2 Corinthians - Overview

[Jim Watt]

“*TWO ARE BETTER THAN ONE” MINISTRIES*

*Jim & Marie Watt*

*Tel: 253.874.4265 -- Email: jmbetter at gmail.com*

*Web: www.2rbetter.org*



   *2 CORINTHIANS - OVERVIEW - T3301R*

*GOD'S COMFORT THROUGH HIS MINISTER*


 *1. 1:3-4 (1-2) PAUL'S MINISTRY. “Blessed the God and Father of our :Lord
Jesus Christ, the Father of :mercies and God of all :comfort; 4 who comforts
us in all our :affliction, that we be able to comfort those in any
:affliction, through the comfort by which we ourselves are comforted of
:God.” *Righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit is Your Kingdom, O
Father! What a Kingdom of comfort and compassion! *Hallowed be your :name.*


 *2. 5:18-19 (3-5) PAUL'S MOTIVE. “But all the things are of :God, who
reconciled us to himself through Christ, and gave to us the ministry of
:reconciliation; 19 to wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to
himself, not reckoning to them their :trespasses, and having committed to us
the word of :reconciliation.” *Again we see Your heart, O Father! We respond
in love to You, because You first loved us. Thank You for Your gift of
Reconciliation in Christ. *Your :kingdom come.*


 *3. 6:11-12 (6-7) PAUL'S EXAMPLE. “Our mouth is open unto you, Corinthians,
our :heart enlarged. 12 You are not straitened in us, but you are straitened
in your :affections.” *We see Your heart expressed, O Father, through Paul
and his fellow workers. We know what You are like through Christ and Paul.
You are so compassionate! We respond by enlarging our hearts to You. *Your
:will be done, As in heaven, so on earth.*


 *4. 8:5; 9:15 (8-9) PAUL ON GIVING. “And not as we had hoped, the
Macedonians first gave their own selves to the Lord, and to us through God's
will. 9:15 Thanks to :God for his unspeakable :gift.” *This *gift*, is the
“d*o*-reA”, the artesian well of John 4:10. It is used 11 times in the NT,
and 10 times clearly refers to the Holy Spirit. The verse using it here
normally refers it to Christ. But if 10 use it for the Spirit, shouldn't we
see the Spirit here too? The fact that Paul calls Him “unspeakable”, is
because words can't adequately express the wonder of what He does for us
through giving. Our Prayer Language alone can express Him. *Our :daily
:bread, Give us this day.*


 *5. 10:3-5 (10:1-18) PAUL ON WARFARE. “For though we walk in the flesh, we
do not war according to the flesh, 4 (for the weapons of our :warfare are
not of flesh, but mighty before :God unto casting down of
strongholds); 5casting down
reasonings, and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of
:God, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of the
Christ.” *Father, we thank You for this warfare truth. *And forgive us our
:debts, As we also have forgiven our :debtors.*


 *6. 11:2 (11:1-15) PAUL'S AIM. “For I am zealous over you with a zeal of
God; for I espoused you to one husband, that I might present you a pure
virgin to the Christ.” *The Zeal of God possessed Paul on behalf of these
carnal Corinthians. He knew that if Your people would only serve Christ
faithfully in Your fear. that with joy You would perfect them in Him,
Father! *And bring us not into temptation.*


 *7. 12:8-9a (11:16-13:14) PAUL'S WEAKNESS: FURTHERS THE GOSPEL. “Concerning
this I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. 9a And he
said to me, My :grace is sufficient for you: for the power is made perfect
in weakness.” *How marvelous and wise Your ways on our behalf, O Father! You
do *all* things well! *But deliver us from the evil one.*



 *NOTE: *“The God of All Comfort” is a famous and well-known book that has
brought *comfort* to multitudes of God's people. And - it *was* indeed based
on this letter by the apostle Paul.


 Notice how “gently” Paul treats these weak and carnal Christians. Here is a
true servant and apostle at work. There are some self-styled apostles who
show anything but this spirit in their ministry. But God has set forth
apostles like Paul and Peter as true Plumblines for what true apostles ought
to measure up to.


 Just as God chose George Muller, a profligate candidate for the ministry in
Germany - and then brought him into His Kingdom at the age of 20 - and then
shaped and molded him for 10 years - and at the same age as Jesus, launched
him into one of the most extraordinary examples of faith and prayer that
perhaps the world has ever seen. So God chose this persecuting Pharisee -
feared by all believers in those days - and transformed him into a suffering
servant in the spirit of Jesus - and used him as demonstrated in this
epistle, as one of the most extraordinary ministries - measuring up to a
Moses, and reminding hearers of Jesus Himself; because Paul was so
transformed that he remarkably allowed the full will and Spirit and example
of Jesus to shine through him!


 Imagine! God used Paul to author 14 of the 27 New Testament books, and
found 14 City Churches. Seven of these churches, including the City Church
of Corinth, he specifically addressed with personal letters.


 So - let us humbly, searchingly and earnestly search out the Spirit-led
writings of this man - *meditate* upon them as he exhorted Timothy (1
Timothy 4:15), and *find* the fruitfulness of “God's Comfort” promised in
this second letter of Paul to Corinth.




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