“Our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit: for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Cor. 3:5b-6).
I always encourage you to read the entire passage from which our key verse is taken. Some in Corinth have been attracted by some preachers who based their message on their visionary experiences. Paul did not want to make a sorrowful visit to bring correction and thus he had written a strong letter of correction (ch. 2). At the end of chapter two he speaks of persons who have peddled the Word of God (17).
Lest they misunderstand his motives, he insists that he is not commending himself (3:1). He then indicates that the believers in Corinth are his letters of commendation. Paul may have seemed “inadequate” to some if they based their evaluation on spectacular visions, but Paul insists that his adequacy comes from God, “who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant.”
Paul speaks of the law which could only show man his sin and did not impart the power necessary to obey the law. In contrast the Spirit of God gives life and thus makes us adequate as servants of the new covenant. If you sometimes feel inadequate, memorize and trust this promise.
Prayer: Thank you for making me adequate to be a servant of the new covenant. Amen.