In 2 Corinthians 1:5-7: Paul shows us that he understands the Ways of God. “For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.” 

Jesus comforted Paul through many trials, and he stood ready to comfort others, even if the fault involved sin. He knew what he had personally done to the church, so he was able to go from theory into practice just by grasping hold of God’s great Grace and clinging to it. When he needed rescuing, God came for him, so he knew what real Grace looks like. Real sin doesn’t just need repentance, it needs us to produce fruit – our hearts need to be changed by the continual flow of Grace that comes from Christ’s side. We have to stop throwing away people who muck up … and ask for His wisdom.

If we are suffering because of some fault or other we can be quietly assured that we are not weird – everyone is vulnerable to temptation. Just because you aren’t on the mission field, or in a pulpit, that doesn’t mean you are somehow immune to sin’s temptation and the suffering it produces. This man of God was attacked by the enemy regularly, yet he did not falter. Here he was speaking to the Corinthian church – he wanted them to know that suffering is normal, but it has a purpose. Father God has a plan for whatever happens to us. Grace restores us when we sincerely repent and take a lower place.

Part of the blessing we receive comes from what other people experienced when they share what God did for them, when they were suffering or missed the mark. Suffering is part of a heavenly production line that teaches us new things about Him, and it reveals new things about ourselves. Why would we ever bother to repent if we choose to live this life so sure we are right, and everyone else is wrong? Difficulties and temptation  come to challenge us, so we can have our real self exposed to us, and reassess our beliefs and attitudes. 

Comfort always comes from the Holy Spirit and He just keeps on giving! It’s His nature. And when He comforts us, then we learn that His comfort is a tangible thing. Comfort can be passed on to others, through testimony and withholding judgment. Let’s remind ourselves that ‘there but for the Grace of God’ we might be standing, and some of us already were! Tell someone: “God has helped me, can I help you? I will pray with you, and for you. Let me help you remember He loves you.” We can’t always take the pain of someone’s suffering away, but we can share another’s burden by listening.

Verse 12: “Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace.”  Here is Paul’s comfort and he is passing it on. He won’t judge according to this world, he will comfort the fallen because of God’s Grace and His wisdom. He emphasises that he knows he does not respond well when he operates in worldly wisdom. Saying nothing when you have nothing to say, but remaining with the person, can be a huge comfort. There are times when I have bupkis plus nothing in some situations. I choose to let LOVE speak, and love is often silent in someone’s dark valley. 

Grace is needed when you start out to help but you know you can’t possibly do whatever is required at the other end! Ask for His Grace. Knowing we can walk in the kind of Grace Jesus had, is huge. I don’t have to know what comes next, I just keep following the Lord’s instructions. Grace in Paul’s case prevented him from coming to Corinth too quickly, so that God could deal with a person who had sinned in their midst. This church needed to be able to learn to respond to someone’s sin with the Holy Spirit’s help – for themselves.

Everything we think we know, can be seen from another angle, especially when we ask the Holy Spirit to show us what He sees and thinks. You may have noticed that I refuse to give any ‘methods ‘for relating to Him, because knowing the Holy Spirit involves personal engagement..I can’t have a relationship with YOU by remote control, and we can’t do that with Him either! Each of us has to put aside any human methods we’ve been taught and use those things as guidelines, not blueprints. Let Him teach you how you should go. No parent wants their child to come to them and relate to them from someone else’s script. Part of true sonship is being yourself.

If all we do is react to others, and then go ahead and ACT on our own reaction, we will miss the greater blessing. What’s the point of adding our judgment and disappointment to someone else’s sin? Only God knows hearts! However, there is nothing sweeter than choosing to stay by someone’s side when everything looks lost to them. Comfort and Grace are two vehicles that can teach us His Ways, and offering no judgment is a blessing to someone who is drowning in their own sorrow and repentance.

Let’s show the world we are truly HIS by operating in Grace and freely comforting others no matter what they’ve done – we just might win our brother or sister back. After that we need to wait on His wisdom. 

Bye. 👋