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Thursday, May 15,
2008
A Sufficient Grace
2 Corinthians 12:1-5 It is not expedient
for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the
Lord. (2) I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the
body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God
knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven. (3) And I knew such a
man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;)
(4) How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words,
which it is not lawful for a man to utter. (5) Of such an one will I glory:
yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities. (KJV)
Paul the Apostle, a man God used to write
a good portion of the New Testament, a man who had some up close and
personal experiences with the Lord; from his conversion on the road to
Damascus as well as what we see described in the above verses. What some
refer to today as an out of body experience, which could have occurred when
Paul was stoned and left for dead which back in his time was usually the
case with those that suffered a stoning, we see Paul didn’t base his
strength or glory in his abilities and boast about these experiences, but
rather in his infirmities or weaknesses he did glory in the Lord. While
many base their strength in what they claim they are accomplishing for the
Lord, Paul realized that there is strength in humility; the more he stayed
out of the way, the more the Lord was able to work in and through Him. So
what source are you drawing your strength from today? Is it according to
your abilities or are you drawing strength from a well of living waters
which should be springing up and flowing through you?
2 Corinthians 12:6-10 For though I would
desire to glory, I shall not be a fool; for I will say the truth: but now I
forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to
be, or that he heareth of me. (7) And lest I should be exalted above
measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a
thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be
exalted above measure. (8) For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that
it might depart from me. (9) And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient
for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly
therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ
may rest upon me. (10) Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in
reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's
sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong. (KJV)
Did you ever imagine that your strength
would be made perfect in weakness? Talk abut a total contradiction to what
we have been taught all of our lives, especially when it deals with the
image of what a real man is; take it like a man, be strong. How many action
movies have you seen growing up where the main character is depicted as a
humble servant, one that takes pleasure in weaknesses and infirmities? Most
of these depictions are those of someone who is muscle bound and bullet
proof, someone who relies on their own strength and abilities and certainly
not on anyone else. Paul realized that when he was weak, then he was
strong. Our carnal minds are what is enmity with God and what leads to
doubt and confusion with those that rely on their own strength. If you want
something to glory in, how about our infirmities; how the grace of God
allowed someone like me into His kingdom and to be a partaker of His
inheritance despite myself and all the ways I thought I could help Him out.
Are you being led by the Spirit of God today or are you the one trying to
lead and guide Him, telling the Lord how He should be providing your way of
escape from whatever may be a thorn in your flesh, or as some refer, a pain
in the backside? When you share the word of God with people are you able to
give an accurate account of what the Lord has done in your life or are you
like so many who act like they have done so much for the Lord and that He
literally couldn’t operate without their help?
James 1:2-5 My brethren, count it all joy
when ye fall into divers temptations; (3) Knowing this, that the trying of
your faith worketh patience. (4) But let patience have her perfect work,
that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. (5) If any of you lack
wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and
upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. (KJV)
When you have prayed about a situation
that requires attention in your walk, which at times is painful, do you
wait on the Lord and His way of escape or do you try to figure out an
alternate plan based on your own thinking? This is the trial of your faith,
an area where the Lord is working in you and desiring to see you move
forward in your walk, while at the same time the enemy is doing all he can
to keep you in bondage. So when the enemy comes in like a flood and tries
to keep you from being set free in an area you have been seeking an answer
in, the question is, ‘now will you endure patiently and wait on the Lord to
find the answer and renew your strength or will you take an alternate route
and end up on a dead end path’? Do you let the peace of God rule in your
decisions and don’t make a move until you have that peace and confidence or
do you look for a quick fix that is less hassle? Remember, there is only
one way, by the truth that will set you free and allow you to partake of
the life of God which is given to those that walk by faith and not sight.
1 Corinthians 10:13 There hath no
temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who
will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the
temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (KJV)
Remember the old song ‘make the world go
away’? While many look for quick fixes and escapes from reality the Lord
teaches us that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. The
more you rely on the Lord and the power of His might, the more you learn to
deal with life in this fallen world and become an overcomer despite the
daily temptations that surround you. So whatever the thorn in the flesh
Paul was referring to, whether it was something from his past that was
pulling him down or the devil reminding him of his shortcomings, Paul
patiently endured and waited on the Lord for His way of escape and learned
to bear it and not let it stop him. So this thing you have sought the Lord
for, are you waiting and enduring patiently on His way of escape or are you
plotting your own way which will eventually lead you right back where you
started from? Do you glory in your weaknesses, a phrase I like to use is
‘despite myself God still considers me one of His’, or are you one of those that think they are
doing God a favor by what they are doing for Him?
Galatians 4:12-14 Brethren, I beseech
you, be as I am; for I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all. (13) Ye
know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at
the first. (14) And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not,
nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.
(KJV)
You know, believe it or not, the people
God used throughout the Bible are no different than you and I; but like we
just read we all have the same common human infirmities to work through and
overcome. Despite how mankind teaches that strength is something derived
from our own doing, the truth be known, that when we are weak it is then
that we truly are strong in the Lord and the power of His might. While many
may think God used Paul because of his own abilities the truth be known, it
was just the opposite; Paul realized there is much strength in humility.
1 Timothy 1:12-14 And I thank Christ
Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting
me into the ministry; (13) Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor,
and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in
unbelief. (14) And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith
and love which is in Christ Jesus. (KJV)
Talk about a possible thorn or thorny
issue to have to deal with; the very people you persecuted in the past are
the ones you are now preaching to. God did not have Paul cut and run from
the situation, but rather gave him the strength to deal with it so that
what was once a hindrance to the body of Christ had now become a real asset
to the body. So what are you dealing with today and what source will you
draw your strength from? His grace is sufficient to make a way of escape no
matter what the circumstance is.
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