Today’s passage: 2 Corinthians 1:3-11
Helpful thoughts:
- One of the major fruits/results of suffering in this life is the benefit of receiving comfort from God. When we receive God’s comfort, we are then equipped to pass that comfort on to others who suffer in the same way.
- Going through hardships within a community of people (The church) gives us opportunities to learn from the afflictions of others and to share the fruits of our own afflictions with others.
- How difficult and unfruitful it would be to suffer without a community of believers.
- God allows His people to go through things they cannot handle (Verse 8).
- God can handle anything and everything. We are to rely on Him.
Questions to consider:
- What are some ways you have seen fellow Christians struggle that encouraged your faith and growth? What are some ways you have suffered that have been or could be useful to others?
- Does 2 Corinthians 1:8 disagree with 1 Corinthians 10:13 (The answer is…no)? What do we do when we fall into temptation? If God doesn’t allow us to be tempted beyond our ability, then what are we always able to do, even when we are going through somethings we can not handle on our own? How could we understand these verses together? What powerful truth do they convey?
- How does God ultimately deliver all of His people? Even if He did allow us to suffer to the point of death, what deliverance will we never lose that makes all other deliverances pale in comparison?