2 Corinthians 13:11 New Living Translation
“Be joyful. Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in
harmony and peace. Then the God of love and peace will be with you.”
The Apostle Paul had spent much time
ministering to the church in Corinth. They
had proven to be weak in their faith and in need of much instruction. Paul’s first letter dealt with false
teachings that had permeated the church.
He instructed them regarding building up their faith and altering their
lifestyle, which had not been exemplary of a follower of Christ. While the
first letter was received well and most took Paul’s teachings to heart, there
were still some of the newer Christians who were being told Paul’s authority
was not from God. This second letter was meant to reestablish his rightful
place in their hearts and minds as an apostle of Christ, called by God. In his final greetings at the end of the
letter, which we see in part above, he leaves them with specific instructions
on how they are to behalf toward one another within the body of Christ.
These words apply to every body of believers
in Christ worldwide. The enemy seeks to divide, but if believers follow the
instructions laid out for them in scripture, the devil cannot get a
foothold. All it takes is one divisive
individual and those willing to entertain what they say to bring down a
congregation or at the very least split it right down the middle, thus making
it ineffective for Christ. We must
always remember that we are not autonomous, but rather a body of believers who
function as one unit in the name of the Lord.
It is without question not about us as individuals. Humility should rule
the day as we strive to be faithful representatives for Christ. We must follow
Paul’s instructions by being an encouragement to one another. We are to place the needs of others above our
own. We are to live in peaceful harmony,
for the opposite of that creates tension and as with a rope that is pulled too
tight, tension can cause a rope to break, thus causing a division between the
two halves.
The final statement above is conditional
in nature. If we, as believers in
Christ, are joyful, grow in maturity, are encouraging and live in peaceful
harmony with one another within the body, THEN God’s love and peace will be
with you. This is not to say that God
will stop loving you if you don’t exhibit these qualities, but rather than his
love and peace will not be with you corporately. As in it will not be evident to those outside
your congregation. So follow Paul’s
instructions, read scripture so that you may know how you are to behalf and tap
into the Spirit of God within you to make it happen. Until next time, walk with the King and be a
blessing!
Resource: The Life Application Study
Bible, published by Tyndale House.
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