2 Corinthians 2:12-17
Q.1. Why did Paul experience stress when sharing the gospel at Troas? Can our circumstances destroy the triumph of Christ? Why does the gospel produce such opposite results? – (2 Cor.2:12-17)
It is easy for us to take for granted the ease with which we may communicate today. Though a door had been opened for Paul to share the Gospel of Christ, he could not rest when he found that Titus was missing in a very different world (see 2 Cor.2:12-13). Adding to Paul’s distress would have been the battle in his mind from his many experiences of opposition from his countrymen (see 2 Cor.11:23-27). How did Paul overcome these constant trials? He was so utterly convinced about the transforming power of the gospel, that he could write – 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 (2 Cor.2:14). He had an unswerving confidence in the ultimate success of God’s servants, whom he viewed as – as a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing (2 Cor.2:15). To be sure, the contrasting responses could not be more extreme, and Paul understood that the response to God’s servants could be – an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma of life to life (2 Cor.2:16). Paul saw this as a solemn trust, and asked a question he would address later – who is adequate for these things? (2 Cor.2:16 c.f. 2 Cor.3:5-6). However, he could say with integrity, that God could bear witness to the fact that he had been true to the gospel that had been entrusted to him (see 2 Cor.2:17 c.f. 1 Cor.15:1-2; Gal.1:6-9). He was a faithful servant and steward of the gospel.