Farewell

Farewell?

(fare thee well)

TEXT:

2 Corinthians 13:11 Finally, brethren, farewell1. Be perfect2, be of good comfort3, be of one mind4, live in peace5; and the God of love and peace shall be6 with you.

I. The Fare Well is Presented—A Command

1farewell— cairete (÷áéñåôå), be exceedingly joyful. Present, active imperative—denotes a command.

II. The Formula is Prescribed—A Course

A. Be Perfect

2be perfect— katartizesye (êáôáñôéæåóèå), to strengthen, perfect, complete—make one what one ought to be. Present, passive imperative—literally, “be matured”.

• By good (right) preaching

• By the right examples

• By the right motives

B. Be of Good Comfort

3be of good comfort— parakaleisye (ðáñáêáëåéóèå), to encourage and strengthen by consolation. Present, passive imperative—literally, “be encouraged and strengthened by consolation.”

• By a comforter

• As a comforter

• With The Comforter

C. Be of One Mind

4one mind— auto froneite (öñïíåéôå), the same mind.

• The same goals

• The same Book

• The same doctrines

D. Live in Peace

5 live in peace—eirhneuete (åéñçíåõåôå), literally cultivated peace

• In the House of God

• Before the eyes of men

• Unto the honor of God

III. The Future is Promised—A Conclusion

6shall be— estai (åóôáé), shall be. The tense is very important here. Future indicative—denotes a matter of fact. When used with the future tense, the action that will happen is so sure to occur that it is already considered to have occurred. (Example: “The sun will rise tomorrow.”) It literally assumes that the occurrence is as good as completed—it a complete surety.

Point!—God’s presence with us and power through us is determined by our relationships with each other and with Him.