Thursday: Crucibles of Maturity
“And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure” (2 Corinthians 12:7, NKJV).
There is a big difference between cutting down and pruning. We cut down plants that we don’t want anymore; we prune plants that we want to develop into greater fruitfulness. Both processes, however, do involve a sharp knife. Indeed, pruning requires cutting parts off the plant that might seem to a novice gardener like destroying it. In a spiritual context, Bruce Wilkinson writes, “Are you praying for God’s superabundant blessings and pleading that He will make you more like His Son?
Image © Steve Creitz at Goodsalt.com
“If your answer is yes, then you are asking for the shears.” — Bruce Wilkinson, Secrets of the Vine (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, Inc., 2001), p. 60.
People have wondered what Paul actually meant by a “thorn in my flesh” (2 Corinthians 12:7, NIV). Ideas range from Paul’s having constant attacks from enemies to having a speech difficulty. It seems that this was actually a problem with his eyesight (see Ellen G. White Comments, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 6, p. 1107). Amazingly, Paul believed that his “thorn” was “given me.”
What do you think Paul meant by “given me”? Who gave it to him? How was God able to use it for Paul’s benefit?
Notice that Paul’s “thorn” had a definite purpose: “to keep me from becoming conceited” (2 Corinthians 12:7, NIV). It was not because of any specific sin he had committed, but to prevent him from sinning in the future. Paul recognized that by nature he had a weakness to sin, and that this “thorn” could guard against it.
Read 2 Corinthians 12:7-10. How does Paul deal with his “thorn”? Do you think that Paul’s weakness had any other spiritual benefits to him? How can the way that Paul responds help you to deal with “thorns” that you may have to carry?
| In what ways might God’s ideas for your spiritual development be very different from your own? Think about areas in your life in which you need to become more fruitful in righteousness. What spiritual qualities would you like to ask God to develop in you through His “pruning”? |
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I surrender! That's all I can say. God has been pruning me wisely! Every single cut is super sharp and definite! I need to accept it as it is! Because God knows exactly what I am and what I can become! May this be for His glory!
Question in Study:
What do you think Paul meant by “given me”? Who gave it to him? How was God able to use it for Paul’s benefit.
The revelations of Jesus's nature and the salvation message to the gentiles was given to Paul as #THE# apostle to the gentiles. Whereas Matthew and Mark's message were mainly targeted to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, as the promised messiah to them, Israel.
Most of these revelations to Paul, exposed discretely in his letters, seemed consistent in parts to the book of Revelation, that was penned later by the apostle John, that shows Jesus's divinity and the salvation message to all mankind.
It seems that the apostle Paul needed to be humbled, with so much information and insight he was given by Jesus, that some infliction in his flesh made him totally dependant on God and his Lord.
For example, a preacher on YouTube stated he had revelations from God and had written a new book at a cost of $20. But also added that a personal signed copy of his new book would cost an extra $30 dollars. ...
So his signature is worth more than God's message ????
This is a perfect example of the complete opposite of the Apostle Paul !
I/we need not to be conceited with biblical head knowledge, but with humility and beggar's for his Spirit for the right mindset of Christ Jesus.
Shalom in him as Lord !
🙏
From Paul‘s example with the infliction of the thorn, I see that Paul rested in the confidence that God, who knows all, sees the future of all things and is always in control.
God's plans always have a benefit in a certain sense to strike a blow against the devil and bring about eternal blessing to us and glory to Him as well.
Paul was able to complete his paramount work despite his weak eyesight. One example was as we read in Galations 6:11, he could not be intimidated from writing missionary letters:
„You see how large a letter I have written unto you with mine own hand.“ And he was able to use his other physical and mental capacities by traveling all over to preach God‘s word.
Certainly, if we violate God‘s principles the consequences will be suffering and loss. Yet, like Job, Joseph and Elija and many other examples in the Bible, if the attack is external it‘s good to remember what Paul wrote to the Romans in Rom. 8: 38-39
„Neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.“
AMEN
The LORD's desire for His people is to become spiritually mature for their own benefit and so that they can share the Good News with others. How does this happen? By studying the Word of the LORD and meditation and prayer - John and Judas spent 3 years walking with the LORD, John changed from the 'son of thunder' to John 'the beloved', however Judas became more ambitious for his own success. The process can be rocky but the destination is sure.
The Holy Spirit through Paul encourages His people to become spiritually mature Heb 5:11-14,6:1-3
EG White says: Trials and obstacles are the Lord's chosen methods of discipline and His appointed conditions of success.
MoH pg 471.1 Trials
The LORD gave a message through Jeremiah that the tribe of Judah would have to go into exile for 70 years and only then he would bring them back : Jer 29:11 ISV For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for well-being, and not for calamity, in order to give you a future and a hope.
Just cutting a rose can increase it's smell.
Beautiful observation and to the point!
Shalom 🙏
Thanks for the precise but deep insight, Rebecca.
It is comforting to remember that times in the crucible do not last forever; yet, may have mature, eternal effects . . . to the glory of God.
One contemporary quote that I appreciate - increasingly - says, "If He brings me TO it; then, He'll take me THROUGH it." 'Sounds like maturing faith, doesn't it?
Praise Him, for that!
Above all, God's promises remain sure:
John 16: 33 (NKJV)
"These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
Joshua 1:9
"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”
2Corinthians 1:3,4
"3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God."
Romans 15:13
"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."
May we rid/purify our hearts and minds of everything that is unlike our Creator. May our Redeemer have the full credit that He deserves from us, as we emerge, changed for the better. Amen.
Hi Maurice
Is your absence this week due to being caught up in the flooding rain up your way?
Hi Phil. Thank you for enquiring. The flooding rain has not helped the situation. We had to drive from the sunshine coast to Lake Macquarie (1000km) in the heavy rain on Tuesday/Wednesday. There were several episodes of whiteout on the roads where it was almost impossible to see. It was a nerve-wracking experience.
The main reason I am not commenting is that we have a family situation with Carmel's ageing parents. It is a crucible experience and we have had to make some deep emotional decisions. I don't want to write about it now as the experience is on-growing and very raw. The irony of having a series of lessons on crucible experiences has not been lost on us. To make matters worse Carmel's sister and her husband both came down with Covid and could not provide any assistance.
Carmel and I are both emotionally drained and physically tired. The worst part about it is that we know we have more trips to the Sunshine Coast this year before the whole thing is settled.
Hopefully, I will be able to start commenting again next week, but at the moment I need to concentrate my efforts here.
Thanks for the 'status report' Maurice. Joining with others in upholding you and your family before God whilst you are within this round of crucible experiences.
Regards from all of us fellow Sabbath School net forum participants till then...
Thinking of and praying for you and yours in this particular crucible. We miss your contributions but this demand is emu has more important
The fact that we are called upon to endure trial shows that the Lord Jesus sees in us something precious which He desires to develop. If He saw in us nothing whereby He might glorify His name, He would not spend time in refining us. He does not cast worthless stones into His furnace. It is valuable ore that He refines. The blacksmith puts the iron and steel into the fire that he may know what manner of metal they are. The Lord allows His chosen ones to be placed in the furnace of affliction to prove what temper they are of and whether they can be fashioned for His work.
Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing, pp. 471-473.
Thank you for this Sarah. My grandfather was a blacksmith although he died before I was born.
The blacksmith also puts metal into the fire so that it becomes malleable or moldable. Even then, it often takes a pounding before it becomes useful.
Maybe this was why King David wrote in Psalms 40:11, 12 that "numerous evils had encompassed him about." And then he goes on to say that it was "his iniquities" that had taken hold of him so that he could not "Look up" and that they were more than the "hairs of his head" so that his heart failed him. Maybe this was why King David also dealt with Shemei's curses against him the way he did like "thorns in his flesh," the way he did, Yet, he says in verses 6-10 of that same Psalm 40 that it was essentially God's Salvation in His Son that would eventually come to do His Father's will to save King David and us etc. So maybe it was not only Paul's eyesight but also other things about Paul's character that were still flawed and had to be covered by Jesus' own character and "spilled blood?"
I asked myself: ‘How can a ‘thorn’ in the flesh prevent us from sinning in the future?’ In Paul’s case, it reminded him that all good things are given by the Lord. His late-coming to join the ranks of the Apostles made him to be questioned by some who were with Jesus from the beginning. Paul must have had some powerful, persuasive qualities that made him a successful advocate for Jesus; convincing many that Jesus was who He said - the true 'King', foretold in the Old Testament.
His thorn in the flesh kept him humble; a learned man, probably destined to become influential on which ever side of religion he affiliates himself with. But God wanted him to join the cause of Jesus Christ. Remember Jesus - ”He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him.” At times, physical beauty becomes an obstacle to the development of the spiritual side of this person; people responding to the ‘beauty’ as a blessing before they get to know the person.
I can see his weakness to possible lay in a proclivity to self-aggrandizement and self-righteousness. It could be that he was dealing with some type of physical disfiguration which was in his eyes a ‘thorn’ that ‘compromised’ efforts to obtain status; in his own words: “a messenger of satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure."
God blessed him with ‘the abundance of the revelations’ - including self-reflection and the right understanding of his own weaknesses. Who knows, without the 'thorn' and God calling upon him to serve His cause, he might have become one day the leader of the San Hedren; remaining spiritually blind and a zealot for the wrong cause – empowering man instead of humbly serving God.
In doing pruning we need to have Christ as our example. Love without dissimulation, or genuinely if you will. Romans 12:9. That is what the mature Christian would do. Cutting is out. Cutting is left to Christ at time of harvest where He separates the wheat from the chaff. Matthew 13:29-30.
Now when it comes to being pruned we turn to God humbly with repentance and forgiveness, allowing the experience to give Christ the opertunity to strengthen our characters. What JC said today is a good example.
And yes, we need to let Christ mold us, fashion us, and raise us into a pure and holy atmosphere, where the rich current of His love can flow through our souls. It is not out of fear that we turn to Christ, rather in the crucible's we see what He has done for us, we see the love of God, turn to Him, motivated by respect and love, we have chosen. My heart aches for those who chose to turn their backs on God.