How many of you have had somebody in your life that just rubs you the wrong way? The kind of people that you try to avoid when you see them at the grocery store, or you always cringe when you see their name on the caller ID? The ones where more often than not you hit “Ignore” rather than “Answer” on your cell phone? I’m not looking for any names, especially if they are sitting in the sanctuary this morning. But you know who I’m talking about. Of course, nobody knows when he/she is “that person” because if they did, they would probably be more intentional about not being “that person.” When I was in seminary, we had a special term for people who just rubbed us the wrong way – “spiritual sandpaper.”
Sadly, after selling tools for five years, I know more about sandpaper than I would like. In fact, by the grace of God, I’ve probably forgotten more about sandpaper than a lot of people would ever want to know. There are hundreds of different types of sandpaper. There’s the full page, half page, one-third page; there’s paper for belt sanders, orbital sanders, pad sanders, drum sanders, 3-D sanders, corner sanders. Then, within all that, there are different grits. I’ve seen anything from 36 to 500 grit. You name it, and there is probably sandpaper for it.
There is sandpaper that is so rough that it will take the skin off your arm in one swipe; trust me, some of the people I worked with were jerks sometimes. There is sandpaper so smooth that will take paint off of something without leaving a scratch. And there is everything in between. Are you following me here? There are people like that in our lives. There are some that rub us so raw that we are hurt, and there are scars in our lives that remain for quite some time. Have any of those in your life? There are some who have such a gentle way of talking with us that it doesn’t hurt a bit, even if what they are saying is difficult to hear.
In any case, these people serve as a type of spiritual sandpaper in our lives. They work on us, rubbing away the rough edges in our lives. Sometimes it hurts more than it does other times. But it’s necessary. Scripture talks about the refiner’s fire. Isaiah 48 talks about the people being refined, being tried in a furnace of affliction. God’s motive in exiling the people to Babylon wasn’t simply to punish them, but to refine them in the fires of affliction.
I did some reading on refining metal this week. I know, I know, sounds incredibly exciting. But I wanted to understand what this process looked like. There are a lot of different ways to refine metals, but in all of these processes, the common denominator is that they are attempting to get rid of all the impurities in the metal. There are chemical processes, and some that use electricity, but the most common way of refining metal, even today is by fire. The metal is heated up and the impurities are separated from the metal. This is certainly the process that was used in Old Testament times, and it is a good metaphor for our spiritual lives as well.
As we read through 2 Corinthians, we find out that Paul had a similar experience in his life. In verse 7, he talks about there being a thorn in his flesh, a messenger of Satan in his life. Scholars debate as to whether this was some kind of physical ailment or opponents to his ministry or psychological problems that Paul was dealing with. Whatever the case may be, it is clear that there was something in Paul’s life that was serving as a type of spiritual sandpaper. It was there, he says, to keep him from being conceited about these revelations that he received from God.
In 2 Corinthians 11, Paul is addressing some of the deceivers who had followed him into Corinth. These people were troublemakers in the early church who taught a different doctrine than Paul and the other apostles. They were spreading rumors about Paul and really just giving him a hard time as he was trying to do ministry throughout the Roman Empire. He points, not to the successes that he has had in ministry around the empire, but to the struggles that he has faced so that the gospel would be shared. He shares this list of all he has gone through for the sake of the gospel.
In the Roman world boasting was not seen as a bad thing. If someone did something good, and they wanted everyone to know about it, they would boast about it. People would listen and be in awe of their accomplishments. However, Paul didn’t see things that way. Everything that Paul did was for the sake of the gospel. All of the good things that happened were not because of Paul directly, but because of God working through Paul. Paul knew this, and accepted it. He knew that the message of the gospel was counter-cultural and that there would be repercussions for sharing this message, and it is these repercussions that he shares with the reader in chapter 11, not the successes. And this discussion spills over into chapter 12.
Paul recognizes that his true strength is not in the amazing deeds that he accomplished by himself, but what God did through him in his weakness. He isn’t boasting about sharing the gospel all over the Roman Empire. He’s not boasting about starting churches throughout the region. He’s not boasting about bringing a young man back from the dead. (In Acts 20, a guy goes to sleep while Paul is teaching, falls out of the window and dies. All the more reason not to fall asleep during the sermon on Sunday morning.) No, he’s not boasting about any of this. He is boasting in the fact that God has worked through him, in spite of his limitations.
Anybody ever feel limited? Anybody ever feel like God can’t work through you? Ever feel too young, too old, too uneducated, too inadequate for God to work through you? So did Paul. Remember, Paul persecuted the early Christians before encountering Jesus on the road to Damascus, where he was going to persecute more Christians. Paul may have been well educated, but one of the accusations that the false prophets had against him is that he wasn’t a very good speaker. Paul doesn’t deny this accusation. He may not have been a great speaker, but he didn’t have to be because God was working through him.
You don’t have to feel inadequate when it comes to sharing the gospel because God is working through you as well. And don’t say, “God can’t [fill in the blank].” Excuse my poor English here, but God can’t nothin’. Anytime you hear yourself say, “God can’t…” I want you to do me a favor. Take your right hand, hold it up, and put it over your mouth before you finish that sentence. God can’t nothin’. The simple truth is that we are inadequate when left on our own, but God is working through us. And God can’t nothin’.
Paul pleaded and pleaded and pleaded with God to take away whatever it was that was bothering him, but God never did. Because God can work in us and through us despite whatever limitations we may have. But we have to let Him. What was God’s reply to Paul’s pleas? “My grace is sufficient for you.” We have to rely on God’s grace to get us through the difficult times in our lives. We have to rely on God’s grace to deal with those who are the 36 grit spiritual sandpaper in our lives. We have to rely on God’s grace to work through our inadequacies. God’s grace is sufficient for you. Where you think you are at your weakest is where God can work the most.
Anybody know that the #1 fear in America is? Public speaking. Did you know that I hate public speaking? My heart starts racing. I’m worried that I’m going to stumble over my words or unintentionally say something embarrassing. Or even forget what I was going to say in the first place. But I love to preach. I love to study the Word and share what it is that I think I’m hearing from God on a given week. Trust me, on the weeks when you hear a good sermon, it’s not because I’m a great public speaker; it’s because God is working in spite of my weaknesses.
So, I want to close with a few questions for you this morning. Who has God placed in your life that is serving as a type of spiritual sandpaper? I don’t want any names out loud here, just think about it. What is it that God is trying to do in your life? Where are your weaknesses, and how is God working in spite of them? What affliction is helping to purify you through the refiner’s fire right now? Think about it this week, and then spend some time praying with God. Listen for what it is that He would have you do. Pray about how God’s power is made perfect in your weakness, and then maybe get together with a couple of friends and talk about it over some coffee or tea or soda. God can work through you, no matter what your weaknesses are. His power is made perfect in our weakness. Will you let God shape you, refine you and work through you? Paul did, and I’d say it turned out pretty well. What can He do through you?
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