5 But if anyone has caused sadness, he has not saddened me alone, but to some extent (not to exaggerate) he has saddened all of you as well. 6 This punishment on such an individual by the majority is enough for him, 7 so that now instead you should rather forgive and comfort him. This will keep him from being overwhelmed by excessive grief to the point of despair. 8 Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him. 9 For this reason also I wrote you: to test you to see if you are obedient in everything. 10 If you forgive anyone for anything, I also forgive him—for indeed what I have forgiven (if I have forgiven anything) I did so for you in the presence of Christ, 11 so that we may not be exploited by Satan (for we are not ignorant of his schemes).

REFLECTIONS

Written by Daniel Chew

How would you respond to a fellow believer whose sin caused serious harm to your whole church? Would you say something about it publicly? Exclude them? And if they repented—could you forgive them? Could you welcome them back with open arms, or would you try to avoid them?

These are some of the tricky issues Paul addresses in our passage today. We don’t know the exact cause of Paul and the Corinthians' sadness, but we do know that someone within the Corinthian church sinned so seriously that it hurt the community and strained Paul’s relationship with the whole church. After facing some punishment—probably being excluded from the fellowship—this person repented. Now the challenge was how the church would respond to the person’s repentance.

If the Corinthians followed the "wisdom" of modern Australian morality, they might say: "Keep excluding him! Cancel him! He wronged us, so he deserves it." That’s the problem with modern morality. It has no place for grace, mercy, and forgiveness. It doesn’t acknowledge how messy and broken we all are, nor does it like to admit that every one of us has the potential to do great harm because of our sinful hearts.

But the beauty of the gospel is that it reveals how messy we truly are, yet also teaches that God forgives us in Christ. Because of this, we can forgive others who are just as broken as we are. Paul urges the Corinthians to forgive, to reaffirm their love for this person—not keeping him distant as a threat, but welcoming him back as a brother.

Our world struggles to genuinely forgive. Don’t look to the world’s standards to learn about forgiveness—that’s exactly what Satan wants. Instead, look to how Christ has forgiven you. Is there someone you need to extend that forgiveness to today?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Daniel is one of our student ministers.

1 So I made up my own mind not to pay you another painful visit. 2 For if I make you sad, who would be left to make me glad but the one I caused to be sad? 3 And I wrote this very thing to you, so that when I came I would not have sadness from those who ought to make me rejoice, since I am confident in you all that my joy would be yours. 4 For out of great distress and anguish of heart I wrote to you with many tears, not to make you sad, but to let you know the love that I have especially for you.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Grace Ip

In these verses, Paul talks about a very difficult letter he had written to the Corinthian church, to rebuke them for tolerating sinful behaviour and call them to repentance. We don’t have that letter – he wrote it in between the letters we know as 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians. But it’s clear that Paul found it very painful to have to write those things to them. In verse 4, he tells them he wrote to them out of “great distress and anguish of heart” and “with many tears”. He did not want to grieve them or cause them hurt, but to show his deep love for them.

This verse reminds me that love sometimes requires us to say hard things. We all sometimes face similar situations in life. Whether it’s a parent disciplining a child, a friend offering honest feedback or rebuke, or a leader addressing a problem, it can be painful to speak the truth in love. It’s easy to shy away from confronting wrongdoing or addressing uncomfortable issues, because we don’t want to cause pain. Or perhaps we just want to avoid conflict at all costs. However, Paul reminds us that avoiding those difficult conversations Is actually unloving! On the positive side, when correction is motivated by love and handled with grace, it can lead to healing and growth.

Try to remember and reflect on times when someone else has lovingly corrected you. Did you find yourself resisting their correction out of pride or stubbornness, or welcoming it with thankfulness to God? How did their guidance shape you for the better?

Is there someone in your life whom God is calling you to lovingly confront or guide? Pray and ask God to help you with that:

Lord, help me to love others enough to speak truth in love and grace. Give me the wisdom and courage to speak with compassion. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Grace is a member of our Bossley Park Morning congregation.

21 But it is God who establishes us together with you in Christ and who anointed us, 22 who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a down payment.

23 Now I appeal to God as my witness, that to spare you I did not come again to Corinth. 24 I do not mean that we rule over your faith, but we are workers with you for your joy, because by faith you stand firm.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Viet Mai

Standing firm in the Christian life is never an easy task. There are so many temptations that distract us from Jesus, and we have a tendency to wander away from Jesus. But thanks be to God that he is the one who keeps us and holds onto us. Paul says that it is God who establishes us, or makes us “stand firm in Christ” (NIV).

We often think that being a Christian is like a baby monkey holding onto its mother’s back – it’s up to me to cling desperately onto Jesus with all my strength. Yet this passage tells us that the Christian life is more like a mother cat carrying its kitten. Just as the mother cat does the holding on, so God holds onto us as we continue to trust in Christ.

I pray that this truth will encourage us to keep standing firm for Jesus, knowing that God is holding on to us.

Here’s a prayer from the Anglican prayer book that expresses this trust:

“Lord, our heavenly Father, almighty and everlasting God, we thank you for bringing us safely to this day. Keep us by your mighty power, and grant that we fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger; but lead and govern us in all things, that we may always do what is righteous in your sight, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Viet is a member of our Bossley Park Morning congregation.

15 And with this confidence I intended to come to you first so that you would get a second opportunity to see us, 16 and through your help to go on into Macedonia and then from Macedonia to come back to you and be helped on our way into Judea by you. 17 Therefore when I was planning to do this, I did not do so without thinking about what I was doing, did I? Or do I make my plans according to mere human standards so that I would be saying both “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? 18 But as God is faithful, our message to you is not “Yes” and “No.” 19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, the one who was proclaimed among you by us—by me and Silvanus and Timothy—was not “Yes” and “No,” but it has always been “Yes” in him. 20 For every one of God’s promises are “Yes” in him; therefore also through him the “Amen” is spoken, to the glory we give to God.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Paul Bogg

Have you ever told someone you were planning to see them, and then not been able to follow through with it – maybe due to some circumstance that was out of your control?  I have, and sometimes others can feel hurt as a result.  I think I once told my daughter that I might make it to her school assembly, and I wasn’t able to due to my work.  I remember her being very understanding, and agreeing that sometimes ‘work things’ just get in the way of being able to do other loving and lovely things.  But she was also hurt.

In this passage, the apostle Paul and the Corinthians have had something similar happen.  Paul had told them of his intention to visit them, but due to circumstances beyond his control, was not able to do so.  I love how what Paul says next magnifies God in light of Paul’s own inability to control events.  My 'Yes' today might not stay as a 'Yes' tomorrow – but every 'Yes' that God has ever said will continue to be 'Yes' forever in Jesus Christ.

Here's why this is so precious to me: It means whenever I read the Bible and I read about God’s promises to his people – from Genesis through to Malachi, from Matthew through to Revelation – I know that when I accepted Jesus as my Lord, I inherited all those promises. I became a recipient of them. And not only did I inherit those promises, I can trust that anything that God has promised will one day come true. That is good news to me when I'm mourning, because he promises to wipe away every tear, and that death will be no more. It is good news to me when I am in trouble, because he is the great comforter (as we have already heard in this letter) and I will be comforted.  It is good news when I see the great evils of this world, because God will judge and avenge, and he will right all the wrongs of this world fully and completely at the time of His choosing.  And even though I too will stand judged by God, it is good news for me to know that his Son Jesus has taken this punishment for me, and he promises that I will continue to walk as a free man in his everlasting kingdom. 

Which of God's promises to you in Christ will you reflect on today?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Paul is a member of our Bossley Park Morning congregation.

12 Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace. 13 For we do not write you anything you cannot read or understand. And I hope that, 14 as you have understood us in part, you will come to understand fully that you can boast of us just as we will boast of you in the day of the Lord Jesus.

(NIV)

REFLECTIONS

Written by Lauren Sing

When was the last time you heard someone boast in something – or when did you last boast? What did they (or you) boast in? Was it about a physical attribute, like looks or strength? A skill or ability? A possession? When people boast, we rarely see it as a positive trait, because the motive is mostly to bring glory to themselves.

Here, we see Paul and Timothy “boast”, but their motive is to point the Corinthians back to God.  They discuss the way they have conducted themselves, particularly in their interactions with the church in Corinth.  They have acted with “integrity and godly sincerity”, and the reason they highlight that is to reassure the Corinthians that their motives are genuine. But what’s so interesting about this boast is that they are not pointing to their own abilities or worldly knowledge. Their goal is to point to God’s grace, and to God working through them to love and care for the Corinthians in the face of adversity.

Paul and Timothy have also been transparent and honest in their writings to the Corinthians, in contrast with those who have been spreading false teachings or trying to discredit Paul’s teaching. They hoped, through their letters, that the Corinthians could come to know the truth and good news of the gospel, so that on judgement day, they would mutually bring glory to God.

When serving others and our church, do we take pride in our worldly wisdom, or do we rely on God for his grace and provision? Our goal, as we serve, love and encourage each other, should be that these actions always give glory to God. Pray that in everything we do, we would not amplify ourselves, but point others to our loving and gracious God. Pray that we would always look to Christ as our example as we strive to serve others, so that we are sincere in our intentions and act with godly integrity.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lauren is a member of our Fairfield Morning congregation.

8 For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, regarding the affliction that happened to us in the province of Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of living. 9 Indeed we felt as if the sentence of death had been passed against us, so that we would not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead. 10 He delivered us from so great a risk of death, and he will deliver us. We have set our hope on him that he will deliver us yet again, 11 as you also join in helping us by prayer, so that many people may give thanks to God on our behalf for the gracious gift given to us through the help of many.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Paul Bogg

I’ve read the first chapter of 2 Corinthians many times in my life.  Most especially during the first year that I really experienced sickness which led to having chronic fatigue in my life.  But I never noticed verse 8 before until today.  In this short passage, the apostle Paul explains that he and his ministry team experienced significant hardship in their travels throughout Asia.  Throughout this hardship, even though it was like receiving a death sentence, God delivered them.  But what I didn’t notice until today was Paul’s description of their experience of that hardship. Paul describes it as a “great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired life itself”.  

I can’t say that I have felt many moments in my life like this, but one of them was in the early days of chronic fatigue. I recall an overwhelming sense of helplessness, almost like I had received a death sentence, not being able to move, let alone go for a walk. I don’t think I experienced despair, but I remember thinking that is far beyond what I was ever prepared to endure. In my helplessness, I remember being only able to call out to God, and not much more. Even though I didn’t notice it at the time, when I started to recover, looking at back, I realised that it was only in my utter helplessness that I came to truly depend on God.  Just like what Paul writes in this passage, I too share the same belief that “this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God”.  

As I reflect on this passage, and my time with sickness, I realise and thank God that he too delivered me from great peril.  But the great peril that God has delivered me from wasn't my sickness. The great peril that God has delivered me from was actually my pride.  My pride in thinking that I might work for his kingdom with my own strength, or my own smartness.  Or that somehow I could architecture my own blessings or even righteousness under my own power.  I stand today delivered from that great peril, weak and humbled, reliant on Him, and very thankful.  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Paul is a member of our Bossley Park Congregation.

5 For just as the sufferings of Christ overflow toward us, so also our comfort through Christ overflows to you. 6 But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort that you experience in your patient endurance of the same sufferings that we also suffer. 7 And our hope for you is steadfast because we know that as you share in our sufferings, so also you will share in our comfort.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Jono Truong

Have you ever been stuck in a tough situation, feeling like there was no way out? Did it leave you feeling isolated and alone?

In today’s short passage, Paul continues speaking to the Corinthian Christians about sharing abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so that their comforts may also abound through Christ. Paul confidently highlights his firm hope: that just as the Corinthians share in his sufferings, as fellow believers, they will also share in his comfort.

This reference to suffering reminded me of 1 Peter 2:21, where Peter says, “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.” That is, Christ suffered, so as His followers we should expect the same. This passage was a timely reminder for me that as followers of Christ, we aren’t promised a life that is free from trouble. In fact, we are called to endure hardships that mirror the sufferings of Jesus. Naturally, I do not like suffering – it is distressing, painful and leads to uncertainty. However, this passage gives me the unwavering hope that no matter what trials come my way, my hope in Christ remains firm, because I know that just as I share in his sufferings, I will also share abundantly in the overwhelming comfort that abounds through Him.

Are you currently going through a season of suffering yourself? Or do you know someone currently going through suffering and distress? Pray today that we would remember that we are not alone in our suffering. And ask God to help you encourage a brother or sister in Christ (perhaps the person you thought of yesterday), by reminding them that we are not alone in suffering, just as we’re not alone in the abounding comfort and salvation provided through Christ.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jono is a member of our Fairfield Evening church.

1 From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the church of God that is in Corinth, with all the saints who are in all Achaia. 2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

3 Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles so that we may be able to comfort those experiencing any trouble with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Stephen Shead

Yesterday we read from Acts about when Paul first took the gospel to the city of Corinth. Today I’ll fill in a bit more about Corinth and the context of this letter.

Corinth was a city in Greece (back then, it was the Roman Province of Achaia). Corinth was a city of flashy wealth and prestige, where everyone was trying to climb up the social ladder to positions of higher comfort, status and honour. From Paul’s letters to them, it seems that the Christians in the church in Corinth faced constant temptation to follow the spirit of their culture, by trying to out-do each other and worry about status and prestige in the church. That meant they were also vulnerable to false teachers who would come in presenting themselves as super-spiritual super-apostles, promising victory and success in Jesus’ name.

Paul’s relationship with the Corinthian church was sometimes rocky. We know this letter as “2 Corinthians”, but it was probably the fourth letter Paul had written them. In a previous letter (which we don’t have), he had had to sternly rebuke them for a casual attitude to sexual immorality – although by the time he wrote this letter, it seems they listened to him and repented. But things were still fairly tense. So how would Paul address this letter? Would he come in with all guns blazing, throw his authority around, and beat them into grovelling and submission?

Not at all. I love the fact that Paul starts by reminding them of the “grace and peace” that has come to them from God (v2), praising God for being the God of comfort (v3), and reassuring the Corinthian Christians about the comfort that they can receive from God (v4). In fact, Paul and his companions had been through a series of intense troubles. But Paul sees these troubles are a gift from God, because they give Paul a chance to resonate with others who are suffering and to share the comfort he has received through Christ with them.

I wonder if there’s a Christian brother or sister you know who is going through a time of trouble? If you have found comfort in your troubles from knowing Jesus, and knowing the hope that is stored up for us in heaven, could you extend that gospel comfort to them today?

This letter is going to be filled with wisdom about Christian life and ministry – and I love that it starts with weakness and vulnerability. 2 Corinthians is all about how God uses our weakness and troubles to display his power, by building a genuine fellowship of suffering believers, so that Christ might be glorified. Because the Christian life and Christian ministry are cross-shaped.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stephen is our senior minister.

Tomorrow we will be starting the letter of 2 Corinthians. Today we’ll set the context by reading the passage in Acts where Paul first brought the gospel to Corinth.

1 After this Paul departed from Athens and went to Corinth. 2 There he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to depart from Rome. Paul approached them, 3 and because he worked at the same trade, he stayed with them and worked with them (for they were tentmakers by trade). 4 He addressed both Jews and Greeks in the synagogue every Sabbath, attempting to persuade them.

5 Now when Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul became wholly absorbed with proclaiming the word, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. 6 When they opposed him and reviled him, he protested by shaking out his clothes and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am guiltless! From now on I will go to the Gentiles!” 7 Then Paul left the synagogue and went to the house of a person named Titius Justus, a Gentile who worshiped God, whose house was next door to the synagogue. 8 Crispus, the president of the synagogue, believed in the Lord together with his entire household, and many of the Corinthians who heard about it believed and were baptized. 9 The Lord said to Paul by a vision in the night, “Do not be afraid, but speak and do not be silent 10 because I am with you, and no one will assault you to harm you because I have many people in this city.” 11 So he stayed there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Trung Nguyen

What stood out to me in this passage was verses 9 to 11. I’m continually amazed that Jesus knew what was happening in Paul’s life and cared for him.

In a time when Paul may have been feeling worried he might get beaten up and deflated after his own people, the Jews, rejected him, Jesus was there to comfort and encourage Paul. The Lord Jesus spoke to Paul in verse 9 and 10 in a vision and encouraged him to not be afraid and to keep speaking the truth. Jesus continued to comfort Paul by telling him of the same words he told his disciples before he ascended into heaven: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

I’m often pumped up to share the gospel when I read the accounts in Acts when Paul is so “gung-ho” with sharing the gospel and seeing his zeal and passion for the lost to repent and trust in Jesus. Part of me also feels like I can’t do what Paul does. But this passage in Acts reminds me that Paul can do all these things because Jesus is with him, just as Jesus is with us. Jesus will be with us always, to the very end of the age. It is Jesus’ mission to the world that we are invited to be a part of, and it is Jesus who will carry us through to not be afraid and to keep on speaking.

The next time we have an opportunity to speak to someone about Jesus, let’s remember that Jesus is with us, empowering us with the words to speak and encouraging us to not be afraid.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Trung is a ministry apprentice with our Fairfield morning and evening congregations.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Stephen Shead

Earlier in the month, we read this verse from Hebrews:

Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. (Hebrews 12:14)

If you read that verse on its own, you might think it means, “Unless you’re good enough for heaven, you won’t get there.” Thankfully, the writer to the Hebrews has already made it crystal clear that believers in Jesus have already been madeholy and are being made holy through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross (see Hebrews 10:10, 14).

That doesn’t mean our effort isn’t required. God commands us to make every effort to live out our holy position. But that doesn’t mean you need to be “good enough.” It’s another way of saying: Don’t walk away from Christ! Don’t give up the struggle. Press on towards the goal (Philippians 3:12).

The effort is hard though, isn’t it? What will keep us motivated to continue striving?

Yesterday we looked at Paul’s Christ-centred perspective in Colossians 3:1-4. In the following verses, Paul describes what striving for holy living looks like in practice. He lists aspects of our old selves that we are to put to death, and characteristics of Christ that we are to put on. You’ll recognise many of the topics we have explored:

5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. … 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, (Colossians 3:5, 8-9a)

12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. (Colossians 3:12-14)

But sprinkled through the passage, there are also a number of motivations for holy living. The first one is a negative motivation for putting off the acts of the earthly nature:

Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. (v. 6)

This isn’t really a fear-based motivation – though the coming judgment of God is certainly a fearful prospect! But Paul’s point is that it would make absolutely no sense for us to keep throwing ourselves into the very things that are the reason for the coming judgment day.

It’s a bit like me and sun protection. My skin is sun-damaged and prone to skin cancers. I love the feeling the sun on my face – but it would be crazy for me to lie on the beach in summer with no sunscreen or protection. Sunlight on my skin is why skin cancers are coming, so why would I go back for more?

It makes just as little sense for a follower of Jesus to carelessly continue in the things that have provoked God’s righteous anger.

The rest of the motivations in the passage are all positive and grace-filled:

9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. (v. 9-10)

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved… (v. 12a)

Forgive as the Lord forgave you. (v. 13b)

If you are committed to Jesus being your King, you are safe and secure in God’s love. He has chosen you, forgiven you, made you holy, set his love on you; and he is at work moulding your new self into his own image. Having that security is what will most help you to live for God.

Growth in holiness comes from gazing on God and his grace, and so clothing yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 13:14).

Let’s return one last time to the same list of practical life areas that we considered yesterday. Did you manage to choose one to work on? I’m a big fan of the general principle in life: Choose one thing to improve. It doesn’t have to be the “right” one. Don’t overthink it and don’t try to pick everything, or you’ll end up paralysed. It’s much better to work on one thing than none … so just pick one! Here they are again:

• Money, greed, and generosity

• Lying and keeping your word

• Submitting to authorities

• Anger and forgiveness

• Sexual purity and contentment

• Stealing and honesty

• Slander, gossip, and gracious words

• Coveting and contentment with what God has given you

Make a plan, put it in your diary, line up a holy-living buddy … and keep working on our three steps until they become your natural instinct: Be real with God, rest in the gospel, and resolve with God to live in devotion to him.

Because it’s all – from start to glorious finish – by his grace and power.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stephen is our senior minister.