Why Paul Bragged About Being Weak | 2 Corinthians 12:1–10

You're listening to the Bible Guys, a podcast where a couple of friends talk about the Bible in fun, in practical ways. Hey, everybody, thanks for tuning in once again to the Bible Guys. I am Chris and I'm Kyle, and today we're your Bible Guys because Jeff is on this mission across the world helping people get to know Jesus to the Timothy Initiative, and we are in the middle of a series called Dangerous Prayers, ran about surrendered and you know, this whole week has been quite a journey, right. So it's been Isaiah in heaven talking about, you know, send me God, and then we talked about Moses who says, okay, God, show me your glory. You know, I want your presence to be with me. What a dangerous prayer, right, to desire God's glory more than anything else. And then yesterday we talked about the disciples who are faced with a really hard truth, who say, God, help us to increase our faith. Right, so think about that, you know, send me on whatever mission you want. God, help me to know your presence more than anything else. And God increased my faith so that I can do what you asked me to do. Those are three dangerous prayers, and today we're actually talking about the prayer that Paul prayed about the thorn in his flesh. What is known as the thorn. I've always hated that phrase. I've always hated it. Really. Yeah, I don't know, because it's not a literal thorn. Yeah, I don't know. It's just for some reason, when we when we attach things to you know, it's just become known as the thorn. What is it? Yet, it's like it's like he never you know, I guess a translation referred to as the thorn. That's that's why where the name came from. Yeah, but anyway, all right. So before we even get into that, we're going to be playing this game. It's guess the word. And I'm gonna be the host of this game. And I don't know if you know this, but people call me the king of catchphrase. Apparently, because that's what that's what that's how this is Rich. That's right, wrote this game and ord this made this and she knows that if she's been to my house a few times in which we've played the game catchphrase. And I'll be honest, although I am good at catchphrase. My wife, I have to minute. She'll she may not listen to this podcast right now for this day, but she is definitely better than me. Kristen. Yeah, she's not a competitive person at all, but for some reason catchphrase, she gets very competitive. She's good queen, She's the queen. Yep. All right. So what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna get I'm gonna have a word. And by the way, this is sort of like taboo. And if you're listening online, if you're watching online on video, what we're going to try to do, hopefully is put all the forbidden words on the screen so that you can watch along with us and make sure that Kyle doesn't make a blunder. Yes, so watch yourself, monitor yourself. I'll be careful. So basically, there's a word that I want Chris to say, but I have to avoid saying these other words that you're going to see on this The audience should race me, all right, So we'll go number one. Yes, this word is something you will eat in Apple. Nope, it's something you may get at doat Francesca's probably a basic thing on the menu. Lasagna. Nope, it's even more basic than that lapasta. Nope, it's similar to the saphistic part of that. Yes, I can't say those words. Nope. It's it's like basic man, it's chef. Yep, there you go. Boom, spehetty. Okay. Number two, this one is gonna be tough. Okay, No, No, you can't move on yet. You gotta tell us the words that you are not allowed to say. I couldn't say pasta, noodles, Italian sauce, or meatballs. Now, by the way, once I say the words, you're allowed to say that, okay. So if I was like I said pasta, you can say what's another word for past There you go, you could say that. There you go. All right. Our next one, this one's gonna be a tough one. All right. So this maybe somebody is a magician and they would do this. They will, no, they would shoot. It's one word and it's something where they're uh teleport Nope, shoot a word. I almost just said, okay, So they're making you think something that isn't actually there an illusion. Boom, that's the word illusion. Nice work, all right. So the words I couldn't say were magic, trick, deception, mirage, or fake. Wow. So good job. Do you I know that's kind of hard. That was tough. Yeah, so I said, magician, I don't know, hopefully I in the past, I don't. Know how I would say illusion. Yeah, it's tough. Yeah. A lot of times the way I approach this game is I try to go at a different angle. Yeah, and I say, like, it's like, what's that movie with you know, the Illusionist? So yeah, cut it down illusion. Yeah. So that's even like for the spaghetti One's why I went with Duffern Chessca's. Cana know you like the place, but okay, this next one is can. Be brewal although I do like daffern Chesca's, but you know it beats it. Oh yeah, it's it's my spot. It's number one for sure. Nice all right. So third one here, I got a word here where basically you can fall into it. You may see this on a beach, a pit. It's more in movies. Something you might see in movies, and it's something where you end up falling into it and it's really hard to get out of this thing. You may see like Indiana Jones, you know, like an Indiana Jones type thing where they are quick sand yes, boom okay, couldn't say sink, No, sink. You can't say sink. You can't say trap, desert, mud or struggle. Okay, because sink would have given yes. Yeah, that's pretty crazy. Yep. Okay, all right. Fourth one, all right, oh, here we go, give me a moment here. I gotta look at these ones here. Okay, this is hard, Yeah, these are these are decently tough. Yes, okay. Fourth one is it's it's an attribute that somebody may have character nom mm, integrity, thank you, get me go, Oh my gosh, this is tough. Okay. It's also something in that. Thank you you're. Uh, it's something that may go out at your home. Electricity. Uh, that is one of the words. It's electricity. But what is power? Power? Thank you? Attribute somebody may have as I went wrong on that west So it's strength, energy, electricity, control, and authority. So it did a good job of locking it. But once you said electricity, that was great, okay. And and the word was power. Yeah, power. That's why I said it's something you can lose in a home. You said electricity, where does it come from? I would have said, like the old he Man cartoon says, I have the blank. Yeah, okay, I need to do a better job of looking at it. Yeah, pop culture things. Okay, all right, here we go this next one. Yea, it's not it's the opposite of white as far black colors. Okay, that's the first word. And then this is something you would fall into, black pit. Nope, something else you'd fall into. You got it? Black ditch? Oh my, yes, no, it's it's a black hole. There it is. Yeah. Well I didn't even say anything. You just got there right so that the words were uh, space, gravity, galaxy, universe or suck. So for you, I feel like when I went with your your strategy of opposite of white black, there you go. So you gotta dude, that was good. Do you get all five? Next work? All right? All right? So speaking question is did the fans beat me? Did the fans beat you? Yees? So I guess let us know. I meant we mentioned this a couple of days ago. We love to read your comments. I don't know if you know what's but his comments. You're yes, she comments all the times, very encouraging words. So maybe if anything, just that could be a reason to start reading the comments. Let us know if you beat us in that game you beat Chris and that game beat me. I guess I once thought I was the king of catchphrase. That was tough, though. I bet you my good friends Maria and Craig Brown, dear friends of ours. Yeah, I bet you that they're going to comment because I mentioned the restaurant that they always take us to, Leciouse. Yes, and they're going to comment. And oh my goodness, Yes, Maria Craig say hi. If you're listening to this, yes, say say hi. And that's all you have to do. Just say. Then everybody else tune in to see Marie and Craig say hi. Yes, So everybody engage. Everybody writes something. Yeah, let us know. I mean, that's so that's their favorite spot, is Luciano's right? Oh yeah? Okay, So here's what I want to do, just because I want to hear on that comment. Let us know what your favorite local restaurant is. It might be nice to show some love to local fun spots, you know, local spots, local restaurants. Nice. All right, So clearly that was not a weakness of yours or mine that game, right, you'd say that was a strength of yours? Right? Yeah? Oh good? But Josh, some people. This kind of thing may be a weakness, and today we're actually going to talk about turning your weakness into a strength. Whow as we lean into Second Corinthians twelve. That's good, that's good. Right, you took the assignment seriously? Yeah, yeah, you really did well. Good. But I saw weakness and I was like, oh that was good. That was the strength of yours. Because if you would have said I'm not really that good at that, that would have been my segue. But anyways, you are good. And today we're going to be reading in Second Corinthians in chapter twelve, and as Chris mentioned earlier, it's about dangerous, dangerous prayers of surrender. Second Corinthians. You good if I start yep? All right? Twelve one through ten says this, this boasting is Paul speaking. This boasting will do no good, but I must go on. I will reluctantly tell about the visions and revelations from the Lord. I was caught up to the Third Heaven fourteen years ago. Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don't know. Only God knows. Yes, only God knows whether I was in my body or outside my body. But I do know that I was caught up to paradise and heard things so astounding that they can astounding that they cannot be expressed in words. Things no human is allowed to tell. That experience is worth boasting about, but I'm not gonna do it. I will boast only about my weaknesses. If I wanted to boast, I would be no fool in doing so, because I would be telling the truth. But I won't do it because I don't want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message, even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. Three different times I beg the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, my grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness. So now I'm glad to boast about my weaknesses so that the power of Christ can work through me. That's why I take pleasure in my weaknesses and the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong. Man. That's I love this. It's one of the most found on paradoxical statements in the Bible. You know, they always say, like you know, in order to be exalted, you have to be humble, in order to be last, in order to be first, you have to be last. You know, the most powerful direction is not up and down, and you know, goodness, there's so many other ones, but you know, in order to live, I have to die, right, I mean, there's so many different opposite kind of things, and this is probably one of the most powerful. He says for when I am weak, that I am strong, because the reason why it's powerful is because the concept is deeper than most. Right. So it's like what he's really saying is he's saying that there's a human part of yourself and you're gifted, right, You're gifted in all sorts of strong ways. You have all these gifts that you know that that allow you to progress in this world. And you know, being a good talker, a good communicator, a good persuasive person, a good relational person, right, all these different things, your your wisdom and all these different things. But whenever you operate in your own strengths. It's it's less of a spotlight on God's power in your life. So you could say that, you know, a really talented person could operate in their own strength and be like even a pastor or a leader. We've certainly seen those the share of those kinds of people right where it's like, wow, they're just a phenomenal, charismatic leader, but it seems like it's all them and it's nothing about the power of God. And then sometimes, not often, i should say not the majority. It is often, but not the majority. But oftentimes we'll see a pastor fall and we'll say, well, that's because it was he was operating in his own strengths, he was operating in it was all about him, right, or you know whoever. So I think that I think that this concept is so deep because what it's saying is it's saying that whenever you're deficient, you have no choice but to rely on the power of God in your life. And it's like, well, God, I'm in capable. It's like Gideon, right, It's like I'm incapable of doing these things, and God's like, perfect, You're exactly where I want you to be, and you're like, what do you mean, Well, God, I can't do this perfect. David goes out there to fight Goliath. You know, I can't put on Saw's armor perfect. Now you're gonna see God's strength come through because there's no way you could defeat Golias like this, right, I mean, come on, I mean he was a good shot with the slang, but that hadn't been gotten right. And so it's like, it's like, that's what it means. It means Paul is saying, like I have I am. So you think about Paul Man. It's credentials. Think about Paul. There was nobody that could have boasted more than Paul. Yes, and and and yet what he's saying is is he's saying, there's this thing in my life and and and uh, and it's just there to remind me that I have to stay humble, right because because if this thing weren't there, I probably wouldn't rely on God as much as I do. Yeah, So would you say the dangerous prayer here would be the fact that he prayed three times for the Lord to take the flesh or the thorn away. Yeah. And then God's response was that my grace is enough. I think it says in this translation I've always heard is that my grace is sufficient for you. You've probably heard that before and IV translation translations, sufficient is defined as enough. And I don't know why, I've always loved that that that that word that's saying, my grace is sufficient sufficient. So here it says, is all you need. All you need? Okay, I love that is my grace is all you need. Whenever you know he's saying, he said, hey, take this away from me. Hey, just you know, my grace is enough. You don't need anything more or anything less. This is what I got for you. I love that, But I think for me that you agree with you. I love the fact that he's talking about boasting in the things that you're weak at, because when you're weak, then he has made strong. And it's a reminder, yeah, for all of us, or anybody really here who maybe is going through something that maybe it's a sickness, maybe it's an illness, maybe it's something in your life. I don't know about you, but I think it's powerful to pray and ask God. We should be praying, we should be praying for healing over things. But you and I both have seen a fair share of prayers that you're just asking God's will to be done right, You're just praying. And oftentimes I think one of the problems is that sometimes we start to attach people's faith or lack of faith into that healing. But we see here, here's Paul, who is like the most faith right, he's the most God following person. Yet God didn't take away that sickness, that ailment, that illness, whatever it may be, that thorn in his flesh. God said, don't worry about it, rely on me. Just a fun story that just I don't know if I've ever shared this story with you, but there's one time, many years ago the youth group I was leading, there's a big group of students and leaders that went to a concert for a well known worship group in the country. They're a well known traveling worship group. But they also had their known to do like healings at the end of the service. And so we had a bunch of students and adult leaders who went out there with these with to see this worship concert and at the end there was a healing part of the service where they told people that if you just had enough faith, enough faith small as a mustard seed. God will heal you of whatever it is, but you just have to take the step. And so we had a person actually who is maybe a junior, who actually drove himself checked this out. He drove himself an hour to get there. To this account, he everybody else drove together. He had been running to something he had. He has serious eyesight issues. If only he had faith, then God would heal him. So what he did is he broke his glasses that he needed to see, broke him in half walk to the altar, could barely see. And God did not take that from God did not heal his his eyesight right there. And then his mom called me the next day devastated because for one her son had to drive in this condition where he could barely see. He is on the road driving an hour away. I didn't know about this until the next day, and then also came home feeling extremely discouraged that his his what he has perceived lack of faith because God clearly didn't heal him. I remember just thinking, man. And that's the danger we can blame ourselves. Well, my faith, my faith was. Percent And I think this is always a reminder for me that like maybe it's not like I think we should pray for healing. Maybe we should one hundred percent we should pray him. Believe that God can heal us and will if if he so desires. But the same time trusting in what Paul is saying here that like his grace is still enough. And I don't know if you've had his stories like that where you've winnessed people who like man, it must be my lack of faith that God didn't heal this thing. And it's sad, yeah it is. And again the sad part is in the fact that we sometimes take God's word and we say, well, we're able to name it and claim it because the choice is up to us, when when actually, in every single time that God says, hey, if you have enough faith ask this will be done. It'll be done. But what God always does is he always throws it under the umbrella that it's God. God is the one doing the miracle, and so therefore it has to align with God's will. Right, So it is if God chooses right, and so so yes, we can have move we can move mountains, we can see mountains moved with incredible faith. We can see mulberry trees cast into the sea. We can see all these different things, you know, with the size of a mustard. See. But that's if God wills it. Right. So God is able and we are able. Period, that's the end of that sentence. Right. We can do this with faith under the umbrella of if God wills it. Because after all, if it were just a name it and claim it kind of a thing, then Paul's foreign in his flesh would have been gone. Yep. So Paul has enough, certainly has enough faith. I mean, if anybody has the quality of faith, and you know who makes the cut, it's going to be Paul, right, So you know, Paul, Paul is a guy in Act chapter nine where Jesus appeared in front of him, He's the only apostle that is, you know, to be categorized with the other twelve apostles, right, He's the only other parstle that Jesus came down and hand picked. And he did so after he died and rose again, he came back down to the earth to choose Paul to get the rest of the job done to spread the gospel. I mean, he physically appeared in front of Paul. Paul's talking about being caught up into heaven and the paradise, which, by the way, what the heck is that about? Right? We don't talk about that a lot. Yeah, But Paul's talking about this vision that he had, and he says, I don't know it was a vision. I don't know if I physically went there. I don't know if I just had this vision. Only God knows. But let me tell you something. I was there. And so he's talking about this miraculous thing. So if there's anybody who has enough faith that God is real and able, it's Paul. Yeah. Yeah, And I was just going to add ont to that too. You mentioned earlier about how he's somebody who had done had followed the law growing up right, and then he had this encounter with Jesus, the risen Savior, and his life is completely transformed. But I like how he talks about boasting in weakness, boasting your weaknesses. Isn't it true that a tendency we may have as Christians the more we follow God is to almost not even notice our weaknesses. Right, We're quick to notice the weaknesses of others and point out the flaws of others. But I actually think it's interesting the guy who should be it was probably very mature in his faith. Was very quick to point out that he will boast, he'll brag about his weakness. I think this is a reminder for anybody who listened to this who maybe like it's really easy, especially when on his daily podcast. You'll listen to a daily Bible podcast to really allow knowledge to puff you up and build you up and make you feel somewhat superior or feel like you have all the answers and the truth and all that stuff, It's very easy. I honestly, I think I've met so many people over the years who the knowledge has puffed them up and created pride and that sort of thing. Then you have Paul who goes literally the opposite of that. He's like, no, no, like, I'm going to boast about my weaknesses for when I'm weak and I made strong. That's literally what it should look like. The more you if you want to go deeper and grow deeper in your faith, it actually looks like that acknowledging that you don't have what it takes. You're not strong enough. You have more weaknesses maybe than you do strengths. You know, and maybe maybe God has allowed this to happen because we absolutely need him. Because I think that when once knowledge starts to puff up, you begin to realize that you start to think, oh, I got this, I'm smart enough, I'm good enough, I'm out to enough, that's right, and miss out on all that. Yeah, some of the best times in my life are when I think to myself, if God doesn't show up, I'm toasted. Right. I mean, you know you have to you have to have enough faith in your life to move forward with every God calls you to do. And it's like it's like, man, you know, anything without risk doesn't really require God to show up, right, And you know that's almost the definition of faith at times right where where it's like it's like, Okay, I'm too weak for this to happen. I can't manufacture this, I can't produce the results of this, I can't make this happen. Only God can do this. And so you know, that's a form of saying, like, God, I can't do this, I'm weak in this area, right, Only you have the power to do this. And so I think that this is a This serves as a great reminder and I do love the fact that we don't know what Paul's Infirmaty Infirmary was you know, some people have said over the years, I've read so many different things. Some people have said he was hunchbacked. Have you ever heard of that? That he had this hunchback? Which because because the word Paul means well, gosh, what does it mean? It means it means like, does it mean hump or something? No, Paul means can you look at up? Maybe you look up what the word Paul means, but it means something like that, and they thought, oh, maybe that's why he was named that. And then some people for some reason say that Paul's eyesight I've heard that, yeah, or maybe it was he was blind or something, you know. And then some people have attributed to you know, different various things. But either way, it doesn't tell us. Yeah, it looks like it's me Paul. It means small or humble. There you go at, okay, what I mean small or humble? You only look up Saul real quick, just because I'm curious. Yeah, which it wouldn't be with King Saul. But still, I just remember being in the Life of Paul class with doctor Haru, and I thought, and somehow I thought he attributed the definition of the word Paul to the hump to the humpback, but maybe not maybe but maybe small mint hunched over. I don't know. But either way though, I love the fact that Paul doesn't mention what it was because it's symbolic for the rest of us. And so think about the credentials of the apostle Paul. Number one, he was Pharisee, right, so he grew up in the religious elite. He had political prowess, he had a future, he had definitely an income, right, he had fame, He had all those different things. So in Act chapter nine at the beginning, it tells us that he was so much in favor of the religious movement that he was actually in charge of persecuting Christians. And he was commissioned by Caiaphas to go to Damascus to accomplish in Damascus when he had already successfully accomplished in Jerusalem, which was to perscue Christians. He's the head of all of that, so he had influence, he was rising up through the ranks, and Acts chapter seven he was an intern and Act chapter ninety's in charge of the whole thing, so all of that. But he was a Roman citizen on top of that, and it was so unbelievably unique for a Jew to be a Pharisee to also be a Roman citizen, and for him to be a Roman citizen. And by the way, the context of that is, of course Rome was occupying the territory of the Jewish people at the time. So Rome had conquered the world, which is why they were under They were under oppression, which is why when Jesus was under trial, remember he had to go to both Caiaphas and then to Herod and then you know, then Caiaphas the Supreme Court, and then go back to ponscious Pilot. It was both Rome condemning his death and then also the religious leaders because the Religiou leaders can't do anything without Rome. They were just there. They were the taxation, they were the conquering political people of the world, the power. So Paul had this unique position where he was a Jew who he was a Roman citizen, which is why later on when he's thrown in jail, he doesn't tell anybody he's a Roman citizen, and then finally he says, I'm a Roman citizen. They feared him and they let him go. Right, So think about everything he has worth to brag for and then none of that. But he studied under the finest. He studied under Gamelion. So think about his training under the very best of the best. So here he is this prestigious guy. I've always I've always been impressed with this. But did you know what Paul's final exam was? If you ever heard this, So, the pharisees would have to study the Book of the Hour, Oh yeah, right, or the Pentitook, the five Books of Moses, and it would always be printed in the same fashion. And so for Paul's final exam to become. A Pharisee, they haven't memorized. Yeah, you'd have to have memorize. But get this to such a Yeah, of course you had to have memorize. But worse than that, they would close the Book of the Peditook and they would take a nail and they would pick anywhere on the Bible, and they would or on the Books of Moses, and they would drive and nail through anywhere in that book. And he would have to quote every verse that I went through. Wow, based on where it was on the page. Wow. Yeah, that's that's according to according to tradition, that's what it was. On all five books of the Bible. Yeah, it was like the first first, like thirteen, right or something like. That's very well. I'm not sure about us. It's most people's belief that he would have taken the test at thirty. But but you're thinking of just to be a Jewish boy would have the Books of Moses memorized by the age of twelve. Yes, right, and then they follow a rabbi and do the whole thing. Yeah, but in order to become a pharisee and to have memorize it to that degree, you would have to start that at thirty. That's insane. But yeah, I mean think about all the credentials. So if there's anybody who had a right to brag, it's Paul, right. So he can brag about the things that he left, the influence that he had, the difference that he made in the Christian movement to where to where like he had to literally be lowered out of a wall. He had officials after him. So he has caused the ruckus to the highest degree. And so he says, listen, I've been to heaven, whether it's bodily or not, I've been there in a vision or something. He's like I have reason to brag, and yet, and yet, I'm telling you right now, I'm not going to do it because I can tell you a bunch of stories. But instead, what I'm going to tell you is when I'm weak, then I'm strong. What an unbelievable. Motto, y'all boast in my weakness? Yep, yeah, that's great. So all right, Well, it's a dangerous prayer to pray God take this away from you, but it's probably even more dangerous to say I'm okay with not having it being removed. So hey, that's our time, so hopefully we will see you next time on the Bibble guys,