"After forty days Noah opened a window he had made in the ark and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. But the dove could find nowhere to perch because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth."~Genesis 8:6-11

Monday, December 10, 2012

2 Corinthians


This letter was written by Paul and Timothy while they were in Macedonia in 55AD to the church in Corinth.  By this time, Paul has had a lot of interactions with the Corinthian church.
The letter generally holds a defense of Paul’s ministry.  This was prompted by the appearance of super apostles in Corinth. The super apostles are people who claim to be apostles and servants of Christ, but they are preaching a different gospel (likely surrounding Moses).  They speak with lofty words and are everything that a Greek culture is looking for in a leader (they accept money, are likely physically appealing, exalt themselves, boast in visions).  Their presence is causing the Corinthians to question Paul’s authority and lead them away from their devotion to Christ.  Ultimately, they are making slaves of the Corinthians and taking advantage of them.  

"Anyone whom you forgive, I also forgive. Indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ, so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs."-2 Corinthians 2:10-11

OBSERVATION
What is connected?
Not being outwitted by Satan because they are not ignorant of his designs.
What does the connective refer back to?
What Paul has forgiven (the same person the original readers have forgiven) has been for the sake of the Corinthians in the presence of Christ.

INTERPRETATION
Considering the context of Paul and the original reader's forgiveness, what do Paul’s connectives imply are Satan’s designs?
Unforgiveness. (bitterness, disunity etc.)
Why does Paul connect his choice to forgive with he and the original readers not being outwitted by Satan? Why not simply say that he forgives?
Paul may want to emphasize that choosing unforgiveness is a really stupid thing to do.  Outwitted in Greek means “to be taken advantage of or defrauded” in this case, by Satan.
So to choose not to forgive is a choice to be defrauded and defeated by Satan.

TIMELESS TRUTH
Unforgiveness is a harmful choice that we make to be defeated and defrauded by our enemy Satan.

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