October 1992
ALL-SUFFICIENT GRACE
2 Corinthians
12:7-9
DIFFICULTIES
COME TO THE BEST OF CHRISTIANS (vs.7). I think we would be agreed
that the apostle Paul was one of the most outstanding Christians who
ever lived. God was pleased to do many wonderful things through
him. And he had many privileges and pleasures as a faithful
servant of the Lord. But he was not exempt from problems.
There was a "thorn in the flesh" which he later saw as having a good
purpose ("lest I should be exalted
above measure"), but from which he wanted deliverance at the
time.
This same pattern is often seen in our
lives. God has a plan for us which can be worked out only through
difficulty, pain, disappointment, etc. We are less than thrilled
when these things enter our lives, often forgetting that God oversees
everything that happens to us. We strain against the thing God
has allowed to come. Sometimes we even feel it is a sign that God
is not fair or does not love us. We become very unhappy with our
circumstances, and wish they were different.
WE OFTEN PRAY FOR THEM TO BE REMOVED
(vs.8). Paul was a man of prayer, so he quite naturally took his
difficulty to the Lord. He said he "besought the Lord thrice, that it might
depart." The word translated "besought" is a very strong
word, indicating earnest prayer. Paul probably refers to three
separate times when the difficulty got to a point that he simply
couldn't handle it any more. Each time this happened, he entered
a season of very serious, specific prayer about the matter.
Much as Paul did, we pray earnestly when our
difficulties get to be more than we can handle. And the prayer we
pray is the same as Paul's. We want God to remove the
difficulty. We want to be delivered out of the unpleasant
circumstance. And the sooner the better.
GOD OFTEN GIVES US GRACE TO OVERCOME INSTEAD
(vs.9). The first two times Paul prayed, there was no
answer. The third time he prayed there was an answer, but it was
not what he expected. Instead of taking the thorn away, as Paul
had asked, God left the thorn and pointed to a resource Paul already
had: "My grace is sufficient
for thee, for my strength is made perfect in weakness."
Paul understood and accepted God's will for his life concerning this
"thorn," and even welcomed the chance to demonstrate the sufficiency of
God's grace.
Sometimes when we pray, God makes it plain
that He is not going to take away the thing that distresses us.
He speaks to us about grace to bear the burden and even rise above
it. This is no less an answer than a removal of the
difficulty. It is just different.
It is as if there is a large rock in the
stream, so the progress of our boat is stopped. We desire for the
rock to be removed. Sometimes that happens. On the other
hand, sometimes God leaves the rock, but raises the level of the water
so we can proceed in spite of the obstruction. Either way, we
should thank God for the answer, and proceed on our way rejoicing in
our Lord for His all-sufficient grace.
This article is a
gift to the body of Christ. Use it any way that will help people
and honor Him.