God’s Power in Weakness
Most of us would gladly trade our weaknesses for strength. We pray for God to remove our struggles, heal our hurts, fix our circumstances, and smooth out the rough places in our lives. Yet in 2 Corinthians 12, we find a surprising truth: sometimes God displays His greatest power not by removing our weakness but by meeting us in it.
This profound truth in 2 Corinthians 12:9 may have lost its deep and significant impact because it is a familiar phrase we often pitch in our Christian circles. Let’s not be underwhelmed. God’s grace is not merely the unmerited favor that saves us from sin. It is also the ongoing provision that sustains us every day of our lives. His grace strengthens, carries, comforts, equips, and empowers us. It is sufficient in every season, every hardship, and every disappointment.
“God is able to make all grace abound” so that we have “all sufficiency in all things at all times.” (2 Corinthians 9:8) There is never a circumstance in which God’s grace runs short. We may feel inadequate, exhausted, and overwhelmed, but His grace remains abundant and enough.
The context of our passage today is Paul’s own experience, a “thorn in the flesh,” a persistent affliction that caused him deep pain. Three times he pleaded with the Lord to take it away. Three times the answer was no. Instead, God responded with a promise that has comforted believers for centuries: “My grace is sufficient for you.” What an astounding declaration! God did not promise immediate relief, nor explain the purpose of the thorn. He assured him that His grace would be enough. And then the Lord continues: “For my power is made perfect in weakness.” The world teaches us to hide our weaknesses and showcase our strengths. Yet God’s kingdom operates differently.
Our weaknesses become places where His power is most clearly displayed. This power is no ordinary strength. According to Ephesians 1:19–20, it is the very power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Resurrection power rests upon every believer. The same power that raised Christ from the dead is at work in and through His people today. And so, we read these words, “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
Isaiah reminds us that God “gives power to the faint” and increases the strength of those who have none. When we reach the end of ourselves, we are often in the perfect position to experience Christ's strength. The paradox of the Christian life is that dependence produces strength. When we stop relying on ourselves, we learn to rely on Him.
Paul’s thorn served another purpose—it kept him humble. Humility positions us to receive grace. As our self-reliance decreases, dependence on Christ grows. We see every circumstance in our lives as an opportunity to display God’s power and glory, and we are free to live more authentically. We no longer need to pretend we have everything together. Often, through our honest testimony of weakness, others see the faithfulness of Christ most clearly.
As a result, like Paul, we can respond to our own unremoved thorns with joy and contentment. “Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly” and “For the sake of Christ then, I am content.” These kinds of responses do not come naturally. They are the work of the Holy Spirit as He helps us see the beauty of Christ in the Word and in the world. Jeremiah Burroughs wrote, “Christian contentment is that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits and delights in God’s wise and fatherly disposal in every condition.” (Jeremiah Burroughs, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment (The Banner of Truth Trust, 1964, originally published in 1648), 19) Only His grace can produce joy and contentment, and His grace is sufficient for you.
LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT
Whatever thorn you carry today, hear the Lord’s words personally: “My grace is sufficient for you.” His presence is enough. His power is enough. His provision is enough. And when you feel weakest, you may be experiencing the very place where Christ intends to reveal His strength most fully.
PRAYER
Lord, thank You that Your grace is sufficient for every need I face. Help me trust You when Your answer is different from what I desire. Teach me to depend on Your strength rather than my own. Make me humble, authentic, joyful, and content as Your power is perfected in my weakness. In Jesus’ name, amen.
2 Corinthians: Confident and Compelled - A Study on 2 Corinthians - No Empty Word Series by Paula Miles
Paula Miles is wife to Kevin, a ruling elder at Clemson Presbyterian, and mother of Wimberly Johnson (married to Charlie), Janie Gotfredson (married to Duncan), Clary (married to Elli), and Judy Livingston (married to Evan). She is also a grandmother to six precious little ones. Paula grew up in Anderson, SC, and graduated from Clemson University. She has experienced the joy of being a full-time homemaker and public school teacher. Studying and teaching God’s Word is her passion, along with encouraging and equipping women as they walk with Jesus. Since 2014, Paula has served on staff at Clemson Presbyterian as Women’s Ministry Director. She is a conference and retreat speaker, an author of the No Empty Word Bible studies, and serves on the PCA's Discipleship Ministries (CDM) National Women’s Ministry Team as a trainer. She enjoys regular exercise, a good cup of coffee, watching sporting events, and investing in the lives of her family and friends.
Are there other women in your life who could benefit from a daily dose of encouragement? Forward this email so they can click on this link to Subscribe to Daily Treasure to be better equipped to walk by faith on the pathway God has marked out for them.
Sharon W. Betters is a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, pastor’s wife, and cofounder of MARKINC Ministries, where she is the Director of Resource Development. Sharon is the author of several books, including Treasures of Encouragement, Treasures in Darkness, and co-author with Susan Hunt of Aging with Grace. She is the co-host of the Help & Hope podcast and writes Daily Treasure, an online devotional.
Contact Sharon with comments or questions at dailytreasure@markinc.org.
