And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the Revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And He said unto me, My Grace is sufficient for you: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me (II Cor. 12:7-9). Most Preachers boast of their strength, but Paul boasted of his weakness. Paul recognized himself as an earthen vessel; as such, he also realized that nothing could amend the carnal nature, not even the great revelations and visions which had been given to him by the Lord. So, to save him from failure and even falling, he was impaled upon a stake, so to speak. Whatever that thorn in the flesh was, the Holy Spirit did not see fit to reveal that to us, but what is necessary to learn from this experience is the moral purpose of that thorn in saving the Apostle from destruction. To have all the revelations and visions which Paul had, being given, in effect, the meaning of the New Covenant, actually being appointed by the Lord as the Masterbuilder of the Church, all can minister unto pride, if one is not very careful. Such can easily be a subject of carnal boasting. We must come, therefore, to the conclusion that whatever the thorn in the flesh was, the Lord knew that Paul need such, and if Paul needed such, what about us? It must be remembered that this “thorn in the flesh” was given by God, but yet was a “messenger of Satan” sent to buffet Paul, and to do so continually. “Prevention” and “humiliation” are both Divine instruments. Paul was saved from failing, and possibly even from falling, by prevention; Peter was permitted to fail, thereby, greatly humiliated. There was, however, no difference between Paul and Peter; they were both indwelt, as all Believers are, by a corrupt nature incapable of amendment, at least by human instrumentation. This is one of the most bitter and humbling lessons for the human heart. It is painful but necessary for the Believer to have an experiential sense of the principle of evil which indwells him, and we speak of the Sin Nature. But a greater power also inhabits the temple of the Believer’s heart and body, and its victorious warfare is a profitable exercise for the heart. If the Apostle Paul needed so humbling and painful an experience of what the carnal nature is, it is evident that all Christians need it; and it is plain that whatever weakens, belittles, and humiliates that proud and willful nature should be regarded by the Believer as most worthful. The distinction between the “sinless nature” of Christ and the “sinful nature” of Paul, in fact, of all Believers, is seen in that Christ needed no stake in His Flesh on descending from the Mount of Transfiguration. Facing Satan at the foot of the Mount, He was the same Person Who shone in the Glory of God on the top of the Mount. The scenes were different, but He was alike Perfect in both. All was Perfection and Evenness in Him – symbolized in the Old Testament by the fine flour of the Meal Offering. What is the moral of all of this? The Grace of God was “sufficient,” irrespective of the “thorn.” Every time that Paul received a buffet, there was a sufficiency of Grace immediately given to meet the blow – not a moment too soon, not a moment too late, not too little, and not too much. The lesson of all of this is that the higher the Christian experience, the sharper must be the “thorn,” and for all the obvious reasons.
Posted on: Sun, 05 Oct 2014 12:27:56 +0000