In chapter 2, Paul explains his changed plans and shows his love and concern for the church.
Paul’s Tears over the Church, vv. 1-4
A. The Purpose of 1 Corinthians: correct problems in the church before he visited them, vv. 1-3.
B. The Pain behind 1 Corinthians, v. 4: Paul was distressed.
Paul’s Testimony to the Offender, vv. 5-11
A. The Individual
1. This man committed a sexual sin and was dismissed from fellowship.
2. This discipline made him come to a place of sorrow and repentance.
3. This man evidenced his sorrow for sin, but the church was not willing to receive him back into fellowship!
4. This man was forgiven by Paul, v. 10.
B. The Instructions, Ephesians 4:32.
1. Forgive this man and comfort him, lest he be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow, v. 7.
2. “Confirm your love toward him,” v. 8.
3. Don’t allow Satan to “get an advantage of us,” v. 11.
a. Satan’s scheme is to make us believe we cannot be forgiven.
b. Satan accuses us of sin to discourage us with past failures, robbing us of joy and usefulness to Christ.
C. The Illustrations, 2 Corinthians 7:10.
1. Peter showed repentance, a godly sorrow that led him back to Christ.
2. Judas showed remorse, a worldly sorrow that led him to suicide.
Paul’s Triumph in Christ, vv. 12-17
A. After his first epistle to the Corinthians, Paul went to Troas, hoping to find Titus with word about the church at Corinth. Disappointed that Titus was not at Troas, he had a great opportunity to preach the Gospel at Troas.
B. Paul bypassed Corinth and went to Macedonia where he met with Titus. Titus gave Paul the good news that the church was making the corrections they needed to do.
The picture in 2Corinthians 2:14-17 was familiar to every first-century Roman. Whenever a victorious general returned home from battle, Rome gave him a public parade, not unlike our modern ticker-tape parades. This parade was filled with pomp and glory, and a great deal of incense was burned in honor of the hero. In the parade soldiers and officers would enjoy glory and praise, but slaves and captives also present would end up in the arena to die fighting the wild beasts. As the victors smelled the incense, they inhaled an aroma of life and joy; but to the captives, the incense was a reminder of their coming death.
In the “Christian parade” Paul describes, Jesus Christ is the Victor. Through His death on the cross, He has conquered every foe. We Christians ride in that procession with Him, sharing His victory (1Co_15:57). The Christian, however, is the incense (sweet savor of Christ) in this procession as the Spirit spreads the knowledge of Christ in and through our lives. This savor, or perfume, means life to other believers, but to the unbeliever headed for eternal condemnation, it means death.
C. Paul wonders if his life is sufficient to be used by God. In chapter 3, we will learn that our sufficiency is in Christ. We are unworthy to be saved, forgiven, and used by God. But thanks be to God! Christ made us worthy!