Article Tools
- Text Size
- Add a comment (
- Print-Friendly
- Email this article
Paul wrote 2 Corinthians somewhere around a.d. 56 or 57—some twenty years into his ministry. Paul is an experienced apostle by now, and he has been around long enough to have run into a number of people who criticize his ministry. And this is precisely what is going on in Corinth—so much so that Paul feels he must explain his ministry to them again.
One of the greatest blessings of this letter is that as he defends his ministry, Paul reveals how he himself lives out the very things that he preaches. It is as if his own life has become a living gospel—a living example of the freedom and intimacy with God that comes to everyone who relies on the Holy Spirit. So let’s take a look at part of Paul’s self-defense to try to discover the gospel he both lived and preached.
Conflict and Consolation. Unlike Galatians, Paul opens this letter with a prayer of blessing: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation” (2 Corinthians 1:3). So the whole letter will focus on the consolation of God, and how Paul experienced this consolation in his own life—a…
The full article is available to subscribers only
Access all articles, daily meditations and readings, as well as special resources, by becoming a subscriber. View subscription options.
Special Offer: Two week free web-only trial subscription. Sign up now.
Existing Print & Web-Only Subscribers: Login for full access.
