Pastor Tom Johnson, July 8, 2012
There has been a lot of debate about what the thorn in Paul’s flesh could be. Literally, a thorn in the flesh is a spiny piece of wood lodged in the skin. It can be a large thorn from a tree or bush penetrating deep. Or it could be a very small sliver.Thorns are often unexpected. There is a piercing somewhere on your body. If your lucky, you can immediately pull it out. But splinters can take a bit of patience to get out—and someone with decent eyesight and a steady hand.
I know a person who has children. He has had to take splinters out of his children’s sensitive fingers. And I know that such a person says it is like performing surgery on someone without anesthesia. And such a person says that his eardrums hurt more than his children’s impaled fingers. Perhaps you know such a person.
Paul is talking about a thorn metaphorically. It is a useful analogy to what pained him—what so stubbornly would not go away. It may be his declining eyesight. It may be a person or group of people that make his life miserable. Some scholars are convinced that it was a certain adversary of Paul—what he calls “a messenger of Satan.” But I think that Paul does not name the specific thorn in the flesh on purpose. In fact, he lists even more possibilities in the last verse: “…weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities…” His thorn could be anything from a particular person to something as impersonal as a shipwreck at sea, which Paul experienced more than once. Whatever it is—it is a constant source of pain, discomfort, and will not go away. Why is Paul sharing such a personal struggle? Perhaps because he knows that “No testing has overtaken [us] that is not common to everyone” (1 Cor 10:13a).
We all know what it is like to have a person in our life at one time or another that is “a messenger of Satan”—a person that helps Satan do what his name suggests—an adversary—someone who speaks a discouraging word—someone who beats us down—who has a judgmental spirit—who is a source of constant negavity. Our wise Granny calls these people “difficult people.”
The thorn in the flesh can also be a physical condition—such as Paul’s failing eyesight, which never improved. Look at the thorns in the flesh we pray for—for ourselves and those for whom we love—thorns like heart disease and cancer—thorns like mental illness, addiction, and developmental conditions.
Thorns in the flesh can be unemployment, financial challenges, and indebtedness. A thorn in the flesh can be anything that sticks us hard—anything painful and difficult to remove. Thorns that won’t go away are what doctors call “chronic.”
Paul prays three times for God to take his thorn away—just as a child asks a parent to carefully remove a splinter from a finger. It’s a reasonable request. In fact, God encourages us to cast every care upon him because he cares for us (1 Pet 5:7). Even Jesus prayed that his thorn would be removed from his flesh—he prayed that the cup of suffering would pass—the arrest, crucifixion, and death he endured. Jesus prayed once; Paul prayed three times. Jesus went to the cross. Paul’s thorn was never removed. Jesus triumphed through the cross for us by his own strength. Paul persevered through his thorn—not by his own— but Jesus’ strength. It is one of the few words of Jesus outside the Gospels—there to assure Paul and us: “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” Paul asks God three times to remove a painful splinter and the answer is, “No, I want to humble you. I want you to rely on my strength, not your own.”
It is not the answer we want to hear. It goes against the televangelists’ promise of health and wealth to the faithful believer and tither. But it is good news. Jesus was pierced by his own thorns—made out of Roman iron—nails that pierced his feet and hands—and a even larger thorn that pierced his side—the centurion’s spear. Through his thorns, he overcame all the thorns that threaten us—sickness, adversaries, Satan, and even death itself. But in the meantime, he does not want us to become arrogant, proud, self-sufficient, independent, and self-reliant. He wants us to look to him for grace and strength.
I don’t believe God always gives a clear explanation for why he allows certain thorns. Sometimes he graciously removes our thorns. Sometimes he graciously does not. His ways and wisdom are beyond human understanding. In these words, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness,” Jesus assures us that our thorns are not beyond his power. Our thorns are not outside the reach of his healing hand. He knows our struggles. He cares about us. He loves us. His power was made perfect when he died on the cross. When the world thought was at his weakest, he was strong and rose victoriously from the dead. By that same power, God will remove all our thorns and he will wipe away every tear from our eyes.
One day, we will be thorn-free. In the meantime, God wants us to trust him—to accept our own weakness and open ourselves up to his power. He gives grace, strength, and confidence for the journey ahead—our weakness, his power—our doubts, his assurance of grace—our hope, his faithfulness—our limited understanding, his trancending peace—our prayers, his loving strength that will carry us through any challenge that may come our way. His grace is sufficient for us. Jesus wears a crown of thorns so that we will wear the crown of life.
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