Sermon on 2 Corinthians 7:2–16: The joys of an open-hearted gospel community
A sermon from Latimer Church on what it looks like to live in a genuine, open-hearted gospel community.
Summary
This is a sermon preached at Latimer Church, most likely by James de Costobadie (Costa), working through 2 Corinthians 7:2–16. The preacher argues that Paul's appeal — "make room for us in your hearts" — is not a personal plea for companionship but an invitation to open one's heart to the gospel itself, since Paul functions as an ambassador of Christ. The sermon identifies three marks of an open-hearted gospel community: God-given comfort mediated through God's people, God-shaped correction given with grief and received with godly sorrow, and a culture of genuine boasting about and building up of one another in Christ. A particular emphasis falls on the phrase "leaves no regret," which the preacher unpacks by contrasting godly sorrow, which admits blame, with worldly sorrow, which shifts blame — arguing that only the former can truly deal with sin and create the open, joyful atmosphere in which a gospel community thrives.
Key Takeaways
FULL TRANSCRIPT
Introduction: What makes 2 Corinthians different
I'm still coming to grips with 2 Corinthians, I have to be honest. It's so unlike Paul's other letters, which for the most part are a logical laying out of some aspects of Paul's theology centred on Jesus, followed by the outworking and impact of that gospel on the life of one who follows Jesus. But with 2 Corinthians, what you really get is an outpouring of Paul's heart. What makes him tick. His fears and struggles, his joys and delights. In short, so often, how Paul feels about his new life in Jesus. It's so clearly still written to teach, to impart, but it's often hard to pinpoint exactly what. Paul's appeal to the Corinthians at times seems far less an appeal to the mind than it is to the heart. And his method is to open his own heart to them, with the hope, prayer, and — as we'll see tonight — godly confidence that they will open their hearts to him.
Because this is his plea in chapter 7, written plain as day in verse 2: Make room for us in your hearts, Paul says.
Paul's appeal: not for his own sake, but for theirs
Now before we get into the main part of the text, it's important to note this is not the cry of someone who's lonely and hurt and only wants to get some friends. What we should know without a doubt is that Paul doesn't make this plea for his own sake, but for the good of the Corinthians. Paul knows that the very best thing for the Corinthians is to open their hearts to Paul, because that opens their heart to the real and glorious gospel of the Lord Jesus, and the wonderful reality of life in him, and all the wonderful blessings that come along with that.
As Tim so helpfully pointed out to us last week, you can't drive a wedge between Paul and the gospel he preaches. Paul has said himself in chapter 5 that he is an ambassador of Christ, and says that it's as though God himself is making his appeal through Paul and other genuine gospel ministers. So Paul's appeal to open their hearts to him and his fellow gospel workers is an appeal to open their hearts to Jesus and the glorious gospel reality of being reconciled to God.
Of course it includes afflictions and difficulties, as Paul makes very clear. But it also includes — and this is the important thing for today's passage — it includes being brought into the glorious gospel reality of a community of people in which God works for the good of those people. And as I said, the way Paul does this isn't by telling them what it will do for them, teaching them something about that, but by showing them what it's already done from his own experience. After his opening appeal, he doesn't tell them to love him more or to love Jesus more. He shows them how much he loves them and how much joy they bring him.
In many ways Paul makes himself vulnerable throughout this letter and exposes his own heart in order to show the Corinthians the joys of what it looks like to live in a genuine, open-hearted gospel community. And we're going to look at some of the marks of that sort of community today.
It's important to note that this is not the gospel — the gospel of the Lord Jesus, who saved us by his death so that by faith we can have new life with him. This is the outworkings of that gospel in the life of the people God draws through to him by his Spirit in the Lord Jesus.
Overview: Three marks of an open-hearted gospel community
So we're looking today at the joys of an open-hearted gospel community. The points will come up on the screen. The joys of an open-hearted gospel community marked by: God-given comfort, in verses 2 to 7; God-shaped correction, in verses 8 to 12; and — I'm sorry to break the pattern for the third one — a gospel community that delights in boasting about God's work in God's people. We'll look at those in turn.
Mark One: God-given comfort (verses 2–7)
So, God-given comfort in these opening verses. Each short point has a longer sentence to go with it, which will also go on the screen for those note-takers — take your time to write it down. This is not a point to remember; it's to give you a shape for each part so that you can see how it works out in practice.
An open-hearted gospel community is marked by God's comfort, given through God's people, resulting in joy at God's work in God's people.
After Paul makes his appeal for the Corinthians to make room for Paul in their hearts, he reiterates something he's already said back in chapter 6: that he has — carrying on in verse 2 — wronged no one, corrupted no one, and exploited no one. It's an amazing statement. But it's not a brag, and he's not saying that to them to make them feel bad, but to encourage them. Verse 3: Paul says, I don't say this to condemn you. I have said before that you have such a place in our hearts that we would live or die with you. Can you feel Paul's heart here? I've spoken to you with great frankness. I take great pride in you. I am greatly encouraged. In all our troubles, my joy knows no bounds. He's essentially telling them he has held nothing back from them. He's done everything within his power to make the gospel of the Lord Jesus as accessible to them as possible, because of his great love for them.
And Paul doesn't leave it at some general statement about his feelings. He tells them exactly how it played out. And here it's difficult to pick up on, but he's picking up on a story he started way back in chapter 2. So if you remember — and if you don't, go back and have a look at how it all connects — back in chapter 2, verses 12 and 13, Paul makes clear that as he was continuing on in his gospel ministry, despite having some great gospel opportunities that he says the Lord had opened up for him, Paul chose not to take those opportunities because his fellow worker Titus, whom Paul had sent with a letter to the Corinthians, wasn't there to tell him how it went. And so Paul says he could find no peace of mind because he was worried about the Corinthians.
Now, five chapters later, having taken the time to explain his own heart and the gospel and his gospel motivations, Paul comes back to that story, having filled in a lot of really important details about the gospel. And now he shows the relief, the comfort, and the joy that he felt when he finally did meet Titus and received the news of the Corinthians' repentant and genuinely heartfelt response to this letter. That's where we pick things up here in chapter 7.
God comforts through people
There are a couple of things worth mentioning about this comfort. Firstly, Paul notes that the comfort comes from God, but through Titus. He picks it up in verse 5: For when we came into Macedonia, we had no rest. We were harassed at every turn — conflicts on the outside, fears within. But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus.
Now, as those who understand how things work, we understand that God is the source of all comfort, all strength, all energy, all everything. But it's also important to note that God works through means — through other things. It's important we get both sides of this coin. I worry sometimes. I've heard people say things to the effect that we must know God's strength and God's security and God's joy or comfort or whatever it is, sort of implying that we need to know these gifts directly from God alone. Now of course God is the source of all comfort, and God definitely works directly in his people by his Spirit. We should expect that because it's promised, and we should rejoice in that reality — it's wonderful and a God-given grace. But that's not the only way God works, and we should also look for and rejoice when we feel comforted and strengthened by his people. That's another way in which God works — through the people around us. That shouldn't be rocket science, I don't think, but sometimes it's missed. We need each other because God has ordained it to be that way. What was the first thing in the Bible that wasn't good? It is not good that man should be alone.
The comfort of mere presence
Secondly — and I love this — Paul doesn't start with the comfort that Titus brings by his message, but merely by his presence. Did you notice that? Paul was comforted by the coming of Titus — that is, simply by him being there. Isn't that lovely? I have the blessing of having a couple of Tituses in my life, those people who give you encouragement just by showing up. It's wonderful to have. Not everyone has that blessing. Another reason why it's important that we strengthen and encourage one another as God's people.
Now as a little side point here — I'm sure most of us would love to have a Titus in our lives. That person who encourages us and comforts us and lifts us up by their mere presence. Without the time to explore it in detail, can I suggest that the best way to find a Titus is not to look for one, but to be one. This entire chapter is clearly aimed at getting the Corinthians to open their hearts to Paul, but Paul does that by opening his heart to them. We love God because he first loved us — that's a gospel pattern. And often we desire the presence of a Titus, a close friend, but sometimes, somewhat ironically, it's often that intense desire for that which becomes the barrier that stops us from finding one. The answer to finding a Titus is not to look for a Titus, but to be a Titus for someone else. Be that person who encourages and lifts others up. You might even find that the very act of being a Titus is its own reward. But you might also find that it brings with it a mutual enrichment. Right — I've said Titus too much. I've over-Titused it. Carrying on.
The news that brought comfort
Paul was also comforted by the news which Titus brought. Carrying on: comforted not only by his coming but also by the comfort you had given him. Look at all the mutual enrichment going on. He has told us about your longing for me, your deep sorrow, your ardent concern for me, so that my joy was greater than ever.
And here we should notice the third thing — the news that brought Paul comfort. What was he comforted and so joyful about? When we think of comfort, we might think about reclining armchairs or a cosy place to sit and rest. But the comfort Paul talks about isn't physical comfort. He's made very clear the difficulties and burdens sometimes in the Christian life, and particularly in ministry. He's talking about his peace of mind, and it's his peace of mind about those he cares about. The assurance that they are drawing closer to God. That's what brings him comfort. That's what brings him joy.
He was worried about the Corinthians being led astray, being led away from the truth, being led away from God, from the gospel of Jesus. And the news of their longing for Paul showed Paul that their heart was moving in the right direction — not so much towards him, but towards the gospel of Jesus, which Paul represents as the ambassador of Christ. Their hearts were drawn to Paul, and that brought Paul joy, because that meant their hearts were drawing closer to God, and that meant God was working in them. Paul's not joyful at something which brings him benefit. Paul is joyful at God's work in God's people. And what's more, Paul wants them to know about it — that's why he writes it, so that they might be even more encouraged. This begins the godly boasting which we're going to touch on before the end.
This is the beauty of God's comfort among God's people. But Paul now needs to clarify something else, because the thing that led to this joyful comfort, this final response, and the reason Paul knows for sure that it's God's work — the thing which started it all — was actually a very painful letter which Titus took to the Corinthians from Paul in the first place. And Paul wants to make clear he's not happy because they've listened to him, or because he's been proven correct, but that they have responded to God as God intended.
Mark Two: God-shaped correction (verses 8–12)
So first you have this God-given comfort — God's comfort given through God's people, leading to joy. Now you have, secondly, God-shaped correction. That is also God's correction given through God's people. But the "God-shaped" part of it is very important. If you're sitting there thinking, "Yay, now I get to tell people where they're wrong" — well, I'm just as disappointed as you are, but we have to get the motivation right, get the shape of this right.
The sentence for this section is: An open-hearted gospel community is marked by God-shaped correction, given with grief for the good of the one corrected, and when received with godly sorrow and repentance, leaves no regret — resulting in more joy and celebration at God's work in God's people.
I'm going to highlight that "no regret" part. It's been lingering in my mind all day. But it's important to unpack all of that, because God-shaped correction done in a gospel community can be a wonderful blessing, but done badly can have almost the entirely opposite effect.
The painful letter and the heart behind it
Now here Paul's still continuing his train of thought that he started back in chapter 2, where he reminded the Corinthians of the letter he'd sent to them, correcting them quite severely, it seems. We don't have this letter — it was probably written sometime in between 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians. But Paul very clearly wants them to know the heart that motivated that letter.
It's probably also worth noting in passing that he sent the letter straight to the Corinthians. He didn't complain about the Corinthians behind their back. He mentions soon that, in fact, he boasted about them behind their back — and we'll talk about that a little bit more. But the correction was given, in Paul's own words in chapter 2 verse 4, out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve you, but to let you know the depth of my love for you.
Now it's a wonderful quote — I don't know who said it originally, someone can tell me afterwards — that God loves us just as we are, but that he also loves us too much to leave us as we are. It's no different for Paul, shaped by God's gospel. And this is vital for us to get in our heads: the correction that Paul sent was not for his benefit somehow, or his satisfaction, or just to prove that he was right. It was for their benefit, because he loved them and he wanted what was best for them. In many ways, Paul didn't want to send them that letter, I don't think, but he knew that it would be better for them in the end.
And he picks up on these mixed emotions as he carries on in our verses in chapter 7, from verse 8. Paul continues: Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it — though he clarifies — I did regret it. I see that my letter hurt you. And Paul doesn't enjoy doing that. But what does bring him joy is that this sorrow was short-lived, because it was received and responded to with humility as God intended. As he says, for you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed by us in any way.
Godly sorrow leaves no regret
And then there's that wonderful verse. He says, Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation — and here's that wonderful phrase — leaves no regret. But worldly sorrow brings death.
Now as a Christian we understand that it is repentance before God and faith in Jesus that leads to salvation. But why does Paul add the fact that it leaves no regret? It's an interesting phrase. Does he mean that there is no regret in heaven? Well, I think that's true, but I think there's more to it.
I put it to you — I haven't put all of this together and it's worth exploring a little bit more — but I put it to you that the reason that godly sorrow leaves no regret is that godly sorrow admits blame, whereas worldly sorrow shifts blame. Let me say that again. Godly sorrow admits blame, whereas worldly sorrow shifts blame.
It's no secret that our natural inclination as human beings since the fall is to shift blame. Adam's first reaction, in the blink of an eye after he sinned, blamed both God and his wife — faster than you can say "sleeping on the couch tonight." But the problem with shifting blame is that it doesn't face up to and deal with the problem. It avoids it. And what's worse, deep down, when you do this, you know you've avoided it. The end result of not dealing with sin is of course death, which is why worldly sorrow leads there.
Sin needs dealing with, and we need to face that and admit that in order to be saved by the Lord Jesus. Whereas worldly sorrow will not admit fault, shame, and guilt — and sin needs dealing with, because a just God cannot abide injustice. But friends, the wonderful truth that lies at the joy and wonder of the gospel of Jesus is the fact that we don't have to avoid our sin. We can confront it, confess it, and take it to our Lord Jesus for complete forgiveness, because we know for certain by faith that our sin is dealt with by his death on the cross. And that's a wonderful thing to hold on to.
Of course, as we live the Christian life, we don't like it when we find more sinfulness in our heart. That's a daily occurrence on my part — let's say more than daily. It's not pleasant, it's not comfortable. But on reflection, when we think about it, if we're truly willing to open our hearts and honestly examine ourselves, knowing full well the grace and mercy of God that still holds us as his people in Christ, then we can continue to confront and confess our sins and put them behind us without regret.
That works at a personal level. I think it works even more at a communal level — and this is why I think it's worth exploring more. I put it to you that the more honestly you can do that, the less regret there is. You come completely clean. As I say, it's not comfortable taking an honest look at ourselves and recognising our sin. It's awful sometimes. But as I also said, if you're anything like me, you know when you've done something — or you're doing something wrong — and you're not taking it to Jesus, repenting and pushing past it and asking for his forgiveness and his help to move past. It eats you up inside.
And so the joy of this in a Christian community is when sin is confronted openly and confessed freely — always to God, and then often to the other people that we've wronged — with the knowledge of our full forgiveness and Christ's death for that sin. It leaves no regret, because it is full of confidence in Christ. And on a communal level it does more than that: it clears the air, and it creates the space of light and life for God's people to thrive in, openly and honestly with one another.
Now the world can't offer that. The world might ignore or gloss over guilt and shame. It'll distract you with many things, but it can't deal with the problem of it. Only the grace of the gospel can offer that. And that is a joyful thing. It is a thing to be celebrated — which is exactly why Paul does so. He celebrates their repentance, so that they can see their progress and rejoice as well. It's a beautiful thing.
Correction in a gospel community should be approached with caution and wisdom — never just to be seen as right, or to get back at someone who has wronged you. That's the wrong way of thinking, that's the worldly way. It should be done in grief, knowing that we are sinful even as others are. It should be done for the good of the other person. But if correction is shaped, given, and received as God intended — with humility, with open and honest hearts, secure in Jesus — it's a wondrous thing. It leaves no regret, and it creates this wonderful space of openness and joy worth celebrating. It creates an atmosphere of confidence, knowing that we're not against one another; we are for one another in Christ. And especially, we can show that to one another.
Mark Three: Boasting about God's work in God's people (verses 13–16)
And so Paul closes with a healthy dose, I think, of godly boasting and confidence. Because thirdly, an open-hearted gospel community delights in building others up in Christ, boasting about them and to them for God's work in their lives.
And all I want to ask here is: whether in our private conversations or our more public conversations in church, are we people who boast and build up other people?
I have struggled at this point this week. It's not hard to understand — it's simply recognising my own weaknesses in this area. This world has a problem with criticism. But so do we in the church. We're not immune. It's no real comfort that I'm not alone in this problem. It's a problem that's so widespread, and I hate it when I contribute to it. And I've been asking God — and so should we all — to lead us to a better way, to God's way of doing this.
Now I may have said this before, you may have heard me say this. It was Ray Ortlund — a wonderful, godly minister and preacher of the Word — who, in a podcast of his, drew my attention to the fact that there's only one competitive command in the entire New Testament. I love the way Ray sees these sorts of things in Scripture. Only one instruction which actually encourages us to deliberately try and be better than one another in an area. I don't know if you've heard it — Romans 12:10. Paul commands believers: Outdo one another in showing honour. Outdo one another in showing honour.
I love this because it appeals to the competitive side of me. But it also means that you can only be competitive by making the other people the winners. Classic role reversal. Classic gospel. Counterintuitive.
Friends, a gospel community — like the God who gave us this gospel — aims not at tearing down but at building up. Now this isn't about showing false praise or saying things that aren't true, or this modern fad epitomised by AI which just affirms anything anyone does. That's got its own problems because it doesn't recognise the truth. We've just seen that sometimes we need correction given to us with grief for our good. But our default setting as followers of the Lord Jesus should be one of loving and celebrating God's work in God's people, God's gifts in God's people, God's heart in God's people.
If you notice, Paul actually does this in almost all of his letters. And listen to him here from verse 13:
In addition to our own encouragement, we were especially delighted to see how happy Titus was, because his spirit has been refreshed by all of you. I had boasted to him about you, and you have not embarrassed me. But just as everything we said to you was true, so our boasting about you to Titus has proved to be true as well. And his affection for you is all the greater when he remembers that you were all obedient, receiving him with fear and trembling. I am glad that I can have complete confidence in you.
Now this is not boasting to boost Paul and his own ego. He is joyous and delighted in the Corinthians' response to the truth of the gospel, even when it corrects them. And you can hear that his delight is so genuine. And what this does in Titus and in the Corinthians — Titus has also been sharing his delight and affection for the Corinthians — and then Paul doesn't just boast to Titus about the Corinthians, he tells the Corinthians that he's been boasting about them, presumably to boost their own confidence in the genuineness of their faith and their reception of the gospel. It's a beautiful picture.
I think we're good at being polite to people and nice to people for the most part. But are we a people like Paul who try and outdo one another in showing honour? Do we boast and speak of our confidence and joy in and for one another? Paul is a wonderful encourager. Are we a gospel community who delights to build one another up in Christ, recognising God's work in God's people and sharing the joy of seeing that in others?
I'm sure you can see what a wonderful expression of a gospel community that is. What a light to the world — to show them the light of the gospel of the glory of Jesus in his people. God-exalting, other-people-centred joy and confidence, expressed for the building up of God's people in Christ as a display of his love to the world. These are the joys of an open-hearted gospel community, secure in Christ for their salvation and overflowing with his grace.
And I don't know about you, but I reckon that's the sort of community that's worth striving for, that's worth fighting for, by the grace and power of God in every single one of his people.
Closing: The courage to open our hearts
I pray that we're this sort of gospel family. Of course, it's easier said than done, isn't it? It takes courage. Opening our hearts doesn't come naturally to most of us. I think this is for two reasons mainly: pride and fear.
Pride, because we think that we don't need this sort of interconnected strength — because we think we're fine on our own. Or fear of what will happen if we do open our hearts, if we do make ourselves vulnerable to others. What will happen if we do that? In a broken world, it's not always an unwise fear. Opening our hearts is not always easy.
But friends, opening hearts is what God does, and he does it in and through his people by the power of his Spirit. As we open our hearts in faith — first and foremost, if we're struggling with this, we ask the Lord for his strength and his power to do it — and then we take that step in faith. Paul opened his heart to the Corinthians. He took that first step so that they would open their hearts to him. Well, let's go and do likewise. Let's open our hearts to others so that others can open theirs. Because growing in Christ means growing together.
An open-hearted gospel community is one marked by God-given comfort — that is, God's comfort given through God's people, resulting in joy at God's work in God's people.
An open-hearted gospel community is one marked by God-shaped correction, given with grief for the good of the one corrected, and when received with godly sorrow and repentance, leaves no regret, resulting in more joy and celebration at God's work in God's people.
And an open-hearted gospel community is one who delights in building one another up in Christ, boasting about them and to them for God's work in their lives.
I pray that we are such a community.