The Thorn In The Flesh

The Thorn in the flesh

2 Cor. 12:1-10

Good Morning everyone…Let’s pray

Prayer-

Father, in the powerful name of Jesus, we come this morning and we are wanting you to do something fresh and new! It is our prayer that each time we gather here in your name, we want to see you do something extra-ordinary.

As we look at the thorn in the flesh of the Apostle Paul, may we deal with the thorns that gather in our own lives. We want to know what to do with them and how to deal with them and to be able to live our lives in spite of the thorns. In Jesus Name Amen.

Thorns are mentioned in the Bible over 50 times. The most famous reference is the crown of thorns put on Jesus our saviors head as he went to the cross. The pain, suffering, and torment that Jesus went through.

Weeds, thorns, and thistles are the curse for man’s sin. He must till the land.

The thorn of the text this morning is the Apostle Paul looking at things in his life that gave him some challenges.

Anybody on their last nerve about praying for something they been going through and felt like heaven has not answered your prayers. The message is for you today.

Text- 2 Corinthians 12:1-10 (Don’t read yet)

Allow me first set this text up-

Apostle Paul after his conversion on the road to Damascus was a new creation- his priorities totally changes and he went from a religious man to a man that was on mission for Jesus.

To have an encounter with Jesus, where Jesus himself made himself known and said why do you persecute me Saul?

To have a relationship with the savior so intense and personal that he is willing to suffer and die for the cause of Christ. Many say it but few live it!

To fight false prophets and false teachings head on …knowing that the persecution he is getting is coming from the pits of hell to stop what God has started.

You would think that a man or women of God doing the things that Paul was doing would never have been given a thorn to deal with but would be protected and shielded from things like that in his life.

Paul writes that “he has been given a thorn in the flesh” because of the “abundance of the revelations”…Did it come from God? Or was this thorn personally sent from Satan to impend what Paul was doing with his ministry?

“At least I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of revelations”

The Greek words used here means that it is beyond the measure of human ability. It is higher, better, top-notch, unequaled, unrivaled by any person or thing.

He says that he was supremely called.

He says that he is revealing things that have been veiled before his revelation of truth was shown to him.

He has asked God to take this thorn in his life and he is saying that God has said no so that he will not be puffed up and think that what God was going to do through him would be of his own ability and his own strength.

When you see a man or women of God doing great things for the Lord, I want you to understand that they have a testimony for God because things are not always good and life is not as easy as it looks.

At Some point, they have paid a price to be God’s servant and messenger.

All that glitters is not gold!

Let’s read the text and then let the text speak to us this morning.

2 Corinthians 12:1-10 Read

Don’t read through this too fast- Paul is talking in the third person here-

I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up in the third heaven. (He was talking about himself)

14 years earlier he had an experience that changed his life forever.

Jesus, John, and Apostle Paul were allowed to see and experience heaven and come back.

According to scripture-

1st heaven- Atmosphere and Clouds.

2nd heaven- Stars and Planets, outer space

3rd heaven- Throne room of God where God dwells.

He says;

I don’t know if it is a vision.

I don’t know if I had an out of body experience.

All I know is that I was in paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that I am not permitted to tell anyone.

He says…I would be a fool to boast about my accomplishments compared to being shown the things that God has shown me.

I have been shown the paradise of heaven and I cannot even tell people what I have seen.

Remember this is the guy that in Philippians 3:5