Day 247: 2 Corinthians 7:8-16

“As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.” - 2 Corinthians 7:9-10

R.C. Lenski, writing about this verse, said, "A surgeon may cause severe pain; he rejoices when he sees the cure that this pain has produced. It is not the pain as such but the pain as being productive of the cure that rejoices him."

Many of our prayers for others and for ourselves seem to default in a certain way. We are praying for a way around pain.  "God, please keep them safe."  Now, there is nothing wrong with this kind of prayer, but it is not usually the most useful kind of prayer.

Most times, what we need is not to sidestep the pain, the sorrow, but to walk right through it. Pain is productive if we will allow it to do what it does best. It shakes us out of our complacency, especially when it comes to unrecognized sin.

Most of us fall into one of two camps on this. We either could care less if we offend someone, or we care too much if we offend someone. Both of these extremes are toxic. I pray that compassion and care accompany our attempts at correction. We won’t always get it right, but we can improve with each passing year God allows us to live.

And when the time comes for us to personally experience sorrow that leads to repentance, may God lead us further into salvation without regret.

Day 246: 2 Corinthians 6:14-18, 7:1-7

“Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?” - 2 Corinthians 6:14 ESV

You will not find another verse that is used more to advocate for Christians not marrying non-Christians than this one. Though there are plenty of verses to advocate for that, this probably isn't one of them (context-wise).

Ben Witherington, thinking about this verse, wrote, "Paul apparently believes that the Corinthians are in danger of becoming spiritually linked with the demonic forces resident in the (pagan) temple."

Christianity wasn't something that could be a good complement to another religion. The paganism in Corinth and the way of following Jesus were mutually exclusive, according to Paul. Worshiping idols by enjoying sex with a temple prostitute isn’t the best possible life.

How often do we intermingle our Christian faith with lies that the world pumps in our direction?

Do not be surprised if you find truths in the Bible that contradict what you hear in the mainstream. Light and darkness have nothing in common.

Step into the light of Jesus. Stay there. It isn’t the popular way, but it is the one that leads to eternal life.

“But God chose you to be his people. You are royal priests. You are a holy nation. You are God’s special treasure. You are all these things so that you can give him praise. God brought you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” - 1 Peter 2:9 NIV

Day 245: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13

“We prove ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by the Holy Spirit within us, and by our sincere love.” - ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭6:6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

How do you try to prove yourself on a daily basis? Unfortunately, many in our world today are using posts or comments on social media to prove their point.

What would happen if we instead chose these six to prove ourselves and opted out of going the route of humanity’s default?

Imagine for a second, at the end of your life, being known for your…

Purity:  Sincerity

Understanding:  Seeking to know

Patience:  State of emotional calm

Kindness:  Goodness

Sensitivity to the Holy Spirit:  Evidence of God in you

Sincere:  Unhypocritical love

Who doesn’t desire more people in their life who are like this? As we become more like Jesus, our integrity takes on new heights. We represent the sweetness of Christ, no matter where we find ourselves.

Ready to prove yourself in the best way possible? May we take to the transforming power of prayer and Scripture before taking to a self-imploding rant.

Day 244: 2 Corinthians 5:11-21

"So we have stopped evaluating others by what the world thinks about them." - 2 Corinthians 5:16 NLT

Trying to impress others is exhausting. It takes everything we have to try and convince them that we are worthwhile. Will they ever see us as those in whom the “new has come?”

When we come to Jesus by faith, He makes all things new. God no longer sees us as who we were. He sees us as who we are: His children.

The world sees who people are and says assertively, "Humans never change!" They add, "Sure, people can fool us for a while, but they'll always go back to their default ways."

Yet this kind of view dismisses the transformative power that God possesses.

Commenting on this verse, W.R. Baker says, "The typical human approach to personal relationships is disgustingly insufficient."

Insufficient isn't a proper word to use to describe God. We believe He is all-powerful and thus able to change any heart. Maybe we should pray this prayer today:

Heavenly Father, do what You do.

Afterward, please help me to see what You see.

Thank You for not just temporarily changing me.

Thank You for restoring my soul permanently.

Now, help my daily life match my regenerated soul.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Day 243: 2 Corinthians 4:13-18, 5:1-10

“Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day.” - 2 Corinthians 4:16 NLT

I will never forget the sweet voice of one of our 90-year-old church members as she joined the group filing out of the sanctuary. She said, “Andrew, I know I’m old, but why don’t I feel old?”

I genuinely believe that the verse above is the answer to her question. Her lifetime of allowing Jesus to “renew” her inner life had resulted in a vitality she could feel every day.

The choice is ours. Jesus has already taken His stand. He longs to grow us more and more — for us to extend the same offer to others. Let's be honest; it's hard not to put all of our focus on what we can see and measure with analytics. There is not a spreadsheet big enough to contain the metrics Jesus produces with the entirety of who He is and what He has in store for us during this life and into an eternal one.

Knofel Staton said it well, “Paul ended this chapter the way he began it, ‘We do not lose heart.’ Paul had the right perspective on life.”

Let God take you up today in His arms and give you a bigger perspective right now. We will one day be raised with Christ. We will one day “slip into new bodies.”

What now?

It is time to go hard. It is time to be renewed and offer the same transformation to everyone we meet.

Day 242: 2 Corinthians 4:1-12

“We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” - 2 Corinthians 4:7 NLT

What is your greatest strength when you start talking to someone who isn't yet a Christian? We want them to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior, as we do, but we often neglect the most effective method.

So, what is it?

Paul makes it clear that it is the weakness of our "perishable containers" or our "dying bodies" that allow us to truly show how incredible God's light and power really are.

Do you lead with your weaknesses when talking to someone about Jesus? Paul didn't feel the need to "trick" them or "distort" reality in order to win the lost.

Our weaknesses put a floodlight on the impressive power of God.

Psalm 44:3 drives this home: "It was not their own strength that gave them victory. It was by your mighty power that they succeeded."

Weakness is something everyone can relate to, which gives us the opportunity to tell them how great Jesus is at redeeming our inadequacies by His blood, His love.

The following quote is very helpful when studying today’s passage: “Jars” (σκεῦος, skeuos), or “containers” in the ancient world, just as today, are made from a wide variety of materials, wood, glass, stone, brass, gold, silver, or clay. Generally, the more valuable the object to be stored, the nicer the container.  Sometimes, however, to throw off potential robbers, one might hide valuable objects, rings, jewels, spices, maybe even gold coins, in plain, unassuming containers. - William Baker

My friend, be an “unassuming container” in order to put the spotlight on the great power of God to all you meet.

Day 241: 2 Corinthians 3:1-18

“For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.” - 2 Corinthians 3:17-18 NLT

FUN FACT: Since 1905, the “Indianapolis Star” has printed verse 17 at the top of their newspapers.

How are we to keep law and order in our world today? How do we motivate people to abide by the law? From reading the Old Testament, we see that the Law of Moses seemed only to reveal the Israelites' inability to live up to the standards of a holy God.

True freedom isn't found in trying to finally play by all the rules. True freedom is found by being covered with the blood of Jesus, resulting in our forgiveness. Then God ushers us into the process of sanctification, where He draws us closer to Himself daily.

Colin Kruse says it so well: "The demands of the law cannot be fulfilled, and therefore they stand under its condemnation. But under the covenant of the Spirit, there is liberty."

Paul was desperately trying to convince the Corinthians that it wasn’t his job to play by their cultural norms and expectations. His role was to “see and reflect the glory of God,” not to hype his own image. Our job remains the same today. The only way we’re going to affect lasting change in our culture is to get busy reflecting Jesus’ glory (by the power of the Holy Spirit) in this world (see Matthew 5:16).

Day 240: 2 Corinthians 2:12-17

“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.” - 2 Corinthians‬ ‭2:14‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Roman triumphal processions were common in the first century Empire. It had to do with slaves the armies led to execution. Paul draws on this picture as he writes that this is the proper view of what Jesus was doing with his life.

Ben Witherington helps us as he wrote, “As God drags Paul around as his slave, the knowledge of Christ emanates from Paul wherever he goes.”

The Corinthians were very unimpressed with Paul’s insistence on humility. His GoFundMe wasn’t flush with cash, and he wasn’t seeking one million Instagram followers. Paul didn't seek to build his own brand. He was in it to sacrifice for his Lord Jesus.

Where does this leave us? We are the true aroma of Christ when we reject self-preservation at all costs. We exist, as Christians, to try and bring life to those who smell us. There is significant risk in committing to this lifestyle, but it is a decision we won’t regret.

It is worth it to follow Jesus, in life or death.

Paul's words are being brought into full view for us today as we see our brothers and sisters in Christ walking through extreme suffering because of their faith around the world.

Oh, the stories we will tell for eternity in heaven of God’s unending faithfulness and the honor of obeying Him.

Day 239: 2 Corinthians 1:12-24, 2:1-11

“When you forgive this man, I forgive him, too. And when I forgive whatever needs to be forgiven, I do so with Christ’s authority for your benefit, so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes.” - 2 Corinthians 2:10-11 NLT

Paul is here referencing the man he had rebuked in 1 Corinthians 5 for sleeping with his stepmom (I know, gross). As you can imagine, it caused a stir throughout all the house churches.

Whenever there is division among Christians, we know who the initiator is: The Devil (our adversary). God, on the other hand, is always trying to bring us together. Friends. Spouses. Even those we naturally bump heads with.

The last word in these two verses is noema in Greek (schemes). In a more fleshed-out view, the word means the content of thinking and reasoning. (Nida/Louw Lexicon)

The mind of the Devil never stops working to tear us apart, and his method is to encourage us to see another human as standing in our way, preventing us from happiness.

Can you see how Eve, then Adam, gave in to the deceit of the Devil in the Garden of Eden?

The temptations that come are always sugar-coated with something that seems like it will satisfy.

Let’s pray the last part of the Lord’s prayer as often as possible:

“And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from the evil one.”

- Matthew 6:13 NIV

Day 238: 2 Corinthians 1:1-11

"In fact, we expected to die. But as a result, we learned not to rely on ourselves, but on God who can raise the dead." - 2 Corinthians 1:9 NLT

The Greek word that is used for comfort in our passage today is parakaleo. This is very similar to the term that's used to describe the Holy Spirit. It can also be translated as to encourage, to urge, or to cause someone to be consoled.

Paul gives the Corinthians strong teaching about troubles and parakaleo-ing each other, and then in verses 8-11, he shows them how they helped save his life from afar. How did they do it? What was the great difference-maker in bringing Paul comfort?

It was their prayers.

Paul really believed that his life was spared in Asia Minor, because people in southern Greece were praying. He was crushed and overwhelmed and didn't think he would make it (verse 8).

Yet the church in Corinth prayed.

What differences will we make when we pray?

Never believe the lie that your prayers don't matter. They can (and will) make all the difference.

In 1914, Miriam Arnold wrote the following chorus to a beautiful hymn. What a great reminder these words are!

O how praying rests the weary

Prayer can change your night to day

So, in sorrow and in gladness

Don't forget to pray.