A Rose Amongst Thorns
Mother's Day Sermon • Sermon • Submitted
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The Rose and the Thorn
The Rose and the Thorn
As a child my grandmother had plenty of flowers in her front yard. She paid close attention to them. From her sunflowers to the rose bush that she had. She spent plenty of time with the plants, she watered them, she grieved over them dying or being harmed before she saw them at their beautiful blooming potential. One thing that has always stuck out to be about the rose bush was the fact that it required intense consistent pruning. Another thing that is quite interesting about a rose is the fact that such a beautiful, highly regarded, symbolism of romantic love has to be carried, and picked with caution considering the thorns that live on the stem of this beautiful flower.
Considering today is Mother’s Day, I believe that every mother in her own right is a beautiful rose. Nonetheless, regardless of how beautiful that rose is, there are thorns in life that we have to live with and overcome. Our paradigm has to shift. No more can we look at this as thorns among roses, praise God that there is rose among all the thorns.
There is a quote that states, “Some people grumble that roses have thorns, I’m just glad that thorns have roses”. In we are presented with a very transparent monologue of pain and trial from our dear brother Paul. Some would suggest that he is a bright spot in the progression of the church, but at this moment he is going through a trial so depleting he is pleading with God to remove it. He pleads three times and then he accepted it. There is beauty in the rose, but there is also beauty in knowing that despite the rose a flower will bloom.
That rose is made of petals of comfort, grace, mercy, and kindness. God has a purpose for our thorns, it is up to us to handle them in a manner that reveals that despite our thorns a rose can bloom.
Mental Health Awareness
Mental Health Awareness
When I read this text and I can’t help but think that this is having a daunting affect on Paul spiritually and mentally. Whatever he is being plagued with he’s asked God to removed it.
Paul states that this thorn in the flesh was given to me:
A messenger of Satan to buffet me:
Buffet or beat me, lest I be exalted above measure. Trials or thorns can have a physical and mental affect on our lives. This could have been physical pain. But as Frolich states in her book “Living with thorns”, our bodies are integrated in relation to our physical health.
The rose of Paul’s attitude is his humility. “lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations”. Regardless of why I’m going through this what lesson can I learn, maybe it’s so I do get too prideful about who I am. Nonetheless I know that God is in control and this is just a tool from Satan to discourage me.
Like the thorns on a rose, these thorns do not take away from the beauty of the rose, but it changes the way the rose is handled.
Our thorns change how people handle us, it does not devalue us in any way, but just know that people may move with caution. We have to be mindful of our thorns as well because the thorns we have can hurt others.
Our pain affects others when we do not deal with it.
When we deal with our issues, we realize the blessings God has provided for us. Sometimes the true miracle is us. God might not change your outward situation, but realize that he is using this situation to change the inner person. “And He said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness”.
God is so mindful of our thorns that he will impeded the danger we are walking into just so we do not resort back to our old ways. Do you remember the story of Hosea and Gomer, God said “Therefore I will block her road with thorn-bushes and obstruct her path with a wall, so that she can no longer follow her old ways”.
We get mentally weak sometimes, we get fed up sometimes. Paul states he takes pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. When I am mentally drained and I cannot depend on even myself, I can still be strong in the Lord.
God is a Rose in the Midst of Our Thorns ()
God is a Rose in the Midst of Our Thorns ()
The New King James Version Chapter 1
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ.
God comforts us in all tribulation. Understand that a part of this definition of comfort is God calling us to him. Similar to a parent with their child, when they see their child is hurt. They entreat them, they say come to me find comfort in my arms.
No matter the thorn, you can find a rose of comfort in the arms of God.
Your thorn might be worrying, it might be abuse, it might be sickness. What ever the tribulation is you can find help in God’s arms.
This comfort is not sympathy as much as God’s empathy toward us in our time of trial. We have a comforter in that of the Holy Spirit. “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.” ()
It’s not sympathy it is encouragement. Is it a trial? Yes! Are tribulations burdensome? Yes! God is here to be that rose in the midst of your thorns to show you the encouragement you need to overcome.
As our problems increase so does the consolation of God! The comfort, God gives us after a loss or disappointment does not remove the trial but it makes the burden easier to carry.
The New King James Version Chapter 1
24 I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church,
Our lives might be strangled by thorns, nonetheless sometimes God shows up with a single rose and sometimes he delivers a bouquet. Sometimes there are roses with no thorns, but it does not mean they weren’t there. It’s just the great pruner removed them. Some of us ought to be thankful that we had our thorns removed, nonetheless those of us that still have our thorns shouldn’t feel any less than because we are still roses!