LEARNING DAILY

 

2 Corinthians 12:9, And He said to Me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”

 

GRACE. God’s grace. John Stott has said, “Grace is love that cares and stoops and rescues.” Jerry Bridges said, [Grace] is God reaching downward to people who are in rebellion against Him.” Max Lucado has written, Grace is God’s idea. His decision to ravage a people by love, to rescue passionately, and to restore justly – what rivals it? Of all His wonderous works, grace, in my estimation, is the magnum opus.”

 

It has been said that grace is getting what we don’t deserve and not getting what we deserve. All of us deserve death because of sin. But because of God’s initiative in sending Jesus Christ to die in our place, He showed just how much He loves every person. Every person who receives the forgiveness Jesus offers does so by God’s grace. It is then that same grace drives our sanctification (the process by which we are made holy). Spiritual growth does not happen overnight. Titus 2:11-13, “for by the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works’. Through God’s grace He transforms our desires, our motivation, and our behavior so we become like Him.

 

I am going to be very direct – following Jesus Christ does not mean a person will be worldly successful. That is a lie! Jesus told us that walking the narrow way would be difficult. It is! The apostle Paul was afflicted with an unspecified “thorn in the flesh”. Whatever it was, Paul continuously asked God to take it from him and God said “no”! Was it something that kept Paul walking in humility with God? Perhaps. God told him that His grace was enough. His grace was fully capable of providing everything he needed to walk the narrow way, all he needed to endure his suffering. God told Paul that power was made perfect in weakness; that meant He was more than enough to strengthen Paul, giving him the endurance to push forth. God was enough to satisfy every need and face every trial in his life.

 

There are some thoughts that should be understood regarding this verse. God’s focus is on His will being completed or accomplished. He may use uncomfortable situations in our lives to accomplish His will. Suffering of some type may be used to draw one of His followers closer to Him, to keep him/her on the narrow way by depending more on Him. He may even allow Satan and his demons to work in order to accomplish His purpose(s); think back to the book of Job. God is not concerned about His followers living a life of leisure, ease and being without pain. His desire is that we grow stronger in our faith and trust in Him.

 

Paul learned through this thorn in the flesh to boast in his weakness because it was in that weakness, He knew that Jesus Christ was his strength. Each of us needs to refocus on God and take our eyes off our situation, our circumstances, our health, or whatever is our weakness is and look to Him to be our strength, the One who will see us through. Lean on Him and not your own abilities. Grace is the presence of favor and power of God. He gives what is sufficient for each of us to live our daily lives, to do all things for Him, and to endure our “thorn(s) in the flesh”. As we draw close to Him, He gives us His strength and comfort. Then we can boast as Paul did that our strength is found in our weakness because Christ’s power is with us as we walk the narrow way into eternity in His Kingdom.

 

Thank you Father for Your GRACE!