The apostle continues the vindication of himself, vs. 1–10. Asserts his strong love for the Corinthians, and exhorts them to keep themselves free from all contaminating alliances, vs. 11–18
The apostle’s fidelity and love. Vs. 1–18
AS the occasion of writing this epistle was the false accusations of his opponents, a strain of self-vindication runs through the whole. In 5:12 he said he spoke of himself to enable his friends in Corinth to defend him against his enemies. He was governed by the love of Christ, and acted as his ambassador as such he was a fellow-worker with God, and exhorted me not to fail o the grace of God, vs. 1–2. In the exercise of this office he avoided all offence, v. 3, proving his sincerity and fidelity as a minister of God, by the patient endurance of all kinds of trials, vs. 4–5; by the exercise of all the grace and gifts of the Spirit, vs. 6–7; and under all circumstances whether of honour or dishonour, prosperity or adversity whether understood or misunderstood by his fellow men, vs. 8–10. He thus unbosomed himself to the Corinthians, because his heart was enlarged. It was wide enough to take them all in. Whatever there was of the want of love or of due appreciation between them and him, the fault was or their side, not on his, vs. 11–12. He begs them to be as large-hearted towards him as he was towards them, v. 13, and not to allow themselves to be involved in any intimate alliances with the wicked, vs. 13–18.
- We then, (as) workers together (with him), beseech (you) also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.
This verse is intimately connected with the preceding chapter by the particles δὲ καί, but also. He is still describing his manner of discharging his apostolic duties. He not only announced that God had made Christ sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him, but also, as a co-worker with God, he exhorted men not to receive the grace of God in vain. In our version the apostle is made to say, “I beseech you also.” This is wrong; the also belongs to the verb—“I also beseech you.” That the word συνερ γοῦντες, co-operating, refers to the apostle’s co-operating with God, is plain from the connection, and from the nature of the work. He had just before, 5:20, spoken of God’s beseeching them; and now he says, we as co-workers beseech you. So in 1 Cor. 3:9, he says, “We are co-workers with God.” In the Vulgate the word is rendered adjuvantes, which favours the idea that he was co-operating with them, assisting them (i.e. the Corinthians) by his exhortations. Luther’s version suggests the same meaning; Wir ermahen aber euch, als Mithelfer, as joint-labourers or helpers we exhort you. Compare 1:24, where the apostle says, “We are helpers (συνεργοί) of your joy.” This view of the passage is given by many commentators. It does not, however, so well, as just remarked, agree with the context; and it would require, to prevent ambiguity, the insertion of ὑμῖν, with you. As an apostle or minister of the gospel, Paul was a co-worker with God.
That ye receive not the grace of God in vain. What is it to receive the grace of God in vain? Some say that the meaning is to accept of the atonement of Christ, or reconciliation with God spoken of in the preceding chapter, and yet to live in sin. The favour of God is then accepted to no purpose. But this is an unscriptural idea. Justification and sanctification cannot be thus separated. A man cannot accept of reconciliation with God and live in sin; because the renunciation of sin is involved in the acceptance of reconciliation. Paul never assumes that men may accept one benefit of redemption, and reject another. They cannot take pardon and refuse sanctification. Others say that the apostle here exhorts his readers to guard against “falling from grace;” that having been graciously pardoned they should not, by a relapse into sin, forfeit the grace or favour which they had received. This is a very common interpretation. Olshausen says, “It is undeniable that the apostle assumes that grace when once received may be lost; the Scriptures know nothing of the dangerous error of the advocates of predestination, that grace cannot be lost; and experience stamps it as a lie.” But in the first place, it is no argument in favour of this interpretation that the apostle uses the infinitive aorist (δέξασθαι), have received, because the aorist infinitive is very commonly used for the present after verbs signifying to command or exhort. See Rom. 12:1, 15:20; 2 Cor. 2:8; Eph. 4:1. Winer’s Idioms of the New Testament, p. 386. in the second place, the “grace of God,” here spoken of, does not mean the actual forgiveness of sin, nor the renewing, sanctifying influence of the Spirit, but the favour of which the apostle spoke in the preceding chapter. It is the infinite grace or favour of having made his Son sin for us, so that we may become the righteousness of God in him. This is the grace of God of which the apostle speaks. He exhorted men not to let it be in vain, as it regarded them, that a satisfaction for sin sufficient for all, and appropriate to all, had been made and offered to all who hear the gospel. In precisely the same sense he says, Gal. 2:21, “I do not frustrate the grace of God.” That is, ‘I do not, by trusting to the works of the law, make it in vain that God has provided a gratuitous method of salvation.’ That great grace or favour he did not make a thing of naught. In Gal. 5:4, he says, “Whosoever of you are justified by the law are fallen from grace.” That is, ‘ye have renounced the gratuitous method of salvation, and are debtors to do the whole law.’ So in Rom. 6:14, it is said, “We are not under law but under grace.” In no one of these cases does “grace mean either the actual pardon of sin, or inward divine influence. It means the favour of God, and in this connection the great favour of redemption. The Lord Jesus Christ having died for our sins and procured eternal redemption for us, the apostle was most earnest in exhorting men not to allow this great favour, as regards them, to be in vain. It is the more evident that such is the meaning of the passage because it is not so much a direct exhortation to the Corinthians, as a declaration of the method in which the apostle preached. He announced the fact that God had made Christ who knew no sin to be sin for us, and he exhorted all men not to receive the grace of God in vain, that is, not to reject this great salvation And finally, this interpretation is required by the following verse. “Behold, now is the accepted time; now is the day of salvation.” This is appropriate as a motive to receive the offer of pardon and acceptance with God, but it is not appropriate as a reason why a renewed and pardoned sinner should not fall from grace. There is therefore no necessity to assume, contrary to the whole analogy of Scripture, that the apostle here teaches that those who have once made their peace with God and experienced his renewing grace can fall away unto perdition. If reconciled by the death of his Son, much more shall they be saved by his life. Nothing can ever separate them from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. Whom he calls, them he also glorifies. They are kept by the mighty power of God through faith unto salvation.