Boasting in Weakness: Sufficient Grace

Strong in Weak Hands

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Paul learned that God's power works best through weak people. That was not a new idea. All through the Bible, God chose people who knew they were not strong enough, so that everyone could see the strength was His.

Clay jars. Paul wrote, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). Earthen vessels are cheap clay jars. The treasure is the good news of Jesus.

Cracked but not broken. “We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair” (2 Corinthians 4:8). Perplexed means confused. The jars were weak, but God kept them from breaking.

Moses. Moses told God, “I am slow of speech and slow of tongue” (Exodus 4:10). God did not make Moses a great speaker first. He promised, “I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say” (Exodus 4:12).

Gideon's small army. God sent most of Gideon's soldiers home. He did not want Israel to say, “My own hand has saved me” (Judges 7:2). With only three hundred men, everyone knew God had won.

David and the giant. David was a young shepherd with a sling. He told Goliath, “I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts” (1 Samuel 17:45). Then he said, “The battle is the Lord’s” (1 Samuel 17:47).

Ordinary people. “God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty” (1 Corinthians 1:27). Most of the Christians in Corinth were ordinary people.

Power for the tired. “He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength” (Isaiah 40:29).

Waiting on the Lord. “But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles” (Isaiah 40:31). To wait on the Lord means to trust Him and look to Him for help.

The Holy Spirit's power. Jesus promised His weak, frightened followers, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you” (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit gives believers strength to live for Jesus.

The greatest example. Jesus was crucified in weakness, but He lives by the power of God (2 Corinthians 13:4). The cross looked like a defeat, but it was God's greatest victory.

What we learn. Being weak does not stop God from using you. Your weak place is often the very place where He shows His power.

What to do. Think of one thing you are not good at. Instead of hiding it, tell God about it and ask Him to show His strength there.

Paul's thorn taught him something that runs through the whole Bible: God shows His power through human weakness so that the glory goes to Him.

Dunamis (say: DOO-nah-mees). In 12:9 Paul speaks of “the power of Christ.” The Greek word for power is dunamis. Jesus used the same word when He promised, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you” (Acts 1:8). It is God's own strength at work, not human talent.

2 Corinthians 4:7. Clay lamps and jars were cheap and easily broken. God puts the treasure of the gospel into fragile people “that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.”

4:8-9. Paul lists four pairs: hard-pressed but not crushed, perplexed but not in despair, persecuted but not forsaken, “struck down, but not destroyed.” The jar cracks, but God keeps it.

Exodus 4:10-12. Moses' excuse was his weak speech. God answered with a question: “Who has made man’s mouth?” Then He gave a promise of His presence, not a new talent.

Judges 7:2, 7. God cut Gideon's army down to three hundred men “lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me.” The smaller the army, the clearer it was who won.

1 Samuel 17:45-47. David came “in the name of the Lord of hosts” so that all would know “the Lord does not save with sword and spear.” A boy with a sling showed the world who fights for Israel.

1 Corinthians 1:27-29. God chose the weak and ordinary “that no flesh should glory in His presence.” The church in Corinth was living proof.

Isaiah 40:29-31. “Even the youths shall faint and be weary,” but God “gives power to the weak.” Strength that lasts is received from God, not produced by us.

The message of the cross. “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). The cross looked like the weakest moment in history. It was the place of God's saving power, and He proved it when He raised Jesus (2 Corinthians 13:4).

Zechariah 4:6. God told Zerubbabel, who was rebuilding the temple with few people and little money, “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit.” God's work has always been done in God's strength.

Application. Stop disqualifying yourself because of what you lack. Bring your weakness to God and ask Him to show His dunamis there, so that people see Jesus and not you.

Grace for Every Day

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Paul asked God three times to take his thorn away, and God said His grace was enough. Sometimes God answers our prayers by changing what is happening. Other times He keeps us close and carries us through it.

Jesus prayed too. The night before the cross, Jesus prayed three times in the garden of Gethsemane. He asked the Father if the cup of suffering could pass from Him, but He prayed that the Father's will would be done (Matthew 26:39-44).

The Father's answer. The cup did not pass. Jesus went to the cross. Through that hard answer, God saved everyone who trusts in Jesus.

Jesus understands. “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses” (Hebrews 4:15). Sympathize means to feel it with us.

Grace to help. “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

New grace every day. “And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace” (John 1:16). Grace for grace means one gift of grace after another.

The Spirit helps. “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses” (Romans 8:26). When we do not know how to pray, the Holy Spirit prays for us.

Good from hard things. “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God” (Romans 8:28). God can bring good out of things that hurt.

Never apart from God's love. Nothing “shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).

Content in Christ. Paul wrote, “I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content” (Philippians 4:11). Content means at peace with what you have.

Peace in trouble. Jesus said, “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Tribulation means trouble.

One day, no more pain. “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying” (Revelation 21:4).

What we learn. God does not always take hard things away now. But His grace is enough for today, and one day He will make everything new.

What to do. When something hard does not go away, keep praying. Ask God for grace for today, and tell a grown-up you trust how you feel.

Second Corinthians 12:9 is God's answer to a prayer He did not grant in the way Paul asked. It teaches us how to live when a hardship stays.

Charis (say: KAH-rees). Grace is charis, God's free, undeserved favor. In the New Testament it is more than kind feelings; it is God's active help. The same grace that saves us (Ephesians 2:8) also strengthens us for each day.

Gethsemane. Jesus prayed three times that the cup might pass from Him, each time yielding to the Father's will (Matthew 26:39-44). The Father's answer was the cross, and through it came our salvation. An unremoved hardship is not proof that God has stopped listening.

Hebrews 4:15-16. Our High Priest can “sympathize with our weaknesses,” because He “was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” So we “come boldly to the throne of grace” to “find grace to help in time of need.”

John 1:16. “Grace for grace” pictures waves arriving one after another. God's grace does not run out on a hard day.

Romans 8:26. “The Spirit also helps in our weaknesses.” When we cannot find words, the Holy Spirit “makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” Intercession means praying on someone's behalf.

Romans 8:18. “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Present pain is real, but it is not the end of the story.

Romans 8:28, 38-39. God works “all things” for good for those who love Him, and nothing can separate us from His love in Christ.

Philippians 4:11-13. Paul “learned” contentment. The famous line “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” is about being content when he had plenty and when he had nothing.

John 16:33. Jesus promised trouble in this world, and He promised His victory over it. Christian hope is honest about pain.

Revelation 21:4. In the new creation, God Himself wipes away every tear. Grace carries us now; glory will heal us then.

Application. If a hard thing in your life has not gone away, keep praying honestly, ask for grace for today, and talk with a parent or pastor. God's grace is enough for this day too.

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