Examine Yourselves to See If You Are in the Faith Handling the Pain of Relationships 2 Corinthians 2

Examine Yourselves to See If You Are in the Faith

Handling the Pain of Relationships

2 Corinthians 2

As you and I lead a victorious Christ-like life we will leave an aroma

To those who are being saved we will smell good

But to those who are living in a way that is perishing

Our smell will remind them of death

We need to remember our aroma does not change

But those who are not living for Christ

Will find our aroma offensive, reminding them of death

The way you smell will affect your relationships

In handling the pain of relationships

We must remember to love those who cause us pain

We must not forget we have the ministry of reconciliation so we offer forgiveness

Lastly, we follow Christ in triumph not for personal gain

But because that is what God has called us to do 

So our hope is that those who smell the aroma of death

Will see a way of escape and repent

So they too might smell the aroma of life

Handling the Pain of Relationships

2 Corinthians 2

If you are like me you hate confrontation.

I am ashamed at how many times I let something go

because I did not want to deal with it.

Even though I have adopted a new name for it is still hard.

Instead of calling it “confrontation”

I call it “carefrontation”.

Imagine living in Las Vegas for 18 months.

Like Vegas, Corinth had legal prostitution,

even of a religious nature.

There was freedom in Corinth

that would not be accepted elsewhere.

In your 18 months,

many come to Christ.

They find a new life and your

friendship with them increases.

You hate to leave the new believers,

 but the compelling message of the

Gospel takes you to other places.

After you are gone you hear

of problems in the church.

You are grieved and know you

must deal with these problems.

You have to change your plans.

What you planned to do has to be put on hold.

Because you have to go back and make a painful

visit to people you have grown to know and love.

You are going back to people who have been listening

to others and your place of esteem has been weakened.

Now you not only have to deal with

the problems you have to regain respect.

2 Corinthians 2 reveals this long painful

process of handling painful relationships.

 One of the reasons Paul is dealing with

the problem, is the people in the church

could not come up with a consensus.

  

The people were so divided

the churches problem grew.

Paul in verses 1-4 shares he can

identify with their pain and grief…

   

For I wrote you out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears,

not to grieve you but to let you know the depth of my love for you.

Paul reassures them his intent was not to cause grief.

Paul’s efforts to help was out of a deep love for them.

How important whenever we face problems.

In relationships, we establish that we will handle

the matter because we love the people involved.

Not only the people we think are

in the right, but those in the wrong.

After Paul establishes love as the motivation

for working through the problem, he

describes the importance of forgiveness.

There was a man who was having

casual sex with his stepmother.

In 1 Corinthians, Paul says he was able to

judge this matter without being there.

And this person should be removed

from the fellowship of the saints.

For the purpose that he might be delivered

over to Satan so his soul might be saved.

That is tough!!!

But they do this and it seem in 2 Corinthians 2:5-11,

Paul is referring to this problem and the young

man repents and the church should forgive him.

    

 …In order that Satan might not outwit us.

 For we are not unaware of his schemes.   

Paul is very much aware of the power of

God’s love and the destruction of Satan.

We do not want our actions to allow

Satan to take advantage of us or others.

Our goal of dealing with painful relational

problems is not to see people suffer no matter

how much grief and pain their action cause us.

Our goal should be reconciliation.

 Remember this is a ministry God has given all of us.

2 Corinthians 5 11-21

Paul in close with the process and the purpose.

In the process of painful relational problems, there is a smell.

My dad and my brother both could not smell.

I was on the beach with my dad many

years ago and I found a very neat sponge.

I picked it up with the intent of taking it home.

As we went back to the car, I stopped

by the shower to wash off the sand.

I put the sponge in the trunk.

 Before we pulled out of our parking spot, a smell

from the wet sponge filled the air and I held my

head out the window and thought I would puke.

We had to abandon the sponge that made me sick,

 but my dad never smelt a thing.

Paul says…

 

But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ

and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.

For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other,

the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?

God always leads to victory.

Victory smells sweet to the victor,

 but bitter to the defeated.

Paul asks a question…

And who is equal to such a task?

Who is ready for this aroma?

The follower of Christ has an aroma.

Some will like the smell

 others will hate the smell.

Can you handle not smelling good,

reminding those who are perishing that they are dying?

 Paul lays out the reason is love,

that is why and how we handle

painful relational problems.

Our actions are always with the

goal of forgiveness and reconciliation.

We may not always smell good

to others who are perishing.

Finally Paul says…

  

Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary,

in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God.

Our motive is not for personal gain

but to please God who sent us.

Therefore everything we say is with

sincerity (with clearness, purity).

Scripture Reading

2 Corinthians 2 NIV

2:1 So I made up my mind that I would not make another painful visit to you. 2 For if I grieve you, who is left to make me glad but you whom I have grieved? 3 I wrote as I did so that when I came I should not be distressed by those who ought to make me rejoice. I had confidence in all of you, that you would all share my joy. 4 For I wrote you out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve you but to let you know the depth of my love for you.

5 If anyone has caused grief, he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all of you, to some extent — not to put it too severely. 6 The punishment inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient for him. 7 Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. 9 The reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything. 10 If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven — if there was anything to forgive — I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, 11 in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.

12 Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me, 13 I still had no peace of mind, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said good-by to them and went on to Macedonia.

14 But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. 15 For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 16 To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task? 17 Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God.