2 Corinthians 7:8-13

2 Corinthians 7:8-13  Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it — I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while — yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance.  For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us.  Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.  See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.  So even though I wrote to you, it was not on account of the one who did the wrong or of the injured party, but rather that before God you could see for yourselves how devoted to us you are.  By all this we are encouraged.

Paul had written an earlier letter that seemingly reprimanded the Corinthians for their lack of fidelity to him as their spiritual father and to the gospel he preached.  People had come into the Corinthian church with a distorted view of the scriptures and of Paul's apostolic authority.  This earlier letter of reprimand was quite severe, so Paul was apprehensive about how the Corinthians received his letter.  But through Titus' account, he discovered that the Corinthians were repentant and conciliatory.  Of course, their repentant reaction to his rebuke encouraged Paul's heart greatly, for he did not want the Corinthian church destroyed or contaminated by false teachers.  

The major theme of the above passage is that Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.  There is no "I am sorry" in terms of worldly sorrow, for Paul is saying that worldly sorrow does not lead to repentance.  Godly sorrow says, "I am sorry," and then leads to a new direction.  There is no regret from Paul over the Corinthians' godly sorrow, for he now knows these people have no regret and are now free from bitterness and anger.  Godly sorrow does not lead to retribution and hurt.  Worldly sorrow many times looks forward to reciprocation and justification: the striking back syndrome--an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.  Godly sorrow leads to new beginnings; worldly sorrow leads to dark corridors of resentment.  Paul is encouraged by the Corinthians response to his letter.  He knows that his difficult words to them bettered their lives, for they received them well.  If they would have resisted him, disagreed with him vehemently, pushed back, they would have not gained anything from his instruction.  By accepting his words of correction, they were on the winning side of the conflict.  Their souls benefited greatly.  

Most of us find it hard to take correction, even when we know the other person is right.  I once was called into my principal's office to discuss a new direction the school was taking.  I was a confidante of this principal, and as a high profile teacher in his school, I had significant influence on the staff.  I was not in favor of this new direction and openly expressed my views in front of the other teachers.  He called me into his office and said, "Cliff, you are becoming very negative."  Now as I sat there, I could have defended my position.  In fact the new direction eventually failed, but rather than do that, I heard the Holy Spirit counseling me to say, "I am sorry, you're right."  For he was right: I was becoming a disruptive force, not a cohesive force.  I was bringing dissension, not harmony.  His reprimand was correct.  I then told him that I would turn around and become more positive in my interactions with the staff.  I walked out of his office determined to be more supportive of him, for as the boss, he deserved my wholehearted support,  just as Paul deserved the Corinthians' support.  Was that hard?  Yes, because I felt I was right.  But I was wrong, for my disagreement with the policy was causing dissension and trouble.  Godly sorrow brings life.  Worldly sorrow brings death.  I am so glad that I can look back at that response and many similar responses with satisfaction and a thankful heart.  Godly repentance leads to peace.  I have had to say, "I am sorry," many times in my life, outside of the family and inside the family.  But in each case, positive results came from that heartfelt response.  True repentance brings God on the scene and His concomitant peace and love--the fruit of the Spirit.