I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

9Today, I am reading and commenting on 2 Corinthians 1-4.

    The first thing that struck me today was the reason Paul changed his mind about visiting Corinth on his way to Macedonia. He changed his mind about visiting them because he was so angry over the news he had received. He was afraid that if he went to Corinth before the believers there had time to act on his letter that he would say hurtful things to the believers there that they would have trouble recovering from. Paul well understood human nature. When someone tells us that we have done wrong, our first reaction is to defend our actions, which can lead the other to more strongly state their accusation, causing things to escalate. On the other hand, the process of reading a letter and composing a reply gives us time to acknowledge the truth of the accusation of wrong-doing and temper our response. So, by writing a letter about the problems in the Church in Corinth, Paul was able to more calmly state what they had done wrong and suggest the remedy. Then by putting off his visit, he gave the believers in Corinth time to cool down after receiving his letter and put his recommendations into action once tempers had cooled.

    Paul talks about how Moses put a veil over his face to shield the people from the glory of God. He went on to point out how in Judaism there was still a veil between the people and the glory of God. He then goes on to make the point that the purpose of Jesus’ death and resurrection was to allow us to come into God’s presence without a veil between us and Him. The human tendency is to put some type of barrier between ourselves and God. God, however, wants us to be directly in His presence and has worked throughout history since Adam ate the forbidden fruit to bring us back into His presence, into fellowship with Him. Even today we continue to attempt to put something or someone between ourselves and God. Many in the Christian Church elevate the clergy to be intermediaries between themselves and God. It is not God’s desire for us to do that. The only intermediary needed between ourselves and God is Jesus Christ. When we elevate the clergy to the position of intermediary we distance ourselves from God and make it harder to receive direction and guidance from the Holy Spirit.