2 Corinthians 1: Comfort in Times of Tribulation

Jesus said in John 16:33,

“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

When we believe in Jesus, we are not like those in the world who think that if they worship the right god, they will not suffer, or that they suffer because they worship the wrong god. On the contrary, Jesus has already told us this, so that we can be mentally prepared to understand that if we believe in the true God, we will suffer trials and tribulations. But Jesus promises that we will find real comfort in Him – because He will give us real peace.

As we live in this world, sometimes we will suffer tribulation because we offend God and have weak faith. Like the stiff-necked people of Israel, who rebelled in the wilderness and tempted God, and thus suffered a lot. And because of their lack of faith and the weakness of the flesh, the Corinthian believers also suffered – they experienced disputes in church, had members who committed fornication and had other troubles. 

In 1 Corinthians, after they were severely rebuked by Paul, some believers did repent. Paul wrote 2 Corinthians to comfort these corrected and repentant believers so that they would not be ashamed of themselves but should believe that God is the “Father of mercies” (1:3), and that He will definitely be merciful to those who repent. Therefore, for those who have made mistakes but repented, we must comfort them with God’s love. If we ourselves have sinned, we should also accept the comfort of our fellow brethren after repenting.

However, tribulation is not limited to sinful and weak believers. Here, in verses 8-11, Paul describes how he and his co-workers encountered great tribulations in Asia, and even thought that they were going to die at that time, but God delivered them. Therefore, Paul and his co-workers were put through tribulation not because they had sinned, but because they did the work of the Lord. In fact, in 2 Corinthians, Paul even describes his work for the Lord, being sent to prison, being whipped, beaten with sticks, stoned, shipwrecked, and other dangers and tribulations he experienced (11:16-33). 

Yet Paul found comfort in all these afflictions, for the believers “helped together in prayer for us”, and “many gave thanks” for the gift granted to them (1:11). Paul encouraged believers to be firm in their faith and to believe that God is faithful. God had delivered Paul and others, and will continue to deliver believers when they suffer adversity (1:10). At which time, we should remember Paul’s experience and words of comfort, and not be cowardly and lose faith.

I once heard a preacher say, “Tribulation is an opportunity to be comforted, and comfort is a reward for tribulation.”

Paul said in Philippians 4:14,

“Nevertheless you have done well that you shared in my distress”.

This understanding of suffering is the only way to be comforted. This also calls to remembrance what Paul mentioned in 1 Corinthians, on the unity of the church (1 Corinthians 12:12-31). We are members of the body of Christ. God allows members to suffer tribulation in the hope that other brethren who have experienced similar sufferings before will come and comfort them with the comfort God has given, and encourage them to depend on Christ (1:5). Because God is the “God of all comfort”, this can refer to the physical, mental and spiritual comfort. This kind of interaction between members of the church not only builds a relationship of mutual love and care among believers but also strengthens everyone’s faith in God. It is indeed a beautiful thing!

Therefore, those who have been comforted by God in tribulation should not receive His grace in vain. Just as when Jesus broke the bread to feed the multitude, he first passed the bread to the disciples, and the disciples passed out the bread to the crowd.

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