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I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know-God knows. And I know that this man-whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know-God knows- was caught up to paradise. He heard inexpressible things, things that man is not permitted to tell. I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses. Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say.
To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
II Corinthians 12:2-10 (N.I.V.)
It happens from time to time. A person will say that I am a "sold out liberal", that I don't really proclaim the Word of God, that I'm way too far to the left. It also happens that some people find I am too conservative.
I am thus confronted with the question, "How do I validate myself?" I could do so by saying, "Look at the budget. Our budget used to be almost nothing, now we sometimes even have a little money left over." Some ministers validate themselves because of the huge crowds they attract.
Paul faced this same issue. Paul's authority was questioned. He was accused of being a waffler. He was criticized at times for being weak. He was not in any sense "charismatic." Paul began in this letter to boast, "I am a Pharisee among the Pharisees. I know more about the law than anybody." He began to list his credentials. Paul said he hated to do this, but his opponents were driving him to it. Then he backed off and said, "Maybe I should not take this path of boasting." Paul then said his authority was not based on any accomplishments of his. He then made this startling statement: "My authority comes not from my strength, but from my weakness." Then he spoke about his "thorn in the flesh."
What was his thorn in the flesh? Was it epilepsy? Did he have fainting spells? Did he have poor eye sight? It was some humiliating ailment, but beyond that, nobody knows. Paul says he asked the Lord to remove this thorn in the flesh three times. He received word from God that he was going to have to live with this thorn because he heard God say that God's grace is perfected in weakness.
We live in a culture that prizes strength. It was no different in Paul's time. In spite of this fact, Paul said, " My authority comes because of my weakness." Paul had revelations from God in which he was taken up into paradise. Paul could have said, "Look at all of these revelations I've had. These are my authority." No, he said he would boast only of his weaknesses.
What does this passage mean for us? We have a way of wanting to discount, hide, deny, flee from anything about us that might communicate a sense of weakness. We only want to present a sense of strength. If something bad happens to us, if we have a loss of career direction, it can be embarrassing. We want to keep that quiet. If we have a physical health problem, we may say, "I'm just going to keep that quiet. I'm not going to tell anyone about this." Telling someone about this problem could be embarrassing or shameful. If a person has a psychological problem, he or she may say, "I sure don't want anybody to know about this. People may look down on me. I only want to only communicate a sense of strength." Paul's attitude is really revolutionary. He is saying that if we accept our weaknesses, such acceptance can give room for God's presence.
I myself have found that my credentials as a human being and pastor and counselor come more from my own struggles than from my training. If someone is talking to me about a matter with which they're dealing, and if I can say, "Maybe I haven't struggled with exactly the same thing, but, I have dealt with something similar," then that recognition is my credential. It isn't the degrees or the years of study or the years of training. A person can have all that and come off as pompous. I don't think people are very helpful when they feel like they have not experienced the usual sufferings of life. When a person can say, "I understand that. I have experienced something similar," a person may then go on to say, "My power really comes from God."
I've had the experience earlier in my ministry of saying to myself prior to a sermon, "I'm really going to knock their socks off this morning. I have a sermon that's really good; the congregation is going to be wowed." Almost invariably I find it doesn't happen. If I say, "God, there is much unfinished about what I'm trying to preach this morning, but, it's in your hands -- you preach through me." Sometimes I then experience a great sense of power.
Our weaknesses can lead to strength. Our weaknesses, struggles, and shortcomings, though they are painful and may be embarrassing, can keep us from that awful smugness and arrogance and open us to God.
The above is based on a sermon given by Carl Bickel on July 9, 2000.
© 2000 Carl O. Bickel