But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12: 9, 10, NIV.
Holy Father, we come before You to learn Your will for our lives. Please remain with us and teach us about Your “amazing grace.” In the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
As we continue in a spirit of thanksgiving, we come to one of the gifts of God without which none of us can be saved – His wonderful, Amazing Grace! The first time I heard about grace, as a very young girl, just getting to know the Lord, I heard it defined as, “unmerited favor.” And I am sure that in its broadest sense that is exactly what it is. Nevertheless, as the years have gone by, and I have come to know more about the love and mercy of God, His grace seems to be so much more!
Paul introduces the topic of grace in this chapter, by relating in the third person, his experience. He talks about his visions, and of being “caught up” to heaven and hearing “inexpressible things”. In order for him not to become puffed up God gave him a “thorn” in his flesh. This thorn, whatever it was, made him “weak.” So he cried to the Lord, to remove the thorn, once, twice, three times. Instead of removing the thorn, God gave Paul, the ability to bear it. He gave him grace.
Many of us have been given “thorn[s] in the flesh” in order that we might not become too big in our own sight; and therefore become unusable, by God. Some of these thorns may take rather unlikely, embarrassing, and, or, uncomfortable forms. What is of greatest consolation to the Christian, is that God has not left us to deal with our “thorn” by ourselves. As He said to Paul, He says to all of us, “My grace is sufficient!”
After Paul became aware that God was not going to take away the thorn, but would provide him with the strength to bear it, suddenly, the thorn did not seem so bad after all. He was now willing to boast in his weakness, in order to show forth God’s amazing grace in his life. He realized that in his weakness, God’s grace could make him strong!
I am deeply impressed with Paul’s understanding of grace, especially because before becoming a Christian, he was of the sect of the Pharisees. Their idea of salvation was so steeped in self-sufficiency, that it is amazing that anyone belonging to that sect could go from salvation by works, to salvation by grace, through faith, in Christ Jesus! But that is just another proof of the power of grace, it changes our way of thinking, which produces the change in our lives. His grace empowers, enables, and ennobles!
Once our lives have been touched by God’s grace, the hardships of life, no longer seem unbearable. Personally, when I stop to contemplate the fact that “I am not worthy of the least of [God’s] favor,” His grace looms brighter than ever! Therefore, like the apostle Paul I can look at difficulties, insults, and persecutions, as inconsequential, because by God’s grace, I can bear all things!
Grace, is one of our greatest reasons to be thankful!