Summary: Paul begins by giving thanks to God, who gave Titus his zeal for the spiritual welfare of the Corinthians. Even though Titus accepted Paul’s directive for him to go to Corinth, he did not need to be prodded in this regard – instead, he had decided on his own that he would go there. Also, Paul has decided that a brother – who is praised by all of the Macedonian churches for his efforts in spreading the Gospel – would accompany Titus on his journey. This brother has also been appointed by the Macedonian churches to accompany Paul as he takes the collection for the Judean relief effort to Jerusalem; this collection glorifies Christ and demonstrates Paul’s desire to help those in need. By taking these actions, he hopes that nobody will question his integrity when he takes charge of this large sum of money. He acts not only to please God but to commend himself to others.

Paul has also appointed a second brother – who has been rather diligent – to travel with Titus and the above-mentioned brother; this second brother is extremely zealous due to his confidence in the success of their trip to Corinth. He stresses that:

• Titus labors alongside him in his ministry
• the other two brothers are delegates of the Macedonian churches, and they glorify Christ.

He exhorts the Corinthians to show their love for Titus and the two above-mentioned brothers, so that they could vindicate Paul’s boasting of them to the Macedonians.

Now Paul notes that the Corinthians do not need to be prodded in terms of taking up the collection for their poor brothers in Jerusalem. He knows their readiness to give, and he has boasted of them to the Macedonians – telling them that since last spring the Corinthians have been ready to take up this collection; their eagerness to give had excited most of the Macedonians to action. To ensure that his boasts have merit, though, he is sending Titus and the two above-mentioned brothers to them; this act will spur them to finish taking up the collection in question. Indeed, if the Macedonians who will accompany him on his next journey to Corinth find that the Corinthians have been negligent in this regard, he will be ashamed. Paul concludes by inferring that he needs to send Titus and the two above-mentioned brothers to Corinth before his journey there so that the collection in question – which is a blessing – can be completed as they had promised last spring; then their gift would be abundant – not a gift that would betray their greed.

Thoughts: In this passage, we see that Paul and the Macedonian churches had appointed two brothers to join Titus in his journey to Corinth. In his commentary on verse 18, Hodge offers some sobering thoughts to those readers who are curious as to their identities:

It was someone subordinate to Titus who was sent along with him as a companion, someone well-known throughout the churches and who especially had the confidence of the Macedonian Christians (verse 19). But these conditions meet in so many of the people mentioned in Acts or in Paul’s letters that they lead to no certain conclusion. Whether, therefore, it was Luke, Mark, Trophimus, or someone else must be left undecided. The question is hardly worth the trouble that commentators have devoted to it.

I must count myself in the set of believers who are curious as to the identities of these two brothers. I am definitely eager to meet them in heaven and learn more about them; in particular, I would want to ask them about their lives in war-torn Macedonia, the reception that the Corinthians gave them when they arrived in Corinth with Titus, and the struggles and triumphs that they experienced in their Christian service.

This passage also states that although the Corinthians had – in the previous spring – resolved to take up a collection for the Judean relief effort, they had not completed this collection. This was the case even though the Corinthians apparently had a great desire to take up this collection. I thought about it and I simply could not understand what hindered the Corinthians in this regard. Did they simply forget about the collection? Did they desire to take it up, but then carry out that task slowly due to a lack of urgency? In either case their zeal would not have been genuine. Now perhaps they were truly zealous in this regard, yet outside forces – in the form of false teachers – strongly opposed their efforts. This is just a hunch on my part, though. Paul seems to indicate that the Corinthians had not fully developed the gift of generosity that they possessed – yet it is strange to view the Corinthians as having the zeal to give while lacking the full gift of generosity.

Summary: Paul begins by informing the Corinthians of God’s favor to the Macedonian believers. While the Macedonians’ sincerity and devotion to God was being tested, they displayed abundant generosity – highlighting their abundant joy and their abject poverty. He asserts that the Macedonians voluntarily gave beyond their means, as they begged him to let them participate in the relief effort for their brothers in Jerusalem; instead of giving a moderate amount, they gave all of themselves to the Lord (and to him) according to God’s will. Paul has urged Titus – as Titus has already helped the Corinthians to begin taking the collection for the relief effort – to perfect the inner grace of giving that they possess. Since the Corinthians possess the following in greater measure than other churches:

• the gift of a strong faith
• the gift of Christian truth
• the gift of understanding Christian truth
• a vigorous spiritual life
• a great love for Paul

he exhorts them to also possess the gift of generosity in abundance.

Now Paul is not commanding the Corinthians to take part in the relief effort; instead, he wants to see if they possess the inherent desire to give – by showing them the zeal of the Macedonians. Moreover, the Corinthians know the spontaneous love of Christ – although He shared the glory of His Father before the creation of the world, He laid aside His glory out of love for them so they can receive God’s blessings.

Paul then advises the Corinthians to take the following profitable action (since they had already decided last spring – before the Macedonians took action – to participate in the relief effort and had begun to take up the collection): they should complete the collection in order to be consistent, and he wants them to give freely. If they have the right disposition when giving, God will accept their gifts regardless of their means.

Paul does not want the poor believers in Jerusalem to be freed from poverty while the Corinthians become destitute; instead, he wants to address material deficiencies. At this time, the Corinthians’ giving will meet the needs of their brothers in Jerusalem; when they are in need, their brothers in Jerusalem will meet their needs, and so poverty among Christians will always be relieved. Paul concludes by quoting from Exodus 16:18 to drive home the point that if any believer has more than they need, they should help their brothers who are in need.

Thoughts: In this passage, we see that the Macedonian believers were destitute, rendering their eagerness to contribute to the relief effort in Jerusalem all the more astounding. In his commentary on verse 2, Hodge quotes from Roman Commonwealth by Thomas Arnold, where it is noted that Macedonia had been ravaged by several Roman civil wars, including the famous struggle between Augustus and Mark Antony; its possession was also the source of a conflict between Sulla and Mithridates. In an interesting nugget, Arnold notes that during the reign of Tiberius, Macedonia was viewed as being in such dire financial straits that it was placed under his jurisdiction – and not that of the Roman Senate. Indeed, history has furnished numerous examples of the devastation of war, including the condition of the South after the Civil War, the sad state that Germany found itself in after World War II, and the protracted recovery of Vietnam after its conflict with the United States. In general, postwar recovery entails the rebuilding of critical infrastructure, the replacement of a lost generation of able-bodied men and women, and the restoration of the “national psyche.” Macedonia evidently suffered greatly through the time of the writing of this letter; if most of my life had been scarred by war, I doubt that I would have been as enthusiastic as the Macedonians were about meeting the needs of destitute brothers in Christ.

In verse 9, we see that Christ became poor so that all believers might become rich. Hodge offers some insightful thoughts on this point:

That is, he so far laid aside the glory of his divine majesty that he was to all appearance a man, and even a servant, so that people refused to recognize him as God, but rather despised, persecuted, and at last crucified him as a man…Believers are made rich in the possession of that glory that Christ laid aside or concealed. They are made partakers of `the divine nature’ (2 Peter 1:4) – that is, of the divine holiness, exaltation, and blessedness.

It is evident that an integral aspect of Christ’s poverty on this earth lay in how His contemporaries viewed Him. The fact that they did not acknowledge His divine nature – in spite of His claims to divinity – and focused on His human nature caused Him to suffer greatly, both externally and internally – highlighting His poverty. Also, the fact that believers possess the glory that Christ had with His Father before the creation of the world is mind-boggling. I wrestle with the realization that I have such an awesome glory, especially when life feels rather mundane. Indeed, I look forward to the time when I will be able to understand and appreciate this glory.

In this passage, Paul stresses the importance of generosity and notes that it is a gift. Hodge offers some helpful thoughts on giving in his commentary on verse 14:

1. All giving is voluntary. A person’s property is his own…2. The purpose of giving is relief of poverty. The equality aimed at, therefore, is not an equality as to the amount of property, but equal relief from the burden of want…3. While all men are brothers, and the poor are proper objects of charity whether they are Christians or not, there is a special obligation resting on the members of Christ to relieve the needs of their fellow believers…4. A fourth rule is designed to prevent any abuse of the brotherhood of Christians. The poor have no right to depend on the gifts of the rich because they are brothers.

Balancing these four principles that govern Christian giving can be a rather tricky endeavor. We know that “money talks,” and we know that money is the source of many painful conflicts, even among Christians. My understanding of Hodge’s point is that the second, third and fourth principles should serve as a starting point for any believer when they are considering meeting the needs of a fellow believer. They may need to pray diligently and seek the counsel of others in making this decision. When all is said and done, the first principle should determine the exact amount that they give.

This book has one review on Amazon, so I hope to provide some additional insights for people who are considering obtaining the book.

In this book, the author provides the reader with a basic understanding of the fields of information theory and coding theory. He begins by presenting the concepts of entropy and mutual information, which are central to information theory. With these fundamental definitions in hand, he then presents the two main results of this area – Shannon’s channel coding and source coding theorems. After extending these results to the Gaussian case, he unifies them via a proof of the source-channel coding theorem. He then shifts gears and focuses on coding theory. He introduces several important types of codes, including linear codes – and some of their sub-classes, including cyclic codes, BCH codes and Reed-Solomon codes. The rest of the book contains a brief overview of convolutional codes and a discussion of variable-length source codes.

The author skillfully guides the reader through the information theory section of the text. By way of comparison, I had also read through one of the major texts in this area, Elements of Information Theory by Cover and Thomas; I found McEliece’s presentation of the fundamental information-theoretic concepts and results to be simpler and more intuitive. The author uses simple examples throughout the text to drive home key ideas; for example, he repeatedly discusses the (7,4) Hamming code – which happens to be a superb teaching tool. I also derived valuable insights from the presentation of the BCH decoding algorithm and the rigorous explanation of the efficacy of Huffman’s algorithm. In addition, I enjoyed the anecdotes that the author sprinkles throughout the text, as many of them arise from his long-standing association with JPL; thus, they bridge the gap between theory and practice.

My main issue with the text stems from the relatively large number of typos that I discovered. This is somewhat disappointing, as I read through its second edition. Also, the chapter on convolutional codes seems to be, technically speaking, rather light. This causes the section on coding theory to seem unbalanced, as the author skillfully presents many technical results that underlie the area of block coding. I would have preferred that the author extend the book to provide a more comprehensive treatment of convolutional codes, especially since they are more widely used in practice compared to block codes.

Overall I would strongly recommend this book to those who want a gentle introduction to the linked fields of information theory and coding theory.

Summary: Paul begins by exhorting the Corinthians to love him in return, as he has done none of the following:

• treat anyone unjustly
• corrupt anyone’s morals
• defraud anyone.

He does not intend to question their devotion to him, as they are so dear to him that neither death nor life could separate them. He has joyful confidence in them, and he boasts of them; at this time he is filled with comfort, and his joy overflows in the midst of his difficulties.

When Paul entered Macedonia, he still endured mental anguish; he was faced with external and internal difficulties. Yet God, who comforts the depressed, comforted him via the arrival of Titus. Paul was consoled by hearing of the comfort that Titus had received from the Corinthians; moreover, Titus told him of their desire to see him, their mourning over having offended him and their zeal for him – and so he experienced joy beyond what he derived from hearing of Titus’ personal comfort.

Although Paul’s previous letter briefly pained the Corinthians, causing him to regret having written it, he now has no regrets. In fact, he now rejoices over it – not because they were pained, but that their pain caused them to turn from sin to God; they were pained according to God’s will, and so his first letter did not injure them. Sorrow according to God’s will is an essential aspect of salvation – and the one who repents should not regret it – while the sorrow of unbelievers only yields spiritual death. Now Paul’s previous letter caused the Corinthians to experience sorrow according to God’s will, and they displayed the following:

• a desire to correct the sin in their midst
• a desire to acknowledge their sin to Paul and ask for his forgiveness
• anger at themselves for allowing the sin of interest to occur in their midst
• fear that Paul would come and punish them for their error in this regard
• affection for Paul
• a desire for the reformation of the sinner in their midst
• a sense that the sin in their midst must be punished

and so in every respect they showed themselves to be pure in this regard. Although he dove into their internal affairs by writing his previous letter, their above-mentioned actions prove that he wrote to them neither for the sake of the sinner in their midst, nor for the one who he had injured – but to show his love for them.

Paul is encouraged both by the Corinthians’ repentance in this regard, and by the fact that Titus’ spirit derived rest from them. He had boasted of them to Titus, and they did not mortify him; just as he had preached the truth to them, his boasting of them was vindicated. Indeed, Titus now has more affection for them than when he was with them, because he remembers their obedience toward him; they had greeted him reverently. Paul concludes by stating that he rejoices in the fact that he can be confident in them.

Thoughts: In verse 10, Paul states that sorrow for sin that stems from a proper relationship with God eventually produces life, while the sorrow of unbelievers eventually produces death. Hodge offers some pointed words on this subject:

It is a great mistake to suppose that the natural tendency of pain and sorrow is to bring good. They tend rather to excite rebellion against God and all evil feelings. It is only when they are sanctified…that they bring out fruit for righteousness…The more miserable you make a bad man, the worse you make him. The wicked are said to curse God while they gnaw their tongues with pain and refuse to repent of their deeds (Revelation 16:10-11).

This is a difficult quote to digest, especially when one considers how the class of unbelievers can be decomposed into its constituent sub-classes. For example, one of the core principles of Hinduism and Buddhism is that by leading a proper life, one can eventually escape pain and sorrow. I find it difficult to picture a Buddhist monk becoming “worse” as a result of experiencing sorrow; the monk in question would probably perceive sorrow as one of the standard obstacles on the road to enlightenment. Most likely Hodge’s point has its true significance in light of the Final Judgment, especially given his quotation from Revelation.

In verse 16, Paul asserts that he is confident in the Corinthians. Hodge offers some summary thoughts on this point:

This is the conclusion of the whole matter. The first seven chapters of the letter are intimately linked. They all relate to the state of the congregation at Corinth and to Paul’s relationship to the people there…Here, therefore, we have the conclusion of the whole preceding discussion. The result of the long conflict of feeling about the Corinthians as a church was the full restoration of confidence. ‘I rejoice that I have confidence in you in all things.’

This refreshingly positive conclusion to the first part of the epistle must have subtly influenced my understanding of it before I wrote this series of posts. While the epistle is miles away from being as “warm and fuzzy” as I had thought, Paul is clearly pleased that the Corinthians have responded positively to his previous letter – at least in terms of the case of their incestuous brother – showing that they are growing in their spiritual walk.

Summary: Paul begins by exhorting the Corinthians to avoid any intimate associations with unbelievers, as those who conform to God’s law cannot bond with those who oppose it; also, believers and unbelievers are as incongruous as knowledge and error. In addition, just as Christ and Satan cannot be united, believers and unbelievers cannot be united. Indeed, one cannot worship both God and idols, as He dwells in every believer; God has stated that He will dwell with His people, and He will be their God. Given this awesome fact, God commands His people to avoid bonding with unbelievers. Moreover, He will be their Father and they will be His children. Paul concludes by exhorting the Corinthians to strive for purity by avoiding all sin, as sin pollutes their bodies and minds; in this way they will be perfectly holy – by striving to emulate God.

Thoughts: In verse 14, we see that Paul exhorts the Corinthians to avoid any intimate associations with unbelievers. Hodge offers some relevant thoughts on this point:

The exhortation is general and is not to be confined to partaking of heathen sacrifices, nor to intermarriage with the heathen, much less to association with the opponents of the apostle. It no doubt meant something particular in the special circumstances of the Corinthians and was intended to guard them against those entangling and dangerous associations with the unconverted around them, to which they were especially exposed.

I thought about this passage’s modern-day application: what types of intimate associations with unbelievers should today’s believers avoid? There are two obvious answers, as noted above by Hodge:

• if an unbeliever is of a different faith, a believer should not participate in any of their religious ceremonies
• a believer should not marry an unbeliever.

Besides these examples, I struggled to formulate a scenario where a believer could form a damaging, intimate association with a non-believer. Should believing parents adopt a non-believing teenager? What if a believer considers a non-believer as their closest friend? Can a believing soldier serve in the same squad as a non-believer – and possibly go into battle with them? It’s not clear to me that Paul’s exhortation has a broad present-day application; thoughts on this are welcome.

Summary: Paul begins by noting that as an apostle, he refrains from acting in any way that would cause his hearers to not believe the Gospel. Instead, he – as a minister – always acts to convince his hearers of his integrity; he patiently endures all trials, including:

• anything that tests his endurance
• anything that stretches his endurance to its limits
• anything that causes him to view defeat as a certainty.

More specifically, he patiently endures:

• being lashed by Jews and Gentiles
• being imprisoned
• being confronted by angry rioters

while voluntarily making the following sacrifices:

• toiling as a minister and as a tent-maker
• forgoing sleep on numerous occasions
• forgoing food due to his workload.

In all circumstances, Paul:

• has the right motives
• shows a thorough understanding of the Gospel
• patiently endures trials
• desires to benefit others
• possesses the Holy Spirit
• loves his brothers in Christ
• preaches the Gospel – which is truth
• shows that the power of God works through him
• employs the full armor of God, enabling his hearers to receive His righteousness.

Paul remains faithful through all circumstances, including:

• being honored or dishonored
• being judged positively or negatively
• being regarded as a truth-teller or as one who leads people away from truth
• being praised or treated with contempt
• being regarded as close to death – yet God continually rescues him
• being afflicted – yet not overcome by his afflictions
• being sorrowful – yet he is also joyful
• being materially poor – yet he gives true riches to others
• being destitute – yet God orders all things for his benefit.

He directly addresses the Corinthians, reminding them of his freedom and openness towards them. While he loves them unconditionally, they have not acted in kind. Paul concludes by exhorting the Corinthians – as his spiritual children – to love him in return.

Thoughts: In verse 6, we see that Paul’s possessing the Holy Spirit was one of the reasons for his consistency as a minister. Hodge offers some relevant thoughts on this point:

To prove that he was a minister of God, Paul appeals to the evidence of the presence of the Spirit in him. This evidence was to be found in those graces and gifts of the Holy Spirit that he was full of, and in the divine power that accompanied his preaching and made it successful.

I see this as the main reason for Paul’s consistency as a minister through all of the difficulties that he endured. Without the Holy Spirit’s presence in him, he certainly would have acted based on impure motives when preaching the Gospel; also, he would not have worked so diligently as to give up food and sleep on a regular basis. In addition, he would have abandoned his ministry when faced with death. One must wonder how many believers through the centuries can trace their “spiritual heritage” back to the work of Paul; they can be thankful that he did possess the Holy Spirit – in abundance.

In verse 10, we see that Paul was both full of sorrow and full of joy. Hodge offers some illuminating thoughts on this point:

This is one of the paradoxes of the Christian experience. The believer has more true joy in sorrow than the world can ever give. The sense of the love of God, assurance of his support, confidence in future blessedness, and the persuasion that his present light afflictions will work out for him a far greater and eternal glory mingle with his sorrows and give the suffering child of God a peace that passes all understanding. He would not exchange his lot with that of the most prosperous of the children of this world.

Clearly it is not the case that when a believer receives abundant joy in the midst of abundant sorrow, their abundant sorrow magically disappears. I thought about this, and it seems to relate to my previous post on how believers should rejoice in the fact that they have two natures – a sinful nature and a spiritual nature. Similarly, believers can be thankful for the fact that they experience both sorrow and joy in this life. As believers will never be free from sorrow until the next life, they can rejoice that God does give them joy in this life, enabling them to endure their sorrows.

Summary: Paul begins by noting that as he earnestly desires the approval of Christ, he aims to convince others of his integrity; God knows his true character, and he hopes that the Corinthians are also convinced in that regard. Yet he does not want to praise himself; he wants the Corinthians to vindicate him by defending him against the charges of his opponents. Whether Paul acts extravagantly or discreetly, he aims to glorify God and build up the Corinthians. Indeed, his life is governed by his love of Christ, as he is sure that Christ died for those who would accept Him as their Savior – and His death is their death. Moreover, those who would accept Him as their Savior do not live for themselves; they devote themselves to Him, as He is their risen Savior.

Given this awesome reality, Paul does not judge people based on their external circumstances; he formerly viewed Jesus in that light, but he now knows Him as the Son of God. Moreover, anyone who is united with Christ is radically changed by Him; their old way of life has been replaced by a new way of life. Indeed, God has brought about this radical change by removing the hostility between Himself and mankind via the death of Christ, and He has called the apostles to announce this great news. God atoned for the sins of mankind by the death of Christ; He has forgiven their sins and has commissioned the apostles to preach this awesome reality. The apostles represent Christ and speak for God in appealing to men to receive His forgiveness; they exhort men to receive God’s offer of reconciliation. This stems from the fact that God regarded Christ as a sinner in the place of all believers so that by being united with Christ, all believers are regarded by God as being righteous.

Now as a fellow worker with God, Paul exhorts the Corinthians to not reject His offer of reconciliation. He concludes by quoting from Isaiah 49:8 to express the idea that God has ordained a time for revealing His plan of salvation for mankind, and He has now revealed that plan.

Thoughts: Verse 21 is probably familiar to many Christians, as it comprises the first verse of Jesus Messiah by Chris Tomlin. This got me thinking about how it is disturbingly simple to sing a worship song and not think about its lyrics – or even consider that the lyrics may be based on a specific Biblical passage. Unfortunately I fall into that trap on a regular basis; when I sang “Jesus Messiah” on several occasions, I did not recognize the critical role that verse 21 plays in that song. I am convinced that as believers become more well-versed in Scripture, their praise/worship experiences will be enhanced. Of course, Christian recording artists are not immune to the problem of misinterpreting Scripture when they craft their songs, but that’s a topic for another day.

In verse 2, Paul draws on Isaiah 49:8 to illustrate his point that God revealed His plan of salvation to mankind at a certain point in time. Hodge offers some interesting thoughts:

Isaiah 49, from which this passage is taken, is addressed to the Messiah…we may assume, in strict accordance with scriptural usage, that the apostle employs the language of the Old Testament to express his own ideas, without regard to its original application…He might have expressed it in other equivalent terms. But the language of the passage in Isaiah being brought to his mind by association, he adopts the form given there, without any suggestion, expressed or implied, that the passage had a different application originally.

Hodge’s quote implies that New Testament writers could be led by the Holy Spirit to liberally quote from the Old Testament in order to reinforce some of their points. As these writers were divinely inspired, it follows that modern readers should perceive the quoted Old Testament passages as having two interpretations:

• that which arises from their original application
• that which is intended by the New Testament writer in question

An interesting question, then, is whether these two interpretations always complement each other, or if they are occasionally orthogonal. In particular, can the New Testament interpretation completely overshadow the original interpretation?

Summary: Paul begins by asserting that even if his physical suffering leads to his death, his soul will be in heaven – which is built by God. Also, his current state causes him to groan, as he longs for his soul to enter heaven – and have a dwelling place after his death. Yet Paul is still alive, and so his sufferings cause him to groan – not for death itself, but for the time when his soul will enter heaven, as his time in heaven will overshadow his present sufferings. Indeed, God has:

• prepared him for his time in heaven
• placed His Holy Spirit in him as a guarantee of that future reality.

Given the fact that the Holy Spirit dwells in him, Paul is confident in all circumstances; he knows that in his current state he is not in heaven (yet he lives by believing in the heavenly things that he cannot see) and so he prefers death as a means to being in heaven with Christ. As he prefers to be with Christ, he aims to please Him – as a point of honor – whether he is in his current state or in heaven. Paul concludes by noting that all Christians will stand before Christ to be judged, and they will be rewarded – or punished – based on their good – or bad – acts on this earth.

Thoughts: Verse 1 shows that after a believer dies, their soul enters “an eternal house in heaven.” Apparently the precise meaning of this phrase has been the subject of much debate, and Hodge presents the alternatives in his commentary:

1. The first answer is that the house not built by human hands is heaven itself.
2. That it is the resurrection body…
3. The third opinion is that the house into which the soul enters at death is, so to speak, an intermediate body – that is, a body prepared for it and adapted to its condition during the state intermediate between death and the resurrection.

Hodge then goes on to refute the second and third alternatives and support the first. If the first choice is indeed true, then this lends credence to the practice of believers saying, when a fellow believer passes away, “he is with Jesus now,” or “she is singing and dancing on the streets of heaven.” I had always thought that dead believers remained dormant until the second coming of Christ, especially in light of Paul’s teaching regarding the resurrection body in 1 Corinthians 15:35-58. Now this verse implies that when a believer dies, their soul immediately enters heaven, and it is only joined to a “glorious” body at the second coming of Christ.

Verse 9 shows that true Christians desire to please Christ in all that they do. Hodge offers some thoughts on this point:

And here he means that as ambitious people desire and strive after fame, so Christians long and labor to be acceptable to Christ. Love for him, the desire to please him and to be pleasing to him, animates their hearts and governs their lives and makes them do and suffer what heroes do for glory.

One of the high school students at my church recently asked me why, if God desires that Christians devote their lives to His service, they constantly sin and fall short of His desires. At the time I provided a rather weak answer. Later I thought about this issue and I kept returning to Paul’s remarkably candid assessment of his spiritual life in Romans 7:7-25. Basically Paul knew that his sinful nature was at war with his spiritual nature, and so he could not avoid sinning – constantly – as a Christian. Yet this compelled him to give thanks to Christ, as His finished work was sufficient for his salvation. I think that as believers, we should constantly remind ourselves that we each have two natures – and not one – which is an immediate cause for celebration. Our celebration should compel us to honor God and devote ourselves to Him out of gratitude. Indeed, as believers we must be realistic – we do not only possess a spiritual nature, but we also possess a sinful nature, and this will not be rectified until Christ’s second coming. In light of this, we must constantly thank Christ for His finished work and not depend on our own strength.

Summary: Paul begins by noting that as he is serving – by God’s grace – in the context of the Gospel, he does not neglect his responsibilities in that regard. In particular, he refuses to:

• use secrecy and concealment when preaching the Gospel
• use cunning methods to achieve his ends
• corrupt the Gospel.

Instead, he declares the Gospel using pure methods so that all who hear it must acknowledge its truthfulness – as God is watching him. Yet there are those who fail to recognize the divine origin of the Gospel; they will be eternally condemned. This stems from the fact that Satan has hindered them in this regard, keeping them from seeing the radiance of the Gospel, which is the glory of Christ; the glory of the Father is in Him. Indeed, Paul does not preach the Gospel to glorify himself; instead, he wants his audience to know that Jesus is the Messiah, and he does this for the Corinthians’ benefit – out of his love for Christ. He wants his audience to know that Jesus is the Messiah, since God – who brought light out of darkness in His supreme act of creation – has illuminated the (formerly darkened) hearts of believers so that they can understand His glory as revealed in Christ Himself.

Now Paul is able to serve in the context of the Gospel – although he is weak and suffering – as this shows that the power of the Gospel comes from God. Indeed, he must constantly deal with the following difficulties:

• being pressed for room
• having no idea how to proceed – yet always finding a way forward
• being persecuted – yet never being deserted by God
• being (seemingly) defeated by his enemies – yet always being delivered from their grasp by God.

Wherever Paul goes, he endures the external sufferings (and eventual death) of Jesus, as this proves that Jesus lives. While he is alive, he constantly expects his death, as this repeatedly shows the power of Christ’s life in him. Thus, the Corinthians benefit from Christ working through Paul’s sufferings.

Now Paul quotes from Psalm 116:10 – where David, in the midst of his difficulties, praises God; similarly, the Holy Spirit moves Paul to preach the Gospel in the midst of his difficulties. Indeed, he knows that just as God has raised Jesus from the dead, He will also raise him from the dead; moreover, all believers will stand before the throne of God with great joy. He reiterates that all of his actions – and his suffering – are for the Corinthians’ benefit, as his repeated deliverance from the grasp of his enemies causes those who pray for him to rejoice; they then give thanks to God.

Given the preceding discussion, Paul does not become discouraged – although he is breaking down physically – as he is being constantly refreshed spiritually. In fact, his suffering is actually insignificant in light of the eternal blessings that he will receive in heaven. Paul concludes by asserting that his focus is not on worldly things – which are merely temporary – but on heavenly things, which are eternal.

Thoughts: In verse 3, Paul states that those who refuse to accept the divine origin of the Gospel will be eternally condemned. Hodge offers some rather incendiary thoughts on this point:

Worldly people cry out against this doctrine. They insist that people are not accountable for their opinions. However, they are accountable for the character by which those opinions are determined. If they have the sort of character, the sort of inner spiritual state, that permits them to believe there is no God, that murder, adultery, theft, and violence are right and good, then that inner state that constitutes their character, and for which they are responsible…is reprobate.

This is a rather difficult quote to stomach. I find it hard to believe that all non-believers would assert that “murder, adultery, theft, and violence are right and good,” so I’m wondering if Hodge is trying to make a different point. In particular, when non-believers such as Brad Pitt are helping to rebuild homes and lives in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina while many Christians refuse to engage in any social concerns-related work, it is difficult to see how all “worldly people” can be characterized as being internally “reprobate.” I suppose the issue here is that even when non-believers do good works, they do not give glory to God; thus, the challenge is for Christians to give glory to God in their deeds.

Verse 7 inspired the name of the Christian band Jars of Clay, and they have played a major role in the contemporary Christian music scene since the mid-1990s. The band’s Wikipedia article cites an NPR interview where it is noted that their later work consciously downplays their faith. Now this is interesting in light of Hodge’s above-mentioned commentary on verse 3. Some Christian critics would undoubtedly assert that Jars of Clay “lost their way” after achieving their initial successes. My take on this is that music speaks in different ways to different people; if some have been led to a saving faith in Christ as a result of hearing the band’s later work, then their strategy has been successful.

This passage drives home the point that Paul is convinced of the certainty of the eternal blessings that await him for his faithfulness. Hodge puts it quite nicely in his commentary on verse 18:

He was sustained by the assurance that the life of Christ secured his life; that if Jesus rose, he would rise too; and by the firm conviction that the more he suffered for the sake of Christ or in such a way as to honor his divine master, the more glorious he would be through all eternity. Suffering, therefore, became not just endurable for him, but a ground of great joy.

After thinking about this, I concluded that Paul had a long-term perspective – on his ministry as an apostle – since he was constantly faced with dangers and regularly suffered for the sake of the Gospel. Our human nature is such that when we are allowed to enjoy the pleasures of this life, we forget about God and focus on our immediate “needs.” Now this raises the question of whether Christians should voluntarily suffer more often in order to truly please God. Indeed, how much suffering is appropriate for a given Christian? Is there a proper ratio of “suffering” to “happiness” that Christians should strive for in their daily lives?

Summary: Paul begins by noting that those who served in the context of the law (that was written on stone tablets) could only produce death for those who tried to obey it, even though the law was (transiently) glorious – preventing the Israelites from looking at the face of Moses while he served in that context; on the other hand, serving in the context of the Gospel is more glorious than serving in the context of the law – as the Gospel is more awesome than the law. Indeed, the law causes men to know that they are condemned, while the Gospel causes those who accept it to be righteous based on the requirements of the law. In fact, the glory of the law pales in comparison with that of the Gospel. Also, while the glory of the law was temporary, the glory of the Gospel is permanent.

Now Paul asserts that since his apostolic calling is righteous in God’s eyes, he is outspoken in proclaiming the Gospel. He contrasts his situation with that of Moses, who was divinely inspired to serve in the context of the law so that the Israelites could not understand its true meaning. In fact, the thoughts of the Israelites became callous – which is shown by the fact that as of the writing of this letter, they still fail to understand the meaning of the law when the Old Testament is read to them; in this regard, they can only be enlightened in Christ. Yet anyone who turns to Christ and accepts the Gospel can be enlightened in this way. This stems from the fact that Christ and the Holy Spirit are identical in terms of their essence and power – and the Holy Spirit frees those in whom He dwells (as God’s children). Paul concludes by noting that those who are free – by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit – can see the glory of Christ as if they are looking at a mirror; moreover, they are being conformed to Christ’s likeness, and this flows from His work, as He is identical with the Holy Spirit as noted above.

Thoughts: Paul’s objective in this passage is to draw a contrast between his ministry in the context of the Gospel and that of Moses in the context of the law. Hodge offers some insights in his commentary on verse 13:

If Moses taught obscurely or in types, God intended that he should do so. If in point of fact the Jews misunderstood the nature of their own system, regarding as ultimate and permanent what was in fact preparatory and temporary, this was included in the divine purpose. It was evidently God’s plan to reveal the scheme of redemption gradually.

Hodge then notes that as long as people in the Old Testament trusted in God based on His partial revelation to them up to that point in time, they would be saved. If I were in the shoes of an Israelite in the Old Testament era, would I have put my faith in God and His partially revealed plan of redemption? Given the fact that many people continue to reject the fully revealed plan of redemption in Christ, there’s a good chance that I would have fallen short of salvation in the Old Testament. This highlights the awesome faith that those who are mentioned in the “Hall of Faith” from Hebrews 11 displayed, even when dealing with adverse circumstances.

Verses 17 and 18 reinforce one of the key tenets of Christianity: the presence of the Holy Spirit in a believer’s life yields innumerable benefits. Hodge offers some relevant thoughts in his commentary on verse 17:

The Holy Spirit is recognized everywhere in the Bible as the source of all life, truth, power, holiness, blessedness and glory…By turning to Christ we become partakers of the Holy Spirit, that which is living and life-giving, because he and the Spirit are one…This freedom must be the freedom that results from the indwelling of the Holy Spirit – that is, that which flows from the application to us of the redemption purchased by Christ.

Now this discussion reminded me of the important truths expounded by Paul in Romans 8, which is, in my opinion, one of the most awesome passages in all of Scripture. Clearly the Holy Spirit plays a critical role in the life of every believer, yet – based on my admittedly informal observations – one could peruse the lyrics of most contemporary Christian worship songs and not realize this fact. For some reason, it is relatively easy for Christians to praise and worship God the Father and God the Son – but not God the Spirit. In general, believers should strike a better balance in that regard – not only in writing worship songs, but in our overall Christian walk.