SWORD OF THE SPIRIT                                                                                               1275

“Sufficient Grace”

…But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” … 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

Paul was tormented by a ‘thorn in the flesh’ and He pleaded with God to remove it. We do not know what this ‘thorn’ was, and theories abound. But in God’s wisdom, Scripture remains vague on this point making the application of this Scriptural Truth universal to everyone. We can all relate to weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. Therefore, when God says to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you…”, He says it to all of us.

What is God’s grace? Grace is His free, unmerited favor given to us. It is by His grace that we are given the faith to believe and receive salvation through Jesus.

For by grace, you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. – Ephesians 2:8-9

Grace and faith work synergistically in our lives. It is the work of God’s grace and faith that brings salvation, and it is the continued work of grace and faith that gives us power for living in this world. Grace provides the path to eternal life, and it is by faith that we walk this path of grace that God has laid out for us.

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For we walk by faith, not by sight – Hebrews 11:1; 2 Corinthians 5:7

Having dealt recently with a bout with cancer, I was able to relate to Paul’s prayer for God to remove his ‘thorn in the flesh’. I struggled to process how God responded to our many prayers for healing. As many of you can attest from personal experience, cancer qualifies in the weakness, hardship, and calamity categories.

We prayed for a miraculous healing and, stepping out in faith, I convinced the surgeon to conduct a second preoperative CT scan to see what God had done in answer to prayer.

The scan results showed that the cancer was still there. Where was God’s favor? Where was His grace? Why did He choose not to heal in the manner I had hoped He would?

His response through His Word was: “My grace is sufficient for you…”

When our feet get swept out from under us and we get the wind knocked out of us by the trials of life – this is when faith catalyzes God’s grace, and we find His power to get back up and continue to walk His path and perfect plan for us.

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. – Hebrews 4:16

God is sovereign and His plan is perfect. We may never get answers to our ‘Why, God’ questions this side of heaven but we must always, in faith trust in Him and His love for us.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. – Proverbs 3:5-6

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. – Romans 8:28

I now have a better understanding of why some people struggle with despair when faced with hardships and calamities. I also have a better understanding of how to break the yoke of despondency that a narrow secular worldview can burden you with. We are insufficient in our own strength to deal with such circumstances.

Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God – 2 Corinthians 3:5

Our sufficiency is found only through Jesus who is the embodiment of God’s grace to us.

And the Word became flesh … as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. – John 1:14

We grow in grace and faith giving us power for living, not through a religion, but rather through a personal relationship with Jesus. This relationship is developed through prayer, and the knowledge gained through the reading of His Word.

But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ… – 2 Peter 3:18

So, faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. – Romans 10:17

No matter what challenges you are faced with, God’s grace through Jesus is sufficient to see you through.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. – Philippians 1:2