As the only record of the first thirty years of the early Church, the book known as The Acts of the Apostles, follows the ministry of the apostles, with a particular focus on St. Peter in the first half, and St. Paul in the second half. The author of the book is St. Luke the Evangelist, "the beloved physician" as St. Paul described him (Colossians 4:14), who was a companion of the apostles during several missionary trips; it was the second historical account written by St. Luke to a man named Theophilus (assumed to be a Roman officer), with the first account being the Gospel of St. Luke (after which Theophilus is presumed to have converted to Christianity).  This book, inspired by God, records for us the establishment and early growth of the Church, and relates several conversions (Ethiopian eunuch, St. Paul, and Cornelius). Without this work, we would be without an answer to "what happened next" after the gospel accounts, we would not have the context to help us understand many of the writings of St. Paul, and we would not have the benefit of seeing the Holy Spirit's work in the ministry of the apostles, as they fulfilled God's directive and theme of this book: "You shall be witnesses to Me" (Acts 1:8).

Corinth was a very important commercial center which made it easy for it to be a place for all sorts of vice and evil. Also, its closeness to Athens added the problem of intellectualism. Greece was known for its philosophers and philosophy. St. Paul established the church of Corinth during his second missionary trip. Unfortunately, the immoral environment found in the city adversely affected the church. Reports of the problems within the church reached St. Paul's ears, and so he wrote an earlier letter (1 Corinthians) to answer these reports, correcting sinful practices and refuting false doctrine. In this second letter, written only a few months after the first, St. Paul, as a caring father, wanted to make sure that his rebukes in the earlier letter were received positively, and that it actually encouraged them to repent. He also focuses his letter on defending his apostleship, rebuking ungodly behavior that still persisted in Corinth, and to encourage them to collect money for the needy in Jerusalem. This letter is one that is quite beneficial to those serving others for God, as it explains how service should be, as we learn from the example of St. Paul.  This Orthodox Christian commentary is derived from a series of sermons given by His Eminence Metropolitan Youssef of the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States, where His Eminence has been serving since the early 90s.