A man isn’t great because he has conquered everything in his path, but because he hasn’t. A victory may be a glorious thing, but a defeat may be in the end an even more glorious thing. 

If Paul is right, grace abounds in two circumstances: where there is sin and where there is weakness.

SIN

When a man refuses to acknowledge his sin or his weakness, he cuts himself off from the grace of God. But when a man acknowledges his sin and acknowledges God, he knows he is without retreat. The only way forward is grace. The forgiving grace God offers even to him, the saving grace God pours out and lavishes on him in Jesus Christ. 

WEAKNESS

When a man acknowledges his weakness and falls short of all he aspires to be or to do for God, his end can be a new beginning. For, again, the only way forward is grace. When I am weak, then I am strong, cries Paul (2 Corinthians 12:9-11). Paul’s weakness is never taken away, but God’s grace always comes to him as a gift, not a possession, for his weakness. It’s in personal relationship with God and not apart from God that Paul receives grace. It’s in the power of God that Paul can overcome. But it’s not his weakness he overcomes. Without removing it and eliminating it Paul overcomes in and through his weakness.  

OPPORTUNITY

There will be on the best and worst of days moments when we realize that what we love we don’t do, but what we hate we do. (Romans 7:15) Grace is what has been done for us.

In both sin and in weakness I must come face to face with myself, face to face with God himself. My will gives in and at last in that place of surrender I can be made new. Only from down on my knees in humility can I rise by the grace of God into the very life and power of Jesus Christ. 

There may be many victories in the fight of faith, but “the highest cannot stand without the lowest” (C.S. Lewis). Disciples, Christians, making a difference are not those who never fail and always win. They are those who often fail, but also know beyond a shadow of a doubt that God’s grace is enough for them to advance. 

If there is no weakness, then there is no Paul the Missionary. If there is no defeat, then there is no Peter the Preacher. If there is no suffering, if there is no death, then there is no Jesus our Savior.

Every weakness, defeat, and difficulty is a great opportunity. We realize our constant need for God and, so, realize God’s constant presence with us. We seek his daily grace both for what we’re not and for what we’re becoming.