2 Corinthians 2:10-11 Anyone whom you forgive, I also forgive. Indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ, 11 so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs.
Paul now puts himself into the situation and like in many other places, offers himself as an example to the Corinthians. Even though he was far away, he joined with the Corinthians in the needed response of forgiveness of the person who had done wrong. Paul wanted to forgive this person and urged the Corinthians to accept this person back into fellowship. Forgiveness should not be partial but complete. If the condition of repentance is met by the person who had done wrong, then the church must respond with forgiveness. This is strong language. If a situation like this is watered down or compromised, then a person may continue in sin or the church may develop a bitter attitude. Paul seems to be taking this strong position in order to guide this situation in the right direction. Whatever the wrong this person committed, it must have been a serious matter for Paul to respond in this way. Sin should be taken seriously. Some sins will be more harmful to the mission of the church. This apparently was such a situation.
The Corinthians must respond appropriately now by accepting this person back because they faced another danger if they did not. This was a test for them. Satan was waiting to pounce and make the situation worse. He could deceive them into thinking that they had every right to ostracize this person. Satan can deceive us into watering down our forgiveness and making our love conditional. Since this type of situation is one of the most difficult to experience as a church, we must be extra careful and seek God’s help through prayer. We must make sure our love is full and our forgiveness is present.
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