And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12: 7-10, NKJV).
Dear Heavenly Parent, we thank You for Your matchless grace. We pray that we may never take it for granted, but will always be willing to extend it to others as You have been willing to extend Your grace to us. For this we give You thanks in the name of Jesus the Christ. Amen.
The Grace of God could be thought of as a “fix-it-all.” I cannot think of one situation, problem, or burden, that the grace of God cannot fix or lift. In our Scripture for today it was grace that kept Paul from being defeated by the “thorn in his flesh.” This thorn was so heavy to bear that Paul pleaded with God, not once, not twice, but three times. Perhaps three is a symbolic number to show us how we should pray without ceasing: “Ask,” “Knock,” “Seek.”
The thorn in the flesh is not the main feature of the text. It is the Grace of God. You see my friend, it is grace that comes to our rescue when we have come to the end of our rope. When we have come to the fork in the road – the decision between pride “exalted above measure” or infirmities “a thorn in the flesh,” only grace provides the strength for us to choose the latter.
Only grace enables us to say what the world would consider foolishness: “Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
It is noteworthy that Paul was aware that God had allowed “a messenger of Satan to buffet” him, and that it was not God who was buffeting him. How often in life we blame God for doing to us things that are only allowed by Him, and for our good. The Adversary is pleased when we blame God for what he does to us. But if we can trust God through the buffeting period there is a lot we can learn. Then, like Paul we will be able to say: “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”