The last chapter of the epistle to the Corinthians, though it has but 14 verses, contains a most solemn warning to the believers at Corinth. The beloved Apostle had to give a final warning to those in the assembly at Corinth who had sinned.
Rather than repenting for their sin and submitting themselves to the divinely inspired words of the Apostle, they had continued to question his authority. They excused and covered their sins by acting as though the natural and evident weakness of the Apostle proved that he need not be listened to. Other believers in Corinth were being turned away by this sad example.
The condition of the assembly was such that Paul warned that, if he came again the third time, he would not show grace to those who were going on in their sin; he would not spare them. Since some were foolishly questioning whether Paul was indeed speaking to them with the power and authority of an apostle of Jesus Christ, he tells them to examine themselves to see if, in fact, they belonged to the Lord Jesus. If they were in Christ, it was because he, whom they were now rejecting and questioning, had preached the gospel which they had believed!
Paul closes the letter by expressing the longing that he would not have to be severe with the Corinthians, for he desired that they would rejoice in the Lord, grow into full Christian maturity and go on in peace, enjoying His love and grace and fellowship in the Spirit.
1. What do we learn the solemn end is of one who, though often warned by God, refuses to listen? Proverbs 29:___
2. What happened to the children who mocked Elisha, God’s prophet?
2 Kings 2:___
3. What was the terribly solemn result of Israel’s mockery and misuse of God’s prophets? 2 Chronicles 36:___
4. Why did so many of those Israelites who were delivered from the bondage of Egypt die in the wilderness before they entered the rest of the promised land? Hebrews 3:___
5. What is the benefit that believers today are to receive from hearing about the solemn judgments that befell many of the children of Israel?
1 Corinthians 10:___