Day 238

Job 20:1–22:30; 2 Corinthians 1:1-11; Psalm 40:11-17; Proverbs 22:2-4

TODAY WE BEGAN another of Paul’s letters to the church at Corinth. We know it as 2 Corinthians. This letter is likely Paul’s third epistle to the Corinthian church. The first one was referred to in 1 Corinthians, but it has not been preserved or discovered. There is generally no division among scholars about the authenticity of this letter, but there is some division on whether 2 Corinthians is a complete letter or if it is possibly the combination of two letters. This is because there is a noticeable change in tone between the front and back halves.

Second Corinthians was probably written on Paul’s third missionary journey, which would date it to the late 50s AD. Titus (Paul’s son in the faith) had visited the Corinthians and subsequently met with Paul during his travels. This allowed Paul to hear feedback on the church in Corinth and of the impact of his previous letter, which prompted Paul to write the letter we began today.

By way of reminder, the church at Corinth was in a very sensual city. It was a collage of ideas and persuasions, as many large secularized cities are, and was rebellious in a lot of ways. As a part of the culture, this rebellion had found its way into the church —there was plenty of division to go around. A small group of members was playing church politics to gain power, even to the point of questioning Paul’s authority over the church, his rules, his apostleship, and in many ways, even the gospel itself. So it’s in this context that Paul wrote 2 Corinthians.

The issues Paul deals with in the letter certainly sound familiar in the modern-church era. It’s a different time period, and there is a different cultural wardrobe, but the issues of the heart that Paul mentions remain the same. As we read through 2 Corinthians, let’s allow the Holy Spirit to shine the light of truth on our own motives and actions.

MEDITATION:

May all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness in you.