Lasting Legacy: Being Vulnerable

[Rev. Doc]

Lasting Legacy: Being Vulnerable
2 Corinthians 12:1-10

None of us wishes to be viewed as vulnerable. According to the world it gives us the appearance of being weak. Our desire, even in the church is to be viewed as supermen and superwomen.

The Superman movies were very popular back in the 1980s. There was only one thing that Superman was vulnerable to: Kryptonite. However, no matter what the odds, he always came out on top.

In one movie he makes the decision to marry Lois Lane. To do so he had to give up his super powers and become like any other human. He became vulnerable like everyone else. For the first time he learns about pain when he tries to take on someone bigger than himself. The message was clear, while it would be nice to be invulnerable, if we want to relate to others we have to become vulnerable. If we really want to show others the power of God and the strength that can come through faith in Him, we must remove all masks of our own invulnerability and strength and let people see that all we are and all we do comes from God.

If all they see is a front that we put up that points to natural strength, they will not credit God for what He has done in us.

We all have enemies in life. When we realize this our natural response is to put up defenses and hide those weak areas of our lives fearing that our enemies will attack.

Paul had enemies. In fact in this letter to the Corinthian church he is writing to some who had been influenced by them, or who had become enemies themselves.

Paul's enemies:
* Criticized him for being bold
* Criticized him for being timid
* Criticized his appearance
* Criticized his speaking abilities

The natural reaction would be not to give these people additional ammunition. But that was not Paul's way of doing things.

Paul spoke of his weaknesses. He admitted to the fact that he was not a trained speaker. He openly discussed the "thorn" in his flesh. In other writings he related spiritual errors he had made in his past. He talked about his struggles in doing what was right. The apostle was not afraid to admit that, yes, he was weak. But he also shared what his weaknesses meant.

God had given Paul a message:
"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 12:9)

More than anything, Paul wanted his readers to depend more on God's grace, His love and favor, and less on their own strength and abilities.

Always remember, God's power becomes more obvious to people when it is shown in spite of human weakness. Each of us must make a decision: Do we really want to show the power of God in our lives and have people give Him the glory, or are we wanting to receive glory for ourselves?

Two modern day examples of God's strength evidenced in people's lives are:

* Joni Eareckson Tada: As a teenager, she became a quadriplegic following a swimming accident. God showed her how to paint by holding a brush in her teeth. How to sing in such a way to inspire millions. But most of all, God showed her how to give evidence of his strength in her weakness.

* Chuck Colson: A man of great power and influence in the Nixon White House. However, the Watergate scandal landed him in prison. Every bit of his power was stripped of him. But in his weakness God came to him and changed his life. God gave him a heart for prison ministry. In his weakness, God's strength was seen.

How do we know that Paul's motivation was to focus attention on Go? He proclaimed:

"I delight in weakness," (2 Corinthians 12:10)

The apostle knew that he had no true strength unless it was the strength of God working through him. He had to be at peace with his weaknesses and rely on God's strength. Only when he did this could God start using him in a way that made him one to the great missionaries in church history.

So how does relying on God's strength in our weakness and vulnerability affect how we witness? First and foremost, it means our witness never points to us, but always points to God.

We also need to understand that admitting our weakness should be a tool not a stumbling block. We are afraid that if people see us as vulnerable or weak, they might not view us as a "true" Christian and we think it might hurt our witness. But people who know us, usually know our weaknesses. And people also know that they too are weak. With this realization, they want to know what God's strength can do for them.

People who pretend that they have no weaknesses can offer others no hope. Only those who admit they are vulnerable and point to the One who is helping them with those weaknesses can offer real hope.

We may be afraid that people will think less of us. We might be afraid that we will be put down or even taken advantage of when people know the vulnerable areas of our lives. But always remember the lesson Paul learned:

"When I am weak, then I am strong."

The vulnerability of our lives should be part of our legacy

[Saint]

Thanks for the message Doc.

Personally I have to apply this to myself a lot. I go thru whatever 'tests' or challenges I have in my life, God carries me thru them and then I catch myself taking the credit. What am I thinking?!?! Yet I remember, I of myself am helpless, I need God. When it comes down to it, really anything truly great or enduring about me is stuff that God has graciously provided for me and His character reflected in me.
Remembering this is first a great witness and encouragement to my own soul. Then as you said it can be a powerful witness to others ... it just grabs attention when we willingly admit weakness, but we can be weak with Christ as our strength.

[Kisa]

Yes, yes, God uses our strengths and especially our weaknesses for Him. We don't know what He has in store for us, but He knows and thats all that matters!
Great study! ^_^