When You Feel Unqualified

Misfits: There’s a Place for You in God’s Story — Week 1

Primary Scripture: Exodus 3:1–12; 4:10–17 Supporting Scripture: Exodus 2:23–25; 3:13–15; Hebrews 3:1–6; 2 Corinthians 3:5; Matthew 28:18–20

Big idea: Our confidence in obeying God rests in His presence and power, rather than our own sufficiency.

Sermon aim: Help people acknowledge their limitations honestly, repent of resistance to God’s Word, and take a faithful step in dependence on Christ.

Introduction — The person you would never choose

Have you ever looked at something God tells His people to do and thought, “Surely somebody else would be better at this”?

Someone else could have that conversation.

Someone else could pray with that person.

Someone else could help that family.

Someone else could explain the gospel.

You know your weaknesses. You know where you get nervous. You know the parts of your past you would rather nobody bring up.

And when an opportunity comes, you can produce a convincing explanation for why another person ought to take it.

Sometimes the person most determined to keep you on the sidelines is you.

The Loudest Voice in the Room

We all have that inner critic—the voice that keeps telling us we are failing, disappointing people, or never going to measure up.

That voice can follow us everywhere. We hear it before a difficult conversation. We hear it after a mistake. We hear it when someone asks us to serve.

Eventually, we may start treating its verdict as settled truth.

But the Christian’s identity rests in Christ. Our failures require repentance, and our limitations deserve honest attention. Neither has the authority to overturn what God says about those who belong to His Son.

The voice we hear most often is not necessarily the voice we should trust most deeply.

Adapted from “The Loudest Voice in the Room,” Sermon Illustration Vault; note cites Steve Cuss, “Quieting Your Inner Critic and Finding Your True Self,” ChurchLeaders, July 12, 2024.

#IdentityInChrist #Grace #Assurance #Fear #Truth

That brings us to Moses.

Born among an oppressed people. Raised in Pharaoh’s household. A man who killed an Egyptian, fled for his life, and settled in another land.

By Exodus 3, Moses is tending his father-in-law’s sheep.

Acts 7 describes forty years passing before the burning-bush encounter. Exodus 7 tells us Moses was eighty when he spoke to Pharaoh.

Then God calls him to confront the ruler of Egypt.

And Moses asks the question many of us understand:

“Who am I?”

This morning, we will see how God answers him.

[Read Exodus 3:1–12 and 4:10–17.]

1. God meets us with holiness and grace

Exodus 3:1–10

The chapter opens with Moses doing ordinary work.

He is tending sheep.

He has not organized a meeting to announce his availability. He is not standing before a crowd explaining his leadership potential.

God takes the initiative.

Moses sees a bush burning without being consumed. He turns aside, and God calls him by name.

Before Moses receives instructions about Pharaoh, he receives instructions about God:

Take off your sandals. This is holy ground.

Moses hides his face.

We need to feel the weight of that moment.

The God who calls Moses is holy. He is not merely a source of encouragement. He is the Lord before whom sinners must bow.

A sermon about unlikely people can easily become a message about discovering how impressive we really are. But this passage begins with the glory of God.

Moses needs to know whom he is standing before.

So do we.

We cannot understand grace properly until we understand the holiness of the One who gives it. God owes sinners no opportunity, no forgiveness, and no place in His work. Every good thing we receive from Him is mercy.

Yet this holy God draws near.

In verse 6, He identifies Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

That takes us back to Exodus 2:24, where God hears Israel’s groaning and remembers His covenant.

God has not forgotten His promises. He is acting in faithfulness to them.

Then listen to the verbs in verses 7 and 8:

God has seen their affliction.

God has heard their cry.

God knows their suffering.

God has come down to deliver them.

Before God announces what Moses will do, He announces what He Himself is doing.

That order matters.

The rescue of Israel begins in God’s covenant faithfulness. Moses will be His servant in that rescue.

John Piper’s exposition of this passage emphasizes that Israel’s deliverance is grounded in God’s covenant promises. Moses is being brought into a work whose purpose and power belong to God. desiringgod.org

Church, that gives us a reason to breathe.

God’s purposes do not hang on whether we can make ourselves impressive enough.

We pray. We prepare. We serve. We speak. Those things matter because God uses means.

But we cannot regenerate a heart. We cannot manufacture repentance. We cannot make another person love Jesus.

God can.

And He graciously uses ordinary people to carry His Word.

Perhaps you feel unnoticed today. You have been caring for someone, working, teaching, cleaning, showing up, and doing the same necessary things again.

This passage shows God meeting Moses in ordinary work. It does not promise that every quiet season will lead to a public assignment like his. It does remind us that obscurity places no obstacle before God.

You do not have to become visible to the world before you are visible to Him.

Transition: God’s presence brings Moses face to face with holiness. God’s commission brings him face to face with his own inadequacy.

2. God answers our inadequacy with His presence

Exodus 3:11–12

Moses asks:

“Who am I?”

Who am I to go to Pharaoh?

Who am I to bring Israel out of Egypt?

Those are reasonable questions when you consider the assignment.

Moses knows something about Pharaoh’s power. He also knows something about his own history.

But notice God’s answer.

“I will be with you.”

God directs Moses to the presence of the One sending him.

John Calvin, commenting on Exodus 3:12, explains that God sets His promised help against Moses’s fears. The foundation of confidence is God’s assistance, rather than an independent strength Moses can find within himself. ccel.org

That is the heart of this message.

Moses is insufficient for this task in himself.

God is sufficient.

And God promises to be with him.

When Feeling Unqualified Is the Right Place to Begin

Your Vault contains a reflection on Moses’s question, “Who am I?”

By the time God called him, Moses had lived in Pharaoh’s household and spent decades tending sheep in Midian. Yet when the assignment came, he did not respond with confidence in his experience.

God answered his question in Exodus 3:12 with the promise of His presence. Later, in verse 14, He revealed His name: “I AM WHO I AM.”

The sequence matters. Moses was learning to ground his obedience in the God who had spoken.

Feeling inadequate can become the beginning of genuine dependence when it moves us to trust the Lord and receive His help.

Adapted from “When Feeling Unqualified Is the Right Place to Begin,” Sermon Illustration Vault; note cites David Jeremiah, Overcoming Everything with Prayer, Turning Point Ministries. Scripture sequence clarified from Exodus 3:11–14.

#Calling #Dependence #Moses #GodsPresence #Faith

Inadequacy can move us in two directions.

It can lead us to prayer: “Lord, I need You.”

Or it can become a final verdict: “I cannot, so I will not.”

One opens our hands to God. The other closes them.

Paul expresses Christian sufficiency clearly in 2 Corinthians 3:5: our sufficiency comes from God.

We need His grace to serve. We need His Spirit to bear fruit. We need His Word to know what faithful service looks like.

That also means we must distinguish God’s commands from our own ambitions.

Moses received a specific commission directly from God. We do not have permission to take every idea we have, call it a divine assignment, and demand that God make it succeed.

Calvin makes this distinction in his comments on Exodus 4:11: confidence in God’s power must be connected to His command, rather than used to justify whatever we want to undertake. ccel.org

So begin with what God has clearly said.

Love your neighbor.

Pray.

Tell the truth.

Forgive.

Make disciples.

Care for the vulnerable.

Gather with His people.

You may need counsel about a particular role. You may need training. You may need help. Some responsibilities have biblical qualifications that must be honored.

But you do not need to wait until you feel impressive before obeying a clear command.

At River City, that might look like learning a guest’s name and listening to their story.

It might look like sitting beside someone who seems alone.

It might look like telling a neighbor what Jesus has done for you.

A trembling voice can still speak the truth.

Transition: Moses’s question about his identity becomes a question about his ability. God answers that too.

3. God’s power is greater than our limitations

Exodus 4:10–12

Moses tells God that he is not eloquent. He describes himself as slow of speech and tongue.

The passage does not give us enough information to diagnose a particular speech condition. We should not claim more certainty than Scripture gives us.

What is clear is that Moses sees his speaking ability as an obstacle.

God asks him:

“Who has made man’s mouth?”

Then God speaks of those who are mute, deaf, seeing, or blind.

This is a declaration of His sovereignty over human life.

The Creator knows the person He is commissioning. Moses has not revealed a limitation God somehow overlooked.

John Piper draws attention to this connection between creation and providence: the God who made human beings continues to govern His world, and Moses’s weakness does not place him beyond God’s ability to help. desiringgod.org

We must handle this truth tenderly.

A disabled person has the same human dignity as anyone else. Disability is not evidence of personal guilt, and it is not a measure of spiritual worth.

We cannot look at someone’s suffering and claim to know every reason God has permitted it.

But we can say that no person is outside His knowledge or care.

Notice what God promises Moses in verse 12.

He will be with his mouth and teach him what to say.

Moses must go in dependence on that promise.

Sometimes God changes a limitation. Sometimes He supplies help. Sometimes He sustains us while the limitation remains.

Paul’s experience in 2 Corinthians 12 teaches us that Christ’s sufficient grace can sustain a servant through an affliction He does not remove.

The Freedom of Honest Weakness

Pastor Glandion Carney struggled after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

The note describes his efforts to conceal his symptoms and continue appearing strong. Eventually, he acknowledged his condition to his congregation and asked for prayer.

His honesty made room for other people to acknowledge their own need for help.

His illness was not a sin to confess. The story reminds us that receiving care can require us to stop hiding our vulnerability.

We can trust Christ while receiving medical treatment, asking for practical help, and allowing the church to walk beside us.

Adapted from “The Freedom of Honest Weakness,” Sermon Illustration Vault; note cites Glandion Carney, The Way of Grace, InterVarsity Press, 2014. Retold without reproducing unverified dialogue.

#Grace #Weakness #Community #Dependence #Care

Some of us spend enormous energy trying to look as though we need nothing.

We hide exhaustion.

We conceal confusion.

We keep saying we are fine.

But the church is a body. God has given us one another because we need one another.

You can acknowledge a limitation and still trust God.

You can ask for an accommodation and still trust God.

You can rest, receive treatment, or share a responsibility and still trust God.

Faith receives the help God provides.

And that leads us to the most searching part of this passage.

4. God confronts our refusal and supplies gracious help

Exodus 4:13–17

In verse 13, Moses asks God to send someone else.

He has voiced his questions. God has answered him.

Now he wants to be excused.

Verse 14 tells us the Lord’s anger burns against Moses.

We cannot skip that sentence.

This is more than a story about a nervous man receiving encouragement. It is also a story about a servant resisting his Lord.

Calvin distinguishes Moses’s acknowledgment of weakness from his request to be released altogether. Recognizing a limitation and seeking help is one thing; refusing God’s command is another. ccel.org

That distinction searches our hearts.

There are times when we need to say, “I need help.”

There are times when we need to say, “I am not qualified for that responsibility.”

There are times when we need to say, “I cannot carry all of this.”

But there are also times when our explanations conceal an unwillingness to do what God has clearly commanded.

Perhaps we keep postponing an apology.

Perhaps we have decided someone else should show hospitality.

Perhaps we know we ought to speak truthfully, but we prefer the safety of silence.

God loves His people enough to confront their sin.

Yet even here, His patience is remarkable.

He provides Aaron.

Aaron will speak. Moses will receive and communicate God’s instructions. God promises to help them both.

The commission remains, and God supplies a companion.

There is a lesson here for every church plant and every weary servant.

We need shared service.

A pastor needs fellow believers who will carry responsibility.

A caregiver needs people who will show up.

A new Christian needs someone who will walk alongside them.

A person who struggles to communicate deserves patient listeners and meaningful opportunities to participate.

Receiving help is part of faithful service.

God’s provision of Aaron does not make Moses’s refusal right. It does show the mercy of a God who continues to work with a faltering servant.

The greater Deliverer

We must finish by looking beyond Moses to Jesus.

Moses was a servant in God’s house. Hebrews 3 tells us that Christ is the Son over that house.

Moses needed correction.

Jesus obeyed His Father perfectly.

Moses would lead Israel out of Egypt.

Jesus saves His people from their sins.

Our greatest problem is deeper than feeling unqualified. We are sinners before a holy God. We have broken His commands, resisted His authority, and sought life apart from Him.

We need forgiveness and reconciliation.

Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, took on true humanity. He lived the righteous life we have failed to live. At the cross, He bore the judgment His people deserved. He rose bodily from the grave.

Everyone who repents and believes in Him is forgiven and counted righteous through faith in Christ.

That is grace.

We do not earn our welcome by becoming useful.

We receive salvation as a gift, and then we serve as people who belong to Him.

And hear the promise Jesus gives His church in Matthew 28.

He possesses all authority.

He commands His disciples to make disciples.

He promises to be with them.

The Lord who sends His church stays with His church.

We can depend on Him in Norwood.

We can depend on Him in our homes.

We can depend on Him in a classroom, beside a hospital bed, or during a conversation when we struggle to find the words.

That dependence does not guarantee an easy assignment. It gives us a faithful Savior.

Invitation — Take the next faithful step

For someone here today, the next step is to come to Christ.

You have been trying to make yourself worthy of God’s acceptance.

You cannot erase your sin through effort. You cannot earn forgiveness by serving.

But Christ is able to save you.

Turn from your sin and trust Him. Bring Him your guilt, your fear, and your need.

For those who already belong to Jesus, identify one clear act of obedience you have been postponing.

Be specific.

A conversation.

An apology.

An invitation.

A request for help.

A responsibility you can faithfully share.

Bring your fear to the Lord. Ask for wisdom. Receive the support you need. Then take the next step.

Moses asked, “Who am I?”

God answered, “I will be with you.”

Church, let that promise turn our attention toward Him.

Our hope for faithful service rests in the God who calls, the grace He supplies, and the Savior who remains with His people.

Closing prayer

Father, You are holy, faithful, and sovereign. We confess that we often fix our attention on ourselves and resist what You have clearly commanded.

Forgive us through Jesus Christ.

Give us honest hearts about our limitations, willing hearts toward Your Word, and humble hearts that receive help.

Draw those who do not know Christ to repentance and faith. Strengthen Your people by Your Spirit. Help River City become a church where people receive care, grow in truth, and serve together.

Teach us to trust Your presence and take the next faithful step.

In Jesus’ name, amen.