One of our biggest problems is that we think we cannot be used of God. Well if you look through the history, and the pages of the bible, you will see God called regular people to do his will. All these people were not high and mighty people in big places. In fact these people were common fishermen, tax collectors, even murderers. All they needed to be used was availability. If they would not have made themselves available, you would not have read much about them, if anything at all.
Luk 6:13-16 "And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles; Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew, and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes, And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor."
Mat 4:18-20 "And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And they saith unto them, Follow me and I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway left their nets, and followed him."
If they would not have made themselves available they would have missed out on the opportunity to walk with Jesus, and witness his works, and teachings. This was a day at work, this was their job. This was their livelihood. This is how they paid their bills, and supported their families.
Sometimes, no all the time, we need to allow him access to our lives. We need to put our will second and his will first. We are so caught up in our own kingdom, that we are not much good for his. If we were out on a fishing trip, and Jesus came and said," stop what you are doing and follow me" we would make excuses to not leave. We cannot put our lives on hold. We think we are going to miss something. If we don't allow him to have his will, we are going to miss something.
Mat 4:21-22 "And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them. And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him."
Once again, they did not discuss it at all. The scriptures say " they left the ship and their father immediately." We have to think about it, and discuss it. We have to weigh our options. We have to check our schedules. We have to talk ourselves into it. If God calls us we had better answer him IMMEDIATELY. God may not wait for us to make up our mind. We need to put him first all the time.
How would we like it if he was to busy for us? If, when we are in a crisis, he told us, wait 'til I'm not busy. I've got other things to do first like pour the rain out, or move the clouds around, or change the season.
Joh 1:43 "The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me. Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip findeth Nathanael,..."
The Lord found Philip, and Philip found Nathanael. The Lord knew it would take Philip to find Nathanael. Nathanael would later be called Bartholomew. It is our duty to reach people that we can reach. The Lord puts people in our lives, and us in peoples lives, and it is our responsibility to reach them. We cannot be silent.
Joh 1:48 "Nathaniel said unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.
Mat 9:9 "And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.
Matthew was a tax collector. He was somebody important. Not only was he important, but have you ever met a tax collector that you liked? I cant help but to believe he was somebody people did not like to see. God called him, and made an apostle of him. God don't need you to fit a certain image to use you. He just needs you to answer the calling. He can work with whatever problems you bring if you allow him to.
Lets look at a piece of the life of Paul. The scriptures tell us he was a bad guy. He was searching for the church. He was looking for the church body, not the church house. He was a murderer. He was doing all he could to kill the followers of Jesus.
Act 9:1 But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest
Act 9:2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
Act 9:3 Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.
Act 9:4 And falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"
Act 9:5 And he said, "Who are you, Lord?" And he said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
Act 9:6 But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do."
Act 9:7 The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one.
Act 9:8 Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.
God called him as a murderer, and made him one of the mightiest men of God in the bible. His life changed instantly because of availability, however, he already heard of Jesus. He already knew what was being said, and preached. He already heard of the healings, and the miracles. It took a personal experience with God to change him. We cannot change ourselves, but we do need to make ourselves available.
I don't see anywhere in the bible where God called a person of high position for a particular work. He called common people. He called me. He called you. Lets make ourselves available.
