Book 72 Review

"Salvation has already been completed. What remains now is becoming strong when weak within that gospel." This is what the author, Paul C. Jong, wrote at the end of the blurb referring to the Apostle Pauls letters to the Corinthian Church. The letters detail the Apostle Pauls struggles and the persecution that he had to endure, defending himself against false apostles who doubted his apostleship. The author goes on to say that, "Gods power is fully revealed in the midst of weakness - that is the central message of 2 Corinthians." Reading 2 Corinthians, you feel the love that Paul had for the saints of Corinth, his deep care for their souls, and his hope for their continuation with Christ and the gospel. Paul loved them as one does their own child, and by faith he laboured diligently for them. Paul stayed in Corinth for about one year and six months preaching the gospel. But when he left, the church suffered persecution. False apostles criticised Pauls faith and even accused him of not being a true servant of God. So, Paul`s letters are an outpouring of care and love, warning and encouragement, sorrow and tears.
Warning the church about Satans devices, Paul teaches the saints about forgiveness and obedience. Though the church has the role of maintaining order through Gods laws, if someone commits a sin, this sin must be repented of and then, the church should accept the one who has repented and show them kindness and love. Otherwise, Satan can use this, as Paul says: "Lest Satan should take advantage of us." Satan always looks to divide God`s people. He sometimes tries to destroy the church through sin, and at other times tries to make the church weak through an unforgiving heart and conflict. Constantly looking to destroy the saints, it is imperative that the born again remain in the church and heed the words of their predecessors to avoid Satan’s wiles. Human beings are weak and that is why the born again believe in Jesus because we know just how pathetic and sinful we are. So, when someone in the church sins, we should not deal too harshly with them, knowing that we ourselves are the same. The born again believe that Jesus came down to save us from sin and hell by receiving our sins at His baptism by John the Baptist, carried our sins to the Cross, shed His blood, and rose from the dead. This complete faith is what we must ruminate on and it is the same faith that the Apostle Paul believed and preached.
Paul had such love in his heart toward the Church at Corinth. He appealed to them as his beloved children and earnestly encouraged them to imitate him in serving the Lord. He pleaded with them "not to receive the grace of God in vain" (2 Corinthians 6:1), not to be "unequally yoked," and to "come out from among them and be separate" (2 Corinthians 6:14,17). Gods plan can be carried out through His children in the world when they are not joined to it. The Israelites in the Old Testament would prosper when they served and followed only Jehovah God, but they were defeated in war and succumbed to disaster when they served idols and joined their hearts with the other nations and their gods. This separation Paul speaks of does not mean living completely apart from the world, but rather living with an identity belonging to God. Although a saint lives in the midst of the world, they must be a person who lives tied to Gods will.
The author emphasises Paul`s guidance towards the Corinthian church to raise the inner man to be strong. How is this accomplished? Our inner man, which has received salvation, must abide firmly inside the Word of the Lord because in this last era, Satan the devil is trying to tear down the faith of the saints. The saints of the early church were heavily persecuted by Satan, which, in turn, strengthened their faith even more. But now, Satan is not attacking us in the same way as before. Now, he is trying to make us pursue peace. Therefore, we must strengthen our inner man by believing in the baptism and blood of Jesus, trusting that the Lord will return to this earth and that when He does, we will go to the Kingdom with Him. This is how our inner man remains focused on the will of God and unaffected by the current of the world which Satan uses to distract us.
We, the righteous, must abide firmly inside the faith. The church is our safe place. God speaks to us in His church, works with us there and blesses us. Its where we see Gods glory. We don`t boast of our own rightness as we have absolutely nothing to boast of before God. We simply boast in Christ and His gospel and spread this truth to the whole world. Let us always give thanks and eagerly wait for His return. "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord, Praise the Lord!" (Psalm 150:6)