Does God owe you an explanation?

Isaiah 45:9

Woe to him who strives with him who formed him, a pot among earthen pots! Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’ or ‘Your work has no handles’?

Moses’ Who Am I?

When God told Moses to tell Pharaoh to let His people go, Moses said, “Who am I to appear before Pharaoh and to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt” (Ex. 3:11)? Did God really owe Moses an explanation? Did Moses believe that God would work everything out according to His plan? Apparently not, but I cannot judge Moses, for I would have likely said the very same thing. Moses even questioned his own speaking ability (Ex. 6:12), as have I. But as I’ve heard said before, God doesn’t call the equipped,;He equips the called. God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called. If He only called the equipped, then I would have never been called into the pastoral ministry, believe me, because I “kicked against the goads,” or resisted it, for a long time. I should have trusted God to be able to equip me. Apparently, I didn’t trust myself or God.

Gideon’s Who Am I?

Gideon was a lot like Moses at the time that God called him. Gideon was basically hiding in an old winepress threshing wheat because Israel’s enemies had been ransacking their crops year after year. When God called Gideon “oh mighty man of valor” (Judges 6:12), he must have looked over his shoulder and thought, “Who me?” Gideon asked for a fleece test, once to have dew upon the fleece but not on the ground and then next time dew on the ground but not on the fleece (Judges 6:39-40). It was as if Gideon was asking God to prove Himself that He was going to do what He said He would do. Gideon may not have trusted God enough to work things out according to His plan. Instead of judging Gideon and saying “how can he be like that,” I should say “how am I like Gideon.”

David’s Who Am I?

When David was made king over all of Israel, he made a huge shift from being a simple shepherd boy to being king over all the sheep in Israel. Even so, he still thought of himself as insignificant, as he told God, “Who am I, Sovereign LORD, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far” (2 Sam. 7:18)? Paul considered himself the least of all saints (Eph. 3:8) and even the chief of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15), even though he was the greatest missionary the church may have ever known. Some consider him, arguably, the greatest of the apostles, though he said he was the least of the apostles (1 Cor. 15:9). Who are we to argue with God and demand an explanation from Him (Rom. 9:20-21)? What right has the clay to ask for a reason from the Potter (Jer. 18:6)? I ask you, and I ask myself, “Does God always owe you and me an explanation? Don’t you and I believe everything works out to God’s plan?” All I know is I need to work on this.

A Closing Prayer

Righteous, heavenly Father, please help me to trust You and Your plans and not to question where You send me and when You ask me to do something. Please give me the grace to accept what You say and trust that You can always work out Your plans without my help, and in Jesus’ name I pray.

Amen