Who Does God Want Us to Become
Who Does God Wants Us to Become?
The struggle is real! We wear so many hats these days and try so hard to accomplish more that anyone could. We place impossible expectations on ourselves and consistently feel as if we have failed. We cannot imagine that God could ever be pleased with us. It is a struggle. We want to rest in the truth of His word, but this negative self-talk swirls and swirls inside of our head. Who does God wants us to become?
It is simple really; not as hard as we try to make it. All throughout God’s word, He reveals to us who it is He is calling us to become. Notice I said, become. He doesn’t ask us to act Christ-like; He created us to become like Christ. The word become means to begin to be. So, who is it that God is asking us to begin to be?
In the spring, I had the unbelievable opportunity to go to the Holy Land. It was an absolutely amazing trip. Save your money and go! One of the places we toured was the Mount of Beatitudes where Jesus taught the Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew 5 we read that Jesus left the multitudes and went up the mountain (aka big hill located near the Sea of Galilee), sat down and began to teach His disciples. These words were not given as a way of salvation, but instead as instruction or as the way of life for those who had repented and become children of God. (Have you repented? Are you a child of God? Click here for the plan of salvation.)
As He spoke, a crowd began to make its way closer so they could hear what He was saying. He began to share The Beatitudes. By definition, the word used here means ‘supreme blessedness’, ‘God’s favor’. Jesus began with these words…
“Blessed are the poor in spirt, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3
We want God’s favor, don’t we? We want this supreme blessedness! We want it because we are full of self and want all we can get out of this life. But, it is only ours when we are poor in spirit. What does that mean? How are we to be poor in spirit?
The word ‘poor’ comes from a Greek word meaning to crouch – like a beggar who kneels in hope that someone will fill his cup and supply his needs. That should be us. We should be on our knees before the Lord, kneeling in hopeful expectation that He will fulfill His promise to supply all of our needs according to His riches. We are nothing apart from Him. We should kneel and hold out our cup understanding that only He can fill our cup to overflowing.
We are poor in spirit when our pride and our self-sufficiency is stripped away. Instead of us believing that we can do it, we are to come to the place where we get out of the way and allow God to do it through us. Our heart should no longer be filled with ‘me’; but filled with our love for Jesus!
In James, God tells us that He will bless the humble and resist the proud. This pride of ours is bad news and gets us into trouble. You see, when we elevate ourselves, we find that we have a formidable foe. God is a jealous God and He, Himself, will fight against our plan. Instead, let’s ask for God’s grace for being prideful. Let’s stop the perfectionism, the need for approval, and the desire to boast. Every good and perfect gift is from above. Nothing is because of us – it is all because of the grace of God. He is a good God. We can no longer say, “Look what I have done.” The reality is “Look what He is doing.”
God is asking us to become ‘poor in spirit’. He is asking us to recognize that we are His creation, every gift is from above, and everything we have has been given by our merciful and gracious heavenly Father.
Let’s declare… My life is no longer about me, it is all about Him.
(Join us next week as we continue to discuss the Beatitudes and becoming who God is calling us to be. Won’t you join us?)
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We need each other. Let’s encourage one another as we learn to take steps closer to our Savior!
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