Cause I'm Just a Nobody

"He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.” John 1:23

Mark Hall of the musical group Casting Crowns said this about their song, "Nobody." "There was a day that came when John the Baptist could’ve had his moment to make a name for himself. Everyone came to him and said ‘Who are you? Tell us who you are so we can go tell everyone else.’ He says ‘I am just a voice out here in the wilderness.’ It sounds like a poetic statement but what he’s saying is just straight. I’m nobody. You don’t need to know me. I’ve got nothing for you. If you’re going to meet me and you’re going to leave, the thing that’s gonna last is going to be Jesus. Because he [John] knew I’m not the point. I’m here to point to the point [Jesus].” In a day and age where there are times you cannot tell the difference between pop stars and Christians, it is refreshing to hear a statement such as this. Whether it be through legalistic teaching that robs the body of Christ of their time, treasure, and talent or from false teachings like the Prosperity Gospel which lies to its followers by telling them God wants them to be rich, the beneficiary is always the pastor. They are the ones who become Christian celebrities as they build their manmade empires by storing up treasures on earth at the expense of their congregations and the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If it were not for God deciding to immortalize their names in the pages of the Bible, would we have ever heard of many of the heroes of the faith? Even a prophecy about Jesus Christ seemed to deflect attention away from Him as much as possible. "There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him. He was despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care (Isaiah 53:2-3)." Here we have God in the flesh, the Son of God, the Messiah, and Immanuel. The most recognized name in all of history is said to have nothing beautiful or majestic about His appearance and nothing to attract us to Him. It even said that people turned their backs on Him and looked the other way; the ultimate sign of being ignored and deemed irrelevant. He was a nobody. Yet, when so many people are trying to make a name for themselves and leave a legacy, being a "nobody" is something many of the heroes of faith could have easily been labeled.

Aside from John the Baptist, mentioned earlier, we have the Apostle Paul. Paul described himself as the least of the apostles and said, "I’m not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God’s church (1 Corinthians 15:9)." Later on, he said, "I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault (Philippians 3:5-6)." Here Paul lists his religious accomplishments. These are things that would elevate his stature among his religious contemporaries and firmly establish his legacy. However, what does he say about these accomplishments? "I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord (Philippians 3:7-8)." Paul had every opportunity to be a "somebody" and establish his legacy and build his own earthly kingdom. After all, God promised numerous blessings of the flesh through obedience to His law. Yet, the law did it's work in Paul, not because of the blessings promised through obedience to it, but by showing him his need for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. He chose to be a "nobody" and was a perfect example of his predecessor John the Baptist who said, "He must increase, but I must decrease (John 3:30).” To say God must increase and I must decrease is just another way to illustrate the chorus from the Casting Crowns song, "Nobody." "'Cause I'm just a nobody trying to tell everybody, All about Somebody who saved my soul, Ever since You rescued me, You gave my heart a song to sing, I'm living for the world to see nobody but Jesus, I'm living for the world to see nobody but Jesus." My prayer is that all who have placed saving faith in Jesus Christ will become like John the Baptist and the Apostle Paul and live for the world to see nobody but Jesus.