|
When we see clear, unambiguous redemptive language in the Bible, it cannot be overridden by obscrure passages that could have several meanings. Such are passages like Matthew 8:17 and 1 Peter 2:24...
‣ Matt 8:17 ...[Christ] Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.
‣ 1 Peter 2:24 ...[Christ] by whose stripes ye were healed.
When we see such clear language in scripture, which outlines a price the Savior paid for a benefit we receive, there's no way around it. Let's just accept what He said is ours! (in this case, divine healing and health.)
Every scripture must follow simple rules for sound Bible interpretation, which includes reading passages in their context. In the case of 2 Corinthians 12:9, the context is Paul's sufferings, mostly caused by persecution, which is clear from both the 11th and 12th chapters.
‣ 2 Cor 12:9 And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for you: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Many are quick to point to Paul's "thorn in the flesh," mentioned in verse 7, insistinig that his "thorn" must have been a sickness or physical infirmity.
‣ 2 Cor 12:7 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
I could write an entire volume on the phrase underlined above, but to call this "thorn" a sickness or disease does a disservice to language itself, whether it's English, Greek or Hebrew!
In the phrase, "thorn in the flesh," how can the word "thorn" be figurative, but "flesh" be literal? That would be inconsistent. If "flesh" is literal, then so is "thorn," in which case the solution would simply be to find a pair of tweezers and pull it out! If "thorn" is figurative, so is "flesh," in which case you recognize God's grace is sufficient and rebuke it — cast it out!
Therein lies another problem with calling Paul's "thorn in the flesh" a physical problem. In verse 9, God told Paul,
‣ 2 Cor 12:9 ...My grace is sufficient for you...
So why do we turn that around and say "God's grace is INsufficient," therefore Paul had to keep the thorn? No, God was pointing out to Paul what he already had — the grace of God — and His grace was sufficient for Paul to take care of that thorn!
So what was Paul's thorn?
Again, I could spend a lot of time on this, but in short, it was a personality — in this case, a demon. Re-read verse 7...
‣ 2 Cor 12:7 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
"Messenger" in Greek is angelos, from which we get the word "angel" or "spirit," and we know in this case, it was a demon spirit! In other words, Paul was harrassed by a demon because God had given him "the abundance of the revelations" (also verse 7).
Apostle Paul didn't gain the mastery over this demonic presence by asking God to remove it, but like us, He got the victory by exercising God's grace and using his authority over demons! (See Luke 10:19, James 4:7.) In my next missive, I might take the time to develop this further.
May the Lord richly bless you,
| 
