The events of our lives over the past few weeks are
overwhelming. They have made my prayer list longer than it has ever been, and
even though I trust God who is sovereign, weakness and helplessness are a daily
companion. There is nothing that I can do to alleviate any of these situations.
God alone is wise and powerful, so in weakness I am praying.
Today’s topic is strength in weakness. For the Apostle Paul,
it was a “thorn in the flesh” which is not revealed except to say God allowed it
to keep him from becoming conceited by the deep revelations God had given him. It
was obviously a nasty thing and this godly man asked three times for its
removal, but that didn’t happen. Instead, God said to him:
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
Paul replied: Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
Some suspect this weakness was about his propensity to sin,
others figure it was a health issue. However, it also could have been the solemn
realization that “in my flesh I can do nothing.” He had been in a position of
authority with power, a Pharisee with considerable influence. Yet he found
himself incapable of doing anything apart from humble dependence on Christ. In another
passage, he described some of his strengths and what he eventually realized
about them:
“For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh — though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith —” (Philippians 3:3–9)
Counting as rubbish all that we might put our confidence
in is no small matter. It could be education, position, personality,
achievements, reputation, all sorts of skills and abilities. Yet none of those
things can do what God can do. God wants His people to rely on Him fully, Him
only. There is nothing I can do, nothing I can say, even nothing I can imagine
that will bring eternal fruit or even be a blessing to others unless it is done
in faith and in full reliance upon Jesus Christ. Nothing.
This is the weakness. It isn’t about being a cripple, or
physically incapable. It isn’t about losing your voice, or the constant battle
with temptation. It is about fully realizing that I am only a glove; it is the
Hand that does it all.
Even then, the Hand, the Lord Jesus Christ also lived and
died that way — in weakness. He was fully God but also fully human:
“Though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:6–8)
Jesus is God, yet He took on human flesh and relied on the
Father the same way I am to rely on Him — in utter weakness:
“For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live with him by the power of God.” (2 Corinthians 13:4)
Paul said that he wanted to “be found in Him, not having a
righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through
faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith” and his
reason for saying it: “that I may know him and the power of his resurrection,
and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death . . . ” (Philippians
3:9–10) God revealed that the power of God only comes through weakness, the
weakness of His Son and the weakness of His beloved followers, and Paul understood.
^^^^^^^^
Again, Lord Jesus, I do not like the feeling of weakness,
but realize that asking You to remove it would be asking You to glorify me
instead of bringing glory to You. I also realize that many, even many Christians,
often react negatively when someone ‘gladly boasts’ in their weaknesses. They
don’t want to go there. I try to imagine what this was like for You. In the
end, even Your disciples misunderstood what You were doing and why. Perhaps
that is the biggest reason for disliking weakness; it is a lonely place.
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