Embracing Weakness + “Weak Though Anointed”
Recommended Sermon, “A Word of Peace” by Rev. Joseph Hanthorn
Download the handwritten version of “Weak Though Anointed” here.
Download the Embracing Weakness + “Weak Though Anointed” audio/episode here.
Weak Though Anointed.
“This day, I am weak, though anointed king…” 2 Samuel 3:39
David’s words in 2 Samuel 3:39 ring and resonate in my ears:
“And I am weak this day, though anointed king…”
While I am not anointed to be king, I am anointed to do the things God has called me to do. And, while I am anointed, I am most certainly weak.
Weak though anointed.
This is so often how God works in and through humanity. He calls; He anoints, and then He weakens. He calls us to something beyond our own scope of capability, and then takes us through a set of circumstances that makes it further impossible for us to fulfill that call on our own.
WEAK. AND. ANOINTED.
Weak…lacking in strength
…. deficient in physical vigor;
…feeble, debilitated
…not able to sustain or exert much weight, pressure, or strain
…not able to resist external force or withstand attack. (Miriam Webster)
Weak..
…incapable
…. unable….yet still anointed.
Still called to a specific task or a specific role. Simultaneously weak and anointed. They sound so unable to be reconciled, yet they are not. 1 Corinthians 1:26-27 states very plainly: “For you see your calling brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called: but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty…that no flesh should glory in His presence.” (v. 29) Paul very clearly states that God intentionally chooses a weak thing to work through. Feeble. Infirm. Unable on their own to complete the task at hand. Unable an incapable of stepping into anointing or fulfilling a call apart from Him.
This is what David was saying, “I know I am anointed to lead the united kingdom of Israel. I am currently, after many tumultuous years, leading one tribe, but I remember the oil as it flowed down my head and neck, onto my shepherd’s robe. I know in my head that Samuel was there that day and anointed me in the middle of my brothers, but I am weak. I have no way of accomplishing this thing to which I’ve been called. ‘And I am weak this day, though anointed king…’” David was looking at all the dim realities of the circumstances around him and stating their weakening effect on him, but continued on to a brighter, more glorious truth…He was still anointed.
Weakness and anointing often walk arm-in-arm on the pathway of a call. Maybe always. Those used most mightily by God in His Word are, surprisingly, those who expressed the greatest weakness. Moses was stripped and weakened, made “slow of speech” by a wilderness. David was stripped and weakened by years on the run. Paul was stripped and weakened by the reality of his past and many painful circumstances of his present. But we see that THEIR weakness did not stop God’s anointing. It rather facilitated it. Their weakness allowed for the “excellency of His power” to be the primary factor. The less of them; the more of Him. Their vulnerable expressions of weakness that are laced throughout Scripture give hope to those of us coming behind. We often fear that our weakness and inability will disqualify us. When in fact, it is quite the opposite. The grandness of His call and our own weak inability are the perfect combination. “Weak though anointed was His design all along.”
As Paul boldly declared, “When I am weak, them am I strong.”
Our weakness is required for his anointing to come to fruition.
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“I might be weak, and I might not know how to make it all work, but I know one thing. I remember when Samuel broke that box. I remember when the oil was poured on my head. And I may be weak right now, but I’m still anointed…we think, “If I’m weak, I can’t be anointed or blessed, but can I remind you, you can be weak and still be anointed.” –Pastor Joseph Hanthorn
Thank you for joining me for this journey!
Go grab your Bible and your journal!
I look forward to the power of this habit in your life. This is Unedited.