Take Pride in your Insignificance

Take Pride in your Insignificance

Francis of Assisi is one of my favorite early church fathers. He is one you might call a “Jesus Freak.” He was a bit strange and was marked by being what some might call “crazy” by today’s standards. One of my favorite stories of Francis was the fact that he would literally preach the gospel to all creatures. Trees, birds, and even a wolf, it didn’t matter to St. Francis, he was going to share the gospel with you. He took Mark 16:15 quite literally.

But I came across a quote from Francis of Assisi that has been impactful. A brother asked Francis, “why does everyone want to see you? Hear you? Obey you? You are not all so handsome, nor learned, nor from a noble family. Yet the world seems to want to follow you.” My natural response to such an inquiry would not have been what St. Francis’ was. I would have probably said something smart like, “look who’s talking!” But Francis praised God first and then said:

“You want to know? It is because the eyes of the Most High have willed it so. He continually watches the good and the wicked, and as His most holy eyes have not found among sinners any smaller man, nor any more insufficient and sinful, therefore He has chosen me to accomplish the marvelous work which God hath undertaken; He chose me because He could find none more worthless, and He wished me to confound the nobility and grandeur the strength, the beauty and the learning of this world,” (James Burns, Revivals, Their Laws and Leaders, 95).

God Loves the Insignificant
St. Francis took pride in his insignificance. He recognized a profound truth, that the kind of people God uses best are those that are most humble. Let’s explore some biblical examples of this.

Gideon, the Bible says, came from the smallest tribe, from the smallest family. When Israel had slipped into mass idolatry once again and the Midianites were used by God to punish His people, they cried to God for a deliverer. As per God’s usual, He chose to use someone that was, let’s just say, not too sure of themselves. If you remember, He asked God for not one but two signs with the dew and the fleece. Then when he was told to tear down the altar of Baal that his father had built, Gideon did it under the cover of night due to fear of repercussions. But it was through this timid and fearful young man that God ran the Midianites out with literally just torches and clay jars. No swords, bows, or chariots, but torches and jars.

Then you have David. If you remember, Samuel was led to Jesse’s family to anoint the new king of Israel since Saul had departed from obeying the LORD so God took His Spirit away from Saul. But Samuel went to Jesse’s family and cycled through all of David’s older brothers, who we find out later were soldiers in Israel’s army. But the LORD told Samuel not to look at the outside stature but at the heart. So the LORD found a young shepherd boy, the youngest of His siblings, to be the next king of Israel and lead Israel to its Golden Age.

Lastly, in the New Testament, we see Paul. Remember that prior to his Damascus Road experience, he was a Pharisee under the tutelage of Gamaliel. Paul wrote in Philippians 3:4-6, “If anyone else thinks he has grounds for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised the eighth day; of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; regarding the law, a Pharisee; 6 regarding zeal, persecuting the church; regarding the righteousness that is in the law, blameless.” Paul would have likely had the entirety of the Old Testament memorized. He would have likely been a regular faster for multiple days. He would have been fluent in Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic. He showed prowess in Greek philosophy and rubbed shoulders with the movers and shakers of the ancient world. But Paul had to be humbled by God before he could be used by God. So, look what Paul writes after this.

“But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ—the righteousness from God based on faith. 10 My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death, 11 assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead,” (Philippians 3:7-11).

Paul came to the recognition that the most valuable asset in a person for God to use was complete and utter dependence on Him. Paul began to value the things that God valued, humility, servanthood, and dependence on the Savior.

Oh What a Relief It is
This is well before my time but in 1951 there was a mascot created by the Alka-Seltzer company for an ad campaign and his name was Speedy. Speedy was a red-haired baby-faced mascot meant to epitomize the speediness of relief that Alka-Selzer could bring its users. The motto Speedy would seek was “Pop, Pop, Fizz, Fizz, Oh what a relief it is!” It was catchy, easy to remember, and brought to the forefront of the listener’s mind that they too could have fast-acting relief from indigestion.

If Paul had been around to see this commercial and learn this catchy tune, I can’t help but think he would have been singing “Oh what a relief it is,” to the fact that he didn’t have to be perfect to be used by God. And it’s a true relief to know that we don’t have to have a perfect pedigree or be an expert to be used for God’s glory. In fact, God gets more glory when He uses someone of low stature and insignificance to accomplish His work.

I worked incredibly hard in undergrad and even more so in seminary. I took a lot of pride when I walked across that stage to receive my diploma. I even have it framed and hanging in my office. But as valuable and helpful as my degrees have been in learning theology and leadership in the Church, my ability to live a dependent life on Christ and Him alone is by far my most valuable asset to God. Yes, He can and does use my education for His glory in shepherding His flock, but my success as a leader is completely contingent on how dependent on God I am on a day-to-day basis. And I won’t lie, it is difficult. Pride is that insidious sin that has destroyed empires.

But, I write all this to encourage you in this, you don’t have to be a top-notch theologian, a perfect moral saint, or even a great people person. God desires to use men and women that are humble and obedient. So, if you are struggling to figure out how God can use you, remember what Jesus says, seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. He also calls us to be obedient and loving disciple-makers. Let us all strive to humble ourselves, become utterly dependent on Him, and seek His face daily, through His Word and through prayer. Find a place in your local church to plug into as an area of service. Don’t approach the church from a consumer mindset but from a disciple’s mindset. Don’t let any task be too small for you. If a task seems too big for you, that’s even better because it forces dependence on God! Remember, God is seeking to glorify Himself through us. Allow yourself to be used to such an end.

Your brother in Christ,
Pastor Trenton