WELCOME
Good morning First Baptist. We welcome you to worship this morning. Be sure to remember your brothers and sisters in Christ throughout the week as you pray for them, and as the Holy Spirit brings their faces to your mind. Be sure to also connect with them in the ways that are possible. And if you have any questions or would like to talk to someone, please don’t hesitate to contact the church through the church telephone and leave a message. (519-733-4144)
Call to Worship
An excerpt from Psalm 34
If you’ve come this morning looking for replenishment…
1 I sought the Lord, and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.
5 Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.
6 This poor man called, and the Lord heard him;
he saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
and he delivers them.
Welcome to Worship!
Songs
Prayer
CONFESSION
Almighty God, You have raised Jesus from the grave and
crowned Him Lord of all. We confess that we have not
bowed before Him or acknowledged His rule in our lives as we ought. We have gone along with the way of the world
and failed to give Him glory. Forgive us and raise us from
sin, that we may be your faithful people, obeying the
commands of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who rules the world and
is head of the church, His body. Humbly we ask you to help us with this. Amen.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON
If we confess with our lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in
our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, we will be
saved. Thanks be to God.
Amen.
Emotional Healthy Discipleship
Know Your Limits
Today's Message - Pastor Dave Page
How do you feel about limits? About being limited in what you are able to do? We’ve all had a great deal of time over the past 2 years to think about limits being imposed on us from the wearing of a mask to social distancing to keeping a job as a result of our vaccine status. All of us, in fact most everyone on the planet has had to deal with the implication of limits being imposed on us in a very personal way – perhaps more so than we’ve ever had to experience before. So how does the make you feel? Angry? Exasperated? Confused? Tired? Or how about boastful? Have you found occasion to boast gratefully about the limits imposed upon you?
Our scripture reading this morning finds us deep into the Apostle Paul’s second letter to the church in Corinth. Paul wrote 2 Corinthians at a vulnerable time in his life. He had learned that the church at Corinth was struggling, many false teachers had risen up and declared their supremacy in the Church – Super Apostles – and he sought to take action to preserve the unity of that local body of believers. The letter is riddled with personal comments as Paul revealed details about the persecution he had suffered for the sake of Christ as well as about a mysterious thorn in the flesh that kept him reliant on God.
Scripture Reading: Genesis 2:16-17, 2 Corinthians 12:1-10, John 3:22-30
2 Corinthians 12: 1 – 10
1 I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. 3 And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows— 4 was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. 5 I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses. 6 Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, 7 or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
In today’s message, we’re going to talk about what it means to Receive the Gift of Limits. As we have all learned, sometimes the hard way, emotionally healthy people understand the limits God has given them, and find joy and contentment by learning to live within those limits and that’s what Paul is relating to the Church in Corinth and what I believe the Holy Spirit wants us to consider by way of this passage and the next chapter in Peter Scazzero’s book Emotionally Healthy Discipleship – Embracing God’s Gift of Limits – I’ve entitled the message this morning – Know Your Limits.
Paul’s Thorn and His Greatest Boast (vv. 7–10)
Up to this point Paul has written indirectly of his rapture to paradise from the perspective of the third person, but now as he switches to the first person, he becomes crystal-clear. The essence of Paul’s thought in verse 7 is that the revelation accorded him was so personally exalting that he needed a humbling thorn in his flesh: “So to keep me from being too elated by the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from being too elated.” Note that Paul’s thorn “came to him after his ‘surpassingly great revelations’ and in consequence of them.” As to what the thorn was, we don’t know – the Bible is not at all clear here. Some have speculated that the thorn was opposition, perhaps the Judaizers or the super-apostles. Certainly, the metaphor is used this way. Others have supposed a specific ailment, such as poor eyesight, noting that Galatians 6:11 mentions Paul writing with large handwriting. But there Paul seems to be writing large for dramatic effect.
The speculations run wild. And if you’ve suffered from ailments such as earaches, headaches, hypochondria, rheumatism, sciatica, even dental disease, a thorn seems an apt metaphor. Whatever the reality, the fact was that Paul’s thorn was debilitating and, likely, humiliating. Actually, the thorn’s anonymity has proven a good thing, because it allows a broad application to the afflictions that God allows for each of us at times.
But the truth here about the thorn that we all should note is that while the thorn was Satan’s work, it was God who allowed it. Just as God was the one who was responsible for the ecstasy of Paul’s rapture to the third heaven, God was also responsible for the agony of his thorn. Divine wisdom determined that the thorn was what Paul needed, because without it the apostle would have become conceited. Remember, Paul was a driven and capable person in fact I think you could use the word dangerous here to describe Paul. He was headstrong, he was gifted. Prior to this Thorn that he was given, he was well equipped to move forward ahead of God’s timing and plan. Remember how we’ve talked previously about our definition of success and God’s definition? In His time, according to His plan. How counter cultural in Paul’s time and in our time today, that Paul’s embracing of this limit, imposed by God, would turn out to be something he would ‘boast gladly’ about.
How about you? I mentioned at the beginning of our message earlier some fairly recent limits we’ve all had imposed on us. In a way, allowed by God as well. Are you ‘boasting gladly’ about those? I suppose that for many of us, if not all of us really, these most recent limits aren’t necessarily the only limits we’ve had imposed up on us. For some of us, we’ve known limits for a season of our life or in some cases, for much of our lives. Think about each decade of your life. Are there some limits that have been imposed on you that you have struggled with? In the early years of our lives, we might struggle with freedom, or lack of it, limits of money or resources become a barrier for how we want to live life. Singleness or marriage, each can impose limits on us in that season of life, for some of us maybe it is a physical affliction or disability, something that limits our ability to live life the way we expect or work or contribute to the extent that we want. Whatever that might be for you, and there is something for you here, for each of us in fact.
I want you to help me with the message this morning. Here is a sermon notes question: What are some limits, more than one – what are some limits, some thorns that you have been given in your life? I’d like you to take a brief minute and write those on your Sermon notes page.
You are not the only one to experience limits. Hold onto our answers, we’re going to come back to that shortly. As humans, we don’t like limits, do we? Well, you know, that’s somewhat ingrained in our nature because of something that happened a long time ago.
How we choose to understand and respond to our limits goes to the core of our relationship with God. It’s so foundational, in fact, that the Evil One made limits a target of his strategy from the very beginning. Limits in the Garden Adam and Eve’s original sin was to defy God’s gift of limits. Think about it. God gave them enormous freedom in the garden of Eden. They were to enjoy their work and their achievements. Then, without explanation, God set a boundary:
“You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
— Genesis 2:16–17
This was no random limit. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil, right in the middle of the garden, confronted them with God’s authority. God wanted Adam and Eve to trust and surrender to His goodness and love. Knowing this, the serpent crafted a temptation to defy God’s limit by convincing Adam and Eve that God was not good after all. In fact, God’s limit was an indicator of His stinginess, not His love.
“‘You will not certainly die,’ the serpent said to the woman. ‘For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil’”.
— Genesis 3:4–5
So, rather than receive God’s limit, Adam and Eve became convinced God might be withholding something good from them. So, they sought to exceed the limits placed up on them. This first act of a willingness to escape limits rather than knowing them and embracing them is just the beginning. Throughout the pages of Scriptural history, God’s Law and limits placed upon His people has always been done so out of love and care for us and through out that same history, we have sought to work around those limits because somehow, we believe we know better. And if you’re thinking that I’m only referring to the Old Testament time period and that this may not apply to us today, let me show you something. Here are some titles from my own library:
Good to Great; The Seven Habits of Highly Effective people; The Effective Manager; Leadership That Works; Practicing Greatness; Heroic Leadership. These are all books from my own library. All focus on helping me overcome my limits. It took me some time to realize that this book, the Bible, has all along been telling me to embrace them and giving me great examples of those who’ve understood this truth.
In the Bible, John the Baptist exemplifies this wonderfully. Let’s read about it in John chapter 3: 22-30.
22 After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptized. 23 Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were coming and being baptized. 24 (This was before John was put in prison.) 25 An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. 26 They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—look, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”
27 To this John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ 29 The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. 30 He must become greater; I must become less.
This passage has a contemporary impact, and I think it is vital for everyone who follows Jesus to understand what is taught here. Our competitive society is structured to compel us to measure our achievements against those of others. We talked about that last week – Popularity, Success, Greatness-ism…
When you look at this text, you see that John stood before his angry and excited disciples and quietly answered their resentment with a sort of proverb that is recorded in verse 27:
“A man can receive only what is given him from heaven.”
— John 3:27
Meaning, on a human level, if a man is displaying gifts superior to mine and having greater success than I am, it is because God has given those to him. That is the proper philosophy by which to evaluate the successes of others. Someone may have more education than I and may be prospering. He may have a nicer home, a larger or happier family, prestige. But the Scriptures say, “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven.”
John answered that he knew who he was (he had a good self-image). The overall tone of his response was freedom. He saw that God had sovereignly appointed differences between himself and the One who outshined him, the One he was free to serve. So, in John’s life there was no tinge of rivalry, no jealousy, no insecurity, no bitterness. Isn’t that beautiful! And here has always been the inspirational part of this to me. John kept on ministering. Although John and Jesus were only a few miles apart, and Jesus was having much larger crowds come to Him, and greater things were being said about Jesus and His ministry, John stuck to his appointed task. In John’s day, as in our day, that’s not what the world around us tells us to do. All but two of these books I mentioned before, were assigned to me in Seminary. Even when we are training those who are to be leading in our Churches and Ministries, we are encouraging them often to overcome their limits. And in many cases, their God given limits.
Have you noticed the wording that Paul uses in his text about his thorn:
“Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh,”.
— 2 Corinthians 12:7
Meaning, on a human level, if a man is displaying gifts superior to mine and having greater success than I am, it is because God has given those to him. That is the proper philosophy by which to evaluate the successes of others. Someone may have more education than I and may be prospering. He may have a nicer home, a larger or happier family, prestige. But the Scriptures say, “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven.”
John answered that he knew who he was (he had a good self-image). The overall tone of his response was freedom. He saw that God had sovereignly appointed differences between himself and the One who outshined him, the One he was free to serve. So, in John’s life there was no tinge of rivalry, no jealousy, no insecurity, no bitterness. Isn’t that beautiful! And here has always been the inspirational part of this to me. John kept on ministering. Although John and Jesus were only a few miles apart, and Jesus was having much larger crowds come to Him, and greater things were being said about Jesus and His ministry, John stuck to his appointed task. In John’s day, as in our day, that’s not what the world around us tells us to do. All but two of these books I mentioned before, were assigned to me in Seminary. Even when we are training those who are to be leading in our Churches and Ministries, we are encouraging them often to overcome their limits. And in many cases, their God given limits.
Have you noticed the wording that Paul uses in his text about his thorn:
“Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh,”.
— 2 Corinthians 12:7
This word given – didimi – is to give or better translated to Grant. Paul says I was ‘granted’ a thorn in my flesh and so he boasted about that. Why would he do that?
This turned the argument of Paul’s critics on its head because Paul’s thorn (the very thing his critics loathed in him and saw as evidence that God was not with him) was actually proof of the transcending superiority of his experience when raptured into the presence of God. A limit is a gift few of us want. The question is why? The answer is twofold. First, almost everything in the messaging coming from the wider culture resists this countercultural truth found so clearly in Scripture. The truth that Paul is boasting of here. And secondly, it touches on the root of our rebellion against God, just as it did for Adam and Eve in the garden.
What a stunning rebuke to the super-apostles who worshiped health and well-being and who viewed affliction and weakness as the absence of God’s blessing.
This does not suggest, however, that Paul enjoyed his thorn in the flesh. He didn’t, as evidenced by his prayer: “Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me” (v. 8). Paul was no masochist, moaning, “Afflict me, Lord! I like it.” What Paul sought was the removal of the thorn.
Here his trio of prayers refers to a singular event in which he pled passionately that the thorn would leave him. Significantly, Paul’s three prayers parallel Jesus’ threefold prayer to the Father in Gethsemane that the cup of suffering be removed, and which also culminated in assurance that the prayer had been answered, even though the cup, as with the thorn, was not taken away (Mark 14:32–41). In Gethsemane, Christ Jesus pled with his heavenly Father. Here Paul pleads with Christ Jesus risen from the dead. Paul’s prayer was a passionate, heart-rending plea like that of Jesus in Gethsemane to his loving Father. And Jesus, like his Father, lovingly answered no to Paul.
I want you to hear me this morning: The Lord’s answers to our prayers are never negative, except in a superficial sense, even when limits are granted to us or our prayers seem to be unanswered because ultimately, they are fully positive, bringing God’s unending blessing. It is never anything but good for us when we embrace this thought it’s not always easy.
Greatest boast – Jesus’ no to Paul came in the form of an explanation and is the high point of the entire letter:
“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness’ ”
Scholars agree: “This is the peak of Paul’s letter, the point from which everything else should be viewed by.”
With this we come to Paul’s greatest boast ever: “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (v. 9b). Paul feels no reticence here in boasting, no sense of playing the fool. His shyness has evaporated. Paul boasts “all the more gladly,” with total enthusiasm. He joyously boasts of his weaknesses—his thorn as well as his beatings and hardships and sleepless nights and hunger and thirst. Why? It is the power-in-weakness principle— “so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
This is so beautiful, and we must not miss it.
“Rest upon me” is the vocabulary of the tabernacle from the time when God pitched his tent with His people (Exodus 40:34). It is also the language used of Jesus when “the Word became flesh and dwelt [literally, pitched His tent] among us” (John 1:14). So here in 2 Corinthians 12:9b, Paul employs the same awesome image to teach that the all-powerful Christ “pitches His tent” with His people in their weakness.
Life is not as it appears to be. We are led by today’s culture to imagine that God pitches His tent with the especially famous and powerful, those who can speak of ecstasies and miraculous power and who command large crowds as they jet from city to city and enjoy the spotlight of center stage, but it is not so. Jesus commonly pitches His tent with the weak and the unknown, the suffering shut-in, the anonymous pastor and missionary, the godly, quiet servants in the home and the marketplace.
Paul says; “For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
The spiritual math is never, “my weakness plus His strength equals my power.” Rather, it is, “my weakness plus His strength equals His power.”
OK, so how do we apply this? On your sermon notes you’ll see Scazzerro gives us four ways to receive the gift of limits as a Disciple/church: As we review these, keep in mind the Thorn’s that you noted earlier that you wrote down.
Prioritize self-care
Parker Palmer, in another book I have on my shelf says this:
“Self-care is never a selfish act—it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on earth to offer to others. Anytime we can listen to true self and give it the care it requires, we do so not only for ourselves, but for the many others whose lives we touch.”
Self-care is not selfish. Say this with me – self-care is not selfish! Again, sometimes self care is not only best gift we can give to ourselves but it’s the best gift we can give to those around us as well.
Set limits on invasive people
Now, speaking of people around us; sometimes, those around us can be pretty invasive and invasive people can operate on a continuum that ranges from mild to severe. Each of us regularly engages with invasive people. These are the ones who take up too much space at the expense of others, who don’t allow others to express themselves, or who damage the community by approaching situations and people in ways that are not helpful or even biblical. Yet setting limits on them is an important discipleship moment, both for them and for us. Remember last week we talked about space, detaching and relaxing in Jesus. Sometimes that means lovingly detaching from those that are overly intrusive.
Freedom to say no
Which brings us to an equally as hard issue to contend with…saying no. Do you know how many times these books expound on the benefits of saying no? Not very often, instead, they bring new and creative ways for us to say yes and yes again and yes one more time until we find ourselves in a position that we are not and were never meant to be equipped for. That’s part of space too. For Marlee and I, Saturday is our sabbath day and to be very transparent with you, we are not going to be very responsive on a Saturday. We are intentional about spending that day in fellowship with each other and the Lord through various practices. We need that and so do you by the way. I know a lot of you struggle with this word – No. For those who feel guilty when they see an unmet need, it takes great courage and strength not to jump in or volunteer. In some cases, I think we are actually denying our sinful self (that wants to be like God) and following Jesus. When we say no, we are trusting that God will meet that need through others. Without shame, guilt, or pressure, part of our journey of spiritual maturity is to grow into mature people who are free to say, no, thank you. When we learn how to do that through a time of prayer and true discernment, then the result is that the quality “us” we do provide to others is often more loving. People are less cranky and stressed. We receive love and give love more freely. Perhaps most important, accepting the freedom to say no helps us to an understanding in which people feel loved rather than used.
Healthy Boundaries
In many ways, and you know this, we are our own worst enemy here. Adam and Eve were the first boundary breakers. They crossed the limit God set for them when they ate from the forbidden tree and then ran from God. From that time forward, human beings have been breaking boundaries and crossing lines with God and one another. The Fall distorted for the rest of human history our sense of separateness, boundaries, and responsibility. Ever since, we have been confused about where we end and someone else begins.
Scazzaro says: “Boundaries are an expression of the fact that I am a separate person, apart from others. With proper boundaries, I know what I am and am not responsible for.”
And so, the problem is if I am a person with poor boundaries, I feel compelled to do what others want even though it is not what I want to do. I live in fear of disappointing someone or being criticized. I want others to like me, and I surely don’t want to be seen as selfish because that certainly wouldn’t be the popular or successful thing to do now would it, let alone the toll it will take on ourselves or our relationships.
With all four of these areas, here’s a fact we all have to contend with:
The world’s needs are far greater than our personal supply. And we must constantly discern what is the best response in the long run rather than what is the easiest to do right now and that’s hard, but it’s so often why God ‘grants’ us limits in our lives. Yes, the Bible calls us to relate to one another as a family, to be connected to one another in such a loving way that the world will know that Jesus is real and alive (John 13:34–35). However, this connection to others needs to happen without sacrificing our individuality, and certainly not our spiritual and emotional health.
Sometimes it can seem as if living within boundaries and limits is not in our best interest or even in the best interest of God’s mission. But they are—more than we can possibly imagine.
Without a deep theological and practical understanding of limits, we severely compromise our ability to love God, ourselves, and others over the long haul. Limits are a deeply spiritual issue.
The paradox of power in what Paul is saying is this: “For when I am weak, then I am strong.” God doesn’t need our perceived strengths, if that is what we depend upon. He wants our weaknesses, our sufferings, our inadequacies, our disabilities, our failures, our fears. Even more, He wants us to boast of our weaknesses, so that Jesus in His power will pitch His tent in us. Amen?
When we trust in God’s goodness by receiving His limits as gifts and expressions of His love, that’s when we grow in our spiritual health and Discipleship.
Prayer
Why is it that we are afraid to cry aloud our need to You O God? We sit in our darkness and cry and complain about the dire circumstances that have overtaken us. Yet, when given the opportunity to approach the Savior Who offers us light and healing, we somehow prefer the darkness, not daring to believe that healing and light are possible for us. The call of the world around us invades all of our lives; it colours our attitudes and determines our actions. Lord Jesus, come and pitch Your tent not only on us, but in us and eventually through us. Break the barriers we have erected against peace, freedom, and hope. Bathe us in the light of love, and we shall become bearers of that incredible light for others who dwell in darkness. As we receive the light from You, give us courage and confidence to reach out in compassion and service in Your name.
Lord this morning we lift those in our Church and our families before You that need care and healing and mercy.
Heal the sick;
Mend the Broken hearted;
Comfort the lonely;
Guide the leaders;
For we ask this in Jesus’ Name.
AMEN.
Song
Benediction
The true limits of our existence are imposed on us by the World around us, but you see, in Jesus those limits, those weaknesses are made into His power in you. You are strong – each of you is strong. Your lives are made strong by Christ’s love.
So, go now in peace to serve with great joy. Don’t be afraid to boast in Him!
Bring the love of God with you so that the light which has brightened your life may shine for others.
Go now in peace serve Him.
AMEN