Daily Dose of Hope
February 16, 2026
Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1
Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, We are so grateful that your mercies are new every single morning. No matter what our week or weekend has been like, we can come to you today afresh and anew. Lord, forgive us for our many failings. We want to do better. In these next few moments of silence, Lord, hear our prayers...In Your Name, Amen.
Welcome to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional and podcast that goes along with the daily Bible reading plan at New Hope Church in Brandon, Florida. We have been journeying through Paul's letters. On Friday, we completed our fourth pastoral letter and today we begin our fifth, 2 Corinthians.
While 2 Corinthians is the second letter we have that Paul wrote to Corinth, there are hints in the text about other letters (at least one); most likely got lost so we don't have access to them. Paul established the church at Corinth on his second missionary journey and you can refresh your memory on that in Acts 18. After he leaves Corinth, it doesn't take long for him to hear rumors that things are going south there. That's when he writes I Corinthians. Just to review, in I Corinthians, Paul provides a strong rebuke of the Corinthians about their worldly aspirations, their arrogance, and their shallow view of Christian leadership. This didn't serve to endear Paul to the influencers in the Corinthian church. In fact, they got really mad. Many in the church rejected his teachings and his authority.
Thus, Paul visited them personally in what he called his painful visit. He references it in the very first verse of 2 Corinthians 2 (we will read I tomorrow). He was addressing head-on the conflict and immorality in the church. After that, he wrote a second letter, which I mentioned earlier, and Paul references that a few times in chapter 2. Apparently, after the visit and letter, many of the Corinthians were repentant and felt terrible about what happened to Paul and the way he was treated.
2 Corinthians (likely his third letter) is Paul's response to those feelings. He wants to reassure the people and restore his relationship with the church while also offering them wise counsel and not back down from previous statements. In today's Scripture, Paul is reminding the Corinthians of God's faithful promises. God has anointed us and put his seal on us. From antiquity to present times, a seal indicates ownership. Our bodies are not our own but belong to God. And God has put his Holy Spirit within our hearts as a deposit, or a guarantee, of what is to come. The promise is that we will be with Jesus at the resurrection and that we will continue to be made into his likeness in the meantime.
How do we know that the Holy Spirit is living within us? How do we know that we belong to God? Think back to your own childhood. How did you know that you belonged to your earthly parents? Besides having the same name, there is an awareness and even a confidence that they are your parents and you are their child. This is obviously an imperfect example because while some earthly parents are responsible, protective, and loving, others are not. But we can know that God our Father is faithful, trustworthy, protective, and loving.
Do you know that God is your Father? And, do you know that the Holy Spirit is within you?
Blessings,
Pastor Vicki
