When The Thorn In The Flesh Becomes A Gift

A lot of us have a prayer we’ve repeated so many times we can say it without thinking: “God, take this away.” We go to 2 Corinthians 12:7–10 because Paul is honest enough to admit he begged for relief too, and wise enough to share what happened when the answer wasn’t removal. The “thorn in the flesh” is painful, personal, and persistent, but it also exposes something we don’t like to confess: success and spiritual gifts can grow a quiet pride, and God loves us enough to keep us grounded.

We talk through the heart of the passage, including God’s reply: “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” That line reframes everything. Grace is not just a concept; it’s sustaining power when your body feels frail, when your mind feels pressed, when you’re facing reproach, persecution, need, or distress. We unpack what it means to stop relying on our own strength, to surrender control, and to let God’s strength be the thing people actually see.

We also explore Paul’s surprising conclusion: he chooses to boast in weakness so the power of Christ may rest on him. We connect that to real life, including those narrow seasons where it feels hard to breathe, and the simple act of holding on to Jesus like the woman who reached for the hem of His garment. If you’re wrestling with your own thorn in the flesh, this conversation offers Christian encouragement, biblical perspective, and a steadier way to pray.

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Transcript

The Thorn That Keeps Us Humble

Asking God Three Times

Seeing Life From God’s View

My Grace Is Sufficient

SPEAKER_00 0:42

We're going to look at a passage of scripture, not a new one. Everyone has likely heard this one at one time or another. We're going to look at the idea when a perceived negative is actually a positive. And so let me say that again. When a perceived negative is actually a positive. And we're going to be focusing on 2 Corinthians chapter 12, and we're going to look between verses 7 and 10. So of course a little short time tonight. 2 Corinthians chapter 12, verses 7 through 10. I'm going to read those first from the New King James Version. From that verse 7, it starts, and lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of these revelations. Concerning this thing, I pleaded with the Lord three times, that it might depart from me. And he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you. For my strength is made perfect in weakness. Therefore, most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in need, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. Paul had a very interesting thought process as he was going through what he would have likely initially thought of as a negative, that was actually a positive. And when we look at how he viewed and how his outlook changed, if you will, from what he was requesting, we get to see a slight insight into what may likely be some things that we go through from time to time. Even in the Bible itself, and in the printing, sometimes they call this the thorn in the flesh. And without even trying to imagine what it might be, the fact that it was called a thorn means that it was something that wasn't pledgerable. It was something that was that we generally would want to get rid of real fast. He wanted to get rid of it so fast that he or so badly, I should say, so intently, that he asked God to remove it three times. Now remember, Paul could have this open relationship with Christ, for example, with the Lord, to be able to request these things. And yet he requested it three times. And uh prior to this passage, prior earlier verses, Paul had talked about these amazing revelations that he had received. These things that no other man, if you will, at his time in particular, had seen. And he starts off with that statement: and lest I should be exalted above measure by the very things, those wonderful, amazing things that he was shown. And that statement, lest I should become exalted, lest I should build myself up beyond, because of all these special things God has shown me, lest I should get a big head, we might say, in today's uh vernacular, lest I start thinking of myself highly than I ought to think of these wonderful things that God has given me, of these wonderful reveals, these revelations that God has given me. When we're looking at our level, lest I should get a big head based upon all the various skills or talents or so forth that God has given me, because he's given them to each of us, different, different ones, but giving them to each of us, lest I should be get a big head because I can do this well, or I can do that well, or I can do this and the other well. A thorn in the flesh was given to me. Now he says, unless, he's showing that, and less is L E S T here. When he's saying, 'un lest here,' saying, so that, so that this won't happen, so that I won't get a big head. A thorn, God allowed a thorn in the flesh, was given to me. Not a thorn to his spirit, if you will, a thorn in the flesh, something that would affect his very flesh, his body, if you will. And if this thorn is described as a messenger of Satan to buffet me. Now we may not use that term too much, but uh the idea of a messenger of Satan to buffet me, something, something that will kind of keep me in check sometimes. It's it's a wrap on it's a wrap with the fist, if you will, if if you think of it that way. That was given me uh to keep me from getting a big head based upon these wonderful gifts that God had given me. Uh, lest I be exalted above measure. Don't think of myself too highly. But even with that, Paul said, concerning this very thing, that that thorn in the flesh, I pleaded with the Lord three times. I asked the Lord three times that it might depart from me. We may think about Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane. Christ asked three times, prayed three times to the Father that this cup passed from me. And uh and yet he he he after he finished, he said, or as he was finishing each time, he said, Not my will, but your will be done. This is a this is a perspective change, the way we think about things. When we think about things that we may want God to remove from our lives, uh, and it maybe doesn't seem like it's going or not going fast enough or what have you, we always need to remember that we need to think about it from God's perspective. Because what Paul's explaining here is God's perspective. God, I don't want you to be exalted above measure, so I'm gonna allow this thorn in the flesh to keep you. Here's the word to keep you realizing that I am the one working through you and not you doing it yourself, to keep you cognizant of the fact that all of that came from me, and using it to my glory and honor should be your first goal, but also making sure that you don't forget that it's still me. And so the answer comes to my grace is sufficient for you. My grace is sufficient, my grace. That that that gift that I give you, my grace is is is something that will be enough, it will be, it will satisfy you, it will keep you while you are dealing with that thorn that I'm going to lead with you because that thorn is useful to you. It keeps you humble. See, God needs a humble servant to work through. God can't work with a hard-headed servant or a servant who thinks he or she is bigger than they are. God needs someone who realizes that every time, every success that you may have, or what have you, it's always the curve the expected response of thank you, Lord, not look how big I am. My grace is sufficient, my unmerited favor. You didn't deserve this, but I give you this to keep you moving along because it is sufficient for you, for sufficient what for sufficient for you whenever you have to deal with that thorn in the flesh. Because from God's standpoint, in here, that thorn is necessary in his case, and sometimes in our cases, to keep us humble, to remind us that even in the hard times of dealing with the thorns in the flesh that we may have, God's grace is still carrying us through from moment to moment to moment to moment. And when Paul thinks about the fact that my grace is sufficient to you for you, for my strength, there's the key phrase, my strength, not your strength. God's strength is made perfect in our weakness when we stop relying on us and relay our hearts, our burdens, our minds on Him. His strength, which is way bigger than ours, which is unlimited, if you will, is made complete. It's complete in our weakness when we give it up, when we stop trying to control everything, when we stop trying to be everything, and we rely on him to do whatever he wants us to do, then his strength is made perfect in our weakness. So, what's Paul's thought process at that time? He uses that word, therefore. Therefore means I'm about to make a conclusion on what I just thought about, what God revealed to me, what I am considering based upon what I had originally requested. And then stop the requesting, apparently, because it said three times. That means there's a limit. Stop requesting, says, you know what? Instead of the constant take this away, take this away, take this away, when you're not taking it away, I'm going to, for whatever time I have it, most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, my weaknesses.

unknown 11:54

Wow.

Boasting In Weakness For Christ

Holding On Through Narrow Places

Prayer And Final Blessing

SPEAKER_00 11:55

So that the power of Christ may rest upon me. I want to be so, I want to be the I want the strength of God, not my own strength. My strength will fail me eventually. But I want the strength of God. And therefore, whatever infirmities he allows me to go through and deal with, I'm going to boast in that and say, look how good God is. He's still carrying me through and making me bigger and bigger, if you will. That the power of Christ may rest upon me. He continues that thought process in verse. He says, Therefore, I take pleasures in infirmities, as we just mentioned. Those little weaknesses that we all will have sooner or later. If you don't have them yet, just wait. Because they're going to come. I take what where is our mind go in those infirmities, those diseases, those sicknesses, those weaknesses, uh, those frailties, if you will, of the of the human body which will come. Where does our mind go when we have to deal with those? Are we relying more and more on God's strength, or are we too busy complaining about the fact that we have the infirmity? But he didn't stop there. But I also take pleasure in reproaches. Now, that's interesting, one as well. He says, and all of this he's going to lead to saying for crisising. But those reproaches are things that are like insults, injury, if you will, uh, and those things directed towards him, insolence. He said, Yep, I'm going to take pleasure. Uh one's the definition is mental injury, injury and wantonness of its of its infliction being prominent. I'm gonna take, I'm gonna take that too. And necessities. Necessities, of course, are those uh distresses, those uh must-needs, those things, whenever I have to deal with that, those can be imposed either by circumstances or by law of duty regarding one's advantage, custom, argument, calamities that happen, distresses that occurs, being in straits and dire straits, as we say from time to time. But then he also says, in persecutions, when people try to hurt me, in particular for your sake, I'm gonna take it for I'm gonna take a thought process in that too. In those persecutions, I'm not gonna let them pull me away, I'm gonna let them pull me closer to you. Also, in distresses, and here we're dealing with the concept of anguish, narrowness. You ever feel narrowness, uh uh extreme affliction, something that uh think about being in a narrow place that you have to squeeze through and it feels like it's becoming overwhelming. When those things happen, those are all those are things that are going to come as well. He says, All those I take pleasure in those things for Christ's sake, because those things will show my personal weakness, but when I am weak, when I acknowledge that the best, my best is is not even the works of God, that are works of God because He's so He's so great, He's He's so amazing. When I realize that and I hang on to Him during those rough times, and prayerfully we all are doing that, hanging on to Him during those rough times. I think about that lady who was grabbing on to the hem of his garment. She was, we would say, not lost hope, because if she lost hope, she wouldn't have grabbed on to it. But when she said, He's my only hope, she grabbed onto that garment. She says, When I grab onto that garment, even in my weakness, I know I will be made whole. Let's keep holding on, let's keep reaching out to the father, especially during those times when it feels like everything has gotten so narrow that even it's hard, it's hard to breathe. Because that same father who allowed us to go through whatever it was will use those circumstances to build us stronger and strengthen our faith to hold to him harder and harder, stronger and stronger, and never let go. The beauty of that is that when we learn or as we continue to learn to do that, believe it or not, we help other people. When people see that you're going through a rough time and yet you're still holding on to the hem of his garment, when you're still keeping the strength of your faith in Christ moving, going, and and and in particular, growing, then they look at you and say, It's possible. This can really happen. I can go through hard times as a child of God better than someone going through hard times outs outside of Christ, because I am attached to the master. I'm in the master, and the master is in me. God has placed his spirit in me, and when and the fact that he has done that, that spirit signifies that I am his. Nothing is too hard for him. So even if I need to go through this, that, and the other, when I'm weak, I'm strong because I am part of him. And in his strength, not in my strength. I am the person that says, use me even during this situation to be a blessing to others, and as he does, give me the wisdom to understand why I may be in this, but more importantly, that you're still with me in this, you're in the ship with me, and you control the ship, and better than that, you control the elements around the ship. If we start thinking that way, whenever that wrong that thing shows up, that infirmity, that persecution, whatever it is, we're able to hold our heads up high, not because of our own power, but because of the power that has been placed in us. My prayer for the family, and when I say that, I really mean the family, the family of God as a whole, and in particular for me, the family here at 411. I pray that we never forget who we are and whose we are, and that that grace that He gives us that we're living in right now will carry us all the way through to our last days in this time as we transition into eternity. I pray that as we continue to look at each other, that we continue to uplift each other. So, because sometimes we need to be reminded that his grace is sufficient for you to go through whatever it is you are going through. Lean on him, put your whole self in him, don't try to do it on your own, you won't. You fail. That's what Paul has to remember as well. Don't get a big head when things go well, because that will keep you from realizing the true power that lies within each and every one of us. I pray that we will always keep that in mind. And as we're about to close this evening, let us go into prayer to our Father. Great and precious Heavenly Father, I am so thankful, we are so thankful that we've been that we can talk to you in prayer at any time. We're thankful, Father, that whether we feel like we're in control or not, we are knowing that you are always in control of everything. Father, whether things go the way we want them or not, we know that all things work together for good for those who love God. Father, we thank you for the blessings. We thank you in particular for the grace. We thank you for your mercy. We know all those who follow us all the days of our lives. Father, we thank you for each other. We thank you for the fact that we can hold on to each other when things get rocky as we all hold on to you. I pray for everyone that is on this call tonight that you will help us all to live and love as you have shown us to do both. Help us, Father, to live in your grace. Don't use your grace as an excuse, but live in your grace, Father, to be able to grow closer and closer and closer for you. And especially, Father, at those times when things are hard. Help us to remember your grace is sufficient and your ear is always open. Father, we thank you for these things, and we ask these things in accordance with your will. It's in Jesus' name we pray.