Sending Our Diligent Brother 2 Corinthians 8:22

Paul the apostle shared with the church members in Corinth how he and his companions were, “providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.”, and in chapter eight and verse twenty-two of Second Corinthians, Paul shared how they “sent with them our brother” who was “diligent” where we read:

And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have oftentimes proved diligent in many things, but now much more diligent, upon the great confidence which I have in you.

The verse begins, “And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have oftentimes proved diligent in many things, ...” Paul began with the words, “and we have sent” which means “and Paul and his companions have dispatched” “with them” which means “the group who were traveling together” “our brother” which refers to “Paul and his companions' fellow believer who was united to another by the bond of affection” “whom we have oftentimes” or “who Paul and his companions many times, often and frequently” “proved” which means “tested, examined and scrutinized” “diligent” or “active, zealous and earnest” “in many things” which refers to “plenteous, large and abundant things”. Paul “many times” “tested and examined” this “brother” whom he sent to travel.

The verse goes on to say, “... but now much more diligent, upon the great confidence which I have in you.” Paul continued with the word, “but” which is a disassociation conjunction that means what is about to be written takes precedence over what was just stated “now” or “” “much more” or “to a greater and larger degree” “diligent” which means “active, zealous and earnest”, “upon the great” or “greater and larger” “confidence” which means “trust and reliance” “which I have” or “that Paul had” “in you” which refers to the church members. Paul was able to send this “proven” person because he at that time “trusted” the Corinthian church members.

When we consider these words of Paul, we see how he was concerned that the Corinthians know the character of this person he was sending. He “trusted” the church members because this “brother” shared concerning them, and this is the way Jesus desires His church to be. Those who know Jesus Christ as their “Lord and Savior” should be “proven zealous” and willing to share “confidently” concerning other believers.

Next time Paul tells the church members how, “Titus, he is my partner and fellow-helper”, 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.