More Than Enoughਨਮੂਨਾ

Begin today by reading Paul’s opening words in 2 Corinthians 1:1-7.

Verses 1-2 served as a typical greeting in Paul’s day. Regarding these verses, keep in mind some introductory information:

This letter was written by the apostle Paul. Paul had been called to his apostolic ministry by Christ Himself when He appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus. Paul was joined in his ministry to the Corinthians by his co-laborer and son in the faith, Timothy.

The letter was written to the Corinthian church, a church Paul founded. It seems this letter is one of several Paul and the church exchanged and is the last we have between them.

Corinth was a cosmopolitan city in the region of Achaia, Greece.

Paul concluded his greeting with a phrase he often used in his letters—grace and peace. The repetitive use of the phrase emphasized Paul’s hope that they would personally experience these blessings and was a beautiful reminder that God is the source of both.

However, God is the source of so much more than grace and peace, and in verses 3-7 Paul highlighted a characteristic of God that serves His children well in their suffering. Let’s dig in.

What Does The Passage Say?

After his greeting, Paul opened the letter with a hymn of praise. According to verse 3, God’s mercy and comfort make him worthy of blessing. God responds to us according to His nature, and in verse four we learn that in response to our suffering God comforts us. He does this not only for our own consolation, but that we may be able to comfort others through the comfort we have received (vv. 4,6). In verse four Paul makes it clear: the best we have to offer others when we comfort them in their suffering is the comfort which we have ourselves received.

Paul indicated in verse 6 that the Corinthians were themselves suffering. Notice Paul’s mindset toward them as they endured this suffering: “And our hope for you is firm, because we know that as you share in the sufferings, so you will also share in the comfort” (v.7).

What Does The Passage Mean?

Paul connected our suffering with the sufferings of Christ. What do you think it means that “the sufferings of Christ overflow to us”? Or, as it reads in the ESV, that we “share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ” (v. 5)? Paul stated that while we share in the sufferings of Christ, we also share in His comfort. Read verse 5 in the Amplified version and take note of any words that describe or illuminate what God’s comfort is like: “For just as Christ’s sufferings are ours in abundance [as they overflow to His followers], so also our comfort [our reassurance, our encouragement, our consolation] is abundant through Christ [it is truly more than enough to endure what we must].”

God’s comfort is what enables us to endure suffering with our faith intact and makes it possible for our suffering to benefit others. Pay attention to how Scripture indicates that God comforts us. Read the following verses and take note of what you learn: Psalm 23:4; 119:76; John 14:16-17; Philippians 4:6-7. We see in these verses that God is faithful, that He is with us forever, He remains with us, and He gives us peace. God’s comfort comes to us in His presence.

How Must I Respond?

One repeated word that stands out in this passage is all: God is the “God of all comfort. He comforts us in all our affliction.” If God is the God of all comfort, then He is the source of comfort, and we should turn to Him when we need comfort. In what affliction do you currently need comfort? Are you turning to God for comfort or to someone or something else? If to someone or something else, are you finding comfort there? Take some time to reflect on these questions honestly.

Now, think of a past affliction in which God comforted and cared for you. Who around you needs the same kind of comfort you received in that affliction? How can you share that comfort with them this week?

Wrap up your day in prayer: invite God to be your comforter in any present afflictions and ask Him to open your eyes for opportunities to share that comfort with others this week.