This is going to be short but thought provoking. As we have
seen all along the context of this letter is dealing with a man who sinned and
the fall out from it. This statement by Paul makes that all the more clear. His
statement also does something else. It opens to our view the motive for writing
the letter. The content and counsel surrounds the man who sinned, was sorry, and
was not exactly being forgiven in the fullest sense. That's the context and
content but the motive says Paul is entirely different. He wrote to them to
reveal his care and concern for them. He wanted them to know he was following
their story, knew of their struggles, and was concerned about how it was
affecting them. In simple terms he loved them and he wanted them to know
it.
Is it possible, is it within the realm of conceivable that
this opens to us a much greater truth? Replace Paul with God. Replace Corinth
with planet earth. Replace the letter with Jesus, the Word of God. What if
Jesus was sent not so much to deal with men who have been wronged or done
wrong, but rather to reveal God's love and concern for us? Is that
possible?
Don't get me wrong, it's not one or the other but both. Paul
did write to address the situation with the man but by his own admission it
wasn't his primary motive. Could it be that dealing with sin was not the
primary reason Jesus came?!
"For God so loved that He sent..."
Jesus. God's love letter to us...
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