Spiritual Warfare: Satan And Forgiveness (2 Corinthians 2:5-11)
Have you ever felt that you were relationally robbed? Have you ever lost a friendship because of a lack of forgiveness? Have you ever had a relationship ruined because of an unresolved conflict? Relational injury is one of the hardest things to heal from. I recently felt this in my family. A few weeks ago, I went back to my hometown in Southern California to scatter my grandfather’s ashes. It was a great service and a wonderful experience for me and my mom’s side of the family (my sister, niece, aunt, and uncle). While there, I stayed with my aunt and uncle, who lived only a few blocks from my uncle and aunt on my dad’s side. I was out for a run and thought about dropping by their house. I hadn’t visited their home or seen them since I was twelve.
When I was twelve, my father passed away from a drug overdose. My mom’s and dad’s family all attended my father’s viewing at the funeral home. I remember that day pretty vividly. One of the things I recall was that I didn’t cry. I remember feeling like my dad was going to wake up. Emotionally, I responded like he was asleep. My lack of an emotional response didn’t sit well with my dad’s brother and wife; at least, this is what another family member told me. I am skeptical about that perspective and only share it because it's essential to the rest of the story. My grandmother, on my dad’s side, decided to keep me away from my dad’s brother and wife. When I stayed with my grandmother, which happened frequently in high school, my grandmother told me to be quiet when my uncle and aunt called the house. She didn’t want them to know I was there. I never asked my grandmother why she didn’t want me to interact with them. When I led the service for my grandmother’s funeral, my uncle, her son, and my aunt didn’t show up. I never got an explanation for why they were unable to attend.
When I was out for my run a few weeks ago in my hometown, I thought it would be a good idea to repair this oddly fractured relationship. I dreamed up running to their house, knocking on the door, and reintroducing myself as their nephew, whom they hadn’t seen for twenty-eight years. I could see myself saying, “Hi, you may not recognize me, but I’m Larry’s son, Paul. I don’t know why we haven't talked for twenty-eight years, but I want you to know I love you and would like to reconnect. I would love to hear what has happened in your lives and want you to meet my wife and kids.” It was a great idea, but I didn’t do it. I was only a few blocks away, and I decided it would be easier to return to my other aunt’s house and spend time with them on this short visit.
After returning from my visit, my sister called me and told me that she had run into my cousins, who she hadn’t talked to in years, and they informed her that their parents, my uncle and aunt, had died about six years ago. My heart dropped when she told me. They wouldn't have been there if I had stopped by their house while on my run. I was sad that I would never be able to restore my relationship with my uncle and aunt. I felt guilty that I had never initiated a conversation with them to shrink the relational gap between us. This experience made me think about all the relational gaps and unresolved conflicts in my life. I want to see healing happen in these spaces. Satan doesn’t want that. The devil sees all our broken and fractured relationships as an opportunity to place us under spiritual bondage. The Apostle Paul warned the Corinthians that Satan was hoping to use a relational conflict to hurt them.
Big Idea: Relational pain is Satan’s playground. The devil takes great delight in relational disputes. He doesn’t care who is right or who is wrong. He wants a fight! He is not betting on a winner; he is promoting the fight. Unresolved conflict, bitterness, and unforgiveness are places where Satan loves to play. Let’s see this from our passage today and learn how to defend against this strategy.
2 Corinthians 2:5, “5 Now if anyone has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure—not to put it too severely—to all of you.”
In verse 5, we are given a glimpse of a relational injury that has occurred. Someone has hurt both Paul and the Corinthian church. We need to zoom out from our passage to get a fuller context of what is happening here. Paul planted the church in Corinth and received a report after he had left to minister in a different city that they were promoting immorality and stepping away from sound teaching. In response to this report, Paul wrote the letter in our Bible titled 1 Corinthians. The church received this letter, but based on what we can gather from Paul’s correspondence with this church, they didn’t respond well and accept Paul’s corrections. Paul felt it was necessary to visit them. He would later refer to this visit as being “painful.” As a follow-up to this visit, Paul wrote a letter to them that made them grieve. The majority of the Corinthians turned from their sin because of this letter. Paul wrote 2 Corinthians to reassure them of his love for them and to convince the minority, who were still opposed to Paul, to turn from their foolishness.
Someone caused both Paul and the Corinthian believers pain somewhere in this timeline. This offense most likely occurred during Paul’s “painful” visit. The offender is not mentioned by name, but it may have been the man Paul mentioned in 1 Corinthians 5, who was sleeping with his father’s wife. Paul instructed the church to discipline this man for not repenting from this sexual immorality. Some of the Corinthian believers were actually proud of this man’s sexual sin. It would not be hard to believe that after hearing of Paul’s disapproval of his behavior, he tried to undermine Paul’s relationship with the church. Whoever this person was, they caused relational strife. Thankfully, this individual turned from their sin after the church had disciplined them. Now that this individual had repented, Paul urged them to restore him.
2 Corinthians 2:6-9, “6 For such a one, this punishment by the majority is enough, 7 so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 So I beg you to reaffirm your love for him. 9 For this is why I wrote, that I might test you and know whether you are obedient in everything.”
The text doesn’t mention here that the offender repented or turned from their sin, but based on Paul’s teaching in 1 Corinthians 5 about church discipline, it is fair to assume that Paul’s request for the punishment to stop and the man to be restored means he did so. The apostle believed the goal of discipline was restoration.
1 Corinthians 5:5, “5 you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.”
The sexually immoral man was to be removed from the community of faith, which, therefore, placed him under the spiritual dominion of the devil. Living away from his family of faith and under the bondage of the devil would prove to him the error of his ways and lead him to repentance. Paul was proud that the Corinthians made the difficult yet right choice to discipline this individual. Now that the offender has repented, the church is responsible for restoring them.
If the church failed to do this, Satan would be able to injure both the church and the offender. We will see Satan mentioned by name later in verse 11 as the one to hurt the church if this restoration doesn’t occur. In verse 7, Paul illustrates how the offender would be affected by the lack of restoration and forgiveness. Paul says that they will be “overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.” The word “overwhelmed” was a term used to describe an animal devouring their prey or waves swallowing people at sea. If the unrestored offended is under the dominion of Satan while away from his community of faith, as described in 1 Corinthians 5:5, then the one devouring or swallowing this individual in sorrow is Satan. The devil saw an opportunity in this relational dispute. The Corinthians had done the right thing in disciplining this man, but their job was not done. It was time to forgive; if they didn’t, it could significantly harm the one they disciplined. Withholding forgiveness would also hurt them.
2 Corinthians 2:10-11, “10 Anyone whom you forgive, I also forgive. Indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ, 11 so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs.”
Paul encourages the Corinthians to follow his example and forgive the offender who has repented. He forgave him in “the presence of Christ.” Reminding ourselves that our relational interactions always happen in the presence of Christ should motivate us to always be on our best behavior. Our reverence for Christ should always inform how we handle our relational disputes. We should want Jesus to smile over our social lives. Neglecting to forgive those who have repented not only diminishes our relationship with Christ but also makes us vulnerable to the attack of Satan.
Paul used an interesting word to describe how Satan attacks us in our relational pain. Paul uses the word “outwitted” on three other occasions (2 Cor. 7:2; 12:17-21; 1 Thess. 4:6). In those passages, the word is used to describe someone being defrauded or robbed of something. If we narrow the meaning of this word to that idea in this chapter, that would mean that Satan was robbing the church of one of its members. He was keeping them from being relationally whole as the body of Christ. In such a state, they were like a building without a wall or a body without an arm. They could function but not live up to their fullest potential. The members would be wrong to say, “Forget that guy; we are fine without him.” They should rather say, “Brother, we are not fully us without you.”
Satan wins by keeping the offender in sorrow and robbing the church (“we” v. 11) of a member. The devil is, as we often say, “killing two birds with one stone.” No wonder relational pain is Satan’s playground. By amplifying one conflict, he can jeopardize two groups. Relational pain is like a BOGO (buy one, get one) for Satan. He loves when conflicts are not resolved, and forgiveness is not extended.
How can we combat Satan’s strategy to keep us from experiencing relational healing? First, we must see the serious spiritual risk we place ourselves in by leaving our relational wounds unhealed. In Paul’s letter to the believers in Ephesus, he reveals the opportunity we give to Satan when we are involved in interpersonal conflict.
Ephesians 4:25-27, “25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. 26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.”
I want to invite you to reflect on the relational wounds in your life and how Satan could be using those to stifle your spiritual growth. Who do you need to forgive? Who do you need to confront? Who do you need to reconnect with? Unfortunately, my opportunity to reconnect and restore my relationship with my aunt and uncle is gone. I can never know the joy of being in a relationship with them. I have been grieving that loss for the last several weeks. I don’t want you to feel that. Please ask the Lord during this next song to reveal to your mind the name of a person you need to talk with in order to mend your relationship. Second, I want you to commit to taking a step toward that person after God has revealed that name to you. As followers of Christ, we are always called to take the initiative in reconciliation.
Matthew 5:23-24, “23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”
Matthew 18:15, “15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.”
Whether your brother has something against you or you have something against your brother, you are called to “go.” We are not called to “wait.” With that said, this doesn’t mean you will always experience relational restoration and forgiveness. Forgiveness and restoration is a two-person dance; God calls us to lead, not to do the dance by ourselves.
Life Level Application
Head: Read Luke 17:3-4. What are the two actions that happen before forgiveness? Why are these steps necessary to experience relational restoration? Why do you think Jesus emphasizes the act of forgiving someone multiple times?
Heart: Read John 17:20-21. What does it mean to be “one” as He and the Father are one? According to these verses, what is the intended outcome of this unity among believers? How does it relate to the world’s perception of Jesus?
Hand: Read 2 Corinthians 7:8-10. Why does Paul consider godly sorrow to be beneficial? What does it lead to, according to verse 10? What does Paul say about the outcomes of worldly sorrow? How can this type of sorrow lead to destruction or despair? Have you experienced a moment of godly sorrow in your life? How did it lead to positive change or repentance?
Habit: Name one relationship in your life that needs to experience healing. How can you initiate the process of healing?