2 Corinthians - Chapter 7

In 2 Corinthians 6:17-18 we read, “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.” ¹⁸And, “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”

Paul follows up on this theme in 7:1.

 

¹Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.

 

Paul tells us to turn away from anything contaminating our lives—both physical and spiritual—anything distracting us from our reverence of God. 
 
“Perfecting holiness” means to have nothing whatsoever to do with anything unGodly—such as paganism.
 

²Make room for us in your hearts. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have exploited no one. ³I do not say this to condemn you; I have said before that you have such a place in our hearts that we would live or die with you. ⁴I have spoken to you with great frankness; I take great pride in you. I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.

 

It’s implied here once again that Paul had been accused by the false teachers of being unjust, destructive and fraudulent—the very things those teachers were guilty of being.

Paul asks the Corinthians for their love and devotion. Then he goes on to tell them how much they mean to him. Paul was pleading with them because he has been so hurt by their turning away from him to follow the false teachers who have entered the church. He loved them so much and couldn’t understand how they could turn on him like this.

Paul sometimes speaks about how he “had no rest”. The word “rest” was sometimes used to mean a bow being unstrung or the release of tension of the strings of a musical instrument. So unrest would have depicted a tightly strung bow or instrument—meaning TENSION! Part of Paul’s tension was due to the sin infiltrating the Corinthian church. 

But in verse 4, Paul talks about how joyful he is and how much confidence he has in them.

 

⁵For when we came into Macedonia, we had no rest, but we were harassed at every turn—conflicts on the outside, fears within. ⁶But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus, ⁷and not only by his coming but also by the comfort you had given him. He told us about your longing for me, your deep sorrow, your ardent concern for me, so that my joy was greater than ever.

 

Paul sent Timothy earlier, as we studied in 1 Corinthians, but Timothy was timid and not suited for the stern discipline required by the situation in Corinth. Paul had heard how the people had turned on him, so he chose Titus to go to them and deliver another letter. This letter was written between the letter we know as 1 Corinthians and the one we have as 2 Corinthians, but must have been lost. We do not have a record of it other than Paul mentioning it in chapter 2, verse 3. Titus was more capable of conveying the stern message Paul needed delivered.

The person or people who had started the trouble in the church, the false teachers, were probably very influential. They had persisted in their sin and led an open revolt against Paul, swaying some of the leaders in the church. But upon the arrival of Titus, with Paul’s letter, the Church was brought back into line, and the trouble makers had been humiliated and removed. This was part of the good news Titus had reported to Paul.

Here Paul refers back to when he went to Macedonia looking for Titus and how Titus had helped him by giving him the good news and telling him about their love for him. He told Paul they still loved and respected him after all. This made Paul happy. They had received his second letter and actually heeded his warnings. Titus also told him of the deep sorrow the people in the Church of Corinth felt because of the grief they had caused Paul.

 

⁸Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while— ⁹yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us.

 

Paul explains how, although he didn’t enjoy reprimanding them, he was glad he wrote the letter, bringing them to repentance. So although his letter may have hurt them at the time, it brought about the results God had intended and they were not harmed by their sorrow, but rather redeemed by their repentance. Discipline isn’t a pleasant task, but sometimes it produces wonderful results.

Hebrews 12:11  No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

We learn from this chapter in 2 Corinthians, as with most of Paul’s writings, he believes in being firm against the enemies of the gospel, uncompromising of the truth; yet he was sensitive and compassionate toward the people in the church. Paul had a big heart for people.

 

¹⁰Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. ¹¹See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter. ¹²So even though I wrote to you, it was neither on account of the one who did the wrong nor on account of the injured party, but rather that before God you could see for yourselves how devoted to us you are.

 

Godly sorrow is when we are terrified with the fear of punishment, but because we feel we have offended God. This is sorrow brings about repentance, which in turn leads to salvation. Once you have salvation, you should no longer regret the sorrow that got you there, but rejoice in it. But sin can cause you worldly sorrow (such as loss of your job, your family, friends, health, etc.) This kind of sorrow causes death. Worldly sorrow may bring about remorse and even tears, but stops short of repentance. Without repentance, you reap the wages of sin—which is death. Godly sorrow is not being sorrowful for the consequences of the sin, but sorry for the sin itself. Regret is not repentance. Regret usually happens because you’re sorry you got caught—or had to pay the consequences. Repentance is being remorseful for committing the sin and causes a change in how you approach things in the future. 

(from Life Application Bible) Rather than become defensive and too proud to admit when we have done wrong, we need to accept correction as a tool for growth and do all we can to correct those problems that have been pointed out to us.

 “Regret” causes desperation. “Repentance” gives us peace of mind.  

Because of Paul showing them where they were going wrong, they were able to correct it and now are intense about their beliefs again and eager to make things right again. They are now alarmed by their lack of diligence and long to worship God more earnestly. So even though his letter was harsh, it wasn’t to accuse them of any wrong-doing, but to show them how devoted they were. Paul says he knew they were good people and were devoted to their beliefs, but they had become confused and just needed to be straightened out. 

By all this we are encouraged. In addition to our own encouragement, we were especially delighted to see how happy Titus was, because his spirit has been refreshed by all of you. ¹⁴I had boasted to him about you, and you have not embarrassed me. But just as everything we said to you was true, so our boasting about you to Titus has proved to be true as well. ¹⁵And his affection for you is all the greater when he remembers that you were all obedient, receiving him with fear and trembling. ¹⁶I am glad I can have complete confidence in you.

Paul had bragged to Titus about what terrific people the Corinthians were and is glad they had received him well and treated him with respect when Titus went to see them. Titus’ spirits were lifted by being with them and it had proven Paul to be right about them. If they had treated Titus with a cold shoulder, Paul would have been embarrassed he had bragged on them so much. But they had made him proud of them and he says he has complete confidence in them. 

Paul’s apprehension and anxiety had been replaced by rejoicing and reassurance.

If your pastor were to write a letter concerning your obedience to the Word or his confidence in you, would it be a letter of rejoicing or of discouragement?

 

One thing that helped relieve Paul’s tension was his friend Titus. He was full of joy when he was visited by Titus. Then Titus brought him such good news about the Corinthians turning away from their sin, which made Paul even happier. Let’s not overlook the importance of our friends during times when we are tense and could use some good news. Our Christian friends are God’s answer to our headaches in life.