2 Corinthians 2:5-11

 5If anyone has caused grief, he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all
of you, to some extent—not to put it too severely. 6The punishment inflicted on
him by the majority is sufficient for him. 7Now instead, you ought to forgive and
comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8I urge you,
therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. 9The reason I wrote you was to see if you
would stand the test and be obedient in everything. 10If you forgive anyone, I
also forgive him. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I
have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, 11in order that Satan might not
outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.

MEDITATION
1. The Corinthian church here has punished one of its members and Paul
writes to them, encouraging them to forgive and comfort him.  The point of
Paul’s writing is not to focus on the punishment, but rather to encourage the
congregation to care for the health of the whole community.  It is important
for the community to pursue forgiveness in order to prevent Satan from
accomplishing his schemes against the Church.
2. Do I know any believer that may need to re-enter the church community
right now?  If so, ask God for wisdom and love to forgive, comfort and restore
this person into God’s family.

Personal Note:
God has forgiven me of my sins and wickedness.  He allowed me to re-enter the church community by his grace and love.  As a pastor, I have made some foolish decisions (I may be doing so now and in the future) and I have received love, comfort, and forgiveness.

I believe that we are to take God's forgiveness of our sins seriously.  Without God's forgiveness, we would not have the heart to love and forgive.