16 Thorn in the Flesh: How to Embrace Weakness (2 Corinthians 11)

Krisan Marotta: Welcome to the Wednesday in the Word podcast. I'm Kristan Morada, and this is my podcast about what the Bible means and how we know. Today is the 16th talk in my series on 2 Corinthians, and we will be studying 2 Corinthians chapter 12, verses 1 through 12. How do you make sense of ongoing weakness, unanswered prayer, or personal limitations, especially when you're faithfully trying to serve God? Well, in this episode, we'll look at Paul's mysterious born in the flesh and discover why God sometimes says no. If you've ever felt like your weakness disqualifies you, this passage just might change how you see your story. Thanks for listening today. Today marks the penultimate talk in our series on 2 Corinthians. We have today and then one more podcast, and then we're done with this season. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this series. You can contact me through my website, wednesdayintheword.com. Well, we are in the last section of the book, the last four chapters, where Paul goes to war with his opponents. In these chapters, he uses some of the strongest language in any of his letters. Some people came to Corinth and set themselves against Paul. They ridiculed Paul as a contemptible speaker and denied that he was an apostle, and they claimed to be true apostles instead. Paul fears that many of the Corinthians are listening to them, and that's what's behind the serious tone of this last part of the letter. When we left Paul in the last podcast in chapter 11, he was engaged in what he called foolish boasting. His opponents not only rejected Paul, they boasted about their own superiority. And Paul decides to give them a taste of their own medicine. He says, this is foolish, but if they're going to boast this way, then let me show you I can beat them at this game. They boast they have authority because they're Jewish? Well, I'm Jewish too. They boast that they are hardworking, self-sacrificing servants of Christ. Well, I am even more so. Then Paul gave a description of the sufferings that he experienced because he is an apostle, and we talked about that in the last podcast. But if you think about those sufferings from the perspective of Paul's opponents, they don't make Paul look very good. He has certainly suffered a lot, but in their eyes, that makes him look weak. To set the stage for chapter 12, I want to back up a little bit to the end of chapter 11. I'm going to start reading in verse 30. If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. At Damascus, the governor under King Eratas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands. Okay, so remember where we are. He said, They say they're Jewish and that gives them authority. Well, so am I. They say they're servants of Christ. Well, I am even more so. If I hadn't just read you what comes next, what would you expect him to list to prove that he is a better servant of Christ? Well, we might expect to list something like, I converted many people in Athens, I founded many churches in Macedonia, I have freed many people from demon possession, I received the blessing of the church in Jerusalem, I have preached before rulers and kings. And that list would demonstrate what a great and powerful servant of Christ Paul is. That list is all about significance and power, and it's all true. Paul indeed accomplished many impressive and amazing things throughout his ministry. But now think about the list Paul does give. Yes, it's a list that shows the seriousness of his service to Christ, but from his opponent's perspective, it's also the description of a loser. Paul tells us his claim to fame is being beaten, whipped, living in fear of his life, and oppressed by his worries over the people that he ministers to. Well, where's the victory in that? Where's the power? That's the sort of criticism that Paul's opponents have leveled against him. And here Paul seems to be playing right into their hands. Yes, he shows the depth of his commitment to the gospel by recounting his suffering, but from his opponent's perspective, that list shows a certain lack of, well, victorious power. I think Paul knows very well that his opponents are saying such things about him, and he knows how the list sounds, so he embraces the implications head-on. I think that's what he means by if I have to boast, I will boast in what pertains to my weakness. I admit I've suffered, I've faced death over and over again, but I'm not embarrassed by my list. My weakness is an important part of my true boast. As an apostle, he sees himself as a weak, ordinary man serving a very powerful God. And that's what motivates him to tell the story about his retreat from Damascus. Now, the interesting thing about him pulling that story out is that it happened a long time ago. It was well before his ministry started in Antioch with the Gentiles. Paul's opponents probably expect him to tell a story something like this. I was opposed by the governor of Damascus, but I appeared before him and frightened him with the power of my miracles. He tried to fight me, but I was too powerful. In the end, he kneeled before me and acknowledged that Jesus is the King of the world. Now, in their eyes, that would be a great servant of Christ. But instead, Paul tells this embarrassing story of how he had to be rescued. He was fairly young in his preaching of the gospel at this point. He obviously stirred up a bunch of resentment against him, and there was nothing he could do about it. He had to be smuggled out of the city by others. And what an embarrassing way to be rescued. At least when Peter was in jail, an angel came and blasted open the doors and took him out. But here's Paul kind of ignominiously being lowered down out of a wall so he can run off in the middle of the night. Well, I think Paul deliberately told this story to highlight his own weakness. I imagine this event made a big impression on him, especially since it happened fairly early in his ministry. Paul's story is not that of a powerhouse who mows down all the opposition. Paul's story is a weak man who had to be rescued from a powerful man. And yet, the point is, Paul was rescued. God delivered Paul so he could continue his ministry. Paul's opponents see him as an unimpressive loser, and Paul is not running away from that criticism. He says, Yes, in a way I am a loser. I bleed when they whip me. I sit in prison when they arrest me. I had to slink away in the middle of the night when they tried to kill me. And yet, Paul has been making it very clear from the beginning that his ministry is a ministry of power. God is doing amazing things through Paul, and that is what Paul is boasting in. His opponents have a worldly standard of power and victory, and by their standard, Paul doesn't look very good. But Paul says, judge me by another standard. Paul insists that where it counts, the power of God is at work in his ministry, despite his own weakness. And that theme continues into chapter 12. We're going to see it in our section today. It might seem, as we start chapter 12, that we have changed subjects, but we are not. Paul has not abandoned this idea of boasting and weakness. We're going to look at this impressive supernatural event, but you'll see as we go through that Paul is still on this theme of his own weakness and God's power. I'll start reading in chapter 12, verse 1 and go to verse 10. I must go on boasting, though there's nothing to be gained by it. I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether in the body or out of the body I do not know. God knows. And I know that this man was caught up into paradise, whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows, and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter. On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast except of my weakness. Though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth, but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this that it should leave 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 of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities, for when I am weak, then I am strong. So you can see that Paul is still on this topic of weakness. He starts with this really jazzy sounding story about a heavenly vision, and we're going to look at that. But he tells that story to put in perspective what he's been saying about boasting and weakness. This jazzy, exciting story is meant to provide context for this claim that he wants to boast in weakness. Remember, Paul is still not happy about this boasting stuff. The Corinthians created a situation where he feels he has to respond, but in general, he's saying that this kind of boasting just isn't profitable. But he tells the story about a man in Christ, and at first it sounds like he's talking about another person. Like, oh, I know this guy and he had a vision. But by the time we get to verse 7, Paul makes it clear he's talking about himself. Let me read that again. So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh. So he drops the mask, he says, I'm talking about this guy who had visions, but that guy is me. To keep me from becoming conceited about the greatness of these revelations, I was given this thorn in the flesh. Now it's interesting that he speaks of himself in the third person this way. I think it's to highlight two very different aspects of his life and experience. On the one hand, he is an apostle of Jesus Christ. Jesus appeared to him personally, God called him through supernatural means, and God works miracles through Paul. And now we learn God granted Paul a heavenly revelation, at least on one occasion, but probably more. On the other hand, Paul personally is just a normal, average, ordinary guy. Paul's opponents want to highlight all the things about Paul that are ordinary and unimpressive. And so Paul deals with that. He says, Yes, I admit it, I personally and unimpressive in many ways. I have weaknesses. Now I know this other guy, and that guy is impressive because God granted him heavenly visions. I'd really like to boast about that guy, but for me, all I can do is boast in my weakness. Now, of course, we realize as Paul's saying this, that other guy who's so impressive is actually Paul himself. And I think he's doing this because it's a very creative and compelling way to highlight his dual experience. And we've been talking about this throughout the letter. Paul's been explaining this dual aspect of his life. If you've been following this season of the podcast, you know that we started talking about this right at the beginning of the letter. Paul is an ordinary man who was given a very extraordinary gift by God. And he walks this typerope of saying, I personally am no one, but God has given me a great ministry. And to represent that dual experience, he speaks about himself as if he were two people. Now, Paul doesn't tell us much about this heavenly experience. It'd be really great to know a little bit more about it. Sounds really interesting. He says it happened 14 years ago from the time he wrote this letter. That would place the event after his conversion and before Barnabas brings him to Antioch. So these visions would have happened before any major ministry event that is described in Acts. I suspect this was part of his training. In other letters, Paul insists that he was taught by Jesus himself, and now we learn at least one way Jesus taught him was through this vision, this revelation. He says he was caught up into the third heaven, and people really like to go crazy with that. But as I understand it from my research, it's a fairly simple way that they had of talking about things. From what I learned at the time, they called the atmosphere above us the first heaven. So this is the place where the clouds and the rain are, the earth's atmosphere. That's the first heaven. The second heaven was outer space, where the sun and the moon and all the planets are. And beyond that, they called the third heaven the divine realm where God lived. Paul also calls it paradise. I think that's just another name for the same thing. He doesn't know whether his body actually went to this place or whether he had some sort of out-of-body experience. He says, God knows, but I don't. And he tells us he heard inexpressible words that a man is not permitted to speak, and he received revelations of surpassing greatness. Well, that's a really amazing story. God gave Paul some kind of amazing revelatory experience, and that's all he tells us about it. It seems he wants to say as little as possible. He's telling us the story for a specific purpose, and he only gives enough detail to serve that purpose. And I think verses five and six tell us what that purpose is. He says, On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast except of my weaknesses. Though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth, but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. So Paul's opponents have personally criticized him. They say he's a poor speaker, they say he's unimpressive. If only he were a more powerful, impressive person, then he would be a better evangelist. And on that level, Paul says, Yes, I am a weak, ordinary guy. Nonetheless, I am also a supernaturally empowered apostle of Jesus Christ, as evidenced by this vision. And Paul could have gone around boasting about experiences like this, saying, Well, you know, when I was in heaven talking with Jesus, I was taken up to the third heaven, and you know, Jesus himself gave me some amazing revelations. He could have boasted this way, and it would have been true, as he says, I wouldn't be foolish because it's all true. But it seems like this might be the first time Paul has mentioned this experience to the Corinthians, and the only reason he's telling them now is because of this barrage of criticism from his opponents. Ordinarily, he doesn't go around talking about his revelations much because he wants them to trust him based on the evidence that they have seen and heard from him. No one else can corroborate Paul's story. If he tells the story of a heavenly vision, they just have to trust him on it. And he doesn't want them to trust him on the basis of a story, they have no way of verifying. He wants them to trust him based on what they have seen and heard from him and seeing how God is working through his ministry. And remember, throughout the letter, he's been saying to them, you ought to know me. I shouldn't have to make this defense. I shouldn't need to write these things to you because you have seen my ministry. You've seen what God is doing and you know me. You have a wealth of experience to draw on. Things that you personally have seen and heard that should give you confidence that I am the apostle I claim to be. So he doesn't rely on the story about the vision. Now, if he wanted to rely on it, if he wanted to boast in it, he wouldn't be lying. It really happened, but that's not the basis of his appeal. He says he would rather boast in his weaknesses. So let's talk about that because that's where this story of the thorn in the flesh comes in. Here's what Paul says about his thorn in the flesh, and I'll tell you in advance, we don't know what it is. No one really knows. We can only guess because he doesn't tell us what this thorn in the flesh is. He tells us it was intended to keep him from exalting himself due to these heavenly visions. God granted Paul a privilege given to a rare few people. God revealed himself to Paul in a way that makes Paul a uniquely significant person. And when Paul says, I have a rock solid understanding of the truth, he has the credentials to back it up because he learned of that truth straight from the source. So the thorn in the flesh was the anecdote to getting arrogant about his own importance. It was meant to keep him from exalting himself. That suggests there's something rather humiliating about it. One possibility scholars have suggested is that it could have been a private character flaw, some kind of temptation or struggle that he had to deal with constantly. Others think it must have been something publicly visible, something that would humble him in the sight of others. Maybe he was disfigured in some way or had some kind of physical deformity or disability that would have been difficult for others to look at. Some suggest that Paul's eyes were bad. We do know that after his experience on the Damascus Road, he was blind for a short time and then he was healed. And he talks about how he always signs his letters in really big letters. Perhaps he signs in big letters because he still didn't see very well. Others suggest that maybe he had a speech impediment, which would contribute to this perception that he wasn't a very persuasive speaker. Paul calls it, this thorn, whatever it was, a messenger of Satan to buffet him or beat him up. Well, what kind of stuff does Satan do? Satan is often pictured as a tempting deceiver that would support maybe some private moral struggle or personal temptation he can't shake. The book of Job portrays Satan as visiting affliction on people to make them curse God. So Satan could be afflicting Paul physically or in some way like that to make him stumble, to make him be tempted to give up. Again, it's hard to be definitive. We just don't know what the thorn was. The only thing we know is it was the kind of thing that would make it hard for a supernaturally empowered apostle of Christ to think very highly of himself. It humbles him. It was difficult enough for him that he cried out to God to take it away. And God says, sorry, not going to do it. Paul says he entreated God three times, and God gave him a very famous answer. He said, My grace is sufficient for you, my power is perfected in weakness. And that is the distinction that we have been seeing throughout this letter. Paul has been making this distinction on my own, as a human being, I am no big deal. But as a chosen apostle of Jesus Christ, the power of God is at work in my ministry, and you cannot dismiss me. And God taught Paul that very distinction through this thorn in the flesh. If Paul didn't have this thorn, whatever it was, then he would be stronger, more tempted to be arrogant, he would feel more on top of things. Perhaps others would see him as more impressive, and it might have made his life easier in a way that God didn't want. This thorn, this weakness in his life, reminds him constantly that the grace of God is making his ministry possible. It's making his ministry successful. He is successful not Not because Paul personally has it all together, but because God is behind him making his ministry successful. Now, the stronger Paul is as a person, the easier it is to be tempted to think highly of himself. But this thorn reminds him, whatever great thing is happening, it's the grace of God that brings it about. And so Paul can say most gladly, therefore I will boast about my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with stresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake, for when I am weak, then I am strong. Now that statement gets quoted a lot by Christians, and I think we need to see it in the context of everything Paul has been saying in response to his critics. Paul's opponents look at Paul and see a loser. Well, Paul is content for his life to have the qualities of a loser from their perspective. He is content to be weak, insulted, distressed, and persecuted. Now, I don't think he enjoys those things, but he sees them as an appropriate part of his ministry as an apostle. His opponents want him to be a person who is strong and praised by the world and free from worries, influential, powerful, commended by those in power. They want Paul to be personally an influential, successful speaker. But when Paul is weak and persecuted, then it's clear that this is the power of God at work. Paul doesn't want to be seen as just another guy who's impressive. He wants to be seen as a weak, needy human being who is supernaturally supported by the power of God, because then it's clear God is the one at work. I think that's why he can say in verse 10, for when I am weak, then I am strong. I am strong when God's power is at work. And sometimes it takes my own humiliation, my own weakness to remind me that God is doing these things. That's what Paul's opponents have lost sight of. It's not about who's the most impressive, charismatic, entertaining speaker. It's about the power of God at work through the gospel. Now, unfortunately, the Corinthians have been listening to some of Paul's opponents, and they are becoming convinced by their criticism and their boasting. So Paul goes on in verse 11, and before I read it, just notice there's an echo of sadness in this language. When you stop and think about the history of Paul's relationship to the Corinthians, there's just kind of this wistful sadness to it. This is 11 and 12. I have been a fool. You forced me to it, for I ought to have been commended by you, for I was not at all inferior to these super apostles, even though I am nothing. The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works. So he's saying, I've been a fool, I don't like this boastful way I've been talking to you, I don't think that's profitable, I think it's foolish, he doesn't want to boast in his Jewishness or in his hardships or suffering as an apostle. He doesn't even want to boast about the fact that he had heavenly visions, but the situation with the Corinthians has compelled him to do it. They have been listening to the foolish criticisms of his opponents, and so Paul has to set them straight. And yet he says, I shouldn't have to set you straight. You shouldn't even be listening to those other guys. You have every reason to recognize my authority. When I came to you, I performed signs and wonders and miracles. I taught you the gospel, and you yourselves can see the changes in your own lives from that gospel. Now, those signs and wonders and mighty works, as he says, that was an important part of being an apostle of Jesus. Just as God demonstrated that he was with Jesus by performing miracles through Jesus, so God put his mark on the apostles by doing those same kinds of miracles through them. Peter performed miracles, the other apostles did, and Paul did as well. So look at all the evidence that the Corinthians have. Paul claims to be an apostle sent by God to the Gentiles. Paul's message was endorsed by the original apostles like Peter, James, and John. Paul performs miracles everywhere he goes, including Corinth, showing that God endorses Paul's ministry. The content of Paul's teaching is wise and powerful. The gospel message which he teaches is bearing fruit among them. That's another validation that Paul is speaking the truth. And all of this the Corinthians have seen and heard. But then these new guys come to town and they say, ooh, you know, Paul, he's not a very good speaker. I'm not even sure he's an apostle. And they start listening to these guys. So Paul fights back and explains how his weakness is really to display God's strength. Now let's wrap this up for the day. As we've gone through this letter together, I have pointed out that Paul is walking this tightrope. It runs through the whole letter. On the one hand, he acknowledges he's just an ordinary guy, but on the other hand, he insists he's a supernaturally empowered apostle of Jesus Christ. And we see that typerope very clearly in this section. Paul is a weak man who has suffered in body and in mind, and he boasts in those weaknesses. He is also a miracle-working apostle who has been caught up to heaven to hear surprisingly great revelations. And Paul had to spell this all out because of the attacks of his opponents. So I think this passage teaches us two important concepts. First of all, it ought to give us great confidence in Paul. He makes astoundingly important claims. He's saying that God sent him as an apostle, that God proved he was an apostle by the miracles that he did and that the Corinthians saw, and that God gave him surpassingly great revelations in the heavens. That's a big deal. This is not a man who sat alone in his study or a cave somewhere and decided to create a new philosophy. This is a messenger from God sent with a message of life and death. And this is why we read Paul's letters, because he made these claims and we believe him. He's telling the truth. And yet at the same time, Paul is eager to make it clear that he is no big deal. He's just an ordinary man living a very hard life. And both those things we learn about Paul as we go through this letter, especially in this last section. True, he is a guy who gets beaten up regularly and who in the end cannot claim to be any big deal in and of himself, but what God is doing through him is a very big deal. That's one of the things that emerges from this section. The second thing I think we learn is Paul is telling us this is how God operates. God's power is perfected in a weakness. And I don't think that's true just for Paul and the other apostles. That's true for all of us. We see this pattern throughout scripture. In Exodus 3 and 4, Moses tried to disqualify himself because he was slow of speech, but God chose him anyway to confront Pharaoh. So the Exodus, which was one of the most decisive displays of God's power in the Old Testament, was led by a man who didn't think he could speak very clearly. In 1 Samuel 16 and 17, we see David, the youngest, smallest son, so overlooked that his own father didn't even bother to call him in from the field when the prophet came to town. And yet he's the one God chose to defeat Goliath. In 1 Kings 17, during a drought, Elijah is not sent to the rich and the powerful. And then Luke 1, God entrusts the Savior of the world to a poor, unwed teenage girl from an obscure village. And of course, the ultimate paradox, God's power is displayed through Christ's death on the cross. To the world, the cross looked like failure, but it was a triumph of grace. What looked like defeat becomes the greatest victory the world has ever seen. Now, those were just the examples I thought of. You could probably go through scripture and find many more. Christians throughout the centuries have had the same sorts of experiences. That's why so many of us resonate with Paul's words that my grace is sufficient for you, for powers perfected in weakness. As we go through life, God takes us through circumstances that make it clear to us that we're just not good enough or strong enough or wise enough on our own. Christians throughout the centuries have spoken of their own thorns in the flesh. God brings things into our lives to remind us not to get too puffed up about ourselves, not to think, hey, I'm pulling this off, I've got this altogether, but to realize God is the one saving us. God is the one giving us success. We're not the ones saving ourselves. We need the grace of God to make it through to the end. The more we see our own failures, handicaps, struggles, the weaknesses in our own lives, the more we can see that God is at work. Thank you for listening to Wednesday in the Word, the podcast that explains not only what a passage means, but also shows you how to figure it out. The blog version of this podcast is on WednesdayInTheWords.com slash 2 Corinthians 1 6. You can find all the episodes in this season of the podcast on my website, wednesdayinthewords.com, as well as many other seasons. There is no charge, no spam, and no ads. It's free to help you grow in your understanding of scripture and learn how to study the Bible for yourself. If you've been blessed by this podcast, please follow it, rate it, and review it. But most importantly, tell a friend what you learned and where you learned it. Our theme music is graciously provided by Reggie Coast. You can find all of Reggie's music and CDs on heartfeltmusic.org. Thank you for joining me today. I'm Krisan Marotta, and I'll see you next week at Wednesday in the Word.