…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 pleaded with the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast in 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 and hardships, for the sake of Christ, for when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Corinthians 12:7-10 LSB).
Pride ruined the devil and his angels (Isaiah 14:12-15), and pride’s daughter, self-reliance, corrupted humanity’s first parents (Genesis 3:6). Since that fateful day, Adam and Eve’s children have been accustomed to live with a cursed disposition in the hearts, which manifests itself in rebellion against the Creator and a great desire to depend on themselves, and not on God, who gives all things richly (1 Timothy 6:17). Humans call this sin ‘freedom’, but Christ Jesus, the Son of God, calls it slavery (John 8:34). Throughout the long years of history, sinners have thought that they had the power, wisdom and knowledge to make their lives meaningful, full of happy endings and peaceful hearts. Unfortunately, no human has ever been able to accomplish this, no matter the amount of religions, man-centered ideologies and material prosperity that have been employed to reach this goal. No work of fiction, let alone empty movies from Hollywood, has been able to materialize this great longing of humanity’s spirit. History has proven the contrary; in our pursuit of this dream without God’s assistance, we have ended up with pseudo utopias that promised lasting happiness on Earth, such as communist Russia, but delivered destruction, abuses and deceptions. Or, we have built societies, such as the United States of America, where money is the only “true tool” to felicity, but the result is depression, isolation, insatiable greed and going after the wind. In any and all cases, the results have been the same, death; on the other hand the God, who created and sustains the heavens and the earth, has the power, understanding, ability and desire to make our lives truly prosperous, happy and full, so at salvation, believers are called to learn God-dependency and to thrust aside this idea of depending on ourselves. God, the Son, gave us the example of a life that utterly depended and relied on the care, power, wisdom, knowledge and love of Almighty God. My Lord to show this spiritual virtue in action said things like: I only do what the Father tells me to do, I only do what is pleasing in my Father’s eyes, my food and my drink is to do my Father’s will, I only speak the words my Father gave me to speak. It is an amazing and spirit-building task to go through the Four Gospels and read phrases like these, which exemplify the unique and almost ‘inhuman’ character of my Lord. I say ‘inhuman’ character of my Lord Jesus because we, plain humans, master the sinful art of self-reliance since an early age; by the time, we reach adulthood, most of us feel unstoppable and needing not help from anyone, especially from God. Christ Jesus, on the other hand, was always content to wait for His Father to provide everything for His life, from simple meals to the Resurrection (Luke 23:46, John 17:5).
Furthermore, all faithful believers had have to learn to trust and depend entirely on God. In the Scriptures, we see men like Abraham called by God to abandon everything he knew, everything he was familiar with and to go to an estrange land, trusting that God would provide for his and his family necessities and that God would fullfil all His promises to the letter (Hebrews 11:8); we also read about men like Moses, who despising the riches, pleasures and all worldly glories of this present evil age, threw his lot with an insignificant people, not knowing how the circumstances would turn up and depending heavily on the power of the Invisible God (Hebrews 11:24-27); Gideon likewise relied on the power of the Angel of the Lord to defeat the Midianites, despite his own cowardice (Judges 6-8); even David had to increase his faith in his God that he may receive what was promised to him through Samuel (1 Samuel 16:12-13), notwithstanding years of persecution from King Saul.
This past year have been crucial in my walk with God; it has been a year of extensive losses and amazing gains: losses in the area of sin, such as trusting less and less in my own power, knowledge and supposedly human excellence, and gains in the areas of humility, thanksgivings and, of course, God-reliance. I have seen the strong arm of the Lord destroying and uprooting my dreams, plans and desires (Jeremiah 1:6). Nevertheless, I have also seen His Mighty Right Hand saving me and establishing His kingdom and purposes (Zaphaniah 3:17). I have been engaged to learn the secret of contentment, where His grace has been sufficient for my every circumstance. Moreover, I have been partaker of His power (Ephesians 3:16), singing with the psalmist that true power belongs to Yahweh (Psalm 62:11). Furthermore, I have acquired a greater understanding of my completion in Christ (Colossians 2:10), knowing that in Him resides “…all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3 LSB). A year later, I am afraid to take even a step without God’s leading, without His pleasing approval, saying like Moses of old “if Your presence does not go with (me), do not lead (me) from here” (Exodus 33:15 LSB). Today I value my reliance and trust in my God and Lord more than ever, and I consider myself a very foolish man for living many years, thinking that I could accomplish much on my own. How stupid of me! These days, my focus is learning how to be “…content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions and hardships, for the sake of Christ…, well assured that nothing is able to separate me from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, my LORD.
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