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Thorns

It is that time of year again where there is plenty of work to be done outside. Just yesterday I was weed eating and got myself into a tangled web of thorny vines, which poked me through my clothes, and stuck into my skin. I am yet to meet a person who likes thorns; instead, I hear people jokingly blame Adam for the very existence of these nuisances. 

There is someone in the Bible who notoriously disliked thorns, and that was Paul. In 2 Corinthians 12:7 he wrote, "So 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."

What was this thorn in his flesh? There has been much speculation over the centuries, but the truth is we do not know. Using a thorn as a metaphor, Paul complained that something was bothering him. This thorn "was given to" him from God to keep him humble, and yet it was a messenger of Satan. It seems that God allowed the devil to use something, possibly a person (a messenger) to harass Paul as a way of keeping him humble. 

What did Paul do about the thorn? He prayed for its removal, as v.8 shows: "Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me." But God's answer was no: "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."

Paul would have loved to have his thorn removed, but the answer from heaven was no. The thorn was there for a reason; it was part of God's sovereign plan to keep Paul humble.

In his book Kingdom Marriage, Dr. Tony Evans wrote God is in the thorn giving business. We often want to blame our thorns on Satan or his messenger, but we need to understand that the thorn was for Paul's own good--to keep him from becoming conceited. 

If you have a thorn in your flesh, by all means, beg the Lord to remove it. But if He says no (you will know He says no if the thorn doesn't go away), recognize the thorn as something for your own good, embrace your weakness, and let the power of God rest on you. 

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