Scripture Reference: 2 Corinthians 1:1-11
Remember What God Does for You – Continued
Please read 2 Corinthians 1:4a, 8-11 for background to this section.
God is glorified through our trials. When Paul reported what God had done for him, a great chorus of praise and thanksgiving went up from the saints to the throne of God. The highest service you and I can render on earth is to bring glory to God, and sometimes that service involves suffering. “The blessing granted” in 2 Corinthians 1:11 refers to Paul’s deliverance from death, a wonderful blessing indeed!
Paul was never ashamed to ask Christians to pray for him. In at least seven of his letters, he mentioned his great need for prayer support (Romans 15:30-32; Ephesians 6:18-19; Philippians 1:19; Colossians 4:3; 1 Thessalonians 5:25; 2 Thessalonians 3:1; Philemon 22). Paul and the believers in Corinth were helping each other (2 Corinthians 1:11, 24).
Pastor Wiersbe tells the story of a missionary friend who relayed to him the miraculous deliverance of his friend’s daughter from what was diagnosed as a fatal disease. At the very time the girl was so ill, several friends in the United States were praying for the family; and God answered prayer and healed the girl. The greatest help we can give to God’s servants is “helping together by prayer.” Many think of prayer as the “last resort” and yet it should be the very first thing we go to in the tools the Lord has given His people!
The word translated “help us,” in verse 11, or in other translations, “helping together,” is used only here in the Greek New Testament and is composed of three words: with, under, work. It is a picture of laborers under the burden, working together to get the job accomplished. It is encouraging to know that the Holy Spirit also assists us in our praying and helps to carry the load (Romans 8:26).
God works out His purposes in the trials of life, if we yield to Him, trust Him, and obey what He tells us to do. Difficulties can increase our faith and strengthen our prayer lives. Difficulties can draw us closer to other Christians as they share the burdens with us. Difficulties can be used to glorify God. So, when you find yourself in the trials of life, remember what God is to you and what God does for you.
Remember What God Does Through You
Please read 2 Corinthians 1:4b-7 for background to this section.
In times of suffering, most of us are sadly prone to think only of ourselves and to forget others. We become cisterns instead of channels. Yet one reason for trials is so that you and I might learn to be channels of blessing to comfort and encourage others. Because God has comforted and encouraged us, we can do the same for others.
One of my favorite preachers was John Henry Jowett, considered in his day as one of the greatest preachers of the English language, and one of my favorite quotes attributed to him is:
“God does not comfort us to make us comfortable, but to make us comforters.”
However, Paul made it clear that we do not need to experience exactly the same trials in order to be able to share God’s encouragement and comfort. If we have experienced God’s comfort, then we can “comfort those who are in any affliction” (2 Corinthians 1:4). Of course, if we have experienced similar afflictions and tribulations, they can help us identify better with others and know better how they feel; but our experiences cannot alter the comfort of God. That remains sufficient and efficient no matter what our own experiences may have been.
To Be Continued
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD 
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