Should Christians Embrace Weakness? | Theocast Clips

The Burden of Pretending to Be Strong

It's like, whatever you're presenting, no one can live like that. No one lives without weakness.

You don't live like that.

Right?

You know, Justin, I will say this kind of, this is me being raw and open with the congregation, well, with you, my brothers and sisters. I get real uncomfortable around people who aren't weak. Like, I just feel like...

Yeah, who don't show it.

You know, it makes me very uncomfortable because I just don't trust them. You know, it's hard for me to trust somebody who just flat out can't see or is unwilling to see that, it's like, whatever you're presenting, no one can live like that.

No one lives without weakness.

You don't live like that.

Yeah.

Right?

Weak Pastors, Weak Christians, and the Communion of Weakness

The greatest joy as a pastor, I've been, I've had the privilege, the pastor is an associate in multiple churches and I can say it, you know, being an associate and then being one that's responsible to be the, you know, primary communicator for the congregation, it carries a pretty heavy weight.

And my congregation, my dear precious family, they let me be weak. They allow me to be a weak, frail shepherd who gets up and with a shaking hand, I hold my finger towards Christ and they all shout and rejoice.

They're like, yes, in our weakness, we are all in desperate need of God's grace. And there is something refreshing to be able to sit down next to another brother and just exhale and go, brother, I'm so glad you're here because in my weakness, I could use an encouragement.

And then to be able to, as a weak Christian, look with tears in my brother's and sister's eyes and say, you know, it's a good thing that we're weak and he's strong. I mean that there is something comforting about the communion of weakness because, just to go back to your quote, when we don't embrace that, Justin, it creates an arrogance and it's really hard for a weak, frail person to be around arrogant people because it exhausts them and it creates an inappropriate perspective of themselves.

Romans 15:1 and the Obligation of the Strong

If you've ever played any kind of a sport and you feel like you're pretty good at it and then you go and you watch a professional do it, you're just kind of like deflated immediately. Like I could never live up to that.

But somehow we think that we're all Christians are expected to be professional Christians. You know, it's like, this is your job to be the strong theologians who never have weakness and never crack and to know the answer to everything and they never have a bad day.

And that's just not what we're called towards. I read so many passages of scripture that, let me go back to this way, Justin, just someone could say in Romans 15, one, we who are strong have an obligation to deal with the failings.

Of the weak.

I don't think he means there those of us who are strong as far as strength where there is no suffering. I believe he means there those whose faith is grounded in Christ have an obligation to deal with those whose faith is not grounded in Christ and seems to be flopping all over the place.

Pilgrims, Exiles, and the Church’s Ministry of Grace

I think we would do well to remember that we are pilgrims in this life. This is something that Reformed and just confessional Christians in general, so that would include our Lutheran brothers and sisters, have been very clear about through the centuries, that paradigm of the Christian as a pilgrim or a sojourner or an exile is the most helpful way to think about our life now.

What do we mean?

We mean that we have been promised a homeland. We know because of God's faithfulness and because of the work of Christ and his sufficiency to save us that we will realize that hope one day. But here's the reality, but we're not there yet.

And between here and there, there are all kinds of things that we're going to face. We are assailed by doubts and temptations on every side, and there are spiritual dangers.

Every place.

And so we need, obviously we need grace, we need protection, we need nourishment if we're going to make it, if we're going to endure. God is ultimately the one that's got to do that, but then he's going to do that through the ministry of the church.

And how is he going to do that through the ministry of the church? Well, he has meant to provide that nourishment and that sustenance and that protection that pilgrims need through the preaching of Christ and through the offering of the Lord Jesus.

In the sacraments.