UNDESERVING BUT QUALIFIED

Verses of the week: Acts 4:23-24, 30-33 
‍23 "On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 24 When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heavens and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. 

30 Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 31 After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. 32 All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. 33 With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all."

Have you ever wanted big things from God, but felt too small to ask for them? Like you didn’t deserve to receive His blessing, so you didn’t even bother to ask to begin with? It can be so easy to get caught in that “undeserving” trap.  

But God wants us to live with unrestrained boldness – to pray 'shake the ground' kinds of prayers. The more we step out in faith, the closer we get to Him, and His Spirit will bring us grace and peace – one heart and mind amongst all believers – serving Him.  

He’s ready to do big things in our lives. Maybe right now, even while reading this, you’re hearing “I’m undeserving.” Well, God says although you are underserving, you still qualify for His mercy, grace, and love. Pastor Shane shared three key messages about God’s grace this past Sunday:

#1 – Undeserving mindsets can hold us back from shake the ground moments.
‍We are undeserving of God’s love, but that’s ok, He loves us anyways. It’s by His grace that we are able to live and breathe every day, and it’s only through Him that miracles can happen. When was the last time you asked God for something really big, to shake the ground? To start praying shake the ground prayers – for God to do the unexpected – we need to get over our undeserving mindset. 

Shake the ground moments happen for two reasons:
- Revelation: understanding who God is
- Faith: believing that God is who He says He is 

When we really have a clear vision of who we’re praying to, and understand His majesty, we can start praying big prayers – one’s only God can answer. It’s about realizing we’re not in control – we are undeserving – and that’s ok. Because we serve a God who has the power and strength to do what we can’t. 

#2 – But we qualify!
God sees inside of us what we don’t see for ourselves. He calls out our identity – it’s not about what we’ve done but about who God has created us to be. The miraculous power of God is available to us not because of our actions – it’s ALL about Him.

No matter what we’ve done, God’s qualified us before we’ve even stepped into the room. He’s called us His daughter, His son – it’s our God-given identity. It’s also a perfect picture of His grace. That He sent His son to die for us, despite our flaws and continual mistakes, because He loves us. He loves YOU. 

We’re underserving, but we qualify despite what we think of ourselves because of His grace. Even though we’re flawed, He’s ready to work in us.
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#3 – So why haven’t I seen it?
You might be reading through and asking yourself, “Ok, I know that God’s covered me with His grace despite my flaws. I’m undeserving, but I qualify because of Him. So why do my big prayers go unanswered?” 

But what are the areas of your life that you haven’t 100% surrendered to God? See, He allows us to live only to the level of our expectations. Maybe we haven’t seen a miracle in our life because we haven’t had the strength to believe it’s possible. Or perhaps we’ve hit that revelation of understanding who God is, but are struggling to have the faith that He is all that He says He is. Or maybe we’re just bogged down by the heaviness of the world around us that we don’t have the hope to pray for ground shaking things. 

Amidst the stress, the busyness, the chaos, God is ready to make a move. He is greater than it all. He is ready to fight for us, not because we deserve it, but because He has qualified us by His grace. None of it depends on us, so have faith that He’s got you. Because He does. 

Make sure to check out the full message here!