Read for This Week’s Study: 2 Cor. 8:9; Rom. 16:20; 1 John 4:8-11; 2 Cor. 13:11; Phil. 2:1, 2; Gal. 4:4-6.

Memory Text: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all” (2 Corinthians 13:14, ESV).

The Opening Question:

We have before us the final lesson in this collection that has focused on Paul’s letters to the Corinthian Christians. Interestingly, Paul ends his letter by reemphasizing several of the important elements that he has laid before them. He does this by using five imperatives, requests he wanted them to work on:

1. The first imperative, “Rejoice” (ESV), recalls earlier texts in the letters. There are a lot of reasons for Christians to rejoice, not the least of which is the grace of Christ. We can speak first of grace as something offered to humans that results in the forgiveness of sins and for being adopted into the family of God. Do not forget that grace was extended while we were yet sinners! But grace could also be spoken of as the thing that caused Jesus to leave heaven and come to earth in order to satisfy the demands of the law. And grace can also be talked of as the thing that enables humans to grow in their experiences to be more and more like Jesus himself. And it can be said that grace received results in grace being extended to others by those who have been forgiven and adopted. There is lots here to be thankful for.
2. The second imperative is a request for them to “strive for full restoration.” This is not just restoration of a deferential relationship with God, but also one that involves fellow humans. Christianity calls for union with God but also for unity among believers. There is lots to do in this second area that requires on-going effort.
3. The third imperative is for believers to “encourage one another.” This hardly bears much discussion, its need being so obvious. We might observe that encouraging others is usually not very difficult. Often, just showing concern or making a visit will be sufficient to lift spirits. In 2 Corinthians 1:3-7, Paul begins and closes his second letter with encouragement. We receive God’s encouragement in order to encourage others (2 Cor. 1:4, 6).
4. The fourth imperative is a call to unity, for believers to live in unity. Here we draw a distinction between unity and uniformity. These two are not the same, unity being the more important of the two.
5. And the last imperative is to “live in peace.” (2 Cor. 13:11, NKJV). This calls for an atmosphere of joy, restoration, encouragement, unity, and peace to be developed and encouraged and is the condition for the presence of God, “the God of love and peace” (2 Cor. 13:11, ESV). It results from our triune God’s work in the human heart (2 Cor. 13:14). The presence of humility and selflessness are characteristics that go a long way to enabling this kind of atmosphere to grow and remain.

Grace, love, and fellowship result from the work of the triune God for us. These three Christian features promote an atmosphere characterized by God’s presence. They are ministered to humans and developed in human lives by the working of the Holy Spirit.