As blood bought followers of Jesus Christ, we are grateful for God’s magnificent and underserved grace! God became a man and experienced being human, so He could tenderly understand our human weakness and needs. When we pass through perplexing times of adjustment, weakness, or hardship, and the uncertainties of life challenge our ability to keep stepping forward in faith and perseverance – we cry out to God in our neediness, “I need more grace, more grace, and more grace!”
When Paul begged God to take away his “thorn in the flesh”, God said to him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2Corinthians12:9). Now, this certainly goes against our world’s view, and many religious views that teach through self-effort and hard work, you will be made strong and find lasting success. Often, God’s power finds its full expression through our weakness, and because of God’s on-going grace in our lives- we will not be defeated! Our weakness becomes a gateway for God’s power. Many times, Paul spoke about His various hardships and struggles for Christ sake, but He was never defeated. Today the Holy Spirit continues to mightily use Paul’s Words.
Being a recipient of God’s unmerited grace and mercy does not mean that we will never struggle or have trying times! But it does mean that our Faithful God of grace will see us through the adjustment, the hardship, or the challenge, and we will not be defeated in our walk of faith! Our High Priest will bring us through and to a larger spiritual place where greater love, peace, and joy will greatly abound. He is worthy of our praise and adoration!
“So then, we must cling in faith to all we know to be true. For we have a magnificent King-Priest, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who rose into the heavenly realm for us, and now sympathizes with us in our frailty. He understands humanity, for as a Man, our magnificent King-Priest was tempted in every way just as we are, and conquered sin. So now we come freely and boldly to where love is enthroned, to receive mercy’s kiss and discover the grace we urgently need to strengthen us in our time of weakness” (Hebrews4:14-16tPt).
