The American Dream
Can you imagine a corporate icon, or a politician, even an athlete, adhering to this life statement? And how about, the survival of the fittest. Isn’t that what we have been told in America? The strong rule the weak! Maybe one explanation is that Paul wrote this before America was formed. He would not have been aware of ‘The American Dream’.
How could he say this? As you read earlier, Paul was pleading with God in prayer to remove some ‘thorn in the flesh’. If God could just do this for him, everything would be better. Three times he pleaded to God. And what was God’s answer? “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness”. God’s kingdom is an upside down kingdom as related to the world system. This is an incredible statement. We suffer, we’re weakened due to it, God’s grace comes in and his power is made perfect through the situation because of his grace. Win, Win!
The power of Christ
And how does Paul respond? “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong”. These were not things that Paul had created by disobedience and worldliness; they were heaped upon him because of his obedience to the gospel and the calling that God placed on his life. He now trusted God implicitly with whatever came his way for the sake of Christ. A modern-day term might be ‘Bring it’!! Which begs the question…are we there yet in our walk?
