In the light of the past teachings on the Kingdom of God and our responsibility under the King; Reigning, Ambassadors, our Constitutional Rights, Authority, ETC………..
- When you consider the enormity of it, it will cause you to step back, pause, and for some, retreat!
- The Responsibility of it all can cause us to pull back out of fear of failure!
- The Whispers of insecurity!
- The Voice of Past Failures!
- The memory of yesterday’s weakness is trying to disqualify your calling!
God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called": God chooses willing, ordinary or flawed individuals, and equips them with the ability, strength, and grace to fulfill their purpose.
- We are not alone; the Bible is full of people who question the immensity of their calling! (Gideon, Jeremiah, Elijah)
David felt the same way!
Ps 8
8 1 O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth! Your glory is higher than the heavens. 2 You have taught children and infants to tell of your strength, silencing your enemies and all who oppose you. 3 When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers—the moon and the stars you set in place—4 what are people that you should think about them, mere mortals that you should care for them? 5 Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honor. 6 You gave them charge of everything you made, putting all things under their authority—7 the flocks and the herds and all the wild animals, 8 the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea, and everything that swims the ocean currents. 9 O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth! NLT
- This passage is reminding us that God takes the seemingly weak things to silence His enemies, so His great name will be magnified! (V2)
Moses felt the same way!
Ex 3:10-15
10 Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt." 11 But Moses protested to God, "Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?" 12 God answered, "I will be with you. And this is your sign that I am the one who has sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God at this very mountain." 13 But Moses protested, "If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' they will ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what should I tell them?" 14 God replied to Moses, "I Am Who I Am. Say this to the people of Israel: I Am has sent me to you." 15 God also said to Moses, "Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you. NLT
- Notice the I AM did not ask Moses for his resume.
- He did not ask for his qualifications
- He did not ask for his educational level!
God answered with one thing!
12a God answered, "I will be with you.
- This is the divine pattern: God never builds our self-confidence; He establishes our confidence in Him
- Our assignment was never about us; it is about Him and His name
- It's God establishing His Glory
13 But Moses protested, "If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' they will ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what should I tell them?" 14 God replied to Moses, "I Am Who I Am. Say this to the people of Israel: I Am has sent me to you."
I Am Who I Am: ( I will be)
Self-Existence: Unlike created beings who depend on others to exist, God is Self-Sufficient and independent.
Eternal Presence: The Hebrew can also be translated as "I will be what I will be," suggesting God is always present in the past, present, and future.
- I Am, I self-sufficient, I will be what I will be, and I Am always present!
- They didn’t need to know He Existed; they needed to know He was present!
- Establishing your confidence in God, is about shifting your trust from your own strength, circumstances, or other people onto the unshakeable character of God!
Paul felt the same way!
Phil 3:3-14
3 For we who worship by the Spirit of God are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us. We put no confidence in human effort, 4 though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more! 5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. 6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault. 7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ 9 and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God's way of making us right with himself depends on faith. 10 I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, 11 so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead! 12 I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. 13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. NLT
I focus on this one thing!
1. Forgetting the past!
- Forgetting the past is a deliberate, active choice to stop dwelling on yesterday's mistakes, failures, or even successes, to move forward with God’s purpose
- It does not mean having amnesia, but rather "dismissing from the mind" or choosing not to allow past memories to dictate present behavior.
- God offers new paths and opportunities that cannot be embraced if one is still clinging to the old.
2. Looking forward to what lies ahead (The great unknown)
: to spread, to grow, increase, and to advance.
- Just as a car’s windshield is much larger than its rearview mirror, spiritual growth requires spending far more time looking ahead than behind.
14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.
3. Press on!
: to pursue, prosecute, persecute, but also to pursue in a good sense.
- It’s a reminder that while the past is settled and the future is promised, the present is for running the race with purpose.
Calling: invitation to the kingdom of God and its privileges, i.e., the divine call by which Christians are introduced into the privileges of the gospel
Heb 11:32-40
32 How much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets. 33 By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. 35 Women received their loved ones back again from death. But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. 36 Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons. 37 Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated. 38 They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. 39 All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. 40 For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us. NLT
Conclusion: "The past is settled, the future is promised, and today I run to win."
