2 Corinthians 2--"Triumph In Christ"

Paul is continuing his thoughts from chapter 1.  He decided not to visit Corinth again, based on the persecution he has been suffering.  Paul finds so much joy in hearing of them and visiting with them; he can't bear to drag the pain and drama to them.  This decision brought him much sadness and he lets them know it--not to make them feel bad, but so they will understand how much he loves them.  Paul then addresses what seems to be a problem within the Corinthian church, an issue that is apparently familiar to all involved.  Paul knows that if this situation has caused him grief, how much more it must have grieved those closest.  He encourages forgiveness and an outpouring of love and support for the offender.  Paul is thankful for the path of Christ, which always wins. (The word for fragrance in verse 14 means "a sweet smell".  The word for "aroma" in verse 15 and 16 means "an odor".)

Paul pours out his heart to these fellow believers!!  Instead of rushing ahead of the will of God, he reasons through all of the scenarios to which a visit from him might lead.  A visit would be pure joy, but seeing the turbulence it would bring would ultimately not be worth it.  So he uses the means he does have--letter writing--to encourage these fairly new believers in what God requires of them regarding Real Life situations.  Paul has made hard decisions to forgive others in order to provide a template for those just learning.  He hopes for nothing but a positive report as they are obedient to God's plan.  Any thing less than obedience is ignoring the fact that Satan desires to work HIS will through our hardened hearts.  Paul admits that he's been distracted before, walking right past a door opened for him by God and going another way.  But even in that, Christ Jesus' plan is always victorious!  No matter where he found himself, Paul still had plenty of opportunities to preach and teach.  He shared the gospel with those who were lost and dying.  He shared the gospel with those who were already saved, helping them to grow.  Paul concedes that we may not always feel adequate for the task of sharing the gospel.  But unlike those who feel they need to "sell" the gospel by adding or subtracting from it to make it more attractive, we just need to speak the truth about Jesus, with God as our witness. 

 I think we sometimes paint ourselves into a corner when it comes to how we approach "sharing the gospel".  99% of the time I think of it in terms of introducing others to Jesus, the Redeemer--the One who died for us.  But verses 14-16 change me.  We can and should share it that way--pointing out that death is what we deserve for sin.  But we shouldn't stop there!! We can also share the gospel by pointing out life, abundant life from Jesus, the Resurrected--the One who lives for us.  Some may think the message stinks like death, and some may recognize the beautiful fragrance of life.  Either way, our only goal is to spread the knowledge of Him everywhere.  Led by Jesus, the Winner--the One who guides us, let's always have Him first in our minds, first in our hearts, first out of our mouths.