God Humiliated Me By Choosing Me

8/30/2007

My watch is precious to me. Okay, that sounded a bit too much like Gollum from "The Lord of the Rings". But it's true, I really do need my watch. I like to know the precise hour and minute so that I can be on time for meetings. I like to know what day of the month it is, and I like to use the timer function for taking power naps. Without my watch I feel somewhat lost, which is why I went into semi-panic when I recently lost my watch. For several days I racked my brains, trying to figure out where my precious timepiece had disappeared to. Finally, when I was about to abandon all hope of ever finding my watch again, I found it, and order was restored to my life.

The finding of my watch reminded me of a deep, profound, and humiliating truth: I never would have found God. Hear the words of Jesus from Luke 10:22:
All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.
Before Christ came looking for me, I was spiritually dead, and blind to the things of God. I wasn't looking for God, wasn't seeking Him out, wasn't trying to understand Him or His ways. I hated God and wanted nothing to do with Him. I was blind to the beauty of Christ, enslaved by the power of sin, and had no desire for the Savior. I was miserable, but didn't know it.

But oh how sweet the day when Christ came looking for me. He came to me while I was lying in the filth of my sin, washed me in His precious blood, and opened my eyes to the glory of God. He chose to reveal Himself to me. He chose to come looking for me. I didn't choose God and never would have. If it were up to me, I would have passionately pursued sin until the day I died. But in His kindness, Christ chose to reveal the Father to me.

How humiliating to be chosen by God. The fact that Christ chose me should crush any pride dwelling within me. Any spiritual success I have is the result of Christ's prior work within me. Any spiritual gifts I have are mine because Christ chose me. Any true joy I experience is because Jesus came looking for me. Any grace I experience is a free, undeserved gift. I have no room to boast, no room to brag. I'm humiliated, and it's a wonderful thing.

Posted by Stephen Altrogge at 8:00 AM  

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