2 Corinthians 2 - 2.4.26
Scripture
Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. (2 Corinthians 2:14)
Observation
There is a lot packed into this one verse. God always leads us. He leads us in triumph. He diffuses the fragrance of his knowledge everywhere through us.
Right before this verse, Paul describes his recent journey. He went to Troas, and he discovered that God had opened a door for him. But he was distressed because he expected to meet Titus, and he didn’t. Then he went to Macedonia. However, it was God who led him, and he thanks God for leading him in triumph.
God has promised to direct our steps. When we trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on our own understanding, and acknowledge Him in all our ways, He will direct our paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6).
When he leads us, he leads us in triumph. We might face hardship and difficulties along the way, yet we are more than conquerors through him who loved us (Rom 8:37). Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor 15:57).
He diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge through us everywhere we go. When we spend time with God and walk with Him, the perfume of his knowledge is imparted on us. Wherever we go, people can sense the scent of God on us. In the book of Esther, we see that Esther went through extensive long-term beauty treatments before she was presented to the king. This included six months of perfumes and six months of oil and myrrh (Esther 2:12). Because of this, wherever Esther went, she exuded a beautiful fragrance. Similarly when we spend time with God and walk with Him, we absorb His presence into our life, and we exude fragrance of the knowledge of God wherever we go.
Application
This verse assures us that God leads us in triumph and releases the fragrance of His presence through us. Let us trust in the Lord with all our hearts, and not lean on our own understanding. Let us acknowledge Him in all our ways, so that He can direct our paths (Prov 3:5-6). Let us cultivate the habit of spending time with God in prayer and reading His word, and walk in obedience and his presence, so that we absorb the fragrance of His knowledge, carrying that fragrance on us wherever we go.
Prayer
Dear Father, thank you for loving me. Thank you for leading my paths and directing my steps. Thank you because I am more than a conqueror through You, who loved me (Rom 8:37). I want to carry the fragrance of your knowledge and your presence wherever I go. Teach me how to spend time with you so that the fragrance of your knowledge is absorbed in me. Help me to live in obedience pleasing you. Make my life a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to You (Rom 12:1). In Jesus’s name. Amen.
- Asha Chacko George
2 Corinthians 1:3-7
SCRIPTURE: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.” NIV
OBSERVATION: Paul allowed his trials and afflictions to be opportunities for him to be able to encourage and comfort others who were also suffering. At one point in his life, Paul had been completely overwhelmed and despaired of life as he and his fellow missionaries had faced an angry mob. What he thought was going to lead to a terrible death, God ended up miraculously delivering them! Paul’s theology regarding physical and emotional pain played a major role in how he responded to difficult situations, and he purposely shared with the Corinthian church what he went through AND how God had comforted him during his challenging and scary trials.
APPLICATION: I have not had to experience an angry mob coming against me like Paul did, but I have faced many challenging and scary situations. I can honestly say that for each and every trial that I have gone through, they have helped shape me by learning what a good and gracious God I serve!
One trial in particular that I faced was when I was forced to give life support to someone who was in code blue. When I couldn’t imagine life becoming more stressful, God came and brought life back into that person! Another trial was when I was on the other end of the phone talking to a person who had become hopeless and had decided it would be best to commit suicide. God rushed in and gave me words of hope to speak life which ended up miraculously changing that person’s mind! There was another trial that my husband and I faced. We received a call in the middle of the night telling us that our oldest son had been in a terrible motorcycle accident. We were told that he would probably not be alive when we arrived at the hospital! Thirty-two years later, we are able to look back and see how God not only spared our son’s life, but has helped him to be an over-comer, even while living with paralysis! And last year after rushing to my 93 year old dad’s side after he had suffered from a brain bleed due to a roll-over car accident, we are able to see how our gracious Miracle working God showed up and brought healing back into him! Through each and every one of those challenging trials, I was able to experience God’s merciful hand and get to see how He brought comfort into our lives!
PRAYER: Merciful God of comfort, You are so faithful to prove Your love to us when we are going through challenging times and struggles, and how blessed we are to be able to come out knowing what a good and faithful God You are as we experience the personalized provisions You give to us as we cry out to You. AND because we have experienced Your comfort while going through our trials, we are now able to comfort those who are going through their trials! I pray as I have learned to put my trust in You that I will be faithful to minister Your love to those who are going through any kind of trial or affliction, and I thank You that I am able to do this through the comfort which I have received from You.
- Robin Orefice
1 Corinthians 16 - 2.2.26
Scripture
1 Corinthians 16:13-14
”Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. And do everything with love.”
Observation
Paul is giving his final instructions to the Corinthian Church. He tells them his plans to visit them real soon. Paul wishes to stay with them for a while when he does visit them. Until then, Paul encourages the church to be on guard, be strong in their faith, to be courageous, and to do everything with love.
Application
Paul’s instructions to the church in Corinth still ring true for the Church today.
With the current state of the world and the Church, it would be wise for we as Christ Followers to take heed to Paul’s counsel. You see, the Church is under attack from this world’s culture, false teachers and from the old sinful nature of its members. So now more than ever, we as a Church need to stand strong in our faith. We need to fight and be courageous in what we believe in. We need to remain in a close, intimate relationship with Jesus by knowing His Word and understanding His Word so we are not fooled by counterfeits out there. We need to stand united with our brothers and sisters in Christ, loving each other and loving others around us. Finally, we need to make sure that we are the thermostats and not thermometers in this world. To put it another way: Are we changing the culture around us or is the culture changing us? 🤔
”Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.“-Romans 12:2
Prayer
Father God, I come to You today to ask and pray for strength and courage to stand firm in my faith for You. May I live my life trying to please You, rather than trying to please the world. May I love others the way You love me…and that’s unconditionally. Help me to be a thermostat and not a thermometer. I pray these things in Jesus’ name, Amen. 🙏🏽
-Moses Gaddi