2 Corinthians 13:7-14: a reflection

7Now I pray to God that you do no evil; not that we may appear approved, but that you may do that which is honorable, though we may seem to have failed. 8For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth. 9For we rejoice when we are weak and you are strong. We also pray for this: your becoming perfect. 10For this cause I write these things while absent, that I may not deal sharply when present, according to the authority which the Lord gave me for building up and not for tearing down. 11Finally, brothers, rejoice! Be perfected. Be comforted. Be of the same mind. Live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you. 12Greet one another with a holy kiss. 13All the saints greet you. 14The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s love, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.

Paul ends his often difficult letter to the Corinthians not with a final rebuke but with warmth and blessing. Rejoice, he urges them; aim for restoration; comfort one another; agree with one another; live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. And then he closes with words that have blessed the church ever since: The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Notice the fullness of the blessing Paul pronounces. He does not name one gift but three, drawn from the three persons of the Godhead: the grace of the Lord Jesus, God's unmerited favor shown in Christ; the love of God, the Father's deep love that sent the Son; and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, the shared communion and companionship the Spirit gives. Grace, love, and fellowship, from Father, Son, and Spirit, the whole of God's blessing gathered into one.

That benediction is not merely a formal sign-off; it names what God gives his people, and what we can pray for one another and receive. The grace of Christ that saves us, the love of God that holds us, the fellowship of the Spirit that companions us, all of it is ours, and all of it is meant to be received and enjoyed. Let this be more than words at the end of a letter. Receive, and pray for others to receive, the grace of the Lord Jesus, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, the full blessing of the Triune God, given to be with you always.

Lord, Paul's blessing gathers the whole of your gift to your people: the grace of the Lord Jesus, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. Let this be more than words to me. Grant me the grace of Christ that saves, the love of the Father that holds me, and the fellowship of the Spirit that companions me. Help me receive the full blessing of the Triune God, and to pray it over others. May your grace, love, and fellowship be with me always.