This lesson:
2 Corinthians 12:20-13:10 Paul’s Warning
2 Corinthians 13:11-14 Paul’s benediction
Paul’s letter is coming to an end.
Paul is hoping to see two responses from his letter.
- Repentance (involving obedience to God) for wrong. (Getting right with God.)
- An affirmation of loyalty to himself and his associates as authentic servants of Christ. (Getting right with Paul.)
This letter is not ending on a high note.
There are still issues in the church that need to be dealt with.
The letter (not including the benediction) ends with a warning from Paul.
2 Corinthians 12:20-13:14 NLT
Paul’s Warning
20 For I am afraid that when I come I won’t like what I find, and you won’t like my response. I am afraid that I will find quarreling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorderly behavior. 21 Yes, I am afraid that when I come again, God will humble me in your presence. And I will be grieved because many of you have not given up your old sins. You have not repented of your impurity, sexual immorality, and eagerness for lustful pleasure.
Paul’s Final Advice
13 This is the third time I am coming to visit you (and as the Scriptures say, “The facts of every case must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses”). 2 I have already warned those who had been sinning when I was there on my second visit. Now I again warn them and all others, just as I did before, that next time I will not spare them.
3 I will give you all the proof you want that Christ speaks through me. Christ is not weak when he deals with you; he is powerful among you. 4 Although he was crucified in weakness, he now lives by the power of God. We, too, are weak, just as Christ was, but when we deal with you we will be alive with him and will have God’s power.
5 Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith. 6 As you test yourselves, I hope you will recognize that we have not failed the test of apostolic authority.
7 We pray to God that you will not do what is wrong by refusing our correction. I hope we won’t need to demonstrate our authority when we arrive. Do the right thing before we come—even if that makes it look like we have failed to demonstrate our authority. 8 For we cannot oppose the truth, but must always stand for the truth. 9 We are glad to seem weak if it helps show that you are actually strong. We pray that you will become mature.
10 I am writing this to you before I come, hoping that I won’t need to deal severely with you when I do come. For I want to use the authority the Lord has given me to strengthen you, not to tear you down.
Paul’s Final Greetings
11 Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words: Be joyful. Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in harmony and peace. Then the God of love and peace will be with you.
12 Greet each other with a sacred kiss. 13 All of God’s people here send you their greetings.
14 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Examine the scriptures:
2 Corinthians 12:20-13:14 NLT
20 For I am afraid that when I come I won’t like what I find, and you won’t like my response. I am afraid that I will find quarreling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorderly behavior.
A description of division in the church.
21 Yes, I am afraid that when I come again, God will humble me in your presence.
And I will be grieved because many of you have not given up your old sins. You have not repented of your impurity, sexual immorality, and eagerness for lustful pleasure.
A description of the lax morality in the church.
- Paul feared encountering renewed rebellion and resistance during his upcoming visit, with the Corinthians relapsed into their old ways.
- To find the Corinthians still living in unrepentant sin would both humiliate and sadden Paul.
Paul’s Final Advice
13:1 This is the third time I am coming to visit you
(and as the Scriptures say, “The facts of every case must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses”). Deuteronomy 19:15
Matthew 18:16 NLT (Jesus speaking)
16 But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses.
- Paul will practice Biblical principles when dealing with the Corinthians.
Paul wants to handle the situation correctly.
2 I have already warned those who had been sinning when I was there on my second visit. Now I again warn them and all others, just as I did before, that next time I will not spare them.
- Paul promised discipline for the unrepentant.
3 I will give you all the proof you want that Christ speaks through me. Christ is not weak when he deals with you; he is powerful among you. 4 Although he was crucified in weakness, he now lives by the power of God. We, too, are weak, just as Christ was, but when we deal with you we will be alive with him and will have God’s power.
- Paul relied on God’s strength, not his own, to deal with the Corinthians.
Hebrews 12:5-11 NLT
5 And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said,
“My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and don’t give up when he corrects you.
6 For the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”
7 As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Whoever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? 8 If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. 9 Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever?
10 For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. 11 No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.
5 Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves.
Turn your focus away from me and examine yourselves.
- Examine yourself.
Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.
- If Jesus Christ is not living in you, you are not saved.
6 As you test yourselves, I hope you will recognize that we have not failed the test of apostolic authority.
7 We pray to God that you will not do what is wrong by refusing our correction. I hope we won’t need to demonstrate our authority when we arrive. Do the right thing before we come
- Do the right thing by accepting correction.
—even if that makes it look like we have failed to demonstrate our authority.
8 For we cannot oppose the truth, but must always stand for the truth.
9 We are glad to seem weak if it helps show that you are actually strong.
- Paul is concerned with the Corinthians standing with God, not his reputation.
We pray that you will become mature.
10 I am writing this to you before I come, hoping that I won’t need to deal severely with you when I do come. For I want to use the authority the Lord has given me to strengthen you, not to tear you down.
Paul’s purpose in writing this letter.
- Paul’s hope is that the Corinthians church repents of their sins before he arrives in Corinth.
Paul’s Final Greetings
A call for unity:
11 Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words:
Be joyful.
Grow to maturity.
Encourage each other.
Live in harmony and peace.
Then the God of love and peace will be with you.
12 Greet each other with a sacred kiss.
An expression of unity.
- Paul’s final greeting is a call for unity.
13 All of God’s people here
- Paul is in Macedonia, about to travel to Corinth for a third visit. Paul is preparing the Corinthian Church for his visit.
Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea are in Macedonia.
send you their greetings.
14 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Did the Corinthians respond positively to Paul’s warning?
2 Corinthians 10:15-16 NLT
15 Nor do we boast and claim credit for the work someone else has done. Instead, we hope that your faith will grow so that the boundaries of our work among you will be extended. 16 Then we will be able to go and preach the Good News in other places far beyond you, where no one else is working. Then there will be no question of our boasting about work done in someone else’s territory.
4th letter (2nd Corinthians) From Macedonia A.D. 55/56
3rd visit A.D. 56 -57
Acts 20:2-3 (NLT)
2 While there, he encouraged the believers in all the towns he passed through. Then he traveled down to Greece, 3 where he stayed for three months. He was preparing to sail back to Syria when he discovered a plot by some Jews against his life, so he decided to return through Macedonia.
While there Paul wrote to the Romans.
Romans 15:23 NLT
Paul’s Travel Plans
23 But now I have finished my work in these regions, and after all these long years of waiting, I am eager to visit you.
