Transcript

It is not unusual for political leaders to visit schools, factories, churches, and places of business. Sometimes they even make a spontaneous visit to someone’s home following a natural disaster or some tragic event. Of course, when that happens, there is the hope of higher public approval for the political leader. And the visit is never really spontaneous but carefully planned and recorded for news broadcasts later.

Most often, how the homeowner or business owner is affected is not really the political leader’s concern. The visit is intended to impress the public at large with the leader’s sense of empathy or concern.

Well, the most famous leader in the New Testament church—the apostle Paul—is planning a visit to the Corinthian believers. This will be his third visit among them. But he is not interested in impressing the public. This is not a publicity stunt. Paul is not concerned about boosting his approval rating in the church either; he is interested in boosting the believers’ confidence in Christ.

As Paul begins to bring 2 Corinthians to a close, he shares his heart’s desires with them once again. First, he desires to see them grow in Christ. Here in chapter 12, Paul tells them he is getting ready to visit them; he has pulled his suitcase out of the closet, and he has his passport. But he wants to reassure them and writes in verse 14, “I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you.”

What Paul means is that he does not want to be a financial burden to them. He will not accept any funds from them, just as he refused in his previous visits with them. He does not want their money; he wants their hearts.

Evidently there were some folks in the Corinthian church who still harbored suspicions about Paul’s agenda. So, Paul adds here the analogy that “children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.” In other words, as the person who brought the gospel to them and planted this church, Paul is telling him that he feels like a father coming to visit his children in the Lord.

And in a healthy family, who does the providing? It is the parents. They provide everything for their children—food, clothing, shelter, education, support, and a lot of counseling and love along the way. That is why Paul writes in verse 15, “I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls.”

In verses 16-18 Paul reminds the church in Corinth that he never took advantage of them, and neither did Titus. And they know this is true. Paul was not a “taker”; he was a “giver.”

Now just in case some people in Corinth might think Paul was saying this because he wanted to boost his approval ratings, he writes in verse 19, “It is in the sight of God that we have been speaking in Christ, and all for your upbuilding, beloved.” That is another way of saying, “As God is my witness, I only want what is best for you.”

Paul also wants them to be prepared for his visit. This is not going to be a surprise visit at all. Paul wants them to make their hearts and their lives ready.

From 2 Corinthians 12:20 all the way through 13:10, Paul gives them a warning to get ready. And I must tell you, Paul is a bit fearful about what will happen when he visits them. Why? He explains in verse 20:

I fear that perhaps when I come I may find you not as I wish . . . that perhaps there may be quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder.

Frankly, Paul is afraid that some of them are going to be clinging to sin, rather than growing in the Savior:

I fear that . . . I may have to mourn over many of those who sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and sensuality that they have practiced. (verse 21)

Paul makes it very clear here in chapter 13, that he is not going to turn a blind eye when he visits this church. He says in verse 2, “I will not spare them.” He will deal with sin when he comes. He is like a faithful father who comes home from work to deal with disobedient children, whom mom has already told, “Just wait until your father gets home.” I can remember my mother saying those dreaded words, and let me tell you, it ruined my entire afternoon. Waiting for him to come home was worse than any spanking I ever got.

Paul is going to deal with these disobedient children, so to speak. What kind of action is he going to take? He is referring to some form of church discipline. Many Christians today are clueless about this because church discipline is practically an unknown concept in the church today. Immoral people keep singing in the choir, and unrepentant sinners keep on holding offices in the church.

In the early church, discipline could be a supernatural judgment at the word of an apostle—as when the apostle Peter exposed the deception of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5. It could be the decision of the congregation to remove from their membership an unrepentant, immoral church member, as Paul instructed in 1 Corinthians 5. It could be a church leader simply dismissing from the assembly a divisive person, without any church vote at all, according to Titus 3:10.

But do not misunderstand Paul’s heart here. He would rather not have to exercise any discipline at all. So, he calls all of his readers to self-discipline instead. He writes in verse 5, “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves.”

Paul might be calling on the Corinthians to examine their lives to determine if they are genuinely saved or just pretending. Some Bible scholars think Paul might be urging the Christians to make sure they are walking in the faith, which is another way of saying “walking in fellowship with Christ.” In other words, does their walk line up with God’s will?

Whether Paul wants them to examine their salvation or to examine their sanctification, both have the same goal. Paul writes in verse 9, “Your restoration is what we pray for.”

Paul does not want to come to Corinth and use his apostolic authority in a severe manner, just as a father does not want to come home from work and have to discipline his children—he would rather go out in the back yard and play with them. Paul says that when he arrives in Corinth, he would rather his visit be “for building up and not for tearing down” (verse 10).

As Paul wraps up this letter, he wants to end on a note of encouragement. He writes in verse 11, “Finally, brothers, rejoice.” Yes, this has been a tough letter to write and a lot tougher to read. But Paul wants the Corinthians to walk with Christ so that they can rejoice in life. And that is the Lord’s desire for you and me as well.

Paul then delivers some quick, positive commands with a final promise:

Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.

He urges them to “greet one another with a holy kiss” (verse 12). This church was struggling with division, and in both letters to the Corinthians, Paul tells them to get back to expressing this cultural act of kinship—a kiss on both cheeks being the custom. This was the first-century way of saying, “I am going to treat you like family—because you are.”  

And with that, the letter comes to a close with these wonderful, encouraging words from the apostle Paul: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” Amen.