A Chosen Vessel – By Grace

During one of my meditations on the word of God couple of years back, the Holy Spirit revealed to me one of the secrets of having a great walk of faith with God. I remember as a child, born into an Anglican family setting, I learnt that serving God was a way of life that does not require much spiritual commitment. Just the normal everyday morning devotions, regular church service on Sunday and wearing of a choir robe, even at an early age of 15. In other words, working for God also was also seen as a tradition that must be upheld during the early years of my life. My parents continuously imparted it into me and other siblings that respect for elders was also a major requirement to being a good Christian and “when an adult talks, you keep quiet until the adult has finished talking and in some cases you do not have to respond with many words…Just say “yes ma or yes sir” end of conversation.

However, growing up into an adult, especially during my university days, and having a personal encounter with the Lord, I had more understanding of the holistic nature of our salvation in Christ Jesus. Contrary to my parents’ religious traditional ways of doing things, our faith and walk with God do not require a set of traditions and norms passed from one generation to another. It is not a myth that must be mandatorily read and put at use to be considered a chosen. Our faith is the fully foundational on the love of God and our justification is by faith and not on our works or our righteousness. Isaiah 64:6 “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away”.

When God met Saul on his way to Damascus to persecute Christians, he was not considered and chosen by God based on his good works, but by Grace. Acts 8:13 And Ananias answered, Lord I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem”. Based on all human standards of Ananias, the servant of the Lord, Saul was not qualified for any miracle of getting his sight back or taking up any ministry assignment, but by Grace, by which all men are justified, God said Saul was qualified and not just that, he is a “Chosen Vessel”. Acts 8:15 “But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings and the children of Israel”. That is God speaking to Ananias, when he says to God that Saul is not good enough. By all standards of man, Saul was not the best candidate for the assignment God gave him. It looks as if God’s choice was not properly reviewed before Saul was considered because Saul did not have a good image in the society at that time. Considering the atrocities he had committed, I presume he would have had a significant numbers of criminal records and warnings from the governing authorities, but with God, he is a chosen vessel.

How bad and horrible is your past?
What is the spirit of God asking you to do now and you consider yourself unqualified?
Do you think your past is the major determinant for your future?
Have you considered your religious traditions and works as requirements to be chosen by God?
Do you think you are not righteous, therefore you can’t be considered by God?

The Christian faith is based on having faith in God and totally depending on Him for everything. Consider not your works as requirements that will qualify you to being a Chosen Vessel. It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption. Philippians 3:9 “…and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in[a] Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith”.