Welcome to the InTouch podcast with Charles Stanley for Tuesday, April 14th. How much of your time is spent worrying about what might happen tomorrow? Instead of borrowing trouble from the future, discover how to rest in God's strength for today. listen and learn how to rely on his sufficient grace for times of trouble. You know, one of the eras that's going around today is that if you pray long enough and hard enough and if you believe enough, then God will change any and every circumstance of life.
And that change depends really on whether we have enough faith or we pray long enough, hard enough, intensely enough.
Well, if that's true... Then there's one passage of scripture that we have to look at again. It's the passage that I want to look at today because I believe this is the pinnacle passage in all the Bible. the mountain peak passage when it comes to dealing with the grace of God in the light of how it relates to our pain and our suffering and our heartache and our hardship. that we endure in life.
All of us are going to experience those things. It may be physical pain as a result of some disease or some accident. It could be something even worse than that, and that's emotional pain. Because of a broken home, because of the loss of a loved one, because of loss of finances, because of circumstances and situation, because it could take a thousand different avenues. There's all kind of causes of pain.
But how does this grace of God this goodness and graciousness of God. which he pours out toward us without any regard to our merit or our worth in spite of everything we deserve. What about this grace of God? in our life in the times of pain and suffering and heartache? And also, what about those things that don't seem to change?
Where is the grace of God? when things don't change. Where is the grace of God when you've prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed and nothing happens? When your friends have prayed and you've prayed and you've obeyed God and trusted Him and took your stand and claimed this and claimed that and claimed the other? Where is God?
I'm sure that some of you who are listening of facing that very question. God, I've done everything I know to do. and nothing has happened. Listen to what the Apostle Paul says. You recall...
that God has been giving him these tremendous revelations of truth and he's understanding things he's never understood before. things that people have never understood before him. And so he says in verse 7, beginning in verse 7 of chapter 12, and because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations. for this reason to keep me from exalting myself. There was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet me to keep me from exalting myself.
Concerning this, I entreated the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you. For power is perfected in weakness. Most gladly, therefore, Paul says, I will rather boast about my weaknesses that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Then he says, therefore, I am well content with weaknesses.
With insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake, for when I am weak, then I am strong. I want you to jot down three statements, and then we'll talk about each one of them. I'm going to give them to you one at a time. And I want you to take the time to write them down. I'm not going to hurry them.
because they're so very, very important, I want you to jot down this entire statement. Grace is God's answer to my pain and affliction. and circumstances of life. when he may or may not choose to change my circumstances. God does not guarantee to change my circumstances no matter how painful they may be.
How many times have you and I have come to God with some great petition that we had from Him and Lord, now, God, I need an answer. And usually, here's what we say. God answers in three ways. Yes, no, and wait. He can say yes.
He can say no. And he can say, wait. But then he can say what he told the Apostle Paul. He didn't say, Paul, no. He didn't say Paul, yes.
He didn't say Paul, wait. You know what he said? My grace. is sufficient for you. Second statement I want you to write down.
The person we said, God's grace. is his answer to suffering and pain in our circumstances of life, which he may or may not change. The second statement I want you to write down is this. Grace is God's method of demonstrating. His love and power.
God's grace is his method of demonstrating. His love and power in the midst of circumstances which he may or may not change. It is God's method of demonstrating that. The intensity of Paul's situation was the terms he used. Here, look at this.
He said, first of all, he said, there was given to me a thorn. Then if you'll notice, he says, he uses this word four times. In verse 9, he says, He said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness. And again he says, therefore I boast about my weaknesses. Verse 10, therefore I'm well content with my weaknesses.
And then he says in the latter part, for Christ's sake, for when I am weak, then I'm strong. Four times he talks about his weakness. And because of this thorn in his side, because of this stake, He said, I feel so inadequate and so weak. And probably Paul was physically weary at times. I'm sure he had to be to do what he was doing.
physically weak, emotionally weak, and strained oftentimes. Listen, no matter how much you trust God, that kind of continual harassment by his enemies over and over and over again, day after day after day, it certainly had to get to Paul once in a while. Yet he says, in spite of all of that, in spite of that, he says, when I am the weakest, He says, something happens on the inside of me. All of his travels. He says his weaknesses, he entreated God three times.
And so here is his way of picturing the intensity of what he was dealing with. And yet something happens here. He says, God demonstrated in this bad circumstance, his love toward him, in the fact that he told him why. He says, now, Paul, the reason my grace is sufficient for you, and the reason I'm leaving this here is because, listen to this, I love you, Paul. And I value my purpose.
Far greater than I do, your comfort, and your ease and your pleasure. and the healing of what you're feeling. Let me ask you this. Are you willing to suffer? For God's sake and the sake of other people?
Are you willing to hurt if you know that your hurt is going to bring healing to someone else? Are you willing to experience pain if your pain is going to be part of the perfecting of someone else's spiritual walk? Are you willing to bear burdens which you know will result in someone else's burden being lifted? Are you willing to hurt? When you know that that hurt.
It's going to be a part of somebody else's healing. You see, the truth is, we're just real selfish, to be honest. Oh, we'd rather pray for somebody else to be healed and for somebody else's needs to be met. And we want to give to them and pray for them, but just leave me out of the hurt triangle, God. Just leave me out of that cycle.
I'm willing to give. I'm willing to pray. I'm willing to just, Lord, I'll just, you name it, God, I'll fast, anything, just leave me out of the cycle. What we are saying is, God, I want to be a spectator on somebody else's hurts. I want to be a spectator on somebody else's pain.
Lord, just I'll send it by mail. God says no. There are times when I want to accomplish my purpose in your life, you're going to have to hurt. and you're going to have to suffer. and you're going to have to bleed, and you're going to have your thorn.
How long is it going to be there? Nobody knows that but God. God isn't going to always tell you and me the reason. You may ask a thousand years why, and God will never tell you. God's going to allow some things in your life, in my life, we'll never be able to answer to our satisfaction on this side.
So what am I supposed to do, just doubt God and get angry and have a big pity party about how unfair and unjust he is? Or Am I going to be wise enough to say, okay, God? I don't have to know why. All I have to do is know how to respond. And I know that if you allow this in my life, you've got a purpose that's got to be fantastic.
It won't be the same purpose as it was in Paul's life, but it's going to be good. You know why? Because God is a good God. And the only way a holy, loving, righteous God treats His children is lovingly. That's the only way he treats us.
You say, fawn love? Yes. Because more important, listen to this, more important than what you and I feel is what we know that's so much more important than what we feel. Feelings come and go, but what we know It's like a rock. It's solid.
It keeps us hanging in there when things get tough. He says he demonstrated that love toward him. By telling him why. He also demonstrated that love toward him by empowering him. in these circumstances.
And situations, Paul said, I've discovered the most wonderful thing. When I think I can't go another step, God says, yes, you can, because Paul, I am your energy, I am your strength, I am your wisdom, Paul, I'm everything. Did I not say to you, my grace is sufficient?
Now let me ask you a question. What is it sufficient for? There's only one word that can describe it. Everything. Think about it.
The grace of God is sufficient for everything. There's not a single solitary thing that you and I could ever possibly need. the grace of God is not provided. God's love and goodness and mercy and kindness toward us. Ready.
willing, able. If we will draw upon it. If I look at my circumstances, if I think about what I've lost and what I need and what I ought to have. That's one thing. When I look to him, it is absolutely amazing.
What happens? And I can tell you. The grace of God is the dearest to me. He is the most intimate with me. the closest to me, the most meaningful to me.
The most blessed to me, the most loving to me. The most indescribable to me. When I hurt the most, he is the greatest. And you know what? You'll never learn that till you hurt enough.
And if you want life, ease, comfort, and pleasure, you can go through it that way, but listen, you'll die ignorant. Because you will have missed the greatest wisdom and the greatest knowledge in all the world. And that is what happens when you walk with God. Over the mountain tops? Through the valleys, deep, dark, dark valleys.
He said, Paul, my grace is sufficient. And Paul had to come to this conclusion. When you walk into the grace of God, you are invincible. When you're walking in the grace of God unshakable, unassailable. He says, you're unconquerable.
In the grace of God, because what are you doing? You're allowing Jesus who's living on the inside of you to express His power and His love. and His goodness. And he's the one who's releasing all the emotional and spiritual and physical needs that we have that fit his purpose for our life. You can't lose with Jesus living on the inside.
That's the grace of God. Paul said, my grace is sufficient. Third statement I want you to jot down. God's grace is his provision. For our contentment, In times of pain and suffering.
God's grace is His provision. for our contentment in those times. You recall the song, The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose, I will not, I will not defeat to its foes. That soul, though all hell, shall endeavor to shake. I'll never, no never.
No, never forsake. That's the grace of God. And he says, not only that, he said, But my grace is going to provide a contentment in the midst of this.
Now, here's an amazing thing: look at this. This last verse, verse 10, says, Because of what God had said to him, he says, Therefore, I'm well content with weaknesses. Insults, distresses, persecutions, and difficulties for Christ's sake. He says, because when I'm weak, then I'm strong.
Now think about this. This is what you and I would say. We would say, wait a minute. It is the absence of insults, persecutions, hardships, trials, and sufferings. The absence of those equals contentment.
Paul said, no. No, wait a minute. He said. It is with insults, persecutions, hardships, trials, suffering, and pain. With these, he says, I have contentment.
We say, now wait a minute, Paul. No, no. It's the absence of these that equal contentment. That's not even rational. That's not sensible.
That's not even common sense. to say that insults, persecutions, trials, pain, suffering, heartache, is compatible with contentment. You know why it is? Because the Christ who lives on the inside of you and me It's greater than all of that. And when Jesus living within us, is allowed to release His life through us.
There is no insult. No persecution, no pain, no trial, no heartache. Greater. than the provision of the grace of God within us. to endure it and to endure it not whining.
but triumphantly, victoriously, and joyously, no matter how intense the hurt and the pain. You see, the Apostle Paul knew something when he said, God said to him, my grace is sufficient. How do you describe the source of that contentment? It is Christ. Listen to this.
It is Jesus within you. You say, well, how can I have, how can I experience that kind? Listen to this, simply trusting in the light of Jesus within you to express through you everything he promised. You see Paul's two key words. You can wrap up all of Paul's theology in this phrase.
in Christ. When you and I are in Him, And he's in us. All the grace. of a God of grace. is indwelling us, ready to be extracted.
He wants us to live out of His grace, live out of His love, live out of His power. That's the source of everything that we need. And Paul says, I learned something better. Then God changing my circumstances. I learned that the Christ who lives within me is greater than.
Not only these bad circumstances, but those that may come. those that come in the future. God's up to something big. in your life. when he allows the thorn to remain.
But the grace The superseded. Father, we love you and praise you. We bless your name. We thank you that you know everything we need. You know when we need joy, you know when we need pain.
when we need heartache and suffering and trials. And we just want to thank you. that you understand all of our needs. and that you are touchable and feelable. and that you're sensitive and kind and loving.
that you're listening and you're waiting and you're ready to release in us everything we need. in order to endure, not with a whining, complaining, attitude but with great confidence. and assurance that our witness and testimony Because that's what best glorifies you and honors you and exalts the Savior. when we can rejoice in the most difficult of pain and suffering and heartache. I thank you, I praise you, I bless you.
I exalt you, Lord Jesus. that everything you promised you're more than capable of keeping. That you've not contradicted yourself in all these promises, and yet you lead the pain? But that you love us so much. You want to teach us more?
of yourself. than east comfort and pleasure could ever teach us. but it is through pain and suffering and heartache and loss. We learn life's greatest lessons. We learn to trust you.
And we learn that you are trustworthy. adequate. and sufficient. And we bless you. Dear Father, in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Well, my friend, if you've never been saved, then... You don't have any of that. All you have is your troubles and trials and heartaches and burdens, and it's just you and them. You can go to drugs and alcohol and affairs and all kinds of pleasures and all kinds of riches, and here's what you'll find. Still empty?
Still inadequate? Still hurting, still full of pain. Still full of sorrow. If it's the loss of someone, You have nothing. But when you receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, You get everything.
And here's what he said. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. And if I be lifted up, he says, I will draw all men, women, boys, and girls to me. If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in thine heart, that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.
that whoever believes in Him would never perish, but have everlasting life. You can have The grace of God operating in your life moment by moment. If you're willing to receive the one who is our grace, And that is Jesus into your life by faith. by confessing your sins and telling Him. that you believe his death at Calvary.
took care of your sin. and you yield your life to Him as your Savior. your Lord and your life. Uh Thank you for listening to part two of Grace for Times of Trouble. If you'd like to know more about Charles Stanley or InTouch Ministries, stop by intouch.org.
This podcast is a presentation of In Touch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia.
