II Corinthians 6:11-13: "Paul's Love for Corinthians, Pt. 1"

As Paul continues to write about his ministry w/ the Corinthians he turns again to his honesty and affection for them. He begins, "Our mouth has spoken freely to you, O Corinthians, our heart is opened wide". Paul has never been known to shy away from the truth just for the sake of being unpopular. He has been candid, open, and has hid nothing from the Corinthians. His desire is for the Corinthians to understand that whatever is being said about me that doesn't match up with anything I have said to you, than it is untrue. In Acts, before the Ephesian elders Paul said to them, "I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and form house to house" (Acts 20:20). Paul had been open to the Corinthians on several levels. First, he had never shied away from preaching the gospel to them. However much rejection and resistance he got from proclaiming the truth, never did he water down or shy away from the truth. Second, he never shied away from confronting the Corinthians on their sin. Many times through his first, second, and harsh letter to the Corinthians he confronts them on their sinful ways and rebukes their behavior. Paul's desire was to correct them and bring them back into the fellowship of God. Paul rebuked them, disciplined them, asked them to test their faith, and many times confronted and revealed their sin to them. However, Paul's purpose in doing all of this is because he loved and cared for them. Paul's heart was opened wide to them and he was transparent with them. Paul had a strong love for the Lord and it was this love that drove his to keep his fellow brothers and sisters from sin and hell.

Paul continues to make his affection for the Corinthians known as he writes, "you are not restrained by us, but you are restrained in your own affections". MacArthur explains, "Restrained is form stenochoreo, which literally means, 'to make narrow' or 'to confine'. Paul had not restrained the Corinthians; he had done nothing to cause any estrangement or hinder the relationship between them. On the contrary, they were self-restrained in their own affections toward him. A number of them had squeezed the apostle out of their lives and closed their hearts to him. They had believed lies about Paul and turned away from him to follow false teachers. As a result, they had left their affections for him". Here we can see Paul's emotions, he was truly hurt by the Corinthians. For all the time and affection he had spent on them, as he had been open and honest with them, and they rejected him for the heresy of some false apostles. Paul wanted them to understand it was not he who had left them or pulled his affection for them, but rather, their own hearts closing up and turning from Paul. It is like when we feel that God doesn't love us or care for us, or is distant from us because of sin we have let into our lives. It isn't God who has changed, it is us, and Paul wanted the Corinthians to recognize his love for them remained. If they felt the relationship was damaged it was their own doing.

Paul's desire for a true relationship with mutual love for one another and trust in each other Paul pleads with the Corinthians, "now in a like exchange- I speak as to children- open wide to us also". Paul felt the rejection and hurt of unrequited love. He felt true sadness over their damaged relationship. He asks that they would exchange the same love he had for them. He spoke to them as his spiritual children who he had raised up in the truth of the gospel and now they were turning to false brethren. He wanted them to return the same love that he showed them and for them to open their hearts to him. MacArthur writes, "Here is a tender, almost melancholy scene. The noble apostle did not hesitate to plead for the love of the most troubled of his churches. He was not too proud to open his heart and let them see that he was hurting".