FATHER OF COMPASSION AND GOD OF COMFORT

2 Corinthians 1:1-24, Key Verse: 1:3

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort....”

From the last Sunday’s passage, we learned that Apostle Paul encouraged the Corinthian Christians to prepare their offering for other brothers and sisters suffering in Jerusalem. I pray that we may do the same for our brothers and sisters in Ukraine and in Kentucky as well. When you make an offering, we encourage you to write your thanksgiving and prayers to God. Just as Paul encouraged them to be on their guard, stand firm in the faith, be courageous and be strong, we also could encourage John and Isaiah as we sent them to UIUC in the same way. May God help them to guard their hearts from the temptation of the world and be strong and courageous in the love of Christ!

2 Corinthians was written while Paul was in Macedonia after a painful visit in Corinth and before he went to Jerusalem. This is known as Paul’s tearful letter with his emotion as he shared his personal experience, faith, Biblical perspective in offerings, vision and warnings, defending his apostleship and his gospel message. Today’s passage is the introduction, praising God for his compassion and comfort in the midst of troubles and explaining the reason why he changed his plan. May God also comfort each of us, especially those who are going through the times of trouble, through this passage!

1. God Comforts Us (1-11)

Have you heard the saying, “Medicine is bitter on your tongue but good for health!” Look at verse 1, “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother. To the church of God in Corinth, together with all his holy people throughout Achaia.” In these verses, many issues are included, his apostleship and Timothy. After writing the previous letter, Paul visited the Corinthian church, but they did not accept him as an apostle though they became Christians through Paul. It was because of the influence of the super apostles who were false ones rejecting Paul’s humility and his gospel message. Yet, Paul presented himself as an apostle of Christ not by a human but by God’s will. How much worse they treated Timothy who also brought bad reports about them as well, but Paul defended Timothy, who was a growing leader.

In the previous letter, he said that the Corinthian Christians are called to be holy. Though some of them repented but many still had a lot of problems, yet Paul called them holy people of Jesus, saints. How could he call them Saints? In the Old Testament God called the people of Israel a kingdom of priests and a holy nation, though they had just come out of Egypt full of a slave mentality, complaining to God. Therefore, it is God’s perspective that true believers are saints, growing in the image of Christ, through the help of the Holy Spirit! Even though we are not perfect, each one of us are saints, growing in the image of Christ.

Verse 2, “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” This is Paul’s staple in his greeting. He knew what brothers and sisters need is God’s grace and peace. Grace and peace come from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! As Jesus greeted his disciples with grace and peace when they were in trouble, so Paul greeted them. May grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all!

Look at verse 3, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort.” Wherever Paul went, he received persecution, even in Macedonia, Greece, as he shared the gospel of Jesus. In spite of persecutions, Paul is praising God. It is because he considered God as Father, as Jesus taught his disciples. Even though Psalm 86 and Malachi 2 introduced God as the Father, it was a totally new concept to the Jews and to the Gentiles as well, God as Father. In Romans 8:15-16 says, “The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” Just like a little child, we should call our God, daddy. We should never forget this relationship. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us so that we can be adopted to be his children. How much more shall we trust in his love!

Who is God our Father? Our Father God has many characteristics, but Paul names only two. First, He is the Father of compassion. Look at verse 3. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort…” What is compassion? It is sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others. God had compassion on the people of Israel suffering as slaves in Egypt. Though the people of Israel were suffering in Babylon due to their sins, God had compassion on his people and brought them back to their home. God’s compassion was depicted the most in the parable of a prodigal son. Though the son took half of his father’s inheritance and wasted it all, his father ran to him and kissed him as the son came back with humility and repentance. God even called himself the compassionate and gracious to Moses. (Ex 34:6) This same God is compassionate and gracious toward the Christians in Corinth even though they had a lot of problems. The God of compassion saved us from our sins and continues to help us grow in Jesus!

Secondly, he is the God of all comfort. What is the meaning of comfort? According to the Webster dictionary, it is acts or words that bring relief from grief or trouble. Look at verse 4. “who comforts us in all our trouble, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” How has God comforted Paul and his companions? Paul received persecutions wherever they went because they shared the gospel of Jesus; he was falsely accused, arrested, beaten, shipwrecked and even stoned almost to death. In the province of Asia, most likely Ephesus, he and his companions received persecution far beyond their human ability to bear, so much so that they felt total despair that there was no hope of living. Most people would give up in total despair, but Paul was different. Look at verse 9, “Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.” Paul took it as an opportunity not to rely on himself but on God, believing in the resurrection of Jesus. Total despair brought him to total dependance on God with the hope of Jesus’ resurrection.

What happened to Paul when he depended on the God of resurrection? First of all, God comforted him. How? Look at verse 5, “For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.” When he remembered the sufferings of Christ, he was comforted through Christ. Though Jesus had not done anything wrong, he was rejected and falsely accused by his own people, deserted by his disciples, betrayed by his beloved disciple and finally was crucified with criminals by the gentiles for the sin of the world. Comfort abounds when we remember the sufferings of Christ. Jesus set the standard in the life of suffering. By his wounds, we are healed.

Moreover, our comfort in the sufferings of Christ has a chain reaction like nuclear energy, comforting others. Look at verse 6, “If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.” It is paradox that sufferings in Christ produce endurance and strength. Through sufferings, we can relate to Christ and to others who are going through suffering. Look at verse 7. “And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.” People in the world kick and scream at the time of sufferings, but Paul had a different attitude. He found hope and the meaning in the life of suffering, learning from Jesus how to find joy in the midst of suffering. This is truly a mystery of God in the gospel of Christ. While people of the world suffer for their sins, Christians suffer for Christ and come to understand the deeper meaning of the gospel and experience the power of Jesus’ resurrection, sharing this blessing or mystery with others who are going through the same sufferings in life. Apostle Peter also said, “But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. ²¹ To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.”

Finally, Paul had confidence in God’s deliverance. Look at verse 10. “He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us.” Whenever he was persecuted and even on the verge of death, God had saved him, not once but every time. His experience granted him confidence and hope in God’s continual deliverance. God is our deliverer, rock and salvation. In the midst of persecution, God was doing something greater behind the scenes, even bringing Paul to Rome where God wanted him to be. And he gave thanks to those who prayed for them, including the prayers of Corinthian Christians.

This also reminds me of the life of Joseph in Genesis. He suffered after being sold as a slave by his own brothers. In the midst of suffering, he found hope in God and lived before God. Because he rejected the temptation of his master’s wife, he was falsely accused and put in a dungeon. Yet, God was doing his work behind the scenes, and raised him to be the prime minister in Egypt through the dreams of the king. After he became the PM, he did not abuse his power but helped his brothers to repent of their sins. When they fell into the fear of death, he comforted them with the comfort he received from God. May God bless you to experience this heavenly comfort in the midst of suffering so that you may be able to comfort others who are going through sufferings.

1. Yes to God’s Plan (12-24).

Look at verse 12. “Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace.” Only through God’s grace, Paul could serve the church, overcoming trials outside and inside. God’s grace was the source of his strength. (1 Co 15:15:10) In God’s grace, he conducted himself with integrity and godly sincerity, not with worldly wisdom. Yet, the Corinthian Christians questioned his motivations and some falsely accused him. He worked hard but they misunderstood him. But Paul was God-oriented, depending on His grace.

Look at verses 13-14. “For we do not write you anything you cannot read or understand. And I hope that, ¹⁴ as you have understood us in part, you will come to understand fully that you can boast of us just as we will boast of you in the day of the Lord Jesus.” In fact, Paul wrote another letter before this one after his visit. It seems that they could not understand the meaning of his letter. Even though he was misunderstood, he came to trust in God who will reveal everyone’s motivation on the last day of Christ.

Paul’s original plan was to visit them on his way to Macedonia and to come back to them from Macedonia, and then to have them send him on his way to Judea. When he made this plan, he did it prayerfully. Yet, he could not come to them in order to obey to God’s plan. Paul uses this change of plans as an opportunity to teach the Corinthians a few lessons.

First, yes to God’s promise. Look at verse 20. “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.” God’s promise is always yes, though there are many. Jesus denied himself to obey the promise of God. Yet God cannot deny himself but keeps his word no matter what. We are saved by faith in God’s promise. When we hold onto the promise of God, we can say “Amen” to the will of God. We need to deny ourselves and obey God’s will, for the glory of God. In this way, Christian life is positive and victorious, even though our plan may not work.

Secondly, depend on God and his Spirit. Look at verses 21-22. “Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, ²² set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” Paul is encouraging them to depend on God and the Holy Spirit in the hearts of true believers. It is only God who will enable them to stand firm, especially in their trouble times, as Paul himself could stand firm through the help of the Holy Spirit.

Thirdly, the motivation is to spare them. Look at verses 23-24. “I call God as my witness—and I stake my life on it—that it was in order to spare you that I did not return to Corinth. ²⁴ Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm.” Paul wanted to spare them from two things; persecutions and unnecessary burden in his visit. Wherever he went, people also followed persecuting him and other believers in the region. His last visit was a painful one. Instead of visiting, he was sending this letter to them with full of God’s promise. It was out of his shepherd heart. It was a prayerful decision, depending on God and the Spirit in the true believers. I also made a prayerful decision on Bible study and discipleship in our ministry. May God bless the changes with the presence of the Holy Spirit!

Through today’s passage, we learned how Paul could praise God for his compassion and comfort in the midst of troubles and his reasons why he changed his plan. May God bless us to suffer for Christ and receive the comfort from above so that we can comfort others who are going through sufferings in life. Amen!