Don’t Despise the Thorn

“…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. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 9 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. 10 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.” – 2 Corinthians 12:7-10

     What can you claim as truly yours? Not, what is yours to care for, or what has been given to you, or what is yours by means of possession; but what can you claim has truly come from you? Sometimes a thorn is given to reach in and remind us that we may not be as complete as we think. Don’t despise the thorn.

     Humans exist in such a way that every part of our existence is dependent upon other things. Other people, other elements, the weather, time, upon being healthy or not getting that flu everyone else is getting, upon getting out of work on time, or making that appointment. Everything is dependent. We have little spheres of belongings and property and responsibilities that we can claim, but is there truly anything that we can actually say, “this is all me?”

     The Apostle Paul had much to boast about, at least potentially. He had a miraculous calling and conversion in his life, he had the privilege of traveling the known world and seeing countless lives changed and impacted through his message. He was given revelation from God to pass on, he had his life preserved from sure death. Paul could have boasted. His status as an Apostle and teacher of the Divine revelation naturally elevated him, at least by perception, above his peers and those whom he taught. We know the scripture, “to whom much is given, much is required,” and that is especially true of a man like Paul, who had every temptation to boast and exult in his position, his authority, his privilege.

    Paul didn’t boast, though. And we would like to think that was easy, that Paul, being a righteous and spiritual juggernaut of sorts, was just able to skate by those temptations without giving them a second thought. But it was not that easy, the temptations were very real, very enticing. And we know that, because in this passage, Paul is giving us the blueprints and skeletal structure behind his victory over that temptation. And what we find is that the makeup of his victorious living, his success in defeating the temptation to boast, was actually wrapped up in a gracious allowance of hardship. Don’t despise the thorn.

     You see, nothing in our lives can truly be claimed as totally ours. All categories of “belongings” in our lives are given as gracious gifts by God. That is true of finances and possession, of abilities and strengths, and of family and children. Even those who are not believers receive this good things by common grace. But, these words are intended for those who know the Lord. And those who know the Lord know that we are infinitely weaker than Christ, and we are utterly dependent upon Him. Yet, in our flesh, in our weakness, we somehow manufacture ways to boast about things that we cannot even rightly claim as truly “ours.”

     The visions weren’t Paul’s, they were given to him to steward and give out. The revelations weren’t Paul’s, he was allowed them for the purpose of God’s Kingdom and work going forward. The churches and converts weren’t Paul’s, they were fruits and blessings that God graciously gave and let him see. There is no more successful and hardworking servant of Christ in history than the Apostle Paul, yet, even he needed a thorn in his flesh to keep him from boasting. Even Paul couldn’t rightly boast. So can we?

     There are times in each of our lives when, in some measure, some form, some iteration, we need a thorn. Maybe it’s a physical thorn. Maybe it’s a thorn of family trouble. Maybe it’s a thorn of a season of darkness. Maybe it’s a thorn of loneliness. Whatever it may be, and to whatever extent we are given it, it is grace. Don’t despise the thorn.

     But how is the thorn grace, you might ask? Wasn’t the thorn a messenger from the evil one? Wasn’t God’s grace to counter the thorn? You might assume that, but read again. The thorn was given in order to fight the temptation of self-exaltation, or conceit. Satan may have been allowed a certain realm or corner of activity, much like in the story of Job, but the whole thing was part of God’s means of sanctifying Paul. The thorn was grace, and remaining of the thorn was also grace. Grace upon grace, really. Grace for grace.

     By that I mean, that God’s grace is most fully known and experienced in our weakness, so to be given weakness in order to experience grace is, in itself, a grace of God. A thorn is grace, because the thorn allows us to know the power of overcoming it. A thorn is grace, because the thorn allows us to remember what one moment without the grace would really be like. A thorn is grace, because the thorn prods and pokes us right back to the right place of contented joy, contented reliance, and contented grace-filled living. Don’t despise the thorn.

     Christ’s power is made perfect in weakness. Perfect comes from the word “telos,” which means completion or end; fulfillment. There is a way in which, when our season of life is smooth and relatively successful, that the power of Christ cannot be seen or known in its fulness. Christ intends for us to live in such a way that his power is truly fulfilled in us, and that is only possible through the experience of weakness. The grace of the thorn. Strength in weakness.  

     What does this tell us? For one, it tells us this: Don’t despise the thorn!. When we know that thorns are, in themselves, grace, then we must see that to despise the thorn is to despise that grace. Despising the thorns that God prescribes and allows in our lives can lead only to despair. In doing so, we shirk back or buck and rear up against the very hand that is simply trying to show a means of grace. If a thorn is an inoculation against boasting in our flesh, then we should willingly sign up for that vaccine. To despise the thorn is to despair in life. It is to despair, because we turn from the very source of everything we might have boasted in otherwise.

     Also, it tells us simply not to boast in what we are given, as if we have earned or demanded it. All of life is a stewardship. We can be good stewards. We can be righteous servants. But we are never the true owners of anything. In smooth seasons, when the thorn is “dull” and we don’t feel its effects so sharply, we must be reminded that the peaceful experience is no reason to boast in ourselves, but to glory in the Lord and in His power. We have seen the fulness of his power in our weakness, and our weakness is there even when the thorn isn’t there to highlight it. We have every reason to extend a heartfelt “thank you” to the Lord for whatever it is He brings us through.

What is your thorn? Is it a physical affliction, a lifelong battle that just won’t go away? Don’t despise the thorn. Is it a family struggle, a hard road of turmoil that you’ve prayed and pled to be paved with peace? Don’t despise the thorn. Is it battle of the mind, of anxiety or dread or fear? Is it a continual struggle to give up that stronghold in your life? Don’t despise the thorn. Let the thorn do its work. It is a sanctifying grace, a means of growth, and Christ is displaying the fulness of his power in it. Don’t despise the thorn.

Grace and peace to you all
Pastor Aaron Frost
January 13, 2023