Jesus came to offer us life in its fullest measure—an abundant existence rooted not in fleeting temporal gains but in the enduring reality of eternity. Approaching His throne of grace demands a radical surrender: we release our grip on everything we mistakenly treasure so that we may receive the true promise of everlasting life. This embodies the maxim that one cannot receive a gift while still clutching what one falsely considers valuable.
What makes the promises of grace not only astonishing but deeply comforting is their absolute reliability. This exchange is embraced through faith alone, for we can trust His words completely, knowing that nothing He has spoken falls short of unerring truth. At the heart of the gospel lies a profound paradox: surrendering everything is the only way to gain everything.
We live in a world that incessantly convinces us that our humanity—our status, achievements, and material possessions—constitute our ultimate worth, yet all these worldly pursuits ultimately point toward our own decline. Grace shatters this illusion. It stands accessible to every human being, leaving no room for pride or elitism; no one can boast as though grace were a private privilege reserved for a select few.
While the world measures success by comparing one person’s accomplishments against another’s, the apostle Paul presents a radically different standard. His rhetoric, which might initially appear as audacious boasting, is actually a masterful appeal to humility—stressing personal dependence on divine strength over human merit. Through this pointed message, Paul confronted an audience still entangled in worldliness, urging them toward the godliness that flourishes only under the sovereign, life-giving power of grace.
“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, or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 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. 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” (2 Corinthians 12:6-10 NIV).
Boasting is anathema to salvation in whatever form it takes. Paul’s apparent boastfulness is a sarcastic portrayal of the very grace he embraced. People naturally tend to idolize those used by God; Paul’s words are an invective against boastfulness, yet he employs this irony to describe the state of humility to which he was brought. The “messenger of Satan” served to keep him within the bounds of humility, underscoring that the benefits of grace remain accessible to all.
Humility, however, is strangely unfamiliar territory to those of this world. Repentance invites humility and discards boastfulness. For truly converted Christians, the deepest humility is found in death. That is why Paul could say that death is gain (Philippians 1:21). Those of this world resent death, which plunges them into depression after the loss of loved ones. They are largely unaware that life in a physical body is itself a death sentence, pronounced in Genesis 2:17.
Empowered by the Holy Spirit, there is no fundamental difference between Paul and any truly converted Christian today. The real question is how humble such Christians are willing to be. Paul insisted that it was no longer he who lived, but Christ who lived in him (Galatians 2:20). It is deeply alarming to see some who call themselves Christians yet boastfully consider themselves superior to others. Christ cannot dwell in a person who is comfortable in their merely physical condition, where acquisition is viewed as superior to giving.
Humility is essential to keep God’s people aligned with His will; for the proud, there is no hope of entering God’s Kingdom. This is why Jesus insisted that His followers were to be glad and exceedingly joyful only when persecuted, rather than when treated well (Matthew 5:10-12). There is maximum danger in being showered with praises by the world instead of being insulted.
Real hope emerges when we are treated contemptuously by those who belong to this world. The messenger of Satan may well have been a person who continually highlighted Paul’s weaknesses, seeking to embarrass him in his ministry. As is known, some people delight in humiliating God’s people rather than adulating them.
The insults and persecution that come from the world should be welcomed as blessings, even more than praises are counted as blessings. The benefits of our calling cannot be fully realized in this life. This is similar to freedom fighters who endure hardship during the struggle, hoping to be rewarded with political posts once freedom is won. Sadly, not all are adequately rewarded.
Recently, we have seen Zimbabwe’s esteemed war veterans dragged to court for demanding fair pensions; some may actually be worse off than they were under Smith’s regime. Their experience illustrates the insignificance of life in its purely physical condition. Solomon stated that existing in this life was like chasing after the wind (Ecclesiastes 2:17). Many people may acknowledge that life in this world carries no meaningful purpose, yet they still cherish living, even beyond a century.
Solomon declared that whatever a person values in this physical life is as meaningless as chasing the wind. Yet no matter how pointedly such truths are stated, some will never grasp them. These are the ones Jesus described as “seeing but never perceiving, hearing but never understanding” (Mark 4:12). This remains true some two thousand years after He spoke these words.
The crucial question is why people fail to perceive even when they see, or to understand even when they hear. The simplest answer is that eternity does not operate on the terms of the physical world. Those bound to the physical realm understand only the language of finite existence. Those who grasp the principle of eternity have no trouble understanding infinity, while also perceiving the finite universe.
The parables sought to engage those of this world on their own worldly terms. Everything Jesus taught carried a heavenly meaning but was framed within the context of the physical world. This is what made it impossible for a worldly audience to perceive or understand what He taught. To perceive and understand, they needed to surrender their worldly connection.
Such surrender requires the attitude Paul described. The boastful are in a condition of spiritual weakness, not strength. To become spiritually strong, they must begin with humility. People may argue for any “ism” and advance philosophies of equality. Such efforts aim to address injustices, yet they never fully achieve their goal. Addressing injustices may ease some problems, but a gap always remains through which the unjust continue to profit.
The tug-of-war is between self-centeredness and altruism. In advancing the value of others, altruism does not focus on ownership; self-centeredness, however, pursues ownership at the expense of other fellow humans. It is possible to achieve better living standards in this world. History records admirable civilizations, yet they often flourished at the expense of others.
The Greeks advanced education and knowledge, paving the way for the Roman Empire, which lasted centuries. One imagines the Romans enjoyed an easy lifestyle. The Jews living under that empire, however, had to pay taxes and could not share in that ease. One reason they failed to see value in Jesus was that He did not openly criticize the Roman regime. To them, the Messiah should have helped overthrow their oppressive occupiers and freed them from burdensome taxes.
Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others because you pay no attention to who they are. Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the imperial tax to Caesar or not?”
But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”
“Caesar’s,” they replied. Then he said to them, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” (Matthew 22:15-21 NIV)
Jesus could easily have been mistaken for someone supporting an oppressive regime. The Herodians were known supporters of the governing system; by bringing them along, the Pharisees sought to trap Jesus into saying something that would paint Him as a revolutionary. And indeed, Jesus was a revolutionary—but His revolution had nothing to do with worldly transactions. A typical Jewish revolutionary would seek to replace the existing government with one that favored Jews while suppressing others.
Even a Jewish governing system could not have lasted indefinitely. Just as the Roman Empire that stood then no longer exists today, all earthly kingdoms rise and fall. Life in this world operates on the principle that whatever is received requires a giver. Under Roman rule, the Jews paid taxes that benefited the Romans, not themselves. The Romans were receivers while the Jews were compelled to give simply for the purpose of surviving within the empire.
Had the Jews regained their freedom, the roles would have been reversed, bringing comfort to the Jews instead. The Romans would then have been the ones giving taxes, with the Jews as recipients. Yet there can be no lasting solution under such conditions. It is always a question of kingdoms rising and falling, generations changing, and new rulers arriving with different ideas. This is what has caused political instability throughout the ages.
Jesus brought something that looked beyond temporary solutions. True Christianity regards the principle of giving as superior to the principle of receiving. When Jesus said, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s,” He implied that what belongs to Caesar is of this world, while the godly principle, which is spiritual, is sustained by giving. Strikingly, in our physical nature, we are destined to surrender our bodies to the grave.
God’s Kingdom cannot be conflated with the kingdoms of this world, for it is founded on the law of giving rather than on the assumption that receiving is a blessing. It generates delight in giving more than it calculates benefits in receiving. Such a way of life is not readily accepted in a world that considers receiving a blessing. This is crystallized in what Jesus taught His disciples:
“And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.” (Matthew 5:40-42 NIV)
Careful analysis reveals the richness that comes through goodwill, rather than assuming richness comes through retribution. Imagine what goes on in the mind of a person who, expecting revenge, receives more than they bargained for. What is extraordinarily striking about human beings is that even those considered most evil feel inwardly compelled to reciprocate goodwill.
A human being is fundamentally good by nature, made in God’s image. The one aiming to sue you expects resistance, but instead receives more than they sought. That person may appear to benefit, yet they are unable to quench the appetite of always wanting to get more. In the world’s eyes, such a suing person has gained more. But something unseen within them compels them to feel degraded. Indeed, the suing person would be degraded.
Material things are inferior to spiritual things. The unseen condition of humanity is enriched by the act of giving more than by the act of receiving. In the eyes of the world, a person who receives is viewed as smarter than the one who gives, and yet a person’s true value is rooted in giving. Such a receiver is spiritually most degraded and may die a miserable person if they fail to realize the blessings that come with giving.
When Paul speaks of boasting in weakness, he is basking in the confidence of knowing that material things—including the physical body—are ultimately useless. This is why true Christians count dying as a gain, while those of this world consider death a loss. Of course, without Christ—who appeared to lose everything on the cross—we now know that there is no lasting benefit in our physical nature.
When a person focuses on accumulating wealth, that person degrades himself. As a nation, Zimbabwe degraded itself by assuming there was gain in acquiring farms from white owners; the outcome of that exercise is self-evident. The governing authorities went on to use sanctions as scapegoats, but could not evade the degradation into which the country has fallen.
The greedy, having fallen for the ruse, accumulated far more than necessary and may now realize the stupidity of their actions. Zimbabwe has become a laughingstock to the world. Those who enriched themselves may drive Lamborghinis on potholed highways, but inwardly they are ashamed to interact with their poverty-stricken countrymen.
There is a visible satisfaction in materially accumulated wealth, leading to boastful interactions with others. Yet there is also an invisible satisfaction in spiritually accumulated wealth, which may invite humiliation from the rich of this world but secures the richness of eternity. It requires the inner being to decide effectively between these two choices: eternity or transient existence. The only sobering reminder is that the wealth of this world ends at a person’s physical demise.
Andrew Masuku is the author of Dimensions of a New Civilisation, laying down standards for uplifting Zimbabwe from the current state of economic depression into a model for other nations worldwide. A decaying tree provides an opportunity for a blossoming sprout. Written from a Christian perspective, the book is a product of inspiration, relieving those who have witnessed the strings of unworkable solutions that have led to the current economic and social decay. Most Zimbabweans should find the book a long-awaited providential oasis of hope, written in a simple, conversational tone.
The Print copy is now available at Amazon.com for $13.99
Also available as an e-copy at Lulu.com for $6.99