“A Thorny Dilemma”
Text: 2 Corinthians 12:1-10
7-7-2024
Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. I doubt that anyone who has read through the New Testament would conclude that St. Paul was a weak man—not physically or mentally. He traveled extensively throughout the Roman Empire, thousands of miles, and mostly on foot. He survived a shipwreck. Right after the shipwreck he was bitten by a poisonous snake and survived. He was beaten numerous times and once the Jews attempted to stone him to death. He had been jailed in a cold, dark dungeon, living to tell about it. And as far as his intellect goes, he was extremely intelligent and a bold speaker. He reasoned with the philosophers of his day at Athens, trying to teach them about Christ. He successfully debated highly-trained Jewish rabbis. He even defended the Gospel in court when he was taken before 2 Roman Governors and the Emperor himself.
Does that sound like a weak man? Not hardly. Paul could have bragged about his abilities and his high calling. Or that he had met the risen Lord Jesus on the road to Damascus when he was converted. But the epitome of his bragging rights was that he had been given a vision of heaven from God. Speaking of himself in the 3rd person, that’s what Paul is referring to in the first 6 verses of our Epistle. And yet, after all these powerful things, he declares he is weak. What was the source of his weakness? He says it was a “thorn” in his flesh. Seriously? Here is this mighty man of God and yet he’s plagued by a simple “thorn”?
Yes, but it was a necessary “irritant.” You see, sinful humans are prone to boasting about their abilities and experiences. It puffs them up with pride. And God knew that if this sinful tendency had a chance to run its course in Paul’s heart it would ruin his powerful ministry for Christ. So, God allowed Paul to experience this thorn in his flesh. And it was meant to deflate that human pride so that God’s power could shine through.
Over the centuries many scholars have speculated what Paul’s thorn in the flesh was. Some have said that he stuttered, others that he suffered from epileptic seizures. And still others guessed it was an eye disease or the debilitating effects of malaria. What that disability was doesn’t matter. What’s more important is to see its purpose. Whatever it was, it made Paul physically uncomfortable, like the way a sliver in your finger does. Paul felt that it was distracting him from preaching the Gospel. So he prayed 3 times for God to remove this bothersome thorn. God’s answer was “No.” But it was much more than that. It was “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
Do you realize what God was saying there? He was telling Paul that this disability was not inhibiting his effectiveness as a Gospel messenger. It was enhancing it. Whenever Paul felt inadequate as a preacher, that was right where God wanted him to be because then the apostle would have to rely solely on God to make the message powerful. With his pride deflated he could step out of the way so that the mighty power of God’s Word could be boldly displayed. That’s why Paul says “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” That right there is a God-pleasing kind of pride.
Have you ever stopped to consider your own “thorns” of the flesh? How is God using your physical disabilities, no matter how large or how small, to deflate your pride so that His power can shine through you? Sadly, we often fail to see God’s purpose in allowing these thorns to torment us. But if we understood His goal behind these troublesome things then we’d be more like Paul and actually delight in them.
In order to do that, we first need to realize something about these afflictions in our lives. It’s significant that St. Paul calls it a thorn because a thorn stuck in your flesh is not fatal. Yeah, it’ll make your finger feel uncomfortable and tender but it’s not going to kill you. It’s just a nagging inconvenience. But how often don’t we act like cry-babies thinking our thorns in the flesh will be the end our lives? That thorn could be a chronic backache, a sore knee, migraine headaches, foot problems, hearing loss, a toothache, eye issues, or any other nonlethal ailment. They are nowhere near deadly. But as Satan prods us with these thorns, do we sometimes use them as an excuse for not serving the Lord? Do we act like they are inhibiting our Christian witness? God wants you to see it a different way. He wants you to see these thorns as something positive which can enhance your sharing of the Gospel. Because when we feel weakened by these thorns, when we feel inadequate, that’s when the power of God shines through us the brightest.
You know, when I start to feel sorry for myself as I endure the pain or inconvenience of my thorns in the flesh, it humbles me when I think of fellow Christians who have a far more serious affliction than I have, and yet they don’t complain. They serve the Lord and use their weakness to declare the power of God. Longer ago, I read an amazing book called “The Hiding Place.” I highly recommend it. It’s the story of a woman named Corrie Ten Boom. She was a Christian who lived in Holland during WWII. When the Nazis invaded their country, her family risked their lives to hide many Jews. But they got caught. And Corrie, along with her sister Betsie, ended up in a nasty, dirty, concentration camp.
Like the rest of the prisoners, these women were malnourished, mistreated, overworked, and forced to live in a cramped and filthy barracks. On their first night in these foul living quarters, they discovered it was infested with fleas. Corrie couldn’t see how they would be able to survive. What a horrible thorn in the flesh! But her sister Betsie saw things differently. She saw things the way St. Paul did. She insisted that they give thanks to God for all His gifts... even the fleas. Corrie did, but couldn’t understand how God could use nasty pests to bring glory to His name.
Later, God showed her the answer. It was forbidden for the prisoners to own a book, and yet, Corrie had smuggled in a Bible. And believe it or not, they had regular Bible classes with the other prisoners in their barracks. But they couldn’t figure out why the guards never came in and caught them doing this. Then, one day, Betsie discovered the answer. She overheard a guard refusing to go into the barracks and the reason why was because of the fleas. God was using this pesky little bug, this thorn in the flesh, in order to give them the freedom to share the Gospel with others who needed it so desperately. Corrie and her sister realized the truth of what God had said to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
You see, when we begin to grasp the truth of that for ourselves, then we can begin to delight in our thorns of the flesh. In fact, like Corrie, Betsie, and St. Paul we can begin to see them as a blessing. They came to realize that whenever they were feeling the weakest, that’s when God’s power was the most active in them.
Strength in weakness. Sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it? When you think about it, though, that’s God’s way of doing things. He didn’t send His Son into the world with power and might, but humbly as a weak little baby. Jesus had all His divine power at His disposal. Yet He chose not to use it. Instead, He humbled Himself by going to the cross. He didn’t appear to be powerful hanging there helplessly. No, He appeared weak. From our human perspective it looked like Jesus’ death would ruin God’s plan of salvation. But the opposite was true. Through Christ’s supposed weakness God crushed the power of sin, death, and the devil. And through His weakness, believers are now able to receive the power of God to live out our lives in this evil world. You received that power when the Holy Spirit took up residence in your heart at your Baptism.
When we look at our thorns of the flesh in this way, then they become nothing but an inconvenience. In fact, they can be seen as a blessing which brings about the greater purpose of God in our lives. And we can actually thank God for these thorns because they remove our human pride and allow God’s power to be exhibited in our lives, for His glory and our eternal good. Amen.
Soli Deo Gloria!