This week I tackled Paul's message from 2 Corinthians 6:1-13. Paul here is emphasizing his point about the nature of Gods grace and the change that it should effect in peoples lives. He is essentially saying that the life of a Christian is more than just saying you believe.
The first point that stood out for me was Paul's assertion to the people not to accept the grace of God in vain. Can God's grace be in vain? I don't think so. In our imperfect English translation we lose a little of the overall point of the sentence. Instead what I believe Paul is getting at is that we should not let our own vanity inhibit God's grace from working in our lives. God's grace does not give us a free pass to do whatever we want and ask for forgiveness later. We also are not to wait around for something big to happen before we do anything about what God has given us. Paul quotes from the Old Testament and then follows it up with "Now is the acceptable time, Now is the acceptable day." We may think it is not the right time yet, but God is making things acceptable now. If the Corinthians or even us today, are not willing to act now, God will find people who will. It was pointed out in the service that the word "now" is used 3 times. There is an emphasis on changing things in Corinth now. Should there be one today?
The second point that stood out for me was Paul's list of things that they have endured as a result of proclaiming the Good News. In all of these highs and lows, calamities and celebrations, Paul and his associates never forget who they are. They have a job to do and they do it, no matter if they face harsh persecution or high praise. The gospel will be proclaimed. They put no obstacle in any one's way, so that focus may not be on them, but on the result of them sharing the good news. After all of that, how many of us would just give up? How many already have?
The third point that I brought up was how Paul and his associates are speaking frankly to the Corinthians. Many of us don't like this because it forces us to confront truths about ourselves we may not want to see. Paul is essentially saying, we have tried and tried to get through to you. We are not the problem, you are. And so Paul says that he speaks to them as children. Immediately I think wow how condescending. But in the same token we have all been there, with employees, or family members or even our own children. I choose to give Paul the benefit of the doubt here. In spite of the rejection and questioning the Corinthians have had toward Paul, he still does not withhold his affections. So as he speaks to them as children, I think deep down there, he is trying to model the example of unconditional love that a parent has for their child, no matter what they do, just as God's unconditional love is not withheld from us no matter what we do. It was also pointed out that in the best sense, that to be spoken to as children, can be a good thing in terms of keeping the message simple and understandable. Perhaps, that is what Paul is up to as well.
Those are my thoughts as well as what was shared in the service this week. No Blog next week as I will be on vacation. But I welcome your comments to this and all the others.
Peace and Prayers
Steve
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