Some Bible Study Topics May Make You Hesitate…
If you are looking for bible study topics to approach the bible from a perspective that is out of the ordinary, try to discover what Paul understood to be the theological shape and underpinnings of his experience of suffering on the one hand and confidence on the other. On this blog we will attempt to uncover those underpinnings which elucidate what Paul understood to be the relationship between, these two distinct but very real aspects of his life and ministry.
There is a need for bible studies online to explore the theme of suffering in order to counter health and wealth theology that seems to reign supreme in many U.S. churches. To study the interrelationship of these two themes throughout the Paul’s letters would be take a long time. Yet such a bird’s eye view often, of necessity, sacrifices the ground view of an in-depth look at how the two motifs are refracted in a single historical situation. For this reason, emphasis of the articles on this site will be to examine each of these themes more closely within a single epistle. Paul’s Second Epistle to Corinth is an obvious choice because there–more than any where else–Paul waxes eloquent both as theologian and as minister of the Gospel. In other words, in this epistle we find the clearest expression of Paul’s theology of suffering and confidence as it reveals itself through and in his own personal experience. The trouble which Paul faced in his dealings with the Corinthian church caused him to lay bare his heart. Hence, we have the privilege of reading his theology through the colorful prism of his intense service to the church.
The Themes of Suffering and Confidence Intersect Powerfully 2 Cor 2:12-5:10
While the themes of suffering and confidence run throughout the epistle, the two major portions where there is the most extensive development of both themes together are 2:12- 5:10 and 10:1-13:10. The limits of each of these passages is defined by the interrelationship between weakness and suffering on the one hand, and ministerial boldness and confidence on the other. For the sake of thoroughness we have selected only the first of these passages and thus the scope of this study will be determined accordingly. Of
course, it will be frequently necessary to examine additional material in order to both elucidate the selected passage and set its teaching within the larger context of Paul’s thought.
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