This week’s “Come, Follow Me” study guide covers 2 Corinthians 8-13, which includes the apostle Paul’s writings on grace, the third heaven and God’s “unspeakable gift.”

Church News recently dug through archives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to learn what leaders and scholars have said about these chapters.

2 Corinthians 8

“The Prince of Peace, the Prince of Glory, the Lord Jesus Christ came down to live among His people and share in their poverty and suffering so that He might be a more compassionate king. As the Apostle Paul said, ‘Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich’ (2 Corinthians 8:9). …

“In other words, one of the reasons Christ came to earth was to experience temptation, pain, sorrow, and suffering so that He might be a more compassionate and perfect King. …

“Although Christ had perfect compassion in his premortal role as Jehovah, His coming to earth and suffering personally in the flesh was essential to His atoning sacrifice.”

— Elder Bruce D. Porter in the December 2009 Ensign article, “The Prince of Glory”

“In the little kingdom of a family, each spouse freely gives something the other does not have and without which neither can be complete and return to God’s presence. Spouses are not a soloist with an accompanist, nor are they two solos. They are the interdependent parts of a duet, singing together in harmony at a level where no solo can go.

“Each gives abundance to the other’s want. As Paul wrote, ‘For I mean not that other men be eased, and ye burdened:

“But by an equality, that … your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want: that there may be equality’ (2 Corinthians 8:13–14).

— Elder Bruce C. Hafen and Sister Marie K. Hafen in the August 2007 Ensign article, “Crossing Thresholds and Becoming Equal Partners”

2 Corinthians 9

“With the Apostle Paul, we declare, ‘Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift’ (2 Corinthians 9:15).

“But what is our gift in return?

“The gift He asks of us cannot be bought with money. We will not find it in an online store. We cannot ask someone to make it for us. We cannot leave it under the Christmas tree.

What the Savior asks of us is our heart. …

“To give Him our heart, we need to first accept His help. Giving the Savior our whole heart means coming unto Him with a broken heart and a contrite spirit of repentance (see 3 Nephi 12:19). Only then can we fully receive His gift of the Atonement and qualify for God’s gift of eternal life. As we willingly repent, we show our love and gratitude for God’s gift and for the Savior’s sacrifice in our behalf.”

— Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf in the December 2021 Liahona article, “The Greatest Gifts of Christmas”

“Paul’s third missionary journey ended at Jerusalem, probably about A.D. 61. The book of Acts tells of his arrival at Jerusalem but says little about why he had come. (See Acts 21:17–19.) … 

“However, in Romans 15:24-31, Paul explains at some length that his purpose in going to Judea was to take a welfare donation from Macedonia and Achaia to the ‘poor saints which are at Jerusalem.’...

“The welfare aspect is further developed in 2 Corinthians 9:1-15, in which Paul urges the Corinthian saints to get their donation ready beforehand so that he could obtain it when he arrived.

“The emphasis on these things brings us to another significant feature. Acts 11:27-30 makes scant reference to Paul as a welfare worker and mentions one occasion when with Barnabas he took a donation to the saints in Jerusalem. This was about A.D. 41 or 44 and was possibly Paul’s earliest experience with welfare as a Church program. However, as indicated above, his epistles give evidence that in the years that followed he became a diligent welfare worker, collecting donations throughout Galatia (see 1 Corinthians 16:1), Macedonia (see Romans 15:25-26) and Greece (see 2 Cor. 9:1-5) for the Judean saints. …

“From the book of Acts we would scarcely know of Paul’s great diligence in welfare activity — but from his epistles we learn of his several welfare collections and of his strong persuasions to the branches of the Church concerning this part of his ministry.”

— Robert J. Matthews, former dean of Religious Education at Brigham Young University, in the April 1977 New Era article, “St. Paul Writes About the Church”

This week’s “Come, Follow Me” study guide includes the apostle Paul’s writings on grace, the third heaven and God’s “unspeakable gift.”

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

2 Corinthians 10

“Generally speaking, pictures that get posted on social media tend to portray life in the very best and often in even an unrealistic way. They are often filled with beautiful images of home decor, wonderful vacation spots and elaborate food preparation. The danger, of course, is that many people become discouraged that they seemingly don’t measure up to this idealized virtual reality. …

“This apparently is not just a sign of our times but, measuring the words from Paul, was in times past as well: ‘But they measuring themselves … and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise’ (2 Corinthians 10:12). …

“As you can see, we need to be mindful of the hazards and risks, including idealized reality and debilitating comparisons. The world usually is just not as bright as it appears on social media.”

— Elder Gary E. Stevenson in the April 2018 Liahona article, “Let Us Share Our Knowledge of a Savior”

“The Apostle Paul warned that people ‘measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise’ (2 Corinthians 10:12).

“We should also pay little attention to those who do the comparing for us and tell us what they think we’re worth. …

“Here is the key: it is the customer who looks at the price, evaluates the product and decides if it is worth the cost. And in this life there is only one Buyer of consequence.

“Our Savior, Jesus Christ, evaluated ‘the product’ — us, both collectively and individually. He knew of the depth of iniquity that would be connected with the human family. He understood the awful, inestimable price He would be required to pay, ‘which suffering caused [Him] even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit’ (Doctrine and Covenants 19:18).

“And knowing all, He still decided I was worth it.

“No matter how short I think I fall in comparison to others, no matter how little value others see in me, Jesus felt I was worth the price He had to pay. …

“If you doubt your value, go to the Buyer to get the only product review that matters.”

— Adam C. Olson in the September 2012 Liahona article, “What Am I Worth?”

2 Corinthians 12

“The poet Robert Bly wrote, ‘Where a man’s wound is, that is where his genius will be.’ Our wounds inform our experience and shape our journey. They teach us things we can’t learn in a classroom. Our moments of brokenness inspire us to turn to the Savior for healing, to humble ourselves, to rely completely on Him. They allow us, bit by bit, to become more like Him.

“Jesus Christ would not be the Savior if He had not endured His brokenness. And you would not be the glorious person you are becoming if you were not required to endure your own. When you recognize that, you can say with Paul, ‘Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me’ (2 Corinthians 12:9). You can finally thank God for the gift of your brokenness.”

— Maryssa Dennis in the August 2018 Ensign article, “The Beauty of Broken Things”

“There should never be just two options: perfection or giving up. When learning the piano, are the only options performing at Carnegie Hall or quitting? No. Growth and development take time. Learning takes time. When we understand grace, we understand that God is long-suffering, that change is a process and that repentance is a pattern in our lives. When we understand grace, we understand that the blessings of Christ’s Atonement are continuous and His strength is perfect in our weakness (see 2 Corinthians 12:9). When we understand grace, we can, as it says in the Doctrine and Covenants, ‘continue in patience until [we] are perfected’ (Doctrine and Covenants 67:13).

“Grace is not a booster engine that kicks in once our fuel supply is exhausted. Rather, it is our constant energy source. It is not the light at the end of the tunnel but the light that moves us through the tunnel. Grace is not achieved somewhere down the road. It is received right here and right now.”

— Brother Bradley R. Wilcox in the September 2013 Ensign article, “His Grace Is Sufficient”

“In his second letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul told of a vision of a man ‘caught up to the third heaven’ (2 Corinthians 12:2). Speaking of the resurrection of the dead, he described ‘bodies’ with different glories, like the respective glories of the sun, moon, and stars. He referred to the first two of these as ‘celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial’ (see 1 Corinthians 15:40–42). For us, eternal life in the celestial, the highest, glory is not a mystical union with an incomprehensible spirit-god. Rather, eternal life is family life with a loving Father in Heaven and with our progenitors and our posterity.”

— Then-Elder Dallin H. Oaks in the January 2011 Ensign article, “Fundamental to Our Faith”

“Wherever you live on this earth and whatever your life’s situation may be, I testify to you that the gospel of Jesus Christ has the divine power to lift you to great heights from what appears at times to be an unbearable burden or weakness. The Lord knows your circumstances and your challenges. He said to Paul and to all of us, ‘My grace is sufficient for thee.’ And like Paul we can answer: ‘My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me’ (2 Corinthians 12:9).

“As members of the Church of Jesus Christ, we may claim the blessings promised in the covenants and the ordinances we received when we accepted the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

— Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, October 2007 general conference, “Have We Not Reason to Rejoice?”

This week’s “Come, Follow Me” study guide includes the apostle Paul’s writings on grace, the third heaven and God’s “unspeakable gift.”

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

2 Corinthians 13

“The scriptures teach us that ‘in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established’ (2 Corinthians 13:1). The same principle can be applied to our efforts in seeking truthful and accurate information. While we can easily find answers to important questions with just a simple web search, verifying the accuracy of that information takes time and effort. Additionally, there is also a danger in relying on just one voice, especially in a time when media bias seems more prevalent and when more and more individuals are looking to promote certain agendas. We can be better informed if we seek out multiple sources from different channels, including books, newspaper articles, academic studies and other trusted experts.”

— Kristoffer Boyle, associate professor of communication at Brigham Young University, in the October 2022 Liahona article, “Finding Truth in the Misinformation Age”

“Jesus issued the challenge ‘What think ye of Christ?’ (Matthew 22:42). The Apostle Paul challenged the Corinthians to ‘examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith’ (2 Corinthians 13:5). All of us should answer these challenges for ourselves. Where is our ultimate loyalty? Are we like the Christians in Elder Neal A. Maxwell’s memorable description who have moved their residence to Zion but still try to keep a second residence in Babylon?

“There is no middle ground. We are followers of Jesus Christ. Our citizenship is in His Church and His gospel, and we should not use a visa to visit Babylon or act like one of its citizens. We should honor His name, keep His commandments, and “seek not the things of this world but seek … first to build up the kingdom of God, and to establish his righteousness’ (Matthew 6:33, footnote a; from Joseph Smith Translation, Matthew 6:38).”

— Then-Elder Dallin H. Oaks, October 2011 general conference, “Teachings of Jesus”

“Paul declares that ‘in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established’ (2 Corinthians 13:1).

“The Bible had stood for centuries. It is a precious and wonderful book. Now there was a second witness declaring the divinity of Christ. The Book of Mormon is the only book ever published, of which I know, that carries in it a promise that one who reads it prayerfully and asks concerning it in prayer will have revealed to him by the power of the Holy Ghost a knowledge that it is true (see Moroni 10:4).”

— President Gordon B. Hinckley, October 2007 general conference, “The Stone Cut Out of the Mountain”