Big Idea: When strong, Christ-devoted Christians visit or join a fellowship, churches must receive these with love and submit to their ministry. As the strong believers come to encourage others’ faith, they themselves should receive encouragement and be strengthened.

Understanding the Text

Albeit concise, Paul’s concluding chapter functions as weighty pastoral guidance on practical community matters. He ends his letter by speaking to the relationship between individual communities, between a community and its itinerant leaders, between individual members within a specific community, and between individual communities and the Christian community at large. He uses his final few lines to give a last word of encouragement for the Corinthians to stay the course and remain strong in the faith …