The question of who we are and how we view ourselves affects everything from our day to day tasks, to stepping out in life. Understanding the question to who I am is often a life journey. How we see ourselves can stop us from moving forward.
Understanding who God is and what he has done, will reveal who we are and what we need to do.
When God calls Moses to go back to Egypt and lead his people out of slavery,, he shares that he has heard the cry of his people. And, he gives a promise to Moses of where he is going to take his people. We read in Exodus 3:11 how Moses responds to God by saying, “Who am I that I should go.”
Have you ever had that view of yourself? Stopping you from stepping out in faith and/or life? Or, had your view of yourself stopped you from living out God’s mission in your life? We think, ‘I am not good enough’, or ‘I do not have all the right skills.’ We say, ‘I do not have all my ducks lined up yet.’ Our failures are like looking in a mirror, staring us back in the face.
Instead of God saying, “Well here is all your good strengths and the skills you have that will help for this job,” God speaks about himself. We know that Moses did have a good skill set for leading people because of His years growing up in Egypt in the Pharaohs’ home, and the education he received. He also got some of his education from his experience living in the dessert. These are all good reason why perhaps God calls Moses.
However, this is not what God refers to. He speaks about how he (God) will be with him. He talks about the signs that will follow him, revealing God’s power and authority.
Then if you skip over to Exodus 4:10-14, Moses speaks of his weakness again, and why he cannot do this task. God’s response is about what he (God) has done and what he (God) can do.
Moses still struggles, but what I find interesting is how God sees who Moses is. Moses see all his weaknesses, and they are real.
But, God shares, ‘This is who I am, and who you shall be because of who I am. You may be weak in speaking, but I will give you what you need and you will not be.’
God answers Moses’ questions about who he is by answering who he (God) is.
As we get to understand who God is, we can understand who we are. Understanding who we are finds fulfillment in the one who created us and is restoring us, Jesus Christ.
The gospel shares that through Jesus’ death and resurrection, there is a redefining of who we are. When we follow Jesus our identity changes, and becomes anchored in Jesus. As we understand who God is and what he has done, we can understand who we are and what we are to do.
What if we listened to who God says we are? As you read the scripture over the coming months, ask God this question. “Who are you and who do you say I am?”
John 3:1a “See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!” (NLT)