2 Corinthians 3:3 And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.
The Corinthians were Paul’s letter of recommendation. Paul builds on the metaphor of the Corinthians as a letter. Their transformed lives were the proof of the validity of Paul’s ministry. The letter–their lives–came from Christ. Christ is the one who wrote this letter, and thus, changed their lives. The way they live will be the primarily demonstration of this letter. This verse contains a subtle opportunity for the Corinthians to recognize once again the power of the gospel message and to accept Paul’s authority in preaching it. This letter was delivered by Paul and his companions. They were the instruments and voice of Christ to the Corinthians.
This letter of changed lives was written by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is the one who makes the changes in a person’s life. This letter contains the power of the gospel. The Holy Spirit is the key link that joins Christ, Paul, and the Corinthians all together. Paul adds the important modifier “living” in description of God. God is not like the stone idols in Corinth that represented the lifeless and empty religions of the area. God is living, active, and ever presence, the only one true God (see 1 Corinthians 8:6). The Corinthians had come to put their faith in this one, living, and almighty God.
The place where the transforming gospel is written is on the heart. This reflects what Ezekiel wrote in 36:26-31 about how God promises, “ I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” God revealed in Christ transforms the inner most place of our hearts through the work of the Holy Spirit. The heart is the place where decisions are made. It is where we are self-aware and come to know new things. It is the abode of the conscience, the awareness of right and wrong that guides our decisions.
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