HOYT JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST FULL

He had changed his travel plans and had not come to see them as he had said he would. Along with these primary motives Paul also felt compelled to refute the charge of fickleness leveled at him by his critics. However his concern for the unrepentant minority and his desire to pick up the money the Corinthians had begun to collect for their poorer brethren in Jerusalem led him to write 2 Corinthians. In chapters 10-13, Paul rejoiced at the repentance of the majority in the church. Perhaps the best explanation is that chapters 10-13 were originally part of 2 Corinthians, but Paul wrote these chapters after he had written chapters 1-9 and after he had met Titus.

Most believe chapters 10-13 were originally a different letter from chapters 1-9 and the 'severe letter:' a fifth letter from Paul to the Corinthians. Some believe chapters 10-13 were a separate letter, specifically, Paul’s 'severe letter.' Others argue that it was originally part of 2 Corinthians, and that Paul wrote the whole book at one time.

Many scholars have tried to explain the different subject matter and tone of chapters 10-13, compared with chapters 1-9. Unfortunately some in the congregation still refused to acknowledge Paul’s authority over them ( 2Co_10:1 to 2Co_13:10). Most of the church had responded to Paul’s directives, and the church had disciplined the troublemakers ( 2Co_2:5-11). There Titus met him and gave him an encouraging report ( 2Co_7:6-16). Eager to meet Titus, who was taking the land route from Corinth back to Ephesus, Paul moved west into Macedonia ( 2Co_2:12-13). He found an open door for the gospel to the north in Troas. However, persecution there made it expedient for Paul to leave that city earlier than he had anticipated ( Act_20:1). Paul evidently intended to receive Titus’ report concerning the effects of this severe letter in Ephesus. Some commentators believe that 2 Corinthians 10-13 contains part of this letter, but the evidence for this is not convincing. He apparently directed this letter, now lost, at the party opposed to him and particularly its leader. Paul’s next step in dealing with the situation in Corinth was to send a severe letter from Ephesus by the hand of Titus and another unnamed brother ( 2Co_2:3-4 2Co_7:8-12 2Co_12:18). Consequently this was a painful visit for Paul. Paul apparently suffered insult and lost face during that visit ( 2Co_2:5-8 2Co_7:12). However his efforts to resolve the conflicts proved unsuccessful ( 2Co_2:1 2Co_12:14 2Co_13:1-2). News of continuing problems in Corinth reached Paul in Ephesus during his prolonged stay there during his third missionary journey.

HOYT JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST FULL

This was in effect a claim to apostolic authority on their part and or a denial of the full apostolic authority of Paul. His critics were claiming authority equal with Paul’s. The issue was Paul’s apostolic authority. He had rallied the support of a significant minority. One man in particular seems to have been the ringleader of the opposition ( 2Co_10:7). While it resolved some of them, opposition to the Apostle Paul persisted and Paul’s critics continued to speak out against him in the church. First Corinthians did not dispel the problems in the church at Corinth completely.

Hoyt judgment seat of christ