¹¹Our mouth has spoken freely to you, O Corinthians, our heart is opened wide. ¹²You are not restrained by us, but you are restrained in your own affections. ¹³Now in a like exchange—I speak as to children—open wide to us also.

Paul lays himself bare before the Corinthians; if there is any wall between them and him, it is not because of the apostle’s holding back. He doesn’t tiptoe around the issues or leave any proverbial skeletons in the closet  not dealt with. Rather, he pours out his heart to them in an unmistakable expression of his affection for them. No matter how far they stray from a holy walk, no matter how much difficulty or disorder exists among them, no matter how selfish and self-centered they are, no matter how much they abuse the Lord’s Supper and each other, Paul still loves them. He won’t easily give up in his quest to help them right the ship and continue on in the Lord.

The apostle simply asks them to do the same with him. While they may have responded somewhat to his corrective teaching (as evidenced earlier in 2 Corinthians), they held back their “affections” from him. One senses a grudging compliance rather a joyful willingness to do what is right.

Paul assumes a fatherly approach to them. Never mind that some may not accept this approach, for instance, those who sided with Cephas or Apollos (1 Cor. 1:12). But the one who led them to Christ and established the church there simply acts in the truth of his relationship to them:

For if you were to have countless tutors in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. (1 Cor 4:15)

There are times when a parent does not argue with his children about authority issues but simply speaks with parental authority. This is not a put-down, but Paul puts it out there: “I speak as to children.” This is a parent-to-child interaction, and Paul, as a father, models what he wants the children to do. He opened himself up to them and continues to do so with surprising candor in this letter to them. He doesn’t expect them to open up to him without himself leading the way.

Much is said today about Christians being transparent and authentic. It’s rather easy to expect that in others, but it really begins with me—and you. Easier said than done! It means bringing the “skeletons” out of the closet, allowing others to speak into our lives and relationships. And it means being brutally courageous enough to speak about our own struggles as Paul has done.

Lord, let the open heart in my Christian relationships begin with me.