2 Corinthians 12:1-10
I like the way the last sentence of the paragraph was phrased – “For when I am weak, then I am strong.” The title of the study is the Truth about Grace.
Let us define Grace.
- Unmerited favour accessible and supplied through Jesus Christ’s sacrifice and ascension
- The empowering presence and the enabling power of God to redeem the lost through Jesus Christ.
In all other religions of the world, there is nothing like grace. Grace is given through Jesus Christ – hence our salvation and strength must never be seen as what we can make happen. This validates the statement of Christ in John 14:6. Let us divide the passage into meaningful sections for our study:
- 2 Corinthians 12:1-6 – Paul in attempt to defend his apostleship was careful not to exalt himself but spoke of his encounters with God as if he was speaking about someone else. He did not want to appear as self-exalting, pompous or over-familiar with God before his hearers. This is an image of a person who understood his salvation and assignment – Ephesians 2:5-8 | Acts 20:24. Judaizers (as with some other religions) focused on ‘honour from men’ – 2 Corinthians 3:1, but Paul with all his encounters with the Lord resolved to giving God the glory! Paul exercised caution and did not share this experience with no one. Paul understood that it was the ‘Grace’ of God at work in his life – Romans 12:3 | 1 Corinthians 15:10.
- 2 Corinthians 12:7-8 – Someone wrote that God knows how to balance our lives with successes and challenges. With Paul’s encounter – his ministry could have been ruined; God allowed those challenges to
keep him humble – James 4:6 | 1 Peter 5:5. There are issues in our lives that are God-given to keep us Holy, Humble and Hungry for more of God. Amidst all these, the Bible encourages us to ‘count it all joy’ – James 1:2-3. Paul’s thorn in the flesh was given to prevent him from sinning. The spiritual experiences he had could easily inflate his ego beyond control. God humbled Paul.
- 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 – No one knows what the ‘thorn in the flesh’ was but God made available sufficient help for Paul’s assignment. Even though he was weak, yet he was strong because God’s GRACE to overcome was sufficiently supplied irrespective of his weakness. Another acronym for Grace is God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. Even though satan was permitted to buffet (strike, beat) but Grace for every assignment was available and sufficient. Same goes for you if you can put your focus on the Lord Jesus Christ. Sufficient Grace will negate or drown every force of weakness or affliction.
Discussion:
- Does God use suffering as a tool to build godly character in us? Romans 5:1-5 | 2 Corinthians 4:7-11.
- Justification is a concept of Grace. An act of grace where a sinner receives pardon and God accepts him as righteous. Romans 5:1-2 | 2 Corinthians 5:21.
- Can the enemy afflict a believer (not a backslider/unbeliever) without the permission of God? The popular belief is that everything that Job and Paul went through was permitted by God – Job 1-2 | Matthew 26:42.
Prayer.
