2 Samuel 5:1-5, 9-10 Psalm 48 2 Corinthians 12:2-10 Mark 6:1-13

The Lord said to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.”

In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, he addresses the thorn in his flesh.  The Apostle Paul’s thorn in the flesh was never clearly defined.   Over the centuries, endless research devoted to the source of Paul’s thorn has never verified that source.  Was it a physical affliction?  Was it a psychological weakness?  Whatever it was, it caused continuous suffering; and while the affliction never hampered his efforts of evangelism, it led the apostle to pray endlessly for divine healing.  

Perhaps that uncertainty causes you some consternation.  Mostly, it represents a blessing in that the non-specificity of Paul’s thorn in the flesh allows all of us to continue to explore the depths of that suffering and to relate through our own suffering.  All of us have a thorn in the flesh or several thorns the flesh – defined and undefined.  A thorn in our flesh could be anything – physical, mental, or emotional – that Satan uses in an effort to divert or misconstrue God’s will for our lives and ministry.

Paul prayed for divine healing of the thorn in his flesh.  But physical healing was not to come as the answer to Paul’s prayers.  Rather, God’s response as we read today in verses 8 and 9 of 2nd Corinthians is, “My grace is enough for you, for power is made fully present in weakness.”   

Accordingly, it is in our weakness that we find the power of God.  It is in weakness that we share the suffering of Christ.  In the words of Paul, “I will boost all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” [v. 10, NRSV] The experience of ecstasy of the “third heaven” and “paradise” of which Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthians is his own experience.  This ecstasy is the result of rather than in spite of the thorn in his flesh.   After years of struggle, Paul came to consider it a privilege to bear this thorn in his flesh.   It is in our weakness that we are stripped of our own self-glory that inhibits our growth within God’s grace. 

We likely do not associate the image of weakness with King David of Israel.  Our Old Testament lesson continues David’s saga.  King Saul has died in battle.  David now moves into his full glory as earthly king.  His armies have defeated and driven out the occupying Canaanites; he has united all the tribes of Israel under one authority, establishing Jerusalem as their capital.  Holy Zion – Jerusalem, expanded to the protective earthworks that surrounded it, would be known as the City of David.  

From his time as the youngest of Jesse’s sons, the shepherd of his father’s flocks; from his time as the youthful armor bearer for King Saul, slaying the mighty Goliath, David had given himself into the power of God.  The grace of God had been enough for David, power had been made fully present in weakness. 

But now, David faced the greatest of all enemies.  The messenger of Satan would tempt him with self-glory – grandeur and prestige – power to take from others whatever his heart might desire.  We will see in the continuing saga David’s confrontation with the thorn in his flesh.

“My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness,” says the Lord.

On a washstand in our bedroom are some tiny very faded satin baby booties enclosed in a little glass globe.  I’m told that my father arrived back at the hospital with these in the hours after my birth.  I didn’t earn this gift, but I remain the grateful recipient; the gift continues to bring joy; the gift keeps me mindful of the commitment to provision and the unconditional love of my earthly father – the provision and unconditional love of God, our Father, through the gift of grace.  

Grace is that that we receive as blessings from God; we cannot earn God’s blessings and we do not deserve God’s blessings.  God’s grace is a gift given by God simply because we are God’s children; and that grace is sufficient for us if only we will trust that whatever hardships might come, God’s grace is sufficient.  

Jesus instructs his disciples “to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics.”  God’s grace is sufficient, for power is made perfect in weakness.

As we do each time we gather, we pray the prayer our Lord has taught us to pray.  Within that prayer, we ask God to “give us this day, our daily bread” give us today the bread we need for today’s journey – no more, no less; regardless of the challenges the day will bring, God’s grace is sufficient.  

Today is not only the 101^st anniversary of the founding of our parish, it is also the 245th anniversary of our country’s Declaration of Independence.  As the greatest experiment in human democracy, yes, there are thorns in our country’s flesh – dreadful flaws in our history, the continued human brokenness of unaddressed mental illness, unparented youth, greed, and discrimination – all these and more.  By God’s grace, our country was founded nearly 2½ centuries ago.  And only by acknowledging and receiving the gift of God’s grace will we continue to be one nation, under God; Only by acknowledging and receiving the gift of God’s grace will we continue to strive to be indivisible with liberty and justice for all.  Only by God’s grace, and God’s grace is sufficient.