God Loves to Show Mercy

If you wonder if the first century church had issues, take a look at Corinth. This young church struggled to know how to live pure, godly lives in a corrupt culture.

Paul had a special affection for them because he had started this church. In the past, the Christians there had a hard time growing up in the Lord and giving up their personal sins. (See 2 Corinthians 10:1—13:10.) But the young church responded well to Paul’s first letter and corrected their lives.

Paul’s primary purpose in writing 2 Corinthians was to set a troublemaker straight, but God’s larger purpose was to clarify the gospel and encourage the young church to grow up in their Christian disciplines. Paul invites us to know him personally better in 2 Corinthians than in any other letter.

To equip the Corinthian Christians for hard times, Paul teaches them about God Himself. Don’t forget about God’s mercies, he reminds us. As “the Father of mercies,” God provided a Savior for us. We couldn't be saved any other way. Everything we have today is a mercy from God. If you need help, go to Him. We don't deserve any of it, but He gives His mercy to us freely.

Our Father is also “the God of all comfort” (1:3)—comfort means “to come alongside of.” The same word describes the Holy Spirit, the paraclete, the One called to our side. When the Lord Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit, He said He would send a Helper. The Spirit of God is called to help you, strengthen you, relieve the loneliness, ease the grief, and calm your fears. He is your advocate in times of fear and trouble. When we know for sure God is with us in all life’s troubles, we can live by faith and not by fear.

God does permit Christians to suffer. He has a good reason, often unseen at the time. He intends for it to serve a good purpose so we can comfort someone else. God’s mercy produces qualities in us we’re meant to share.

Life on life—that’s how Paul described the work of the ministry. We pray for each other, we help each other in trouble, and we learn how to trust God from watching each other go through the trouble. Our testimony in life matters. We live in “simplicity and godly sincerity” (1:12). Suffering, in part, produces this grace.

One statement summarizes the total ministry of the Holy Spirit today: “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee” (1:21-22). First, the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin. Then, if when we are convicted, we confess our sin and accept Christ as our Savior, then He regenerates us. And now saved, He is at home in us.

God has put His Holy Spirit into every believer as a way to show you belong to God. If you belong to God, you will never be lost again. You may stray away, but He will come to find you.

In this letter so far, we’ve seen God's comfort in our life’s hardest events, and finally, we see God’s comfort in restoring a sinning saint. Showing mercy gives God great delight.

Next: Bet you didn’t know this about the Ten Commandments ….