2 Corinthians 5
CHAPTER 5
Paul’s longing for the judgment seat of Christ
For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is dissolved, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens. 2 For indeed in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven 3 inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. 4 For indeed we that are in this tent do groan, being burdened. Not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.
6 Being therefore always of good courage and knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord 7 (for we walk by faith, not by sight), 8 yes, we are of good courage; and we would rather be absent from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 Therefore we make it our aim, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to him. 10 For we must all be revealed before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the result of the things done in a bodily form, according to what he has done, whether it be good or bad.
Ambassadors for Christ
11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are revealed to God, and I hope that we are revealed also in your consciences. 12 We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. 13 If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have judged that in that one has died for all, therefore all have died. 15 And he died for all, that they who live should no longer live for themselves, but for him who for their sakes died and rose again. 16 Therefore we, from this time forward, know no one after the flesh. Even though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now we know him so no more. 17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things are passed away, behold, all things have become new.
18 But all things are of God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave to us the ministry of reconciliation. 19 That is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses to them; and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating the world by us. We beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 He who knew no sin, he became a sin offering on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in him.
Commentary
5:3 Found naked- Those who will be rejected by Jesus at the final judgment will be “found naked” (Rev. 16:15) because they have not developed anything in God’s account. In a similar figure, Jesus tells us to store up treasure in Heaven with God by the way we live and think today (Mt. 6:20).
5:9 At home or absent- Whether we are dead or alive at the return of the Lord Jesus. If we die, we will be unconscious until He returns; but effectively, our death will be His return for us, because the next conscious moment for us will be the resurrection and being with the Lord Jesus.
5:10 We will receive the result of how we lived our lives in a bodily form- either we will remain mortal and die “the second death”, or we will not be affected by the second death (Rev. 2:11) because we will be given an immortal body like Jesus now has. Note we will exist eternally in a bodily form; all existence spoken of in the Bible is bodily existence.
5:17 We are “in Christ” by baptism into Christ (Rom. 6:3-5), and thus become part of a new creation, of which Christ is the creator.
5:20 We are Christ’s representatives on earth, and so when people meet us, they meet Jesus. Our behaviour must be appropriate to this (6:3,4).
