¹¹For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. ¹²So death works in us, but life in you.

As we pointed out earlier, this second letter of Paul’s is his most auto-biographical. He gives full implications to what he wrote in his first letter, “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1, also 4:16). He was not alone, for the “we” includes at least Timothy (2 Cor. 1:1). But others are included, as he wrote to Timothy, “[A]ll who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (1 Tim 3:12).

He had just previously outlined some of those sufferings and persecutions (2 Cor. 4:8–10). And he will refer to them again later in this letter (2 Cor: 6:4-10, 11:23-29), but his focus now is on the purpose and benefits of the suffering. He sees with the eyes of faith what others see with eyes of flesh. Paul didn’t blame Satan, and he didn’t rail against those who persecuted him. Rather he saw the difficulties of serving God as tools in the Master’s hand to bring about a continuous transformation (“sanctification” if you will) in his life. What he really wanted was to live the life of Jesus.

To be sure, when we arrive at our eternal destination, we will become like Jesus when we see Him as He really is (1 John 3:2). Then we will be fully changed, with our new, resurrected bodies, when sin will be done away with completely. But for now, Paul wanted to experience the life of Christ while still in his “mortal flesh,” that is, in the pre-resurrected state. Yes, he looked forward to being with the Lord (2 Cor. 5:8). But he has only this one life to live now, and he wants that to be the life of Christ in him.

Interestingly, he writes, “So death works in us, but life in you.” The Corinthians are the fruit of Paul’s ministry; they make it all worthwhile for Him. Because he was willing to go through tremendous hardships, including the prospect of death, they are now the beneficiaries of life in Christ.

We have no record that the apostle Paul ever asked God to spare him the hardship. He fully embraced the attitude of the original twelve apostles, “[A]fter calling the apostles in, [the Jewish council] flogged them and ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and then released them. They went on their way … rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name” (Acts 5:40-41). How often do we pray asking God to relieve us of persecution and hardships, when our Master is wanting the life of Christ to be manifested in us, for the life-giving benefit to us and also to others through us?

Lord, help me speak of Your glory even when I am in the midst of difficulties.