What I AM, You Are
Speaker: Pastor Daniel Cheung
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God does not call the qualified, He qualifies those He calls.
If you feel unqualified, welcome to the club, but just know, that will never stop what God can do with your life! Take the story of Gideon for example. He saw himself as the weakest man in the weakest tribe, but that didn’t stop God from using him to fulfil Israel’s destiny.
Moses is another example. He dislocated himself from his destiny when he ran away into the desert after murdering an Egyptian. Suddenly God revealed Himself to Moses and showed him his destiny as the deliverer of Israel. He felt so unqualified, he didn’t even speak well. His question to God in response to this revelation was, “who am I?”. He questioned his qualification for the job, yet God used Moses despite his excuses, and He chose to reveal His name and His identity to Moses: I AM.
Then there is Jacob, who tricked his brother into giving up his birthright. Isaac could not see Jacob, but when Jacob took Esau’s place to receive the blessing, Isaac asked, ‘“Are you really my son Esau?’ he asked. ‘I am,’ he replied.” (Genesis 27:24). Jacob took on a false identity. The truth, however, is that the real blessing of God only comes when you discover who you are. God cannot bless who you pretend to be, He can only bless who you really are.
Jacob was only able to come face to face with his true identity when he wrestled with God in his old age. “The man asked him, ‘What is your name?’ ‘Jacob,’ he answered.” (Genesis 32:27).
Only after Jacob faces who he really is did God bless him with the new identity of his destiny, “Then the man said, ‘Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.’” (Genesis 32:28). Once Jacob admitted who he was, God showed him his potential to become Israel. In that moment his life totally changed.
Once we strip away everything honestly before God and admit who we really are, it is only then that God can bless us and reveal the potential of who He created us to be.
So why is it that we still say the phrase, “God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob?” God wants to identify with our weakness. The phrase, “God of Jacob” reminds us of where we came from. It reminds us that God is still pursuing us and loving us in our failures and weaknesses “God of Israel” emphasize the covenant God has put in place for His chosen people. It is a reminder of our redeemed relationship with Him and of His transforming Grace.
So, the next time you feel unqualified just remember that qualification is not a prerequisite to being called. God qualifies those He calls. There is no need to pretend to be someone you are not. It is time to stop pretending and start resting in His faithfulness.