Moses. David. Abraham. Paul.
These are some well known characters in the Bible! They must be pretty special right? Well, they did some pretty amazing things with God’s help, but they were definitely not perfect. God has never used perfect people!
MOSES
Moses killed a man. He told God he couldn’t do what he wanted because he was not good at speaking. He actually told God to send someone else. Despite all these things, Moses led his people out of Egypt.
“But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.””
Exodus 4:10 ESV
“But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.””
Exodus 4:13 ESV
DAVID
David had a baby with Bathsheba and ordered her husband to be killed in war. Despite this, he is still known as “a man after God’s own heart”
“In the letter he wrote, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.””
2 Samuel 11:15 ESV
“And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’”
Acts 13:22 ESV
ABRAHAM
Abraham told God he was too old. God gave him a son anyway… at age 100.
“I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.” Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?””
Genesis 17:16-17 ESV
PAUL
Paul (aka Saul) persecuted Christians. God turned him around and he wrote several books of the Bible and helped many churches and people.
“But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.”
Acts 8:3 ESV
“And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?””
Acts 9:20-21 ESV
A lot can change in 1 chapter! It really doesn’t matter how imperfect you are! God can still use you. Put aside your need for perfection and let God work in you!
“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:1, 38-39 ESV