Introduction: Our Vain Obsession with Strength
We live in a world that worships at the altar of strength. From the moment we rise to the moment we sleep, we are bombarded by a single command: Be strong. Look upon the images that flicker before our eyes, listen to the philosophies of this age. The message is unchanging: Be successful. Be independent. Project an image of confidence, and whatsoever you do, hide your flaws. Never let them see you falter. Here in our city, we call it madiskarte—that tireless ability to overcome, to manage, to handle things on our own. We exalt the strong, and we quietly conceal our weakness, hoping no one will notice.
But what shall we do when our weakness cannot be concealed? What happens when the infirmity is a body wracked with sickness? When the necessity is a wallet that is empty? When the distress is a soul overwhelmed with sorrow? We view these things as marks of failure, as reasons for shame.
Today, we look to God’s Word to find a truth so profound, so contrary to the wisdom of this world, that it can only be divine. We look to the Apostle Paul, a chosen vessel of God, a man who stood before kings, who was caught up into the third heaven. Surely, a man of such spiritual stature was a pillar of unshakeable strength. Yet this great apostle harboured a deep and tormenting weakness. He called it a "thorn in the flesh." And in his pleading for relief, the Lord answered him not with removal, but with a revelation. A revelation that turns our understanding of power completely upside-down.
He learned that God's strength is not a reward for our strength, but a gift that rushes in to fill the vacuum of our weakness.
I. The Pain of the Thorn (Our Experience of Infirmity)
Before we can grasp the promise, we must first sit with the pain.
A. The Thorn in the Flesh
In the seventh verse, Paul speaks of this trial: "...there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure." For centuries, saints and scholars have wondered what this thorn might have been. Was it a sickness of the eyes? A tormenting temptation? The bitter sting of betrayal from those he loved?
The Holy Spirit, in His wisdom, did not permit the exact nature of this thorn to be recorded. And why? So that you and I could see our own struggles in his. Your thorn may be a sickness that lingers. It may be a sorrow that will not lift. It may be a financial lack, a family trial, a profound loneliness. It is that persistent, humbling, painful splinter in your life that reminds you every day that you are not self-sufficient. It is your own personal infirmity.
B. The Plea of a Broken Man
Consider Paul’s immediate and deeply human response. Verse 8: "For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me." This was not a passing request. To beseech the Lord is to beg, to plead with desperation and humility. Thrice he pleaded, like his Master in the Garden of Gethsemane. "Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me."
This gives us comfort, does it not? It is no sin to despise our infirmities. It is not a lack of faith to cry out to God for deliverance. Paul, the spiritual giant, was on his knees, begging the Lord to change his circumstances. But the answer he received, while not the one he wanted, was the one he desperately needed.
II. The Sufficiency of Grace (God's Unchanging Answer)
God's answer to Paul echoes through the ages and lands in our hearts today with life-changing power.
A. The Personal Promise: "My Grace is Sufficient for Thee"
The Lord speaks in verse 9: "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee..." Let us hold this precious promise and examine its facets.
1."My grace": The grace of which He speaks is not a mere feeling or a vague concept. It is His own divine influence upon the heart, His unmerited favor, His active, enabling power. It flows not from earth, but from the very throne of Heaven.
2. "is sufficient": Notice the verb tense. It is. Not "it will be" when your circumstances change. Not "it might be" if you pray harder. Right now, in this moment, as you sit here with your thorn, His grace is enough. It is the daily manna from heaven, perfectly measured for this day's trouble.
3. "for thee": This is not a general promise for the masses. This is an intimate whisper from the Creator to His child. He says it to Paul, and He says it to you. My grace is sufficient for thee.
B. The Divine Principle: "My Strength is Made Perfect in Weakness"
God then reveals the divine principle, the sacred logic of His Kingdom: "...for my strength is made perfect in weakness." To be made perfect means to be brought to its intended completion. God's omnipotent strength finds its most complete and glorious stage not in our triumphs, but in our trials.
Think of a beautiful stained-glass window in a great cathedral. In the dark, its glory is hidden. It is just coloured glass. But when the sun shines through it, its beauty is revealed in a breathtaking display of light and colour. Our weakness, our infirmity, our transparency—it is what allows the glorious light of Christ's strength to shine through us for all the world to see.
III. The Purpose of Weakness (The New Perspective of Faith)
This revelation from God causes a revolution in Paul's soul. His entire perspective is born anew.
A. From Pleading to Glorying
Hear the transformation in his voice: "Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities..." What a change! The very thing he begged God to remove has now become the source of his glory. To "glory" in something is to find your supreme honour and joy in it. Paul is not glorying in the pain itself; he is glorying in what the pain makes room for. He has traded his shame for God's glory, understanding that his weakness is the necessary vessel for God's strength.
And why? "...that the power of Christ may rest upon me." The Greek here for "rest upon" means "to pitch a tent upon." Paul is saying, "I will rejoice in the very territory of my weakness, for it is there that the glorious power of Christ has chosen to come and make His dwelling place."
B. Taking Pleasure in the Paradox
This new perspective allows him to say something truly astonishing in verse 10: "Therefore I take pleasure..." He finds joy, not in the suffering, but for Christ's sake, in the outcome of the suffering. He lists the very things we spend our lives trying to avoid:
* In infirmities: Our limitations, our frailties, our weaknesses.
* In reproaches: The insults, the shame, the ridicule we face.
* In necessities: The times of desperate lack and poverty.
* In persecutions: The opposition we face for the name of Jesus.
* In distresses: Those moments we feel cornered, trapped, with no way of escape.
Paul says he takes pleasure in these things, for in each one, he is emptied of himself and is therefore made strong by the power of Christ. This leads him to his triumphant conclusion: "...for when I am weak, then am I strong." This is the Christian's secret. This is the holy paradox.
Conclusion: To Glory in Your Infirmities
So I ask you today, what is your infirmity? What is the thorn in your flesh that you have besought the Lord to remove?
The Word of God comes to you today not with a promise of removal, but with a promise of His presence. He says to you, as He said to Paul, "My grace is sufficient for thee."
Will you continue to despise your weakness? Or will you, by faith, begin to see it as the holy ground where the power of Christ will make its home in your life? Will you learn to glory in your infirmities, not because they are pleasant, but because they are the very thing that qualifies you to receive His all-sufficient grace and His perfect strength?
The world says your weakness is your shame. The Word of God declares that your weakness is the stage for His glory. Let us therefore no longer pray only for our burdens to be lifted, but let us also pray for the grace to bear them, that the world may see not our strength, but His.
