2nd Corinthians 2:8

2nd Corinthians 2:8. 

8 So I beg you to reaffirm your love for him.

Following from yesterday’s QT where our call is to forgive and comfort those who are in anguish, those who are in the path to excessive despair from the judgment of their sin before God, we see here Paul’s heart in admonishing the church at Corinth.  He BEGS them to reaffirm their love for those who have wronged you, who have given you pain in your life.  Paul is not simply admonishing, but he is literally begging, and we get the gist of the importance here.  Paul finds this aspect of the body of Christ so important, it is not just a spiritual command, or mandate to reaffirm your love for people who have pained or wronged you, but it is a personal, emotional, upwelling within Paul that causes him to beg the church to reaffirm their love for people they have marginalized and cast aside.

Now in my own life, I can see how many times, my judgment is passed mostly in the apathetic sense.  You have wronged me, you’ve lost your chance, you are blacklisted, end of discussion.  But I think as I read these last few days, or how Paul’s attitude is to die, and die again, then die again, and then die again and again, I too see the ways that reaffirming my love and support for brothers in sisters in Christ who have hurt me or pained me is something that shows the everlasting grace of God, and the unconditional love that comes with being a member of the body of Christ.  Reaffirm means not simply forgive, but it means to make clear to the person that things are cool.  That could mean varying things for different people.  One person may only need to be told that everything is cool, but someone else may need 10 lunch meetings to reconcile hurt and pain.  This is something we need to be willing and ready to do in the midst of forgiving and comforting and reaffirming God’s love for people who we have marginalized, or apathetically forgotten.

Paul’s attitude here really depicts one of absolute sincerity, one that calls us not to judge, but to reaffirm and restore relationships in the body.  Dividedness causes people to be isolated, even groups to be isolated.  Isolation is where people bask in sin, bask in despair, and the excessive sorrow sets in.  No we must be men and women of God who step in early to preemptive be those who reaffirm God’s love in the lives of our brothers and sisters.  Again and again.

2nd Corinthians 2:7

2nd Corinthians 2:7.

7 so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.

It occurred to me that most of the time, when we do not turn and forgive and comfort those who have wronged us, or caused us pain, we through implication, wish upon those people to be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.  When you are either outright judged, or totally ignored by apathetic distaste, you are on the receiving end of some of the most painful circumstances in life.  Paul admonishes the church at Corinth to turn to forgive.  He says to forgive first.  That isn’t to say go to the person and say you forgive them, though that is something you should do, Paul here is saying forgive, in the essence of reflecting on their sin before God, and knowing that all sin is forgiven by Christ, therefore has no place of judgment for use in our lives as well.  We must first understand our place before God, our fallen-ness before God, lest we be prone to judge, and prone to fall into a place of apathy for people.

After realizing your place before God, forgiving someone is so easy, as you know where you are before God, and you know how much your brothers and sisters need Christ as well.  The only left to do for someone in that case is to do what you’d want for yourself, and that is to be comforted.  What we are trying to do here is really show the love of Christ for each other.  If we do not show the love of Christ from people, the excessive sorrow that consumes people in the midst of their fallen-ness and sin, it is that which scars, that which hurts the body, and that which is absolutely preventable.  We must do our part as the body not to allow our brothers and sisters around us to be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.  Sorrow enough for someone to understand their sin, feel negatively towards it such that they hate it, yes absolutely.  But excessive sorrow the likes of despair and hopelessness, no that is not the character of God, and neither should be our character.

2nd Corinthians 2:6

2nd Corinthians 2:6.

6 For such a one, this punishment by the majority is enough,

This is exactly as I had seen it coming yesterday, I just see more and more the inclination of the church at Corinth to be one that sees sin, condemns it, and offers no expiation, restoration, and cleansing through the Spirit.  We are very quick to judge, we are very quick to use the very real hurt that is public demoralization, or shunning, to inflict what I’d like to call apathetic judgment on people.

Many people believe that when they see something they don’t like in someone else, that they are not judging, if they simply ignore it, or just decide to distance themselves, or sort of glaze over it.  On the contrary, a lack of action when faced with glaring sin in a brother or sister is also judging, and is also condemnable.  Why is it that we attach a negative stigma to outright judging someone and holding a grudge, and yet do not attach a negative stigma to apathy.  If anything, at least with outright judgment, though still sinful and harmful, there is still some level of truth that exists which the person can take and use as a means of rebuke through repentance.  But when you are apathetic, you are in essence saying, you can die, you can suffer in your sin, and I could care less about it. 

I have to ask myself when I deal with people in my life, am I approaching them with the shunning judgment that shows even less love than openly judging, or am I approaching them with an eager heart to help them be restored through their situation.  It is a scary thing to think about that which is inaction, being sin, since the world attributes in action, to being devoid of responsibility.  Not so in this case.  I am pressed today to speak purposefully and wisely into the lives of my ministry partners and my relationships.  This is how iron sharpens iron, this is how family loves family.

2nd Corinthians 2:5

2nd Corinthians 2:5.

5 Now if anyone has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure—not to put it too severely—to all of you.

When I read this passage, I liken it to hearing Paul saying… hey… you hurt people, you have hurt the whole body… not to put too fine a point on it… but that’s the truth, you hurt the whole body.  I think this is a good perspective to have though.  He is being careful in his delivery, but the message is clear, there is true interdependence within the body, meaning the actions of one affect the many.  The lack of fight in one, affects many, the unwillingness to fight one’s heart in one, affects many.  Classic examples have been numerous in my life.  There have been many instances where my selfishness, and pride have caused ministry not necessary to fail, but definitely caused others in the body and those who I was serving with, some grief, and some difficulty.  It’s not so much that people were directly offended or hurt by my pride or actions, though that was true at times, it was more so the fact that the ramifications of my sin, caused the body to swell and go into action.  When one member of the body goes down, those around must do their function AND help the part of the body that has fallen.  This puts an incredible strain on the body, so as you can imagine as a whole, the body of Christ is a struggling machine, slowly being sanctified, slowly but surely.

There is something that I think a lot of people including myself forget, and there is the relationships that we have, and how they bind us together. It is a fact that is easily glazed over in routine life, but it’s true, our relationships with our roommates, and sg members, and ministry family, we may think that personal sin, and even public sin are things that do not stumble people, but in actuality, the essence of sin within us is something that divides us, and the result of that sin, which is action, or thought, or whatever, is much of causative factor behind a force that debilitates ministry and community.  You would never think that by indulging in personal sin, where no one can see, would affect the body, but the truth is, the body is a spiritual entity, and your sin, and struggles, they bring down the body and community of Christ.  This is why community is so important. A community that exemplifies the accepting and loving grace of Jesus can be one where people feel free to share, feel free to be themselves, feel free to expose their sin, in such a way that people around do not judge, but charge to the rescue to redeem and restore those of the body who have fallen.

I cannot be naïve and think that happenstance sin in my life is as innocuous as a glass of water, if anything, I must treat it as poison, and as such, poison to the body should I indulge.

Random!

My coworker wanted me to take a picture of this figurine to sell on ebay… anyone know what this is?

Weird.

Any ideas?  I suppose it could be a grunt from WarCraft II: Tides Of Darkness… hmm…

2nd Corinthians 2:4

2nd Corinthians 2:4.

4 For I wrote to you out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to cause you pain but to let you know the abundant love that I have for you.

Point is made.

Today… very simply… I am afflicted, I am put down, I am beaten… yet I will still fight to show the abundant love I have for those around me, in every context, work, church, sg, you name it.  Man, lovin’ 2nd Corinthians.

2nd Corinthians 2:3

2nd Corinthians 2:3.

3 And I wrote as I did, so that when I came I might not suffer pain from those who should have made me rejoice, for I felt sure of all of you, that my joy would be the joy of you all.

This is interesting because Paul being ridiculed by the church at Corinth, the church he came to visit and help out, he now puts that down on paper.  That the ones that should have been making him rejoice in the Lord was causing pain and suffering.  I think this is definitely a level of reality check for the church at Corinth.  Many of them knew exactly who Paul was, knowing he was a spiritual father, yet they continued to ridicule, and giving him a hard time on his last visit.  As Paul remarks about that time, this is a loving and personal, and passionate word of understanding from Paul.  He is asking for them to take ownership of the body of Christ, and Paul being a brother in Christ is another person who needs the same grace as anyone else.  To make it clear, he indicates his distress on the last visit. 

The second part of this verse is the really hopeful part because Paul knows that though the times were hard on his visit, he does acknowledge here, that God is faithful.  And I see that because he is SURE that his joy would be the joy of them all, meaning there is a level of faith Paul puts in the power of the Spirit working through him and the church at Corinth.  He recognizes that at the end of the day, though bumps in the road have been encountered, that God’s people will rise and the church at Corinth will eventually flourish, and the joy that he was sure would be for them, will eventually find its place to them, knowing that God is faithfully moving in their lives.  Now, from my perspective, this is a hard mindset to have, considering the hardships that he endured while there.  But there is a real sense of the father’s love within Paul as he writes this letter.  He knows that there is so much joy in the Lord, and that God’s faithfulness to complete the work He has started is unmatched.  It’s just a matter of us being aware and moving with it as He moves.

2nd Corinthians 2:2

2nd Corinthians 2:2.

2 For if I cause you pain, who is there to make me glad but the one whom I have pained?

I think this is an interesting verse.  Though it is of course surrounded by context, I look at it and I think about what it means as it stands alone.  Part of me, when I hear Paul say these words, I am getting a semblance of him really attributing the pain that is caused is to God.  This is why I believe he attributes being made glad by the one whom I have pained.  It’s an interesting perspective.  If you do something to hurt someone, either it was a result of their sin which has caused them to be hurt, or it was your sin that was semi malicious in your actions.  Either way, it is sin in our lives that consumes us that causes pain in our lives, and I think that is something that pains our Father as He looks at us.  He knows we are all walking around with this debilitating limp, that of sin.  But it is God who can make us glad, as He is the one who took all of that debilitating sickness of sin, and turned it into a full and upright life lived in Christ.  Pretty awesome.  =)

OIL Hoodies

Some shots from a quick OIL Hoody Shoot of worship team. Get one! $30.

Jarvis sporting the hoodie, and a random one of Paul playing during sound check…

Candis as the hoodie model for the back of the hoodie, mel showing off the stylish hood…

Our OIL 2010 lady singers… sporting some OIL love and hoodie love…

Some hoodie action here…

Alright totally random but buy one, I don’t even know the website, but just go to winteroil.org and check it out.

2nd Corinthians 2:1

2nd Corinthians 2:1.

2:1 For I made up my mind not to make another painful visit to you.

This is in my estimation a really loving gesture on the part of Paul.  You can tell through the circumstances that surround Paul not returning for another visit, that his main call is to be Christ to the church at Corinth.  It was a painful visit the last time he was in Corinth as many people were up in open rebellion against him.  It says in some commentaries that he decided to leave instead of right away correcting the incorrect and unbiblical thinking processes of the church at Corinth, seeing that it was not the proper time yet for them to be able to hear this.  So this verse is not an admission of not being able to, or being unwilling to visit again, but really a loving father’s ministry, understanding those who he is ministering to, where they are at, and acknowledging what will be maximal use of his time and heart and effort regarding the situation.

It’s tough for me sometimes to do this.  Really die like Paul does for his people.  It’s something that I try to do daily for people I am in ministry with.  It’s tough when something said to you comes at you condescendingly, or with a really disrespectful tone, or just badly delivered.  It’s tough when through things like that, dying and dying again is what is maximal in the situation.  Yes, at times I’d like to really lovingly admonish, rebuke, etc. with a heart that wants to help increase people’s visibility and perception of ministry and their hearts, I too must pick my battles, and lovingly acknowledge what is maximal before Christ in the proper time, more than what I would like to do in the circumstance.  There will always be opportunities to really admonish and rebuke later on, if before God, the decision is made in submission to God’s plan, to hold off on that stuff for a while.  

I just try and remember… those who die and die again for the sake of their brothers and sisters, are the ones who are always in a state of submitting to God’s will, and will in turn be given the most power to do the work that is set before them.  I believe that, I believe it’s clearly written in Matthew, that new life comes from dying, that strength is given to those who are weak.  Constantly pushing to really see dying to myself as being a joyful activity is a tough thing to do, but the alternative is self righteousness, self justification, and the antithesis of what God’s love is about.