The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe
"Why They Are Notable"
"And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?" (Exodus 3:11).
"Then went king David in, and sat before the Lord, and he said, Who am I, O Lord God? And what is my house, that Thou hast brought me hitherto?" (II Samuel 7:18).
"But who is able to build Him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain Him? Who am I then, that I should build Him an house, save only to burn sacrifice before him?" (II Chronicles 2:6).
Moses, David, and Solomon loom large in history, and in our minds. Well they should, considering their unique and vital roles in God's redeeming purposes in the Lord Jesus Christ. However, in their own minds, these three servants of their Lord could not fathom how they could possibly serve as His agents. This actually shines as their greatest example, encouragement, and exhortation to our own hearts and lives. No less than the Apostle Paul concurred:
"Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ" (Ephesians 3:8).
When we think of those who did much for the Lord, we must view the matter in terms of actual reality, again, confessed by Paul: "By the grace of God I am what I am" (I Corinthians 15:10). Indeed, only God's "I AM THAT I AM" made possible the Apostle's "I am what I am" (Exodus 3:14). We may rightly commend faithful brothers and sisters for their service to God and people. However, we remember and affirm that the blessing does not originate in them. It never does. Never. By the grace of God they are what they are, and if we join them in faithfulness, the same truth surely abides in our hearts and lives "The fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth" (Ephesians 5:9).
Human faithfulness is always the fruit of divine faithfulness. Our role in the matter involves the trust that God Himself is the root of "all goodness and righteousness and truth." Those who do much for Him are those who realize they can do nothing without Him (John 15:5). They avail themselves of His grace, becoming the conduits of His life flowing within and through them. "He that believeth on Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water" (John 7:38). Note the Lord Jesus does not say, "He that is most dedicated, or he that is most disciplined, or he that is most diligent, or he that is most prayerful, or he that is most anything other than "He that believeth on Me." Christ is the root. Our humbled faith is firstfruits in us. All other fruits flow from this grace received by the faith that ever leads us to confess, "Lord, You are and You can. Apart from You, I am not, and I cannot. I therefore trust You to lead, motivate, and enable my life and service."
One wonders if Moses, David, Solomon, and Paul sometimes looked up into a night sky in bewilderment that God had so graciously redeemed them, and had so graciously redeemed others through them. They all well knew that by their own rights, they were worthy only of wrath and condemnation. Instead, He had bestowed His freely given favor because they trusted Him and received it. "Who am I?" The question can only be rightly answered by another question. "Lord, who are You?" Let us apply this to our own lives. Like our brethren of old, we live our lives not by who we are, but by who God is. Indeed, if ever we feel bewilderment that He lives with and within us, and calls us to our particular endeavors, we can be grateful for such perplexity. Notable Biblical figures of old felt this way. Which is why they are notable.
"We are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh."
(Philippians 3:3)
"But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead."
(II Corinthians 1:9)
"He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord."
(II Corinthians 10:17)
Weekly Memory Verse
And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.
(Matthew 9:10)
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