Pastors Ought to Pray for Church Members to do the Right Thing, Part 4

TEXT: 2 Corinthians 13

In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul encourages the believers who were caught in the middle of a controversy caused by Paul's detractors to take careful note of their own spiritual standing. Some leaders in the Corinthian church took issue with Paul's seemingly weak presence. They thought they could disregard his letters of instruction because they were confident that when he did visit them, he would not be able to back up his words. They viewed him as lacking in spiritual power. While Paul warned them against such foolishness, this was not his main focus. As John Walvoord and Roy Zuck note, "As a conclusion to this warning, Paul prayed for the restoration of their ways. If they corrected themselves, Paul could be spared the pain of disciplining those he loved and instead he could work with them for their joy and for building them up."