Gratefulness

2 Corinthians 1:15 KJV

And in this confidence I was minded to come unto you before, that ye might have a second benefit;

There are, so far as I can tell, two legitimate interpretations of this passage and one absurd one.

The second benefit could be speaking of Paul's next visit to Corinth.

There would be a blessing and a benefit having this preacher with them. This seems to be the most natural interpretation given the passage. Its weakness is that there must be something more eternal than merely spending some time with Paul.

Paul's first visit brought to them the benefit of the Gospel message, they got saved. His second visit would include the benefit of Christian instruction and edification.

Paul's practice in Acts was to return to "confirm the churches." This interpretation gives purpose for the benefit of a Pauline visitation.

When I was in Bible College I heard of a third (absurd) interpretation.

My wife was able to get a teaching job at the Pillar of Fire Christian School in Westminster, CO. It was a great job and a blessing to us. However the Pillar of Fire denomination believed in what they called a "second blessing" based upon this passage. They believed that a Christian who received this blessing would never sin again. The doctrine is absurd on a number of levels. One of them is that this passage gives no clue where they came up with this interpretation. The fact is they already believed the doctrine and merely found this as a proof text.

That got me to thinking about how grateful I am that God protected me over the years. God has been so gracious to me. I was exposed to and could have been consumed by several different cults and quasi-Christian groups.

How thankful I am to be saved and a member of a Baptist Church.