Well, I know today is kind of like this somber day. And you were wrestling to get out of bed. It was so beautiful. This morning I wake up to that nice, crisp, wet air. And so thank you for coming out and worship today. In addition to that, I mean, maybe we should get a little excited before we start this morning and just say, hey, you just turned a bar into a church, right? We need a clap for things like that. Have a little bit of energy. That’s good. All right. It’s nice to know you’re alive and with me here today. That’s great. And, um, and we’re in a series together called Rethink Church. And and, uh, here’s the goal of this series. Uh, we want you to be excited for what God’s doing. I guess there’s a hidden agenda. We want you to be excited and motivated. Motivated for what the Lord is doing here in our midst as a church family, to think about where God has brought us as a church family in just a few short years, and being able to come into a facility that we now call home, and to worship him. And for us, it’s a good place to stop and appreciate what God’s done. And but we don’t want to stop in the sense as a long term break. It’s a pause. As we look back on what God’s done gloriously in our lives and in our midst, and we anticipate all that God has for our future.
If the Lord can do this with our church body in just five short years, starting with just a couple of people, I mean, you think five more years from now what that’s going to look like for us as a church family, if we keep our eyes on the Lord? And so, to begin this series together, we’ve gone through a few discussions that were important for us to understand what it is that God has called his church to do. And the first is we thought about about the idea of of church rethinking what church is about and its identity. Our identity is shaped solely upon Christ. And Jesus as we look throughout Scripture is referred to as King. And when Jesus came to this world, what he desired to establish was his kingdom and the terms that he used as he went throughout Israel preaching his message was of kingdom orientation. My home is not here. My home is in heaven. Our father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done. John stood on the edge of the Jordan River. He said, Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, prepare ye the way. It was a term that was used for kings. When the village people knew the king was coming, they would prepare the streets. In the past, they would even out the bumps in the road and making his travel light and his burden free.
Jesus appointed apostles to go into this world and and preach his message. He first appointed 12 apostles to reach the 12 tribes of Israel. Apostle was a term that kings used when a king would go into battle. After the battle was won, the village people wanted to know the village people. They wanted to know. They wanted to know. Is our king still king, or do we have a new king? And he would appoint an apostle, which was a messenger, and he would go into the town, and he would preach a message of of proclamation of victory. That message was good news. We call that the gospel, which coincidentally means good news. And so when the apostles would go to the town, they would proclaim this good news, the celebration of victory. It was intended to gather the people from from the houses into the streets and celebration for the King, who was about to come and march into the town in honor of his victory. He was a king, establishing a kingdom. This invitation was extended to you. The king came for you. And upon establishing coming to this earth and and preaching about his kingdom, the the method through which God desired for his kingdom message to continue came through the church. And the Bible tells us in the book of Matthew we saw last week where Jesus comes to Peter and says, who do they say that I am? And and Peter says to to Jesus, you are the Christ.
He says, Peter, you are a rock or a small pebble. And upon your confession, upon that rock of your confession, is me as Christ and as King, I will build my church upon that, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. The idea for us as a church. Jesus created a picture within our minds of this fortress of hell, and we as a church, go out into the world we’re not concerned with, with what the world is doing to us, but more so what we are doing to this world. And we go out into this world and literally storm down the gates of hell. And the question we asked was, and when you get there, what do you do? I mean, you bust down gates. I mean, I would like to do that. Give me a sledgehammer. Where’s that gate? It’d be cool to watch. If I had the muscles. But what do you do when you get inside? When Jesus is after his people. Lords after your heart. And Lords after your heart and in working a miracle within your heart, he desires to send you as as apostles, as messengers into this world, to storm down the gates and go behind those gates and grab the hearts of other people and bring them out into the kingdom in which Jesus has established.
You think of the picture that Jesus creates of his church? It’s not this pansy bunch of people. It’s these people that God has called to be his his agents into this world, to celebrate what Jesus has done and give this message of proclamation. I love that about the gospel. It’s really not even a message of trying to convince people. It’s a that’s a message of proclamation of a victory in Christ. Last week. We looked at the importance of what you believe. When we said this. What you believe is as important as the sincerity of that belief. You may truly believe something, but what you could believe in could be wrong. And the Bible tells us very simply in John chapter four, Jesus goes to the woman at the well and says, he who worships me must worship me in spirit and in truth. If you want to connect to God, it’s important that you connect to God truthfully as God has made himself known to us. And so what you believe is as important as the sincerity of your beliefs. You know, in this week or these past weeks, as we’ve talked about what Rethink Church means for us and coming into this new home and just keeping that energy alive about what what God is doing. We’ve looked forward in anticipation of everything that we could do in the future, and in storming down those gates and proclaiming for this king and carrying this belief for him.
And today I just want to take a moment and take a step back. In fact, I want to look back. Today, we’re going to look at a passage that Paul is going to share with us, in which he has experientially related to us in the Lord. As he’s gone into this world, the the greatest missionary who’s ever existed, the greatest apostle who has ever existed for the Lord. Done. Done more work than anyone comparable to to what we find within Scripture. And Paul takes a moment and reflects back on what God does in his life. And he does this in the Corinthian church. If you read the book of first Corinthians and second Corinthians, one of the things you’ll find as you study this book is these people make you feel really good about yourself. If you walked into that church today, that would be the church that you visit once and never go back. Those people are cray cray. That’s what you say as you go. Where’s my Facebook? I got to tell people, do not go there. They got messed up, man. Or maybe you’re the opposite. Maybe you’re thinking, man, I am, I am crazy, I’m the guy at the family reunion. The people won’t talk to. Send me there. Tell me where it’s at. I want to read this book.
How many feel good about myself? And Paul is writing this letter to the Corinthians, both first and second Corinthians. And he’s helping them to understand that you have a greater impact in this world than you think. And what you do matters. The choices that you make, the way that you live your life, the the way that you demonstrate the King that you proclaim matters. The way that you communicate to this world the the idea of how this king came into your heart and changed your life and your perspective. It matters. And you have a greater impact in this world than you think. And what Paul is looking for in this passage is of first and second Corinthians, or people who recognize that there’s problems, people who recognize that there’s need, and and people who want to do something for, for their king. That’s why Paul in First Corinthians gets to a place in Scripture and he says this, whether then you eat or you drink or whatever it is, I don’t care if you’re getting a Slurpee at the gas station. Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. What you do matters. You have a tremendous impact in this world. You think of the way that Jesus has described you as individuals storming down as a church, storming down the gates of hell? What power is that? Your actions matter not just for you, but but in light of all eternity.
What you do matters. And Paul begins to reflect on his own relationship in the. And the Lord. And it begins to be open about his living for Christ. And Paul recognizes very honestly for us that he’s wise enough to flee from darkness and simply walk with Jesus. Well for you this morning. If you’re an individual who desires to honor your king, who wants to experience his goodness in your life, he’s he’s not just an arbitrary thought, but he is a real God reigning in heaven. And the question we ask is, how can I experience the hand of his grace in my life? When Paul begins to open up about his Christian living. Book of Corinthians should be. I don’t know if it’s listed right in your notes. It should say Second Corinthians chapter 12 and verse seven, Paul begins to explain to us his struggles as he desires to live for the Lord in this world. Very simply says this, beginning in verse seven, to keep me from exalting myself. There was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me, to keep me from exalting myself. Concerning this, I implored the Lord there three times that it might leave me. And he said to me, my grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness. Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. Paul recognized something very quickly in the book of Second Corinthians, chapter 12, beginning of chapter. He talks about these revelations, these special revelations that God had given him concerning the nature of Christ and what God desired in this world and what’s what is what led Paul to write many of the epistles in the New Testament. But, but the man tendency within Paul was to struggle and to think himself as something special than everyone else. You know, this is this is my God. And he loves me more than other people. And I’m going to look down upon people. And what it says in verse seven is as rather than begin to take that attitude, what happened, what he found within his life is that he began to struggle with an area. Paul calls this. The thorn in his flesh. What Paul is doing for us is a group of believers is that as we recognize the need to live for Christ in this world, we we also recognize that it’s not always easy. But the important thing that I think Paul does within this passage of Scripture is he begins to communicate to us about his walk with the Lord is that, first of all, Paul is open with his struggles before God.
He recognizes he too is still just a man. And just like all people living for the Lord and thinking about storming down the gates of hell, it’s it’s not always easy. He’s got a thorn in his flesh. And I would like to tell you this morning, and this is that thorn, but I can’t. For hundreds of years, theologians have looked at this passage of Scripture and contemplated what exactly is this thorn that Paul is struggling with? And no one knows exactly what this thorn is. So I’m going to give you my most educated thought and assumption towards this passage of Scripture and make application for us in our own lives. Some people have suggested this, that, that, that the struggle that, that Paul has within his life is that that thorn is a physical ailment. And you can imagine being Paul going into the prisons that he’s been in, taking the beatings that he’s that he’s he’s taken in his life, that he may walk a little crooked, stand a little hunched over and be a little malnourished. And so to have some sort of physical element would be understandable in the life of the Apostle Paul. Other people think that it may be maybe some individuals who are bothering him. Let me read the book of Galatians or the account in acts. I think it’s chapter 17, when Paul has to go back to Jerusalem to defend the faith.
And, and, and Paul writes about these individuals who pursued him throughout his ministry, who harassed what he was trying to do in honor of the Lord. Other people have thought maybe Paul had a sin that he struggled with. What about this? He’s a man of guilt. As the Bible tells us. Before Paul became Paul, when he was Saul, he was a persecutor of the church. And when he was on his way to Damascus, before he became a believer in Christ, he was on the road to Damascus to persecute, imprison and kill Christians. The Apostle Paul was there at the very first martyrdom of the very first person in the Bible of Stephen. Maybe he’s walking in this world serving Jesus and he’s got guilt on the shoulders. No one really knows what Paul’s thorn is. Let me tell you, I think that we can blanket whatever that thorn is that Paul struggles with. I think that we can blanket that thorn under one thought. That the thorn in Paul’s flesh that continues to harass him. Would lead to sin. The idea in verse ten says this to us. I’ll explain the sin in just a minute in verse ten. If I gave my educated guess, I would say that the thorn in Paul’s flesh is external to Paul. I think people are probably harassing him because verse ten, as it begins to explain where Paul’s going to be content in his life as he has these thorns, the place that he wants to be content is in his weaknesses and insults and distresses and persecutions and difficulties, for Christ’s sake.
So Paul is saying, okay, I’ve got this thorn. It’s bothering me, but I’m going to be content because all this pressure I’m feeling from the outside of my life, I know that God’s glory is going to be made known in that. So I would say educated guess, that the place that Paul is finding this thorn is through people that are harassing him. We’re going to tell you the struggle also with Paul and the thorn is sin. Here’s why. When Paul describes this thorn to us, he refers to it as a messenger from Satan. Every time Satan shows up in the Bible, he is tempting someone to sin. I don’t care if it’s pressure from someone on the outside who wants you to stop following the Lord, or it’s the own your own temptation that you’re following in your in your lives. When when Satan is present, when temptation is there, every time Satan shows up in the Bible, his objective. Is to lead you towards sin. Adam and Eve in Genesis chapter three. Satan shows up in the garden as temptation to get them to eat of the fruit. You can call it an apple, but it was to send in the book of job. And in chapter one, Satan’s desire was to get job, to curse God and and to lead him from God and to get him to sin.
And in Matthew chapter four, when Satan shows up in the wilderness tempting Jesus, his desire was to get the perfect sacrifice that is Christ to sin. Every time Satan shows up in your life, his desire is to get you to sin. This is the important part I love in this opening thought of Paul is that as Paul becomes human. It gives us the freedom as well to admit we all have thorns that we struggle with in our lives. Yeah. I don’t like it that Paul may have this temptation to sin. I don’t want Paul to sin. I want him to live in light of Christ. I want them to experience the joy in his relationship with the Lord. But I got to admit, there’s a part of me that just says thank you. Mr. perfect isn’t perfect, ladies. He’s still not out there, right? I look at Paul and I think, man, if Paul can struggle. And so can I. And then I look at Paul. I’m thinking if Paul can be open about his struggles. So can I. There’s something freeing about the confession that Paul brings before the Lord and before us to say, listen, guys, I’ve got these struggles too. And Satan pokes you with thorns as his entire goal is to immobilize you from what the Lord has called you.
Their lives as we think about the failures that might keep us from God, or the failures that we allow to weigh on our past. We say things like, why would God want to use me? I did this, or why would God want to use me? Does he even know I think about this? Or does he know that this is in my past and does? Does God not know? Satan’s desire is to immobilize Paul through this thorn, to prevent him from carrying on the work that God has called him to. It fits the character of Satan, because in revelation chapter 12 and verse ten, it tells us he’s the great accuser of the brethren or the great accuser of the church. His desire is to flaunt your failures in your face, to immobilize you from pursuing Jesus with your life. And guys, I gotta tell you, when Jesus died on the cross for your sins, he died for all of your sins. Well, I love the beauty of that because Paul knows it, and that’s what gives him the freedom in this moment, just to be open about what’s hindering him from pursuing God in his life. I’ve got this thorn, and I’m learning just to be content, and I’m being open about it, and I’m sharing it with the Lord God, because I want to experience your joy in my life. Satan knows.
The greatest threat to your joy in the Lord. Get this. The greatest threat to your joy in the Lord isn’t sin. The greatest threat to your joy in the Lord is alive. Bible tells us in Romans chapter one, they exchanged the truth for the lie and worshiped and served the creator. Or excuse me, the creature rather than the creator. In James one it tells us we’re enticed by our own desires, and in those desires sin is born. And the idea is this If Satan can convince you of a lie, that is true. If you could believe that lie to be better for you than the truth of God, then sin follows his birth in your life. Satan’s desire in this passage, I would say, is to convince Paul of some sort of lie that he would pursue sin in his life, rather than the joy of the Lord and what God has called him to. Maybe if Paul’s struggling with people on the outside, Satan could just be tempting him and whispering, Paul, it’s just not worth it. What do you think of the struggles? You can just give up at any moment? God. God doesn’t need you. I mean, he doesn’t want you. Look, every time you go into a town, you tick people off and people are angry at you. You think of the last town you left? People were beaten because of you. Today, people stand in jail because of you.
Proclaiming Christ isn’t worth it. Believe this light. This lie is far better for you than the truth. There’s a famous saying that says this be killing sin or sin that’d be killing you. The way that we kill sin within our life is the truth. Now some people see the solution to to sin as this way I sin, I make bad mistakes. So what I’m going to do is I’m going to avoid from doing bad things or or you know what, I sin, I do bad things in my life. And and rather than sin, I’m going to do good things. The Bible’s solution is this. You sin in your life, and rather than that, pursue Jesus. Be open about it. Talk to the Lord about your thorn. Communicate it with other people who are here to lift you up. The Bible tells us in James, confess your sins to one another, but the goal is not stop sinning. The goal isn’t do good. The goal is to seek Jesus. And so Paul is open with his struggle before God for us and and helps us to see the need within our own lives to come before a King who is already paid for all of sin penalty for our lives. Paul could have said, I’m going to struggle with the sin on my own. But the beauty is, is he takes it to Christ. And the wisdom for us this morning is that we as people, when we feel these temptations, when we feel these thorns poking in our lives, that we have enough wisdom to flee from that temptation, to flee from that lie, to flee from that sin and just run to Jesus.
And Paul says this. As he makes the struggle before the Lord, he tells us he finds in verse nine and he said to me. My grace is sufficient for you. No one knows exactly what the thorn is that Paul is facing, but whatever Satan is doing, we can rest assured it was to hinder Paul from living or excuse me, to living apart from Christ. Second thing I love about this passage, I think is encouraging for us as a church family. We look to all that God has for our future. Is that the answer Paul got was no in that cool it man. If Paul got yes, if there was one guy that got yes to everything it was Paul would have been the yes man, right? But it tells us that Paul, he has this struggle in, in this thorn that’s preventing him in, in pursuing God the way that he would desire. And so he takes this before God, and he thinks he knows. The solution is that God just wants to remove this from his life. Right? God’s got to want to remove this because I’m the one that God tells no or doesn’t say no to.
And he says he praise the Lord three times. And God says. Now. But, you know, as you read this passage of Scripture that the healthiest thing. If the Lord could have done for Paul in this moment. Was to say no. Bible tells us that what the Lord did was allowed Paul through the struggle that he was experiencing, rather than trust in himself, and to think of his goodness and glory. He thought of the goodness of the Lord and the sufficiency that Christ brought into his life. Rather than become independent apart from God, he became dependent upon God. It’s one of the beautiful things, I think, when Paul selected his word choice and calling it a thorn in the flesh for us, it recalls within our mind when thorns first began in Genesis three, when Adam and Eve were created, they sinned. And God tells us that he cursed the earth and that the ground would grow thorns and fight against us. But you know the beauty of the curse that God permitted to happen in the life of Adam and Eve was also the very thing that would drive them to depend on the one who could supply for their lives. Brought about a humble spirit before God. And telling no to Paul. It drove Paul closer to the one who would supply the needs for what he had to do, what he called him to do into this world.
How many of you guys think within your life there are things that you have prayed for? And you thought five years down the road, you know what? I am sure glad God said no to that. If he had, if he had said that, I don’t even know where I would be right now. I thought this was so important, but thank God he knew better in my life. Do you think about the the roads that we walk sometime and the difficulty that we face and the prayers that we bring before the Lord. And we say, no way, God, I am not you. Take this out. There’s no way I’m doing that. And then and then you go through that experience and you look back to where the Lord has you now, and you think, you know, I didn’t want to go through that at the time, but having gone through it. Look what God’s done. I wouldn’t pick that for anyone, but the Lord has allowed me to experience that in such a way that he has matured me to be exactly who he wanted me to be, and the place I am right now. To God’s answer wasn’t completely no to Paul. It was just. I’m not going to answer it in that way. Paula, I’m hearing your request, and I’m not saying know completely what I’m saying no to is the specifics of the request that you’re having.
I’m saying no to taking the thorn away, but I’m. I’m saying yes to how I can. I can demonstrate to you my power and sustaining you through that thorn that you’re experiencing. I would say for our lives, it’s far better to experience the power of the Lord regardless of what we’re going through, than to experience life apart from him. Paul saying this to us in this passage of Scripture that just because God says, no, God isn’t saying, and I won’t help. And I love. As Paul communicates to this, he never says to us in the Lord eventually took away the thorn, but he continues to remind us that the thorn was used as a basis for God to draw him near to him. But the Bible tells us that Jesus loves hearts that are humble before him. In Psalm 51 and 17 it says this my sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit. A broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise. And third is this. As Paul talks about this thorn in our lives, he, he, he demonstrates to us the need just to be open about the struggles that we face in this world and the lies that we can believe and the sin, the temptation that we can fall into. But he also shares with us how the Lord can use those things to to teach us. And like this. Paul wants to show us how the power of God.
Carriage carries you over those thorns. So this verse tends to be a verse that is very beneficial for glass half empty kind of people. My life stinks, you know. My kids are this. My job is this, my spouse is this, and it’s the country’s just going to pot. I mean, if that’s your tendency, this verse becomes your verse. Thorns, this verse teaches us, aren’t what prevent you from serving Jesus. Let me just say that again. Thorns aren’t what prevent you from serving Jesus. That’s the lie Satan wants you to believe. But listen to this. Thorns are the avenue through which the power of Christ can be more clearly seen in your life. So we look at these thorns sometimes, and we make gods out of our thorns. And our Lord not big enough to care for our needs and look over the things that we need in our lives, not even thinking that the thorn is the very place that God’s power desires to be made known in your world. Thorns are the avenue through which the power of Jesus can be more clearly seen. How do I know that? Because after the Lord tells Paul no. He reminds us of what he learns and the lesson. He says this. My grace is sufficient for you. For power is perfected in weakness. Moore. Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
Therefore I am content with weaknesses, with insults, with distress, with persecutions, with difficulty, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. So the strength that we carry apart from God is a delusion anyway. I’m Paul saying, when I look at this thorn now, I now see the presence of God and how his power can be made known in my life. Therefore, I will more gladly boast in my weakness, that the power of Christ may be made known in my life. Maybe in your thorn. Maybe in your struggle. Maybe in your openness of that struggle, Christ desires to make his power known in your life. See what you do matters. Because in the moment of weakness, when you can just share that with people and God sees the power of the Lord working in that, there’s no other praise that can be given other than to God. I want to encourage you this way as a Christian. If you’ve never done anything big or bold for the Lord in your life. Do something bigger, bold for the Lord in your life of everything that you do can be explained within your own power. It’s time to step out of your comfort zone and allow the glory of God to be made known in your life, that when it takes place, no other praise can be given than to the Lord. That scares me.
I don’t even like saying it. Especially as a pastor, when you say something like that, he’s like, okay, put your money where your mouth is and and prove it, Buster. I feel like part of part of me has lived like that in Utah. And we’re going to get a building. You’re right. I’m going to move to Utah in just a matter of months. Yeah, right. Lord’s going to provide for you while you’re here every month. You’re right. We’ll just trust. I think of the thorns that come into my own life and I say, God, I know what you’ve called me to is beyond my own scope, beyond my own power, beyond my own limits. And I am not comfortable with that. And the thorns come into my life and say, you know what? Don’t. Don’t talk to that person about me. Don’t share my love. Don’t even open your mouth. There’s a thaw. You know you want to move. You don’t want to do ministry. I mean, there’s so many people that are better than you. I mean, I could probably spout off thousands right now because. Don’t need me. But the same is true for you. When serving the Lord. The thorns in your life. They come in, don’t they? I’m not. I’m not good enough. That’s. I’m just like I’m a bench player. What the A-Team do I. Mr. T, right? It’s not for me. God’s never called me to be anything special.
God’s never given me any sort of miraculous ability. Can I tell you this morning? God doesn’t call the equipped. He equips the called. You want the Lord desires more than anything. I’ve already said it. Just a willing heart. So there’s beauty in the weakness of who you are that allows the beauty of who Christ is to be demonstrated. It doesn’t have to be anything miraculous. It’s just faithfulness. To not believe the lie of the thorn, to not give in to the temptation of the sin, but just desire instead to walk with Jesus. I love the simplicity of that. As a church, we don’t require this religious onset upon you. We just say, walk with Jesus. What you do in this world matters. The impact that you’re making is far greater than you understand in your weakness. Let the beauty of Christ be made known. If you’re afraid, it’s okay. I’m afraid to. I’m going beyond my own abilities and trusting in the Lord. And if he proves to be unfaithful, we don’t have anything to live for anyway. So I just trust in him. We’re gladly. Would I rather boast in my weakness at the power of Christ may be made known in my life. To share with you. Just one more Bible verse comes in acts chapter four and verse 13, the remark that they made of the disciples. I put these guys on a pedestal in my own reading my life.
You think these are giants in the faith for Christ, the disciples of Jesus. No one compares. And then when you study about them, they’re like, they’re smelly fishermen, uneducated, whatever. As low as you can go on the worthy poll and human standards. That’s these guys. But the eyes of the Lord, they’re beautiful to him. And it says this in acts chapter four and verse 13, when they saw the courage not in themselves but in the Lord, when they saw the courage of Peter and John, they realized that they were unschooled men. They were astonished. And they took note that these men had been with Jesus. These guys. Courageous in the Lord, unschooled the people that you would not prepare or pick to lead any sort of movement. And what made them powerful. Therewith. Jesus. When I lived my life and I think about the end of my life. To my desire, having been able to say so right now, was to make my life count for more than just tomorrow. If I can make my life count for eternity. I want to do this. I want to make my life matter. Here’s the answer. Spend time with Jesus. The transformation that takes place within our lives as it builds within us. A people who are courageous and bold in the Lord, not trusting in our own strength, not relying on our self to remove these storms, but depending upon God.
This morning. I share this with you because we’ve looked at these passages of scriptures today, and it’s encouraged us to look forward to all that God has. But you could be waiting just in the moment before pursuing this gate storming church that the Lord wants to build. And you’re saying, I feel like I’ve stepped into a boxing ring with Satan. He’s got you against the ropes. And you’re wondering how you’re going to get out. His thorns are poking you. In your life is like it’s running dry. He’s prayed to the Lord. This answer seems to be no. I’ll share this with you this morning. To say this is grace. His grace is sufficient for you. Share this with you this morning so that rather than believe the lies of the thorn. It would turn from what’s robbing you of the joy in the Lord and just be open before Christ. Just confess it. To understand that. No, doesn’t have to be no. Like you’re thinking no, that God cares. And his desire could be to use that thorn to show his glory. And rather than just simply remove you from that thorn in this, this world, to simply show you how his power far supersedes any thorn that you experience in this life. Encouragement this morning. It’s to stop allowing your thorn to prevent you from what God has called you to do in this world.
Start making gods of your thorns and start making the Lord the God that you serve, so that you can experience his great hand. Be open about the thorns you’re going through. Learn in the nose how the power of God can be made known in your weakness. And let the grace of God supply for your life, because his grace far supersedes any thorn that you experience. God doesn’t want the equipped people to call. He wants to call people so that he can equipped that his power may be made known. What you do in this world matters. And God has called you to make a difference. I’m going to close with this one reading for you this morning. I put this in your notes in the bulletin if you want. If you didn’t grab one, you can grab it on your way out. But this is written in a book called Extreme Devotion by Voice of the martyrs. It’s a book that’s just written by martyrs who have given their life for Christ. This is titled The Fellowship of the unashamed. It’s written by an African martyr. It’s a testimony that attributed to him, and it says this. Think about serving the Lord. He says, I’m a part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have stepped over the line, the decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away or be still.
My past is redeemed. My present makes sense and my future is secure. I’m finished and done with low living sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed vision, mundane talking, cheap loving and dwarfed goals. I will no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions or popularity. Popularity. Excuse me, I don’t have to be right. First topped, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith. Lean on his presence, walk by patience, live by prayer and labor by his power. My face is set. My gait is fast. My goal is heaven. My road is narrow. My way rough. My companions few. My guide reliable. My mission clear. I cannot be bought, diluted or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice. Hesitate in the presence of adversity. Negotiate at the table of the enemy, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won’t give up. Shut up and let the cause of Christ go. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till he comes. Give till I drop. Preach till all know and work till he stops me. And when he comes for his own, he will have no problem recognizing me. My banner will be clear. And thought, is this? To garbage with the thorn. What God’s called you to in this world is by far more beautiful than any thorn that Satan presents. The open. Be open as Paul was open. If the Lord says no. Learn what the Lord desires to do in that moment, and watch how his grace is sufficient in your life.