“But his answer was: "My grace is all you need, for my power is greatest when you are weak.” 2 Corinthians 12:9 (GNT).
“For our high priest is able to understand our weaknesses. He was tempted in every way that we are, but He did not sin.” Hebrews 4:15 (NCV).
“Every high priest is chosen from among other people. He is given the work of going before God for them to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. Since he himself is weak, he is able to be gentle with those who do not understand and who are doing wrong things.” Hebrews 5:1-10 (NCV).
Jesus is our High Priest. That means that He had to be taken from among people. Therefore, He had to become a human being with flesh and blood like us, as well as having a human nature just like ours, as it’s written in Hebrews 2:14. In doing this, He shared our weaknesses and was tempted, becoming a High Priest that understands our weaknesses.
God’s power is strongest when we are weak
We can ask: How weak was Jesus? He was so weak when He was on earth that He prayed and pleaded with loud cries and tears to God who was able to save Him from death, from spiritual death. (Hebrews 5:7.) Praying and pleading are signs of weakness. It is written in the same verse that He was heard because of His godly fear.
Yes, He did have to die physically - the just for us who are unjust; but He did not die the spiritual death that is written about in Romans 8:13 (NCV): “If you use your lives to do the wrong things your sinful selves want, you will die spiritually …”
He knew how weak He was and therefore He prayed and pleaded, with loud cries and tears. But because of that He was also so strong that He never did any of the sins that He was tempted to. God’s power was made greatest in His weakness.
Paul was a faithful follower of Jesus Christ. When he prayed to be set free from his weakness, he received this answer: “My grace is all you need, for my power is greatest when you are weak.” 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 (GNT).
Everyone who is born of flesh and blood is weak, but not all know how weak they are, because they are not God-fearing. Someone who is weak and sees the danger of sin runs away from sin, but the person who thinks he is strong doesn’t cry out for help. It was by God’s grace that Jesus could overcome and be a spotless Lamb who could die for us all. (Hebrews 2:9-10.) It was because of Paul’s weakness that God’s grace could be enough and he could get God’s power. Paul says, “But by the grace of God I am what I am …” 1 Corinthians 15:10.
Cry out to God
Many people believe they fall in sin because they are so weak. But that is not the reason. The reason is that they don’t know how weak they are, and they are not God-fearing enough to cry out to God before they fall. They do not seek help from our great High Priest, He who understands their weakness and can therefore give them grace so that they can get help not to fall. (Hebrews 2:17-18; Hebrews 4:16.)
Paul tells us to run far away from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desires, to run far away from sinful youthful desires and to run far way from the love of money, etc. Why do people not run away from sin? It’s because they don’t know how weak they are, and because they are not God-fearing enough to see that it is absolutely necessary for them to get far away from it. Therefore, they do not get grace to become strong so they can overcome.
Also read: How important is it to "flee"?
If you know how weak you are, you are also humble and then you receive grace. Then you become strong in God, for His power is greatest when you are weak. But you will also run away from sinful things and from friends that draw you into the world with its sinful pleasures. You will rather run after righteousness, faith, love, and peace with all those who ask the Lord for help out of a pure heart. (2 Timothy 2:22.)
Timothy, who was a man of God, did not think that he was too good to receive such advice from Paul. He knew how weak he was and therefore got grace to be a great servant of the Lord.