But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;

2 Cor 4:7-9

We value certainty in our work. The more certain that we are, the better decisions we will make and the more effective we will be. A common prayer for work is a prayer for wisdom, which has an element of certainty, To be wise is to have a grasp of the truth about a situation so that we know what to do. Surely God would want to grant us that wisdom for our work, as he did for Solomon.

Yet here in 2 Cor 4, Paul is admitting that he was perplexed. This word means not knowing how to proceed. Here is Paul, clearly doing work that God has called him to, and he lacks certainty on how to do it. This can be comforting because if Paul was perplexed then the fact that I am perplexed does not mean that God is absent or does not care about my work. But it could also be disheartening if you are expecting God to always provide you with certainty about your work

Certainty is a sign of strength. Good leaders are decisive and certain about their decisions. If you are in a meeting with your boss and are asked for input from your department, you want to appear certain of what you are discussing. What do you do if you are not certain? The temptation is to appear more certain than you are.

Having interacted with the world of medicine as a patient advocate, I have seen this with doctors. Old-school doctors want to give their patients confidence that they are in good hands. So they will present their diagnosis and treatment plans with a certainty that is not accurate to the current medical knowledge. They feel this is best for the patient, even though what they are presenting is not really true. Other doctors will be more honest about how much guesswork and uncertainty is involved. They believe that the patient should know the truth about their situation, even though it could lead to more anxiety.

How much of our desire for certainty is a desire to be in control? When we are not certain, we lack confidence in our ability to control our situation. Doctors who are not certain of a diagnosis or the effectiveness of a treatment plan are not as in control of the outcome as we want them to be. And this might be why God does not provide the certainty that we desire. From the Fall, we are tempted towards independence. We want to have everything that we need for life within ourselves so that we are not dependent on God. Our quest for certainty is a quest for what we need to live well.

This seems to be how Paul understood the difficulties that he faced in carrying out the work of God. “To show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” There was a lack of the desired power or strength in themselves that made them more dependent on God. To have certainty would be to have that strength and power. There is also God’s word to Paul about the thorn in the flesh, “My grace is sufficient for you. For my power is made perfect in weakness.” It is counterintuitive that weakness would perfect power. It is also counterintuitive that uncertainty would perfect grasping God’s truth.

There is truth, whether we are able to be certain of it or not. The reason that Paul is perplexed but not in despair, is that he can trust in the one who is the truth. When we lack certainty, we lack the power to control our situation as much as we want to. However, our lack of certainty does not limit God’s control of our situation. Our lack of certainty means that we have to trust him for what we do not yet know.

I would love to connect with you about these posts if they have stirred any thoughts or questions. Take a minute, shoot me an email at bo@leavenedlives.org, and let’s see where that takes us.