THE BOOK OF 2 CORINTHIANS |
Now He who establishes us
with you in Christ and anointed us is God, who also sealed us and gave
us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.
For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. -- 3:6 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. -- 3:17 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. -- 3:18 Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. -- 4:16 For we must all appear before
the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his
deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf. -- 5:14-15 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. -- 5:17 We are ambassadors for Christ.
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. -- 5:21 Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? -- 6:14-15 For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death. -- 7:10 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich. -- 8:9 God loves a cheerful giver. -- 9:7 God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed. -- 9:8 Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. -- 9:10 The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. -- 10:4-5 Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds. -- 11:14-15 My grace is sufficient for
you, for power is perfected in weakness.
Finally, brethren, rejoice,
be made complete, be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace; and the
God of love and peace will be with you. -- 13:11
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GOD OF ALL COMFORT Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,
who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort
those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves
are comforted by God. -- 1:3-4
A FRAGRANCE OF CHRIST But thanks be to God, who
always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet
aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For we are a fragrance
of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are
A LETTER OF CHRIST You are our letter, written
in our hearts, known and read by all men; being manifested that you are
a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the
Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human
hearts. -- 3:2-3
MINISTRY OF THE SPIRIT Our adequacy is from God,
who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter
but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
But if the ministry of death, in letters engraved on stones, came with
glory, so that the sons of Israel could not look intently at the face of
Moses because of the glory of his face, fading as it was, how will the
ministry of the Spirit fail to be even more with glory? -- 3:5-8
VICTORY OVER AFFLICTION We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. -- 4:8-11 Therefore we do not lose heart,
but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed
day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an
eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at
the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the
things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are
eternal. -- 4:16-18
IN THE BODY OR WITH THE LORD While we are at home in the
body we are absent from the Lord --
THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION Now all these things are from
God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry
of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world
to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed
to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for
Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf
of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be
sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in
Him. -- 5:18-21
SOWING AND REAPING He who sows sparingly will
also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or
under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able
to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency
in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed. -- 9:6-8
ANOTHER JESUS But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully. -- 11:3-4 For such men are false apostles,
deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. No
wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore
it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants
of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds. -- 11:13-15
PAUL'S THORN IN THE FLESH Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me -- to keep me from exalting myself! Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. -- 12:7-10
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