2 Corinthians 13:5-10

Butler's Comments

SECTION 2

Maturation Through Self-Examination (2 Corinthians 13:5-10)

5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are holding to your faith. Test yourselves. Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you?unless indeed you fail to meet the test! 61 hope you will find out that we have not failed. -But we pray God that you may not do wrongnot that we may appear to have met the test, but that you may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed. 8For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. 9For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. What we pray for is your improvement. 10I write this while I am away from you, in order that when I come I may not have to be severe in my use of the authority which the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down.

2 Corinthians 13:5 Checking Oneself: The whole purpose of preaching is to produce self-examination in the hearer. A major difficulty most preachers face is this very concept. Too often some of those who sit and listen to their preacher's sermons believe the preacher is examining them. Resentment builds, and people are offended, and congregations are divided. And sometimes people, like some of the Corinthians, do not understand that preaching the apostolic word is intended to produce self-examination.

Socrates said, The unexamined life is not worth living. He also said, Know thyself. There is only one way a person can really examine self. That is by reading and believing the Bible. The prophet Jeremiah said, The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately corrupt: who can understand it? I search the mind and try the heart, to give to every man according to his ways, says the Lord (Jeremiah 17:9). No human being can know his own heart, regardless of how often and how thoroughly he thinks he examines himself. Man is prone to self-deception. The apostle Paul verified the idea that human beings cannot accurately examine self when he wrote that he would not even judge himself because he would be an imperfect judge of himself. Paul contended that only the Lord could judge him (know him) perfectly (1 Corinthians 4:3-5).

Yet, here is the same apostle telling the Corinthians to examine (Gr. peirazete test, try, prove) themselves to see if they are in (Gr. en, in) the faith. He repeats, Test yourselves (Gr. dokimazete, prove as the purity and worth of metals are proved in a crucible). Both Greek verbs are present tense, imperative mood. Literally translated they are apostolic commandments for Christians to go on or continually prove and test themselves to determine whether they are in the faith or not. The spiritual immaturity of these Corinthians which would make them vulnerable to false teachers made their standing in the faith tenuous, so Paul said they needed a theological check. The Bible is the living word of God, operative (Gr. energes, energized) and incisive (Gr. diiknoumenos, penetrating) exposing the soul and spirit, discerning (Gr. kritikos, critiquing) thoughts and intentions of the human heart (see Hebrews 4:12-13).

It should appear altogether logical that if a person wants to test himself as to whether he is in the Christian faith or not he will compare his thinking and acting to the objective standard in which the Christian faith is delineated and documentedthe Bible (especially, the New Testament). This is what Paul is telling the Corinthians to do here. They are to examine themselves according to the truth of God which he had preached and written to them. The apostolic documents are the divinely sanctioned, objective standard, of the Christian faith. Paul is saying to the Corinthians what he said to the Galatians (Galatians 1:8-9). Any other gospel or other Jesus than that of apostolic preaching and writing is false and based on a false teacher's subjective imaginations and arrogances.

Both of the Greek words Paul uses (peirazete and dokimazete) are words used to indicate a procedure by which something is tried, tested, submitted to examination in order to prove genuineness, reality, truth and factuality. Both words indicate a procedure by which something is compared with an objective standard to prove its conformity to the standard. If it passes the comparison with the objective standard, it is proved to be real and true.

Spiritually mature Christians take the Bible in hand, read it, believe it, and examine their thoughts and deeds according to what Christ and his apostles say in it. They do not lay the Bible aside, disregard it, and examine their thoughts according to what they, subjectively or wishfully, want the Lord to say. They are seeking the Lord's will on every matter and circumstancenot their own will. They are determined to understand what Christ and the apostles actually say and write, according to what words mean, contextually, historically, grammatically.

Pooled human knowledge, sociologically accumulated mores, technological advancement, human autonomy, has no right to say the words of Christ and his apostles mean something different today just because the words were spoken and written some two thousands years ago. The words of the Bible mean what they meant as used by the writers and they mean the same thing today! In practice they may have to be applied to fit technological advances, but spiritually, morally, psychologically, philosophically their principles and standards of conduct remain the same, because they mean the same! The moral principles and doctrinal tenets of God are absolutethey never change. They are never to be altered. God's word, the Bible, is a divine revelation in human language, a perfect, absolute, unalterable benchmark or touchstone (standard) by which any human being may examine himself to see if he is in the Christian faith or not.

But the huge majority of the world (including many religious people) want to examine the human heart by subjective standards. They want to rewrite the Bible to conform it to subjectivism. That is simply a cop-out (a smoke-screen) designed to usurp God's sovereignty and enthrone man'S!

2 Corinthians 13:6-8 Comparing With Others: It is very important to notice the order of Paul's statements in these next verses. First the Corinthians are to examine themselves (by the word Paul preached to them) to see if they have received God's grace. Second, if they have become Christians (by receiving the Gospel invitation through faith and obedience), then Christ is in them. That is the promise of the objective standard the word of God. They need no subjective, emotional experience to assure them that Christ is in them if they pass the examination. Parenthetically, Paul hopes his ministry has not failed to bring them into Christ. Third, if they have received the Gospel, are in God's grace and in Christ (which they can know by examining themselves according to the objective standard), Paul prays they will not do wrong (Gr. kakon, evil) but that they will do right (Gr. kalon, good). This is what Paul wants for the Corinthians, even if they have judged (subjectively is the only way they could have made such a judgment) Paul to be a failure. Paul is not saying a person has to be right or good to qualify for the grace of God or to become a Christian. But he is saying that after a person has become a Christian, by the grace of God, he should continually examine himself according to God's objective standard of good and right and continue to strive for it by the power of Christ which is in him. We belong to God by grace. But that does not mean grace is to be taken for granted! The inexpressible unsearchable, infinite grace of God extended to sinners through faith in Jesus Christ should lead such sinners to constant self-examination and mental submission to God's direction as to what is good. Surrender of the mind to God's objective standard of good will result in the Christian doing deeds which his word says are good.

Paul is trying to point out that even if the Corinthians considered him a failure, that would not justify the Corinthians from refusing to examine themselves by the Gospel of Christ which he preached (proved authentic by objective demonstration of miracles). Men do faileven apostles (e.g. Peter in Galatians 2:11)God never fails. His standards never vary! His grace never disappears! If a person has received God's grace by faith in Christ, he must move steadily toward the good of God no matter what other men may do!

While it may appear to the Corinthians that Paul was a failure he avers that his every word and action toward them was motivated by his desire to do the truth. He testifies that he would never knowingly do anything against (Gr. kata, opposite, beyond) the truth. He morally and conscientiously, always wanted to be for the truth. If he failed, it was not because he was against the truth. Even when he was persecuting Christians, he believed he was doing God a service and standing for the truth.

The person who is for the truth, even though ignorant of what the truth is, can become a follower of Jesus! But those who have no intention of doing what is true because it displeases them, even if they know what the truth is, can never become Christians no matter how orthodox their behavior! There are such people. God knows that no human being can be perfect, but any one whose desire is to know the truth and have the truth and do the truth will come under his grace where there is no condemnation (see Romans 7:21 to Romans 8:8).

2 Corinthians 13:9-10 Correction the Objective: The goal of all the visits, the letters, the sending of co-workers to Corinth was to get them to mend their ways. It was spiritual maturation, or, as Paul puts it, for building up and not for tearing down.

The Greek word katartisin (2 Corinthians 13:9) is translated improvement, but it literally means, set in order again or restore or repair. It is the same word which is translated mend your ways in 2 Corinthians 13:11. In other words, Paul urged the Corinthians to return to their newlywed status with Christ. They needed to restore their marriage to Jesus and renounce any and all relationships to the false teachers who would enslave them to legalism. Paul used this same Greek word in 1 Corinthians 1:10 where it is translated united. Our relationship to Christ needs constant repair or restoration or rejoining. The apostle hoped this letter would repair their relationship to Christ. If it did not, he would have to use his apostolic authority, severely (Gr. apotomos, sharply, curtly, cuttingly, abruptly).

Does apostolic authority wielded curtly edify (build up)? It did in the first century! Check the book of Acts. After the experience with Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-42), great fear came upon the whole church, and upon all who heard of these things. and more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women. Paul's curtness with the Corinthians, Galatians, and others was one of his apostolic methods to save vulnerable babes in Christ from the wolves in sheep's clothing (false teachers). Jesus spoke curtly with Pharisees to try to save their souls. Jesus wrote curt letters to the seven churches of Asia Minor (see Revelation ch. 2-3). The prophets of the Old Testament spoke curtly to an idolatrous nation of Israel and saved a remnant to bring the Messiah into the world. God's word, the church, Christians are dealing with eternal matterswith heaven and hellforever. All the severity necessary to restore or mend a person's marriage to Christ will receive glad thanks as the eons roll by in heaven! It may not be appreciated here, where too often our perspective is limited by the desire for ease and comfort for the flesh, but no discipline is pleasurable for the momentit yields its peaceable fruit unto righteousness over the long-haul, (see Hebrews 12:11). Paul was a man who cared for people's eternal blessedness. He was willing to sacrifice their momentary displeasure with his apostolic curtness for their salvation! Are we???

Maturing Christians should be able to handle curtness from the word of God. If life consisted only of pleasantries and flatteries and inanities there would be no spiritual growth. The life that leads to spiritual growth must be salted with the fires of warnings, chastenings, corrections, severities and even curtness if necessary.

Applebury's Comments

Problems Settled In The Light of Truth
Scripture

2 Corinthians 13:5-10. Try your own selves, whether ye are in the faith; prove your own selves. Or know ye not as to your own selves, that Jesus Christ is in you? unless indeed ye be reprobate. 6 But I hope that ye shall know that we are not reprobate. 7 Now we pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we may appear approved, but that ye may do that which is honorable, though we be as reprobate. 8 For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth. 9 For we rejoice, when we are weak, and ye are strong: this we also pray for even your perfecting. 10 For this cause I write these things while absent, that I may not when present deal sharply, according to the authority which the Lord gave me for building up, and not for casting down.

Comments

Try your own selves.The Corinthians had been wanting Paul to prove to them that Christ had spoken through him. He had given them adequate proof of it, reminding them that he would again demonstrate it when he arrived on his third visit. He also reminded them that it was their responsibility to put themselves to the test with regard to their own faith and to determine, by testing it, whether or not they were living a life of faith in Christ. Such a test could only be carried out in the light of the authoritative message of the gospel that had been delivered to them by Christ's apostle. It couldn-'t be done by measuring themselves by the standards of the false teachers who measured themselves by themselves and compared themselves with themselves, and were without understanding (2 Corinthians 10:12).

Paul was recommending to the Corinthians an exercise by which every Christian should continually check his relation to the Lord. Only a diligent study of the Word and a sincere effort to put into practice can assure one that he is living in harmony with the true faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

prove your own selves.Paul had written in his first letter that a man was to prove himself in the light of the meaning of the loaf and cup in the Lord's supper. He was to determine what there was in his life that met the approval of Christ. The bread represented the body of Christ and the true relation of each member of that body to Christ the Head. The content of the cup symbolized the blood of Christ which was the means of blotting out all sin. No better place could be found for the Corinthians to examine their own lives than at the Lord's table as they meditated on the meaning of the death of Christ for their salvation.

Or know ye not as to your own selves, that Jesus Christ is in you?Paul did not hesitate to declare that Christ lived in him because he had been crucified with Christ. See Galatians 2:20. He also made it very clear that those who belong to Jesus Christ have crucified the flesha symbol of sinful conductwith its passions and longing desires for things that are evil. See Galatians 5:24. He had written to the Corinthians in his first letter to remind them that their bodies were temples of the Holy Spirit which was in them which they had from God. They did not belong to themselves, for they were bought with the price of the blood of Christ. Therefore, Paul urged them to glorify God in the body. See 1 Corinthians 6:19-20. If they were actually glorifying God in the things that they were doing, they could be sure that Christ was in them. If the test which he had directed them to make proved otherwise, they could know that the Lord did not approve their conduct. Had they failed by the standard of measurement which the Lord had given them through His faithful apostle?

But I hope that ye shall know that we are not reprobate.Since the test of their faith and the presence of Christ in them depended upon the standard of the gospel which Paul preached, he hoped that they would know that he and all the apostles through whom Christ had spoken were not rejected by the Lord. This, of course, was something that the super-apostles had insinuated, if indeed they had not openly declared it. Since they were ministers of Satan, nothing they said could possibly be used by the Corinthians to test their relationship to Christ.

Now we pray to God.The earnestness of Paul as he thought of the tragic fate of those who were about to reject the gospel of Christ led him to express his views in his prayer to God that they do no evil. His concern was not for himself nor for what the false teachers might say about him. He did not want to be guilty of joining with them in false teaching that he might merely appear to be approved by Christ. His concern was that they, as his children in the gospel, might do the thing that was right before the Lord even though false teachers might attempt to discredit him and show that he did not have the approval of the Lord.

For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.As an apostle of Christ, Paul spoke the truth. And as one who had been crucified with Christ and had committed himself wholeheartedly to the Lord, he acted in accord with the truth.

For we rejoice, when we are weak.It did not matter to Paul that false teachers were calling him weak. He had gladly admitted it, because the secret of his life was to be found in the power of Christ who had raised him from death in trespasses and sin to the place where he could truthfully say that Christ lived in him. He did not make void the grace of God. Although he could rejoice in his own weakness, Paul rejoiced that his children in the gospel were strong. Their strength, too, depended upon their relation to Christ. It depended upon their being in the faith; upon their living by the standard of the gospel; upon their putting on the whole armor of God, that they might withstand the crafty work of the devil through his ministers who had fashioned themselves into ministers of righteousness.

even your perfecting.Paul uses this interesting term again in verse eleven. He had used it in 1 Corinthians 1:10. See Studies in First Corinthians on the various usages of the term.

In this context, Paul is urging them to settle their problems, to get rid of their sinful practices, to rearrange their lives that they might be in harmony with the truth of Christ as delivered to them by His inspired apostle.

For this cause I write these things while absent.Once again Paul called their attention to his purpose in writing this epistle. What he said to them about sin and its punishment was no idle threat. It did, however, give them an opportunity to correct their ways and avoid the punishment which would otherwise be meted out to them through the authority which the Lord had given to Paul.

They had joined with Paul in punishing, according to his instructions, the one who had been guilty of immoral conduct. That had meant delivering the guilty one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, with the fond hope that the spirit might be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Paul was hoping and praying that it might not be necessary to again use his authority against sinners in their midst who refused to repent.