Everything that once was, will be again.
If you are actively preaching the gospel, healing the sick, imparting divine wisdom, teaching others, or exhibiting any other gifts of the Holy Spirit, it is crucial to understand that you will become a target for Satan to send a messenger to disrupt your dedicated service to the Lord Jesus. Drawing a parallel to the thorn in Paul’s flesh, which was not orchestrated by God but instigated by Satan, this underscores the significance of spiritual discernment and ensuring protection within your ministry.
The crucial point to grasp about Paul’s thorn is that it is not a sickness, despite the teachings of many or the interpretations made by translators to capture Paul’s intended message. By describing certain words or phrases, I aim to demonstrate to you an understanding of what Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” might have understood by the original readers of his letter.
Paul’s Thorn and God’s Grace
“And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, [ongoing persecution], the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong, [2 Corinthians 12:7–10 KJV].”
What was the troublesome thing causing Paul so much trouble? In Verse 7, it is mentioned that a thorn was sent by a messenger of Satan to trouble Paul and prevent him from receiving excessive praise and glory wherever he went. What I believe is that Satan desired to incite people to oppose Paul, hoping to bring an end to his ministry, but his plan never succeeded. Despite this, Paul endured pain because of the thorn [ongoing persecution] that afflicted him. Was he sick? I believe he was sick and tired of all the persecution he had to endure; it was wearing him down, making his body suffer to the point of weakness. He even implored God to remove the thorn [ongoing persecution], but God simply reminded him of the sufficiency of His grace.
Paul became sick from an illness at one point, but that was not the thorn in his flesh; it was a natural occurrence that he endured for a short time. (See Galatians 4. That chapter is another discussion for another time).
Illness is not a tool that God employs to humble or punish us; it is simply a part of our human experience, and can also be us allowing a messenger of Satan to convince us the God is testing us, so we become sick. Thinking that God gives us sickness is not in line with the context of scripture. Both sin and natural causes contribute to the occurrence of sickness, and today, there is plenty of the sin type of sickness going around. Why? Because Satan is on the move and people don’t recognize it.
Bottom line is, we can be buffeted by a messenger from Satan to thwart the ministry assigned to us. Those who are your every week church goers can also be troubled by a messenger from Satan, where he keeps people in doubt, confusion, and a state of Sunday only joy.
There is even the likely hood that the elders [pastors] are being troubled by a messenger from Satan, where there is no persecution but deception and altruism at the expense of the gospel. Whatever the case, Paul’s thorn in the flesh was not sickness, but weakness caused by extreme and frequent persecution, and Satan’s agenda was to stop Paul from accomplishing the task he was given. No different today. Again, God does not use sickness to keep us humble or to test us. He didn’t do that in Paul’s case, and He will not do that in ours.
Satan is like the super conman on steroids. His soft and convincing (twisted) words can lure anyone who is not firmly rooted in God’s word into his grasp and convince them that what they are doing is the right thing to do; even if it violates God’s commandments and the doctrine the Apostles handed down to the local assemblies. Satan is so convincing that Jesus put out a warning in Matthew 24.
“False Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”
No matter if Paul’s thorn was an actual physical affliction brought about by all the beatings, whippings, and a stoning he endured. We can also experience a thorn in the flesh if we are about doing what Jesus commanded.
The Whole Armor of God
In closing: “Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For wed are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then, after the battle, you will still stand firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. Besides these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere [Ephesians 6:10–19].”
Book recommendation: God Wants You Well by Andrew Womack. Reason I recommend this book is because of the in-depth teaching on the subject of the thorn in Paul’s flesh. I have read many commentaires concerning this and none come close to what Womack reveals. I huge you to get this small book, it is worth it.
Definitions:
Thorn in the flesh; of the apostle’s “thorn in the flesh”; his language indicates that it was physical, painful, humiliating; it was also the effect of divinely permitted Satanic antagonism; the verbs rendered “that I should (not) be exalted overmuch” (rv) and “to buffet” are in the present tense, signifying recurrent action, indicating a constantly repeated attack.
Infirmities; weakness,” indicating inability to produce results. Also used in Matthew 8:17; Acts 14:15; Hebrews 4:15; James 5:17, and many other scriptures that show the use of the word in differing ways.
Shalom
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