2 Corinthians 2:5-11

Introduction

This evening we will be continuing our sermon series in the apostle Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians. We will be picking up in chapter 2 and reading verses 5-11. So if you have your Bibles, please open them and following along as I read 2 Corinthians 2:5-11. Hear now the reading of God’s holy word… The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God endures forever. Let us pray.

I have a confession to make. I love action movies. I love watching good guys beat up bad guys. And some of the best action movies are the ones that have stories about revenge. Perhaps the most famous movies about revenge are the Batman movies. Even if you’ve never seen these movies, you probably still know the story. Bruce Wayne is a child who sees his parents murdered right in from of him. As a result, he grows up to be the caped crusader Batman who runs around Gotham city at night beating up bad guys, taking out his revenge out on the criminal underworld. In the newest Batman movie, there’s a scene in which a street gang sees Batman for the first time and asks him the question, “who are you supposed to be?” And when the leader of this gang goes to take a swing at him, Batman just beats the guy to a pulp. And when he’s finally done, he looks up at the remaining gang members and responds “I’m vengeance.” It’s one of those scenes that sends chills down your spine, especially if grew up as a kid loving Batman cartoons.

But the Batman movies are not unique. There are so many action movies about revenge, it would probably be impossible to count them all. And the reason there’s so many of them, is simply because they are popular. And the reason, they’re so popular is because stories about violence and revenge appeal to our fallen sinful nature. In our sinful nature we imagine or even fantasize about ourselves responding the same way as the heroes in these movies. We think to ourselves if only we too were a boy genius with billions of dollars to spend, that’s exactly what I would do.

But what doesn’t come naturally and what’s not so easy for us to imagine is responding to wrongdoing the way that Paul instructs the Corinthian Church to respond in 2 Corinthians 2:5-11. In this passage we learn three things. First, we learn from Paul that the Corinthian church has suffered wrongdoing. Second, we also learn from Paul how God’s people are supposed to respond to wrongdoing. And lastly, we learn why it’s so important for the people of God to follow Paul’s instructions. So let’s dive in and see what exactly happened at the Church in Corinth.

The Wrong Done

In verse 5 we learn that a wrongdoing had been committed, but exactly what that wrong was is unclear. What we do know is that whatever the offense was, it seems to have been perpetrated by a single individual. We see this in Paul’s own language, where he refers to the wrongdoer numerous times as he or him. Now, many Bible commentators are under the assumption that Paul is referring here to the incestuous man that he wrote about in 1 Corinthians 5. In that passage, Paul instructed the church to discipline the incestuous man by excommunicating him from the congregation. If that is in fact who Paul is referring to here, then what we’re reading about in our passage tonight is that man’s repentance and restoration to the church.

And while that explanation is certainly possible, I’m afraid it’s just not very probable. As one of my seminary professors loved to say “all things are possible, just not all things are probable.” And the reason this is not a probable explanation has to do with verse 10. In verse 10, where Paul says, “Indeed, what I have forgiven, If I have forgiven anything” seems to play down the serious or heinous nature of the offense. It’s as if he’s saying “What I have forgiven, if in fact there was anything to forgive in the first place”. But that way of speaking would be making light of the fact that this man had an incestuous relationship with his father’s wife. And therefore, it would be most inappropriate for Paul to talk about it that way. As a result, I think we’re forced to conclude that Paul must not be referring to the incestuous man from 1 Corinthians 5 in our passage.

So the question remains, who is Paul talking about? The answer is, we just don’t know for sure. But many other Bible commentators assume, based on what Paul says elsewhere in this letter, that he is referring to a leader of the Corinthian Church who had once publicly and verbally attacked him. If this is true, it most likely occurred during Paul’s painful visit to the Corinthian Church, which he refers to in verse 1 of chapter 2. The benefit of this explanation is that it helps us to better understand and to appreciate those parts of our passage in which Paul talks about his own personal forgiveness of this man. For example, if we look again at verse 10 where Paul says “Indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything” we now understand that by saying this Paul is playing down the serious nature of the offense, because he is trying to persuade the Corinthian Church to forgive this man. And Paul has every right to do this, because the offense was directed first and foremost toward him.

But if this is the case, then why does Paul say in verse 5 that if pain has been caused, it has not been caused to him, but to the entire church? Well, I think there are two very reasonable explanations for this. The first, has to do with what Paul writes elsewhere to the Corinthians.

1 Corinthians 4:3–4 ESV

But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me.

You see, the reason this man’s verbal assault did not cause Paul any pain is because only one person’s opinion ultimately mattered to Paul and that was the opinion of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And therefore whatever this attacker thought of him was inconsequential to Paul. But the reason why this caused pain to the church in Corinth is because it divided the church. Some in the church sided with this man, but the majority sided with Paul and therefore real harm was done to the peace and unity of the church body. Furthermore, based on passages like Ephesians 4:30, we know the Holy Spirit is grieved by sin. Therefore, one of the signs of a healthy church is that it too is grieved when one of it’s members falls into sin, because this shows that the Holy Spirit is at work in the life of the church body as a whole. And so those are the reasons why this man’s verbal assault on Paul caused the church pain and not Paul: 1) Because Paul doesn’t care how human courts judge him. And 2) Because it was the church who was divided as a result of this man’s sin and because this man’s sin grieved the Holy Spirit, who was living and active in the life of the church.

So now the question is how should the church respond to this sinful man’s wrongdoing?

The Punishment afflicted

In verses 6-8 Paul tells us how. In verse 6 Paul says “for such a one, this punishment by the majority is enough.” Now when I first read this, it seemed to me as if Paul was saying that the pain this wrongdoer caused the church was itself the punishment that was too much for this wrongdoer to handle. In other words, it seemed to me as if Paul was saying the wrongdoer couldn’t bear the fact that he caused the church so much pain. And that fact alone was all the punishment that was needed. But the more I studied this passage, the more I think there was more to this punishment than just that.

In fact, the word the Greek word for “punishment” itself implies that the consequence for this man’s wrongdoing was much more severe. The Greek word that is translated as “punishment” here in our text refers to an official disciplinary act. And in this case, it was inflicted upon the wrongdoer by the majority of the congregation. But what exactly was that official disciplinary act? Well that becomes clear if we take into consideration how Paul himself instructs other churches to handle similar similar situations. For example, in his second letter to the church in Thessalonica, Paul writes this about a man who refuses to work. He says…

2 Thessalonians 3:6 ESV

Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.

2 Thessalonians 3:14–15 ESV

If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.

Now, in this passage the Thessalonians are dealing with a slightly different issue. But notice what Paul tells them. He says the church should have nothing to do with anyone who does not live in accordance with his teaching and who refuses to obey his instructions. In other words, Paul instructs them to excommunicate rebellious church members. And if that’s the case here, I think it’s safe to assume that Paul must have given similar instructions to the Corinthian Church about this man who openly opposed Paul to his face. In fact, Paul probably gave the instructions to excommunicate this man in the letter he refers to in v. 4. The Letter he says he wrote out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears.

So then the very first thing that God’s people should do when they are wronged is bring the wrongdoer under church discipline, which in cases of open rebellion, calls for excommunication as we see here. But that should never be the end of the story. Church discipline, even excommunication, should never be done just to get payback or to be rid of the troublemaker. All Church discipline, including excommunication, should be done with the hope and the intention of restoring the wrongdoer. And that’s exactly what the Corinthians have an opportunity to do here in our passage.

In verse 6, where Paul says “For such a one, this punishment by the majority is enough” he seems to be implying the punishment of excommunication served it’s intended purpose. That is, it convicted the man of his wrongdoing and brought him to repentance and therefore it is no longer necessary for him to stay excommunicated. As a result, Paul instructs the Corinthian Church to restore this man to the body of Christ.

And this kind of restoration requires the people of the Corinthian church to do three things. First it requires the Corinthians to forgive the wrongdoer. Second, it requires the Corinthians to comfort the wrongdoer. And third it requires the Corinthians to re-affirm their love for the wrongdoer. So true restoration involves forgiveness, comfort, and an affirmation of love. In other words, restoration involved more than just writing the man a letter to let him know he can come back to church. It involved actively embracing him and welcoming him back into the family of God. It involved more than just telling the man he was forgiven, it involved demonstrating that forgiveness through their attitudes and actions. And if forgiveness doesn’t involve those things, then it’s not real forgiveness.

And this is something that we have all probably been guilty of at one point or another. Maybe some of you are guilty of it right now. Maybe some of you have told someone you’ve forgiven them, but in your heart you’re still harboring a grudge. As a result, there’s an unresolved tension between you and the person who wronged you. If that’s the case, then you have not truly forgiven that person and your relationship with them has not been properly restored. And because of that, you now have become the wrongdoer for holding a grudge and harboring bitter feelings of resentment.

But you might be asking yourself, why should anyone offer someone who has hurt them that kind of forgiveness? After all, they certainly don’t deserve it. And maybe that’s true. Maybe they don’t deserve it, but you are to forgive them nonetheless. And Paul tells us why.

The importance of forgiveness

In verses 7-11 Paul gives us three reasons why forgiveness is so important. The first has to do with the well-being of the offender. In verses 7-8 Paul begs the Corinthians to reaffirm their love for this man so that he doesn’t become overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. The Greek word for “overwhelmed” is translated in different ways in the NT. In Matthew’s gospel it’s translated as swallowed. In Hebrews it’s translated as drowned. And in 1 Peter it’s translated as devoured. The point of all these various translations is that this feeling of overwhelming sorrow is dangerous and even deadly. It’s the kind of self-consuming guilt and shame that if left unchecked will totally destroy a person’s life. And as followers of Christ who are told by our Lord to love our enemies and to do good to those who hate us (Luke 6:27), we should care deeply for anyone, even those who have wronged us, who are in danger of drowning in such deadly grief. Our hearts should go out to them and we should be eager to extend them forgiveness and to reaffirm our love in order that we might ease their suffering.

The second reason why forgiveness is so important is because it’s a test of our faith. In verse 9, Paul says “This is why I wrote, that I might test you and know whether you are obedient in everything.” Now, in both the old and new testament the word “test” means to prove by trial. And so Paul is giving the Corinthian church an opportunity to prove that their faith is genuine by obeying his instructions and forgiving the wrongdoer. The Corinthian Church had already proven themselves when they obeyed Paul’s instructions to discipline the man, but that was the easy part. Being offended, judging others, and seeking retribution, these things come naturally to us. What doesn’t come so naturally is laying down our grievances and forgiving someone who has hurt us. And so now the real test for the Corinthians has arrived. But this is not just a test to see if they will obey Paul’s instructions. This is test to prove to the genuineness of their faith.

Jesus said that we will know who his true followers are by their fruit, that is, by their obedience to God’s will. And nothing could be more in line with God’s will than the act of forgiveness because forgiveness is at the very heart of the gospel. It’s the very core of God’s saving acts in redemptive history, which climaxed in the life and death of Jesus Christ, who even while he hung on the cross dying, cried out to God, praying for his persecutors, saying “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” Furthermore, Paul tells us in Romans 5 that God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. He also says while we were still God’s enemies, God reconciled us to himself through the death of his Son (Rom. 5:8,10). Passages like these explain that we did nothing to earn God’s forgiveness. We were his enemies. We hated God. We hadn’t even repented of our wrong doing and yet God chose to forgive us anyway. And not only did he choose to forgive us, he chose to suffer the consequences for our sin in our place through the life and death of his Son. And if a holy and righteous God can do that for us while we were still enemies, shouldn’t we be able to forgive a fellow brother or sister in Christ when they repent? You see, whenever we have an opportunity to forgive, it’s more than just an opportunity to prove our obedience, it’s an opportunity to demonstrate God’s amazing grace by loving someone in a similar way to how he has loved us.

But that’s not the only reason why it’s so important for Christians to forgive. In verse 11, Paul tells the Corinthian Church that they should forgive and restore the wrongdoer, so that they would not be outwitted by Satan. Satan wants nothing more to see the Church divided and broken, because the church is his greatest threat. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus promises to build his church and says the gates of hell will not prevail against it. Notice that Christ says, the gates of hell won’t be able to prevail against the church. That phrase gates of hell implies that Satan and his army are the ones on the defensive. And that the church is on the offensive. The Church is an unstoppable force that is slowly but surely conquering Satan’s territory. And therefore, Satan would love to see Christians become unforgiving and vengeful because he wants nothing more than to see the church divided and broken, so that he can hold onto his territory and power for as long as he possibly can. He certainly, doesn’t want us to be kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving; loving each other just as Christ has loved us. That’s the last thing he wants and he is doing all that he can to prevent it.

Therefore, we must be careful not fall for his schemes. This then explains why Paul himself was so quick to forgive the man. In verse 10 Paul says he forgave the man for the sake of the Corinthian church in the presence of Christ. That phrase “in the presence of Christ” is simply another way of saying “God is my witness”. And with God as his witness, Paul forgave the man who verbally assaulted him because Paul wanted to be an example of Christ like love to the Corinthian Church to show them what real forgiveness looked like in an effort to preserve the purity and peace of Christ’s bride, so that the gates of hell would not be able to stand against her.

Conclusion

And so my question for us tonight is this: Do we want the same thing? Do we want to preserve the purity and peace of Christ’s Church, so that she can continue to fight the good fight against Satan and his allies? If that’s the case, then we must be a gracious and forgiving people. And not just in word only, but in our attitudes and actions towards one another. There is absolutely no room for grudges, feelings of resentment, or infighting within Christ’s church. We must be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave us.

And if that’s the kind of people we want to become. If we want to become less like Batman and more like Christ, then we need to separate ourselves from our culture. Our culture views mercy and forgiveness as a sign of weakness. And it glorifies cruelty, violence, revenge. But those things have no place in the Christian life. And therefore, we need to spend less time watching the news, less time binge watching Netflix, less time going to the movies. And we need to spend more time meditating on God’s word and more time in prayer, asking God to give us a heart like his. And then finally we need to spend more time practicing what it is we say we believe. If we do that, the Church will be victorious. Let us pray.