Yesterday I discussed what Paul's thorn might have been, and the conclusion was that Paul's thorn most likely was opposition in various forms from people who did not want him to preach the gospel.
The next obvious question is; What's MY thorn? What's YOUR thorn in the flesh? Or rather, do I have a thorn in my flesh, and what do I do about it?
Well, lets first see what Paul did with his thorn. It's obvious that he was afflicted, and wanted to get rid of his affliction, and it says in 2 Cor 12:8; "Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me". He asked the Lord to free him from "this thing" (NKJV). What was the Lord's response? "And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness" (v.9a). And Paul's response was: "Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me (v.9b). When God did not remove this "thorn in his flesh", he most gladly endured it, and saw that WITH this thing Christ's power in him was greater than without it.
But there's one more verse here, let's read verse 10; "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." (My emphasis).
Do we see a broken-down man with no strength? No, even though he faced infirmities, reporaches, needs, persecutions and distresses for Christ's sake, he was not a broken-down man. He was strong in the Lord. And that's the kind of strength the Lord wants us to have also. Not strength in our own might, but strength in Him. For God's strength to be great in us, we need to let go of our own strength, we need to be dead to our own selves, and alive to God.
What is my thorn? What is your thorn? I don't know what your thorn is, but I know that if you and I want to live 100 % for Christ and be all He has created us to be, we WILL meet opposition, we will encounter persecutions and be distressed and we might also experience infirmities of some kind. The clue is, however, to never see our "thorn" as a hindrance for our growth in Christ, but as a stepping stone for growth. Want more of God's strength in your life? His strength is made perfect in (your) weakness His strength is made perfect in (my) weakness. For Him to shine through you and me, we need to diminish, to tone down your own selves. Yes, we need to die to our own selves, and through our death, Christ will shine through. More of Him, less of me. That's the blessed life we want to live.
Ingen kommentarer:
Legg inn en kommentar