PRINCETON CHRISTIAN CHURCH
2 Corinthians 12:1-10 21 July 2024
This morning, we will examine a passage that speaks to the heart of every believer who has ever faced a thorn in the flesh, a challenge, a trial, or a difficulty that seems insurmountable.
This passage holds a potent message for us all. It invites us to see our trials, our thorns, not as stumbling blocks but as stepping stones. It encourages us to embrace our weaknesses, for it is in our weakness that we are made strong through Christ’s power.
I must brag, although it doesn’t do any good. I’ll go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. I know a follower of Christ who was snatched away to the third heaven fourteen years ago. I don’t know whether this happened to him physically or spiritually. Only God knows. I know that this person was snatched away to paradise where he heard things that can’t be expressed in words, things that humans cannot put into words. I don’t know whether this happened to him physically or spiritually. Only God knows. I’ll brag about this person, but I won’t brag about myself unless it’s about my weaknesses. If I ever wanted to brag, I wouldn’t be a fool. Instead, I would be telling the truth. But I’m going to spare you so that no one may think more of me than what he sees or hears about me, especially because of the excessive number of revelations that I’ve had. Therefore, to keep me from becoming conceited, I am forced to deal with a recurring problem. That problem, Satan’s messenger, torments me to keep me from being conceited. I begged the Lord three times to take it away from me. But he told me: “My kindness is all you need. My power is strongest when you are weak.” So I will brag even more about my weaknesses in order that Christ’s power will live in me. Therefore, I accept weakness, mistreatment, hardship, persecution, and difficulties suffered for Christ. It’s clear that when I’m weak, I’m strong.
The preacher Charles H. Spurgeon once said, "Trials teach us what we are; they dig up the soil and let us see what we are made of." Indeed, trials and thorns reveal the depth of our faith, the strength of our resolve, and the authenticity of our commitment to Christ.
Accepting Thorns as Purposeful
In the passage we read, Paul talks about a thorn in his flesh. He doesn't tell us what this thorn is.
It might have been a physical ailment, a personal struggle, a recurring temptation, or a difficult circumstance. Whatever it was, it was a source of great discomfort for him, and he wanted to get rid of it.
He pleaded with the Lord three times to take it away. But God's response was not what he expected.
Instead of removing the thorn, God said to him, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.'
That was not the answer Paul expected or wanted
Why would God allow His servant to continue suffering? Why wouldn't He just remove the thorn and make things easier for Paul?
But when we look closer, we see that there's a profound truth hidden in this response. God was teaching Paul and us that our thorns, our trials, and our difficulties are not just random occurrences. They are not meaningless. They are not punishments. There is a purpose for the existence of thorns in our lives.
We must understand the purpose and value of thorns in our lives in several ways.
1. We need to understand that our thorns are allowed by God for a purpose.
They are not accidents. They are not mistakes. God, in His infinite wisdom and sovereignty, allows them in our lives for a reason. And that reason is always for our good and His glory. This doesn't mean that our thorns are pleasant. They are not something we welcome in our lives.
Far from it. They can be painful, frustrating, and confusing. But they are purposeful. They are part of God's plan for our growth and sanctification.
2. Secondly, those thorns are opportunities for us to experience God's grace.
When Paul pleaded with God to remove his thorn, God didn't say, 'Okay, I'll take it away.' Instead, He said, 'My grace is sufficient for you.'
We might look toward God and say, “SAY WHAT?”
But then, we realize that God doesn’t deal with frivolous words.
In other words, God was saying, 'Paul, you don't need relief from your thorn. What you need is My grace. And My grace is more than enough for you.'
That is a powerful reminder for us. When we experience thorns in our lives, our natural instinct is to pray for relief, for deliverance. We know God can take care of all our needs, so we go to Him for relief.
But we also know that God knows what is best for us. What we really need is not relief but grace. God's grace sustains us, strengthens us, and carries us through our trials.
3. Thirdly, we must understand that our thorns are how God's power is made perfect in us.
God said to Paul, 'My power is made perfect in weakness.' This is a counter-intuitive truth. We usually think of power as being made perfect in strength, in our own ability, in our own competence. But God's power is made perfect in our weakness, in our inability, in our incompetence.
When we are weak, helpless, and at the end of our ropes, God's power is most clearly seen in us. That's when we are most dependent on Him, most open to His work, and most ready to give Him all the glory.
4. The fourth way we must understand the purpose and value of thorns in our lives is that our thorns are reminders for us to boast about our weaknesses.
Paul said, 'Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.'
This is another counter-intuitive truth.
We usually boast about our strengths, achievements, and successes. But Paul says we should also boast about our weaknesses.
Why?
Because our weaknesses are not obstacles to God's power. They are conduits of God's power. When we acknowledge our weaknesses, admit our need for God, stop relying on our strength, and start relying on His strength, that's when His power rests on us. That's when we experience His power in a way we never could if we relied on our strength.
We must not despise our thorns. We must not resent them. We must not wish them away.
Instead, we must see them for what they are:
Inconvenience with a purpose and most often a tool of guidance.
We need to accept them, embrace them, and learn from them.
Then we can allow them to drive us deeper into God's grace, to make us more dependent on His power, and to make us boast about our weaknesses. As we learn to boast about our weaknesses, we will find that our thorns are not hindrances to our spiritual growth but, in reality, growth boosters.
They are not obstacles to our joy but avenues. They are not detriments to our faith but instruments. For when we are weak, then we are strong.
Paul's thorn wasn’t a random affliction.
It was allowed by God for a specific purpose. This is true in our lives as well.
Every trial we face, every thorn that pierces us, is allowed by God.
While that difficult time may seem to be a sign of His absence, it is a testament to His presence and work in our lives. This understanding does not make the thorn less painful but gives it purpose and meaning.
During our trials, we are not left comfortless.
God's grace is continuously available to us.
Paul pleaded with the Lord three times to take away his thorn, but God's response was not removal but reassurance.
He said to Paul, "My grace is sufficient for you." This is a promise that we can hold onto in our own trials.
And what is the greatest benefit there? It is that God's grace is not a one-time offer. His grace is a constant supply. It is sufficient to meet us in our deepest need, to comfort us in our pain, and to carry us through our most challenging trials.
The trials we face are not just about us; they are about God's power being made perfect in us.
Paul writes, "For when I am weak, then I am strong." To our human minds, that statement may not make good sense.
But this is known as a paradox. We can only understand the statement, " When I am weak, then I am strong,” in the light of God's power.
Our trials, weaknesses, and thorns are displays of God's power. When we are weak, we are not powerless but powerful in Him.
In the original Greek text, the word for 'thorn' is 'skolops.' This term denotes a sharp, pointed object, often used to describe a stake or a splinter. This is the only place in the New Testament where this word is used.
When we think of a sharp, pointed object, we immediately think of something that will cause us pain and discomfort when we come into contact with it.
Yet, in the midst of this discomfort, we are called to boast about our weaknesses.
This is not a call to celebrate our failures or to wallow in our shortcomings.
Rather, it is a call to acknowledge our dependence on God, to recognize that our strength comes from Him, and to give Him the glory for the work He is doing in and through us.
And then, our trials serve as reminders.
They remind us that we are not self-sufficient; we need God.
They remind us that we are not invincible; we are vulnerable.
And they remind us that we are not the center of the universe; --- God is.
These reminders are not meant to discourage us but to ground us in the reality of who we are and who we are.
Our trials, our thorns, are not obstacles to our spiritual growth; they are opportunities for it. They are not signs of God's absence but testimonies of His presence. And they are not indications of our weakness; they are platforms for His power.
Our thorns move us into the understanding that everyone has thorns – all of different types and degrees.
They visit any and all of us – regardless of our backgrounds, our cultures, or our circumstances.
We all have our thorns, our trials, our tribulations. But it is through these thorns that we find our affiliation in Christ through faith.
They are not accidents or coincidences. They are divinely appointed and purposefully placed in our lives by a loving and sovereign God.
This is a truth that we find repeated throughout the scriptures.
In the book of Job, we see a man who received his share of thorns of unbelievable magnitude.
Yet, even amid his suffering, Job declared, "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him" (Job 13:15). This is the essence of our affiliation with Christ through faith. It is a trust that transcends our circumstances, a faith that is not swayed by the winds of adversity.
Our thorns, our pains, are the means God uses to awaken us and draw us closer to Himself. This is the nature of our affiliation in Christ through faith. It is a relationship that is deepened and strengthened in the trials of our lives.
As painful and challenging as they may be, they are not without purpose. They are not meaningless or futile. They are divinely purposed, carefully woven into the tapestry of our lives by a wise and loving God.
This is a truth that we find echoed throughout the scriptures. In the book of James, we are exhorted to "consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance" (James 1:2-3).
Finally, we find a powerful truth in the words of the Apostle Paul.
He wrote, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13).
Our thorns, our trials, are not obstacles to our faith.
They are opportunities to strengthen our faith, deepen our reliance on Christ, and solidify our trust in Him.
This is the nature of our affiliation with Christ through faith. It is a strength not derived from our efforts or abilities but from Christ, who strengthens us.
So, as we navigate the thorns of life, remember that our thorns are not random or arbitrary. They are divinely appointed and purposefully placed in our lives by a loving and sovereign God.
Remember that our thorns are God's megaphone, the means through which He awakens us and draws us closer to Himself.
Remember that our thorns are not without purpose. They are divinely purposed, intricately woven into the tapestry of our lives by a wise and loving God. And let us remember that our thorns are not obstacles to our faith.
In all those times, let us not shy away from our thorns, let us not run from our trials, and let us not avoid our tribulations.
Instead, let us embrace them, face them with courage and faith, and see them for what they truly are—stepping stones to a deeper, stronger, more vibrant affiliation in Christ through faith.
And let us act, not in our own strength, but in the strength of Christ who strengthens us. For when we are weak, then we are strong.
Remember that our trials and tribulations aren't meant to break us but to build us up.
They are not meant to discourage us but to develop us. They are not meant to weaken us but to make us strong in Christ.
And that's the beauty and the strength of our faith.
It's not about being perfect or having it all together.
It's about leaning on the One who is perfect, who holds everything together.
God's grace is sufficient for us, and his power is made perfect in our weakness. So, let's not shy away from our thorns and trials. Instead, let's embrace them, knowing that they're opportunities for God's power to be displayed in our lives. Let's boast in our weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on us. For when we are weak, then we are strong.
And remember, you're not alone in your struggles. We're all in this together. We're a family, a community of believers bound together by the love of Christ. Because we are a family, we support each other, encourage each other, and lift each other up in prayer. We are the hands and feet of Jesus to each other and to the world.
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