Paul the apostle shared
with the church
members in Corinth how he, “determined
this with” himself
“that” he
“would not come again to” them
“in heaviness.”.
In chapter two and verse one of Second
Corinthians, Paul asked the church members, “if
I make you sorry, who is he then that makes me glad?”,
where we read:
For if I
make you sorry, who is he then that makes me glad, but the same which
is made sorry by me?
The verse begins, “For
if I make you sorry, who is he then that makes me glad, ...”
Paul began with the word, “for” which
means “even as, indeed, no doubt, verily and therefore”
“if” or “whether” “I make you” which
means “Paul affected with or cause the church members to be”
“sorry” or “sad,
grieved, offended or made uneasy”. Paul began to share his
reason for not coming to the church members in “heaviness”,
“who is he then” or “what person whether male or female”
“makes” or
“affects and causes” “me glad” “Paul
to be joyful, merry, rejoicing and delighted with a thing”. Paul
wondered if he made the church members “sorry”,
they who would make himself “joyful and merry”?
The verse goes on to say,
“... but the same
which is made sorry by me?”
Paul added the word, “but” which
is a disassociation conjunction that means what is about to be
written takes precedence over what was just stated “the
same” or “the same person that should
make Paul glad” “which is made”
which means “that is affected and caused to be”
“sorry” or “sad,
grieved, offended or made uneasy” “by me”
or “through Paul”. Paul knew that the same people who made him
“joyful and merry” would be made “sad, grieved and offended”
by him.
When we meditate upon
these words of Paul, we see how there was a delicate balance for the
correction of the church members in Corinth. They made Paul rejoice,
and he knew his chastening would cause them “sadness and grief”.
Still, they needed Godly direction for their lives, and even though
they brought Paul great “joy”, he was willing to bring
them “sadness and grief” that they might alter their ways. Jesus
Christ loves every person, and because He does, He corrects, alters
and changes their speech, actions and attitudes. Though this may
bring “sorrow” to those in whom He delights, Jesus is
willing to do so for “eternal” purposes rather than compromise
for temporal ones. Let us read Paul's words knowhow he and the Lord
Jesus may cause “sorrow” but also be “glad”
with those who put their faith and trust in Him.
Next
time we
begin a new chapter and see how Paul, “determined
this with” himself,
so read
ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
No comments:
Post a Comment