in God.

False teachers have swayed the church with flash and power. We must likewise be wary of voices in our culture that promise the benefits of Christianity without suffering.

Paul also explains that he is choosing the Corinthians in the same way God has chosen us as believers. By declaring the ultimate “yes” in Jesus, God fulfilled his promise to us at great cost.

The instability of our circumstances exposes who we really are—where we find comfort and where our treasure is.

Like the church at Corinth, we need to be careful whom we listen to and how much we listen to. We must turn to God’s Word and biblical community to find truth.

We are inclined to trust our own ability to discern truth. Ultimately, we must be willing to trust God more than easy or clever answers.

Paul explains to the church at Corinth that the true fruit of gospel ministry is life change—genuine transformation is rooted in the power of Jesus.

Even in the midst of difficulty and loss, believers can take heart in the ultimate victory of the resurrection.

All believers are called to live out the gospel to others—the primary purpose of our regular, daily tasks is to spread the knowledge of Christ. Some will receive it and be transformed; others will reject the truth.

In our culture in particular, the exclusivity of Christ can be difficult to swallow. The message of the gospel is both empathetic and hostile to humanity—we must acknowledge our sin in order to receive God’s grace.

Like Paul, we must serve others with the mindset that God is watching and be mindful of our motives.

The legitimacy of our ministry is the life change of those around us. While only the Holy Spirit can change lives, we must consistently hold out the gospel to others.

In order to point the Corinthian believers towards the power of Christ, Paul explains that the Old Covenant, the law, is insufficient in and of itself—it is merely a teacher that points us to the New Covenant.

In Christ through the Spirit, the New Covenant gives us the power to live out the relationship with God that we were created for.

When we are transformed by the gospel, the Holy Spirit gives us new desires and abilities. We gain both the desire to obey and the power to do so.

We should be more captivated by God’s resume in our lives than our own abilities. Looking back at how he has transformed us can prompt us to move forward in faith.

The gospel transformation begins when we turn to Jesus in a personal way. Only then will the veil be removed so we can experience the true glory of God.

Once we have seen God’s glory through Christ, then we can reflect it to others and be changed into his glorious image.

As Paul unpacks the gospel, he explains that it has nothing to do with charisma or talent. The gospel is powerful in and of itself.

Many cannot receive the gospel because they are blinded by Satan. We must be mindful of Satan’s influence and power in our culture.

Instead of trying to align ourselves with a powerful leader or movement, we are free to be servants since our status is secure in Jesus.

Our inherent weakness as vessels of the gospel only serves to amplify God’s power. The very nature of the gospel is that God became weak in the form of a man to serve others.

We all have a responsibility to share the gospel humbly and with sincerity.

Part of our calling as believers is to enter into the sufferings of Christ. We must be willing to deplete and diminish ourselves for the sake of others—only then can God fill us with his glory.

In this passage, Paul points us to a future day when all believers will be resurrected and stand before Jesus. Looking toward this time orients us to God’s purpose in and through us.

Paul is passionate about telling his story of faith—he knows God has entrusted him with a mission to share his life-change story with others.

Even though our outer selves are slowly dying and we experience trials here on earth, we can rest in the fact that our inner selves are becoming more powerful as we share in Christ’s sufferings.

In fact, our bodies are temporary, and we can look forward to glorified bodies that will be able to bear up under the weight of God’s eternal glory in heaven.

At the end of time, we will all stand before Jesus and give an account of our lives. We can be comforted that the one who will judge us is also the one who took judgment for us on the cross.

The reality of this resurrection day should be orienting to us—we work towards God’s purposes, rest in his promises, and align our lives with his mission.

With the future day of judgment in mind, Paul explains that he is motivated by the fear of God to share the gospel.

Likewise, we should be more compelled by the fear of God than the need for man’s approval as we speak truth to those around us.

We should also be gripped by the love of Christ. Just as Jesus put our need for salvation before his own status, so we should put the need for others to know the reconciliation of Christ before our own comfort.

Living sacrificially does not grant us salvation, but it does demonstrate where our faith is.

We are a renewed humanity—God is forming us in Christ through his Spirit. We should curate and develop our new lives in alignment with our status as sons and daughters of Christ.

As ambassadors of Christ, our mission is to reconcile others to God just as Christ reconciled us by his sacrifice.

Credibility is the link to leadership. The way we live is evidence of our authenticity and effectiveness in leading others.

Spiritual shepherds impoverish themselves to bring blessings to other people. The greatest example of this kind of sacrifice is Jesus’ work on the cross.

The Holy Spirit gives us the ability to respond to those who oppose us with humility and grace and to love, serve, and give our lives away.

If you’re going to be a spiritual leader, you’re going to suffer for people.

Jesus invites us to be unified with him, as a family, and to live out our reconciliation in a way that makes others want the same reconciliation.

The Scriptures often pull us into tension. When there is a gap in our understanding, we must humble ourselves and accept God on his terms. God’s Word can be trusted over our feelings.

As believers, we are called to live in the culture but not of the culture. We must avoid entangling relationships wherein we are not free to obey Christ.

Although it is not inherently wrong to have an earthly role (parent, spouse, American, etc.), we must guard against over-identifying with these roles. Instead, our primary identity should be in Christ.

Holiness is not something that we earn—it is conferred on us by our Heavenly Father through the sacrificial death of Jesus.

As believers, we are the temple of God. This should be clarifying to us—God so desired a unique and intimate relationship with us that he made the incredible sacrifice of his Son.

The outworking of our holiness includes both the cleansing of sin and the ongoing work of perfecting holiness in the fear of God. We must constantly work towards completing the identity that has been conferred upon us.

Even as Paul acknowledges the past sins of the believers at Corinth—and his severe rebuke—he rejoices in their repentance.

Paul loves the Corinthians more than himself. He was willing to risk their relationship in order to help them grow. We must also be aware that correction is an integral part of discipleship and life change.

Being confronted with our own sin is painful, but it is a necessary catalyst for growth. We must lean into godly sorrow.

Confession is more than simply admitting wrongdoing—it is agreeing with the biblical community around you and God’s view of your sin.

While confession involves words, repentance involves action and takes place over time. We must continually evaluate the fruit of repentance in our lives.

Although we often want to feel repentant before moving away from sin and towards God, we must choose obedience first. God will energize our souls to a new way of living after we yield our words and actions to him.

Paul’s description of the Macedonians is a paradox—they are impoverished and persecuted yet they are filled with abundant joy. This is evidence of the gospel at work in their lives.

The believers at Corinth have grown in their faith; however, Paul urges them to excel in generosity as well.

Money is an accurate reflection of what we value, fear, and place our trust in. How we spend our money and the extent of our generosity reveal the idols of our hearts.

Jesus provides the ultimate example of sacrificial giving. He became poor, both physically and spiritually, in order to make us rich. We can never out-give what Jesus has given us.

Giving should come from the overflow of a thankful heart—we must give eagerly and sacrificially, placing our trust in God instead of our own resources.

The believers at Corinth and the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem don’t have much in common other than their faith. However, generosity is powerful—many Christians are inspired to help those in need because of the Corinthians’ giving.

In order for God to provide a great harvest, we must be willing to release the seed. If we hold on to our resources, then they are useless to serve God and others.

When we examine our hearts around the idea of giving financially, we must question where our trust is. Are we consumed with security, comfort, or status? Or are we truly trusting God to provide for us?

Having the freedom to give cheerfully shows that we trust in God and not our money.

God is our ultimate provider. Not only will he provide for our needs, but he will also provide us with enough to bless those around us. Not all that God sends to us is for us.

Our giving proves our obedience to the gospel. Jesus became poor so we could be rich. When we minister to others through giving, we model God’s generosity to the world.

As Paul defends his God-given authority, he is both direct and kind. He has clarity around God’s purpose and his responsibility, yet he’s humble and willing to make himself vulnerable.

Worldly weapons harness our fears and ambitions—they are impressive, yet they lack power to effect lasting change.

In contrast, godly weapons demand life change. While God’s truth may not always be flashy, it interrupts the normal flow of our lives and brings us to a point of decision.

In his previous letter, Paul explains that not all division is bad. Distinctions reveal the true state of our hearts.

In our culture, we often substitute influence for authority. However, influence has no real power other than what is granted by the one being influenced.

God-given authority functions without the consent of the governed. God created us to come under his authority, and it’s good for our souls to do so.

Paul feels responsible to prepare the Church for Jesus, and he’s concerned that they are being deceived by false teachers who appear godly but are actually agents of Satan.

These false teachers have built their credentials on birthright, and Paul explains that the true measure of spiritual authenticity and authority has nothing to do with this. Genuine faith is made evident through suffering.

In our culture, we do not typically suffer as Paul did for the gospel. This can be a disadvantage—the benefit of persecution is that it reveals whether or not our faith is real.

Paul chooses to put himself in situations where he will be oppressed, lose personal freedoms, and be exposed to death in order to advance the gospel. We must consider if we would be willing to follow this path.

In carrying the burden of many churches, Paul has been supplanted by the mission of the gospel. He not only feels responsible for them, he also feels great empathy and is concerned more about them than himself.

Although Paul has true reasons to boast—experiencing an incredible vision of heaven—he chooses to boast in his weakness.

In order to check Paul’s pride, God afflicts him with a thorn in the flesh. While this idea creates tension for us, the Scripture is clear that God values our humility over our personal comfort.

God is not the author of evil, but God is sovereign over evil. We can take comfort in the truth that God grew a body in the person of Jesus and subjugated himself to a people whom he knew would reject and torture him.

Although we cannot know God’s purposes for our suffering, we can and should cry out for his mercy. In this way, we express our ultimate dependence on him.

Weakness kills self-reliance. When we embrace our weakness, we can rest in God’s grace, which is our connection to his glory. Indeed, our weakness keeps us connected to God and his sufficiency.

Paul was spiritually powerful because he leaned into his weakness for the sake of advancing the gospel. We must likewise deny ourselves and serve others sacrificially in order for God’s power to work through us.

Although Paul is defending his authority, his primary purpose is to strengthen the believers at Corinth. Because of his fatherly love, he wants them to know the truth and grow in spiritual power.

Like the Corinthians, we often fail to take sin seriously. We must be wary of its destructive power and far-reaching consequences.

The redemptive nature of repentance is that it aligns us with God and allows the Holy Spirit to give us new energy and power.

Throughout Scripture, God has set patterns of discipline, which is evidence of his loving pursuit of his children.

We must be willing to humble ourselves to receive correction from others. Furthermore, we must be willing to risk rejection in order to lovingly rebuke a brother or sister who is caught in sin. God has called us to be holy, and it is not loving to accept what he hates.

Like the Corinthians, we often create our own version of Christianity. However, we must be sure that we are under God’s Kingdom—that our purposes are aligned with his.

One way we can adopt a posture of weakness and humility is to develop the discipline of self-examination. We must honestly examine our souls so that we can lean into our weaknesses and experience God’s power.

Although our culture emphasizes living authentically, God directs us to live humbly and to be willing to receive the correction of spiritual authority. While correction is disruptive and challenging, it is a powerful gospel tool for growth.

Correction is easier before the crisis. As a body of believers, we must seek to create a culture wherein we are willing to step into ambiguous situations for the sake of the truth.

In order to receive or give correction well, we must know God’s Word.

If we want an authentic experience of God, we have to do it on his terms and under his kingship.

As we come to the end of 2 Corinthians, Paul pushes us to make a choice—do we or do we not want to be God’s people? While following God is not easy, he is always faithful to care for us.

One mark of a true believer is joy. Because the cross has dealt with our sinful past and we have a future hope of eternity with God, we can be joyful at all times and in all circumstances.

While the church is the context in which we find the resources to grow, we must own our personal growth by fully engaging the church in every way available.

Our culture often portrays encouragement as extending mercy. However, biblical encouragement means to come alongside, exhort, and move someone to change.

Uniformity is not the same as harmony and peace. We must seek to place the gospel and our relationships with each other above our own personal agenda.

In the process of pursuing joy, encouragement, maturity, and harmony, we find God’s faithful presence, the love of Christ, and the fellowship of the Spirit.