2 Corinthians 7:1-16
1Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.
Paul's Joy
2Make room for us in your hearts. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have exploited no one. 3I do not say this to condemn you; I have said before that you have such a place in our hearts that we would live or die with you. 4I have great confidence in you; I take great pride in you. I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.
5For when we came into Macedonia, this body of ours had no rest, but we were harassed at every turn—conflicts on the outside, fears within. 6But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus, 7and not only by his coming but also by the comfort you had given him. He told us about your longing for me, your deep sorrow, your ardent concern for me, so that my joy was greater than ever.
8Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while— 9yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. 10Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. 11See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter. 12So even though I wrote to you, it was not on account of the one who did the wrong or of the injured party, but rather that before God you could see for yourselves how devoted to us you are. 13By all this we are encouraged.
In addition to our own encouragement, we were especially delighted to see how happy Titus was, because his spirit has been refreshed by all of you. 14I had boasted to him about you, and you have not embarrassed me. But just as everything we said to you was true, so our boasting about you to Titus has proved to be true as well. 15And his affection for you is all the greater when he remembers that you were all obedient, receiving him with fear and trembling. 16I am glad I can have complete confidence in you.
St. Paul opens chapter seven, and tells us out of reverence for God and the truth, we must recognize and rid ourselves of that which contaminates, our body and spirit...These contaminates keep up separated from Him, so the sooner we can eliminate them the closer we can get to God...The promises of God are enough for us to try to be good and to be good, or as good as you can be...
St. Paul is asking the Corinthians to open up their hearts...He tells them to "make room for us in your hearts."...We are led to believe, in this letter, that he may be accused of doing something wrong or exploiting the people of Corinth...Paul tells them he and his ministry have done nothing wrong...He and his ministry have corrupted no one...Nothing he has preached should be an obstacle to the Corinthians...St. Paul's tells the Corinthians that his ministry has not exploited anyone...He has great confidence in the people of Corinth and Paul is greatly encouraged...In all our troubles, my joy has no bounds...
Through the influence of false teachers and his harsh letter of Corinthians one, Paul feels the the people may be losing their faith... The people became sorrowful, but were not harmed...Their sorrow only lasted a little while...Godly sorrow brings repentance which leads to salvation and this leaves no regret...He has sent Titus to further explain this and God's plan...Titus will be a preacher to the Corinthians...Titus and the people of Corinth have a good relationship...He has given Paul information of how things are working out...St. Paul is glad and has complete confidence in the people...
Sometimes we say things that are necessary that cause confrontation...Straightforward advice can be what we need, but not what we want to hear...Sometimes, when we are frank about things it is taken in a way, that we at first did or cannot see...Others may tell us that this is how or what you or I said impacted the people we were addressing...Paul (in this letter) tries to explain that he is not condemning the people...His harsh letter may have been harsh, but was necessary...Sometimes things get misinterpreted and need to be restated or explained...He has been accused of exploitation and has now cleared the air, with this second letter to the Corinthians...
When we are great in heart and have opened our hearts we do not talk about our feelings and how we feel, but we want to hear how others feel and about them...We should think of others and not of ourselves...We must make room for others in our hearts...When Jesus tells us in Matthew 25:40 that what we have done for the least of my brothers, you have done for me...And when Paul falls from his horse on his way to Damascus, and Jesus tells Him, why are you persecuting Me, we realize that Jesus means this literally...We are harming Him...Paul was persecuting Him, even though this was the first time they had met...But by Paul persecuting those who believed in Him, Paul was persecuting Jesus...This is because Jesus, who is also called Immanuel, means God with us (Matthew 1:23)...When we harm, are harsh, and cause others to suffer, we are persecuting our LORD...St. Paul knew this and wanted to make clear to Corinthians the intent of his first letter to clear up any misunderstandings...