Bob Enyart Live

  * 2 Corinthians: Paul constructed Second Corinthians as a key for understanding all of the Pauline Epistles, especially for the Christians who doubt the unique teaching that Jesus revealed through this Apostle.  To undergird his controversial Gospel of Grace (Rom. 4:5; 11:13; 1 Cor. 3:10; 15:1; Gal. 2:7; Eph. 2:8-9; etc.), the Apostle Paul realized that he must defend his own unique authority against his critics and against negative comparisons to the other apostles. He does this more aggressively when writing to the Galatians, but in greater length when writing to the Corinthians, beginning with his initial letter (1 Cor. 1:1, 17; 3:10; 4:16; 9:1-2, 17; 11:1; 14:37; 15:3, 9). Then the first half of Second Corinthians (chapters 1 – 7) describes the characteristics of an apostle as Paul builds toward the defense of his own ministry to rebut the attacks against his own apostleship.  The greater eloquence of the other apostles, for example, in no way diminishes the revelation that God has given to Paul (1