Galatians 7

Godly sorrow comes because of our sin.

On the other hand, worldly sorrow comes because of worldly troubles and disappointments. If we harden our hearts and reject God’s discipline, our sorrow will turn to worldly sorrow, which gives no benefit. Instead, such worldly sorrow brings despair and eternal punishment—death.

11 Here we see what the Corinthians thought after receiving Paul’s severe letter, and how they then reacted to it. In that letter, Paul had warned the Corinthians about a man in the church who had committed a great sin. According to this verse, the Corinthians had then given this man some kind of punishment, or had in some way removed his sin from their midst. So they had now become innocent of any involvement in this man’s sin. That bad situation had now been corrected.

12 The Corinthians had at first refused to follow Paul’s instructions; they had rebelled against Paul’s authority. They at first didn’t give that sinful man any discipline or punishment; they tolerated his sin (see 1 Corinthians 5:1-2). The Corinthian Christians were proud. Therefore, Paul wrote them that severe letter in order to bring them to repentance. Paul hoped that they would respect his authority and obey his words (see 2 Corinthians 2:9). Now his hope had been fulfilled.

Godly sorrow and the repentance that comes from it always lead in the end to joy for all concerned. Paul was joyful; Titus was joyful; and the Corinthians were also joyful. Let us not be surprised at all this joy. Jesus said: “… there is more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent” (Luke 15:7).

13 Paul is particularly delighted at the way the Corinthians treated Titus; they had treated him with kindness and respect. As a result, Titus’ spirit had been refreshed. One of the most important things we can do for one another as Christians is to encourage and refresh each other.

14-16 Paul had told Titus many good things about the Corinthian Christians. He had boasted about them (verse 14). Paul is happy that the Corinthians have not embarrassed him by behaving badly to Titus. They had proven by their good behavior that the good things Paul had said about them were indeed true. They had behaved towards Titus just as Paul had predicted they would.

The Corinthians had received Titus as if he had been Paul himself, that is, with fear and trembling (verse 15). From this, we can see what a great change had taken place in the hearts of the Corinthians!