Unworthy heralds!
Verse for Today: Friday, April 19, 2013
John 1:27 – He is
the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to
untie.
Man is
characteristically boastful about his self-worth. He thinks highly about his
abilities, qualifications and accomplishments in comparison with others and
tries to establish his superiority. But a person who has truly known God in His
greatness will only be able to see own unworthiness. In order to see God in His
power and strength, one has to have his eyes opened by God. When our spiritual
eyes are blind, we will not be able to see the greatness of God and others.
John the baptizer was a great man who was filled with the Spirit even before his
birth. He had the privilege to be God’s messenger and the forerunner of Jesus
to announce the arrival of the Kingdom of God. He was appointed to introduce
Jesus to the world. When he saw Jesus, he realized his unworthiness. He had no
hesitation to confess his lowliness publicly. In the light of the glory of
Jesus, John acknowledged his nothingness. He was like a moon in the presence of
the Sun (Son) of Righteousness. John had the grace to acknowledge his lowliness
before the greatness of Jesus. He wanted Jesus to be exalted and him abased. It
was all possible because John knew who he was and what he was worth. It is only
when we are unable to see ourselves that we boast and express pride in our
dealings with others. Today we have the privilege to see Jesus in His glory and
live as His unworthy servants. When we see Jesus, we become so insignificant
and unimportant in our perspective and fall prostrate and worship Him. Such an
attitude will help us to serve Him without any earthly expectations or desires other
than His glory. Thus when we serve Him, He will care for us and lead us
victoriously in our service for Him.
Dear friend, do you ever
get overwhelmed about your qualifications and expertise as you serve God? Is
your heart becoming boastful about your accomplishments? Do you expect
recognition, appreciation, position, prestige and prominence as you serve God?
Today God wants to challenge you through John the baptizer who was willing to
expose his nothingness and proclaim the greatness of Jesus. John was willing to
lead an obscure life, rejecting all the comforts the world offered. He felt
that he was called only to be the herald of Jesus. He was fully satisfied with
being an announcer of the Kingdom and was always mindful of his unworthiness.
He served God without favor and boldly preached the truth. His commitment was
seen in his approach to sin in the life of people of his generation. He didn’t
expect anything in return for his services for God and remained in the
background to proclaim the glory of Jesus. His preaching was so powerful as to bring
people of all walks of life to repentance. The messages he preached were full
of godliness. He was willing to acknowledge the power of Jesus publicly. He
declared his unworthiness boldly in front of people. He emulated Joseph and
Daniel who gave full credit for the interpretation of dreams to God and expressed
their unworthiness and disqualifications before the higher-ups. Paul kept
telling people that his messages were from above. David sang about his encounters
with God. His demeanor was that of a man after God’s own heart. God used these
servants mightily because of their utter humility and brokenness. As they made
their unworthy lives available to God unconditionally, they were granted the
privilege to be servants of the Almighty. Today He is willing to make us His
servants if we are willing to be broken and declare our unworthiness to Him.
Luke 17:10 – So you
also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are
unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’
Thought for Today
When we look at ourselves through God’s eyes, we will see how
small we are and how great He really is.
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