My Grace is Sufficient For You, For My Strength is Made Perfect in Weakness: 2 Corinthians 11:19-12:9

2 Corinthians 11:19-12:9: "11:19 For you put up with fools gladly, since you yourselves are wise! 20 For you put up with it if one brings you into bondage, if one devours you, if one takes from you, if one exalts himself, if one strikes you on the face. 21 To our shame, I say that we were too weak for that! But in whatever anyone is bold—I speak foolishly—I am bold also. 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? So am I. 23 Are they ministers of Christ?—I speak as a fool—I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. 24 From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; 26 in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; 27 in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness—28 besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn with indignation? 30 If I must boast, I will boast in the things which concern my infirmity. 31 The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. 32 In Damascus the governor, under Aretas the king, was guarding the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, desiring to arrest me; 33 but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall, and escaped from his hands.

12:1 It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord: 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven. 3 And I know such a man—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—4 how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. 5 Of such a one I will boast; yet of myself I will not boast, except in my infirmities. 6 For though I might desire to boast, I will not be a fool; for I will speak the truth. But I refrain, lest anyone should think of me above what he sees me to be or hears from me. 7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. 8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 And He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me"

The Church at Corinth is over run with Judaizers. They want to force the Corinthians into observing all the old levitical laws and customs that the Jews grew up with. One may wonder why this is happening in a Greek Church, since Corinth is among the Gentile nations. However, when one considers that whenever St. Paul started to preach in a new city, the first thing he would do is find a Jewish synagogue and start preaching there first, when they would not listen then he would preach to the Gentiles. Now, there were often Jews who heard the message, and would be apart of starting this new church, but some of them, having been convinced by those who came out of the persecution of Jerusalem, and who believed that the old levitical customs should still be observed, started causing trouble in these new churches. Such is the case with the Church at Corinth.

This reading is the Epistle for Sexagesima, also sometimes called Exsurge, from the Introit. The theme for Sexagesima, is derived from the Gospel for the day, which is the parable of the Sower and the Seed from the Evangelist St. Luke's Gospel. St. Paul here in his Epistle to the Church at Corinth also talks about the importance of the Word of God. There is only one thing needful, and that is the Gospel. The Blessed Apostle, St. Paul, goes through a laundry list of things that have happened to him on account of this Gospel. It isn't a pretty picture.

There must have been those among the Judaizers who were boasting of their great deeds, and on account of this, some among the members of the Church at Corinth, were led astray. Therefore the Blessed Apostle St. Paul reveals what things he has suffered for the Gospel. It is on account of these things that he boasts. Now there are those, who if they had suffered much less than these things, would have left the Church. Indeed, in the Gospel reading, we see that very thing, as three out of four types of soil, reject the Gospel. That could mean that only 25 percent of the people who are preached to, actually hear and receive the glad tidings. However, this is not the point our dear Lord Jesus is making. Rather He is pointing His hearers to Himself, for He is both the seed and the soil, and the Sower, for it is on account of His fulfilling of the Law, or to say it another way, it is on account of His hearing His Father's Word and will, and doing it, that a harvest of more than a hundred fold was produced.

Part of that fruit was produced and harvested in Corinth. Here St. Paul also shows what things the seed of the Lord, those who are His offspring through the Word, must go through, the suffering they must endure for the Gospel. As was stated earlier, this might drive some off, but St. Paul shows that these things are what drives him to continue in the Gospel, for the Word that Christ has given us, is worth dying and fighting, and suffering for. For it is this Word that brings eternal life. It is the Gospel that has freed the Jews from the bondage of the levitical customs. No longer was it necessary to offer the sacrifices. No longer was it necessary to do the other customs. For Christ has fulfilled them once and for all. Therefore to go back to them, would be like going back to one's old sinful ways which they had given up.

Therefore, even though St. Paul has asked for the oppression to cease, it will not, for as our Lord says, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Christ was strongest at His weakest, that is on the cross as He dies, for even though in the eyes of the world, it appeared as if He had failed, He rather had won forgiveness, life and salvation for all. In short, He won for us grace. Therefore, His grace is sufficient, for it is the Words of eternal life.

May God be with you!

Deacon Dulas