“By The Grace Of God I Am What I Am” … Even Though … “I Am Not Worthy”
I Corinthians 15
8 And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.
9 For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.
10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
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Genesis 32
9 And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the Lord which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee:
10 I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands.
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I’m still progressing my way through Genesis. It was my reading of chapter 32 that prompted my thought process to wander and explore further incidents and ramifications of verse 10. My mind went right to the verses in I Corinthians.
I love the hindsight and perspective Jacob and Paul gained because of the foot-ground of life they had traversed. Life lived for God, and lived His way, afforded them much wisdom for us to glean from.
And we must if we are to end our walk of faith as successfully as they did. No, I’m not saying we will arise to the heights of these two men but … we can trust God to see us through to His desired end for us.
Life lived is that which creates the ability to step back and come up with this kind of self-assessment. Youth doesn’t have the capacity to “see” it this way. And, that is a good thing. They still have the energy and bright hope that is needed to forge on into life and make an impact for Christ
But … it’s more at the back end of life, seen through the telescoping of events and circumstances over many years, where one “sees” the unseen hand of God through it all. It’s then that a recognition of the undeserved grace of God, like a computer program running in the background, comes into view.
So a question pops into my head. — Is this sort of self-assessing good?
I have to conclude yes, at least at first consideration.
But then I wonder … when is it good?
Do you always do this sort of thing as life progresses or wait until life winds down?
Answer: I think it’s good to perform this self-assessment along the journey of life …
How so …
With a view to really doing this so that, as the end approaches where perhaps the most important influence of our life can do the most good, we will be able to pull it all together cohesively and pass it on to the next generation.
That in essence is what God did for us when He preserved the life experiences of men like these in Holy Scripture. All these things have been written for our admonition and learning.
“Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.” I Corinthians 10:1
“For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.” Romans 15:4
God had a view from the very beginning for the Scripture to recycle each generation enabling them to pass it along to the succeeding generations.
Perhaps that’s why it’s a good thing to rehearse the Shema as we do each Shabbat — Deuteronomy 6
{1 Now these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which the Lord your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to possess it:
2 That thou mightest fear the Lord thy God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son's son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged.
3 Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey.}
4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:
5 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.
9 And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates. —
God tells us what He’s giving to us, v.1
He tells us why He’s giving it to us, v. 2
And then He tells us our responsibility, v. 3
Thankfully, God has graciously provided a road map for us to consult in the lives of Jacob and Paul. They journeyed this life with God much like we will have to. And if they could stand back and see the hand of God through the years of their lives, we will be able to as well.
Let me share a note I found:
“Jacob died at the age of 147, bringing his life of struggle and sorrow to an end. Jacob had always had an unquenchable desire for God’s blessing. He had a deep piety that habitually relied on God despite all else. In the end, he died a man of genuine faith. He learned where real blessings come from, and through his faith would be able to hand these on to his sons.” (NLT Genesis 49:33)
With that said, we must remember …
It has to start with us: the believers, the parents, the leaders. It has to be lived out through us. It has to be seen as proven true through the highs and lows, the ups and downs, the blessings and trials of life.
And then, and only then, will our “unworthiness” magnify the grace of God as we conclude like these two men that —
“By the grace of God I am what I am” … even though … “I am not worthy.”