Note 21 at 2 Cor. 7:14: Paul had praised the Corinthians to Titus before he left for Corinth. The Corinthians had not let Paul down.

The Corinthians were the most carnal church that we have record of in scripture. They had strife (1 Cor. 3:1-4) and immorality (1 Cor. 5, 7) running rampant in the church. Believers were suing each other (1 Cor. 6). The Lord's supper had turned into a drunken party (1 Cor. 11:20-30). And the gifts of the Spirit were being grossly misused. Yet Paul had bragged on them to Titus.

This wasn't just Paul's human love for the Corinthians. This was the supernatural love of God (see note 4 at Jn. 13:35, p. 483) flowing through Paul for the Corinthians. Likewise, God loves us when others wouldn't and when we don't love ourselves. God's love is unconditional.

Note 22 at 2 Cor. 7:14: Paul had said some very hard things to the Corinthians in his previous letter (see note 21 at this verse), but they were all true. However, his boasting about them also proved to be true. How could this be? How can you be wrong in many areas and still receive praise at the same time?

Most people give praise to others directly proportional to their performance. That's not the way God deals with us. "Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart" (1 Sam. 16:7). Paul expressed this same attitude to the Corinthians when he said, "Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh. . ." (2 Cor. 5:16). Even though the Corinthians were not acting properly, Paul believed they had a good heart and his praise for them was based upon his knowledge of their heart. It takes grace to deal with people based on their intentions, and not just their actions.