Grace played a major part in what Paul became and achieved. He recognized his position as a latecomer to the gospel. He did not have the privilege that the likes of Peter, James, and John had. These had a direct interface with Jesus for over three years. They went wherever He went, ate what He ate, and slept where He slept. Understandably, they ended up doing what He did. Whatever knowledge of Christ that Paul could boast of came by revelation. “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” I Corinthians 15:10 NKJV
In addition to grace which was evident in Paul’s life, he also had a right perspective. In our text, he regarded his ordeals as “light affliction”. For a complete listing of what he summed up as light, you have to read 2 Corinthians 11:23-29. How could he regard this magnitude of trouble as light? Paul certainly had a revelation of Christ and His suffering on the cross. From this stand point, his suffering paled into insignificance. The sufferings of Christ for us are by far greater than any trouble we may encounter in life. In the same vein, Paul considered all troubles as momentary. He had a clear understanding of God’s view of time. Finally, he had his eyes set on eternal bliss with God in heaven. A consideration of abiding in God’s presence forever to absorb His glory is a tranquillizer of every difficulty we know of in this present age.