Paul has been writing to the church in Corinth, speaking to them about how they have had those that have been in sin but that he has been rebuking them, calling them to repentance, to unity, and to a demonstration of love for one another and toward Paul. Then, at the end of the letter, in verse 11, he says:
Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.
2 Corinthians 13:11
Paul had just told the Corinthians that they should examine themselves to see if they are in the faith, and that they should realize that, if they pass the test of their examination, they have Christ living within them! So now, he says that they should rejoice! They are rejoicing that, even though they have all of these problems that Paul has been addressing, they have Christ within them and God is moving mightily amongst them.
But the reason that I wanted to highlight this particular passage is what he says next. He say that they should strive for full restoration. Based on the context in that he says that they should encourage one another, be of one mind, and live in peace, I believe that means that he is speaking of restoration between the believers within the church. He says that they must strive to achieve this restoration. So often, we deal with discord through distance or anger, but the truth is that striving is required. To restore relationships, whether as a husband and wife, as friends, or even as brothers and sisters in Christ, it requires effort. It requires work. Blood, sweat, and tears. Probably a lot of each! Paul calls the Corinthians to strive to reach the point of restoration…something that I believe that he calls each of us to do within our relationships today.