When Christ Doesn't Remove What We Beg Him to Remove

Charles Spurgeon was only 35 years old when gout began to seize his body. Over the years, his pain deepened with rheumatism, depression, and kidney disease. At times, he was too weak to work. One biographer estimated that a full third of the final 20 years of Spurgeon's ministry were spent either too ill to preach or recovering from illness.

Surely Spurgeon prayed many times for these conditions to be removed. If the weaknesses were gone, he could preach more, serve better, and be more fruitful in ministry. That seems logical. The apostle Paul apparently thought the same way when he prayed for his own thorn in the flesh to be removed. But both men received a response they didn't expect.

What Do We Do When Christ Doesn't Remove Our Suffering?

Perhaps you have a physical ailment that won't go away, or you suffer from depression. What do we do when Christ has not removed what we have begged him to remove? This is the central question we must engage with from 2 Corinthians 12.

Paul must have had two logical options in his mind: either Christ could remove this thorn and he could become more fruitful in ministry, or Christ could leave the thorn and his ministry would be hindered. But Jesus reveals a third option - a paradoxical one that seems impossible at first.

The Paradox of Power Made Perfect in Weakness

We naturally assume that Christ's power would be made perfect in our strength. If we're strong for Jesus, then Jesus gets the better deal. But Jesus flips this upside down, saying his power is made perfect in weakness. This sounds like a contradiction, but it reveals a deeper truth about how God works.

Understanding Paul's Context

Second Corinthians was written to a church influenced by false teachers who promoted a gospel of constant victory, visible strength, and impressive spiritual experiences. These "super apostles" appeared powerful and wealthy, while Paul seemed weak and sickly. Many Corinthians were attracted to this false gospel because they wanted to be like the impressive teachers rather than like Paul.

Paul was waging war for the bride of Christ, surgically removing these false ideas from the church. He was taking every thought captive to obey Christ, destroying the demonic strongholds that had gained footing through these false teachers.

Paul's Reluctant Boasting

In what Paul calls "foolishness," he picks up the weapon these super apostles used against him - boasting in the flesh. He repeatedly warns that he's speaking like a madman, putting up verbal warning signs because he's uncomfortable with this approach.

The Vision of the Third Heaven

Paul describes being caught up to the third heaven 14 years earlier - into the very presence of God. He heard unutterable things in this vision, yet he had apparently never shared this story before with the Corinthians.

"'I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. And I know that this man was caught up into paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter.'" - 2 Corinthians 12:2-4

Why doesn't Paul want to talk about this amazing experience? He explains: "so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me" (verse 6). Paul doesn't want his credibility as an apostle based on an unverifiable spiritual vision. He wants it based on publicly preaching and living in line with what he preaches.

The Thorn in the Flesh

Given by God, Sent by Satan

Paul reveals that to keep him from becoming conceited because of these revelations, he was given a thorn in the flesh - "a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited" (verse 7).

Notice the dual nature: the thorn was given by God but sent by Satan. One event, two agents. Satan's intent was to harass and hinder Paul. God's intent was to promote humility and display the sufficiency of Christ's grace more fully.

What Was the Thorn?

Paul deliberately leaves the thorn undefined. Some have guessed chronic migraines, eye problems, or opposition from false teachers. Most likely it was some sort of chronic illness that kept him weak and frail. But Paul's point isn't for us to figure out exactly what it was - that would be a distraction.

Paul's Persistent Prayer

Three times Paul pleaded for the thorn to be removed, perhaps echoing Jesus' three prayers in Gethsemane. Like Jesus, Paul persisted in prayer while also accepting God's will. Paul never brushes off suffering as unimportant or illusory. He names it, recognizes it's real, and prefers it would be gone.

Christ's Sufficient Grace

The Voice of Jesus

Instead of removing the thorn, Jesus responds: "'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness'" (verse 9). This isn't a cute religious slogan - it's a promise of divine favor in action for suffering people.

Grace here means God's active power working in and through his people. Jesus isn't simply offering comfort; he's promising to carry Paul through the suffering. The Lord's grace will preserve Paul through the thorn, sustaining him all the way to the end.

When We Are Weak, Then We Are Strong

Paul concludes: "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me... For when I am weak, then I am strong" (verses 9-10).

This is the heart of the entire letter. Christ's power is made perfect when it meets our weakness. When we depend on Christ rather than ourselves, his power "rests" or dwells with us. Christ camps with us in our weakness.

The Invitation to Bring Your Thorn to Jesus

If you're carrying the burden of some thorn in your flesh, don't think it keeps you from Christ's presence. Your weakness actually qualifies you to come to Christ. The world uses weak people, but the Lord serves weak people, dwells with weak people, and suffered for weak people.

Just like the Corinthians, we assume Christ would want to dwell with the impressive and influential. But he dwells with the weak and lowly. All he requires is that we feel our need of him.

Application

This week, instead of viewing your weaknesses as hindrances to your relationship with God, bring them directly to Jesus. Whether it's a chronic illness, depression, financial struggles, or relational difficulties, recognize that these very weaknesses can become platforms for Christ's strength to be displayed.

Practice persistent prayer like Paul - continue asking God to remove your suffering while also submitting to his will. Trust that even when your thorn stays, Christ stays, and his grace is sufficient. Look for ways that your weakness might actually be keeping you humble and dependent on God rather than on your own strength.

Ask yourself these questions:

• What "thorn" in my life am I currently asking God to remove?
• How might this weakness actually be protecting me from pride or self-reliance?
• In what ways can I see Christ's power being displayed through my weaknesses rather than despite them?
• Am I trying to build my credibility with others based on my strengths, or am I willing to boast in my weaknesses so Christ's power can rest on me?

Remember Charles Spurgeon's words: "It's easy to believe in grace for the past and the future, but to rest in it for the immediate necessity is true faith." Do you trust that Christ's grace is sufficient right now, not just hypothetically, but for your current struggle? His grace is enough to uphold you, comfort you, make your trouble useful, and bring you all the way home.