Who Am I in God’s eyes?

I strongly believe that in the heart of every human being God has bestowed a deep desire to know him and discover who he calls us to be.

It may be easily said, but in reality, we can see that becoming the person God knows we are, is a lengthy and uncomfortable process. I want you to reflect, to question, and to respond to what God may be speaking to you. There’s always a beginning to something new. For you to be the person God sees in you, first, you must answer the call.

 

Calling

“Now when the king lived in his house and the LORD had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies, the king said to Nathan the prophet, ‘See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent.’ And Nathan said to the king, ‘Go, do all that is in your heart, for the LORD is with you.’…5 Would you build me a house to dwell in?…8 I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel” -2 Samuel 7:1-8

Before reading this article, did you find yourself in a dark place? Have you struggled, felt abandoned, uncertain about what to do next?

Every person wants to 1) live free, 2) have value, and 3) be satisfied.

David was a man that God loved and protected at all times. In this text, the LORD reminds the prophet of the king’s humble beginnings — a shepherd boy. His daily routine consisted of dirt, sweat, and blood. David smelled like sheep, dressed raggedy, and came close to death several times. I can imagine David met God in the wilderness.

Have you met God in a dark place? Was it at the counter of a bar or nightclub? At the corner with other drug addicts? Isolated viewing pornographic content? Or were you staring down the barrel of a gun? Where did God meet you?

In our life, we may take notice of how God calls us into a new life and begins to work on us:

1. He was faithful and determined to meet you in your worst condition and yet chose to call you out of darkness.

The Bible uses call or calling in a few different forms. One of the earliest undertakings shows up as a cry, declaration, or shout since the beginning of Creation (Genesis 1:3).

Who said God is not present in darkness? He was always there. Though there’s no darkness in him, his light makes way for him to be right where you are. He calls out into the darkness and pulls us from its power.

David learns this and says, “If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me, and the light becomes night around me’ — even the darkness is not dark to You, but the night shines like the day, for darkness is as light to You” (Psalm 139:12).

Picture this: The blind beggar living in Jericho. He spent all his days wandering the streets of the city hopeless, full of remorse and thought life may never change. Then one day, he hears a lot of murmuring and feet shuffling. Jesus is passing by. He doesn’t know where he is coming or what direction to face, so the man does all he knows how to. He shouts for Jesus’ attention as he seeks mercy.

Here we see from the blind beggar, that ‘to call’ is a form of worship.

According to Baker’s Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology: “[In terms of] worship, to “call on” God or the Lord is a frequent biblical expression. It often appears in the fuller form, ‘call on the name of.’ To call on God’s name can mean to appeal to his mercy and power from a situation of weakness and need, but more often it connotes a basic commitment to the Lord.”

      2. He begins to transform you into someone new.

In Scripture, God takes on the role of a refiner: a person, device, or substance that removes impurities, sediment, or other unwanted matter from something.

During David’s life, he experienced the molding and refining process that comes through God’s hands. The Bible teaches that whenever God wants to renew or cleanse something, he breaks it and begins to work again.

We are to be made strong like cedar. This is the visual God gives the prophet when he asked the question, ‘why have you not built me a house of cedar?’

“In Leviticus 14, cedar is mentioned five times in connection with the sacrifice offered in the ritual cleansing of homes. Cedar, because of its strength, beauty, durability and fragrance, speaks of our precious Lord’s character. He was offered up as a sacrifice for the redemptive cleansing of our bodies, the “home” of the Holy Spirit” (A Meditation on Cedar).

God surely did not mind dwelling within a temple made by man. But that was never the final intent. His deepest desire was to restore the relationship between heaven and earth, and that could only be done if God dwelt with man.

The Apostle Paul taught God’s presence must be in you as your body is his temple (1 Corinthians 3:16-17).

     3. He reassigns you to a greater life than where you started.

This is your mission deployment: As a human being that you may be one with God and as you follow his call in your life, you will be an instrument to edify his Church.

God saw David’s devotion. He always stuck with a task and saw it through. God called David and he answered in response. His reassignment was to go from being a shepherd of sheep to a shepherd of people. From the sheep’s pen to the king’s palace.

There’s always a big picture! The call is not just about you or only for you. His plan is to lead many to salvation using your life as a witness.

 

Identity

“Then King David went in and sat before the LORD and said, “Who am I, O Lord GOD, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? And yet this was a small thing in your eyes, O Lord GOD. You have spoken also of your servant’s house for a great while to come, and this is instruction for mankind, O Lord GOD!” (verses 18-19)

Our identity is composed of both the call of God in our life, as well as the character in which we possess.

Once we accept the call, God through the Holy Spirit begins to affirm the person we are in his sight. He will sharpen your skills, talents, and spiritual development all for the work he has prepared for you.

To understand this we examine two key elements that make up a godly identity/character:

1. Man of God / Woman of God

After we have been delivered from darkness and set free from the bondage of sin, we now surrender our entire self by living a ransomed life. To do this, we must come into the obedience of Christ as Lord.

Christ’s victory brought about your freedom and along with that came a new name.

The name in which you now carry no longer affirms who you were, but rather it declares who you can be. But you may ask, ‘How can one identify as a man or woman of God?’

In its simplest form, a man of God is one who aligns with or embodies the heart of God, like David (Acts 13:22). He was one after God’s own heart as he was torn for what tore God. He rejoiced over what brought God gladness, and overall, David was attentive to follow and fulfill God’s will.

      2. Adoption

He calls you son or daughter, and that comes with blessing.

By Christ’s sacrifice, we were adopted as God’s children. Due to this, he chose to claim us as part of his royal lineage. Before, we each found ourselves miserable and broken, but once we received eternal freedom as sons and daughters, Christ also made us heirs of the kingdom.

All of his riches and glory were stripped from him in order to share it with us. He gave you stewardship over what is His alone. Take your place as a child of God!

Walter Frederic Adeney, a Christian minister and theologian, writes about Paul’s understanding of sonship when he wrote his letter to the Galatians. Adeney examines the condition, meaning, and communal impact of being God’s children.

“The son is most closely related to his father. But the disobedient child who forsakes his home is practically dead, for him practically the old relation is severed. It needs to be restored if he is to enjoy it again…The Christian is admitted into close fellowship with God” (Sonship Analysis).

Why would God give you a share of what is his? He does so because he earnestly trusts in you as his child, and your ability to do what is good. Historically, a son is entrusted with their father’s possessions, and when the day comes where the father can no longer tend to those things, the son then will receive it as an inheritance.

 

Purpose

“For you, O LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, have made this revelation to your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house.’ Therefore your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you. And now, O Lord GOD, you are God, and your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant” (verses 27-28)

David acknowledges his position before God, not by the title or power he currently held, but by the way God found and chose him as a shepherd boy while serving the sheep.

As children of the Father, the Bible commissions three things for us to do in which embeds each one of our specific missions.

Every Christian’s purpose is to do these things well:

• Serve

→ As he praised God for his promises, David mentions his role as a servant three times. It is a bit mind-blogging to think about; the king himself is a servant.

Who are we commissioned to serve? Everyone! Especially careful not to undermine the body of Christ. Everything God placed in you is to use for his glory and honor, that through you, they may know Christ, as Christ revealed to us the Father.

It must be our priority that we live to serve all people excellently. To give it all that we got, so that when the final day comes, we can say we are satisfied with the work.

• Lead

→ God places us in roles of guidance and influence both within the Church and the household. How we lead our families is an indicator the Bible uses to show how we would lead the Church.

God wants healthy men and women! If given these opportunities in life, may we take it with joy and responsibly. Our minds and hearts have to be in the right place. And even when we take a hit, or we don’t feel like ourselves, let us not remain in that condition too long and rebound.

David, in his old age, learned to value the importance of decision-making and influence upon his children. In this text, God does not assign the temple blueprints to David but promises that his son in line to the throne, Solomon, would finish the work he started.

• Build

→ Once you understand God’s call in your life and the identity he has given you, then you will discover what you ought to do next. What is in you is not to be wasted.

David’s purpose possibly was not to build God’s temple of worship in Jerusalem, but rather to set the example for future generations of what it means to be faithful to the Lord, and build a legacy (Psalm 145:4).

When we honor God, he will honor us to the greatest measure. No need to worry about whatever is lacking, for if he is with you, you have everything you need to fulfill your purpose on earth.