It is typically both fascinating and exciting to learn the origins of the people in our lives. Gerald Ford, former president of the United States, had parents who divorced just weeks after his birth. He lived with his mother and her husband, a paint salesman, whom Gerald was named after. He entered Yale as a football coach before being accepted as a law student. James Brown, who died in the same week as Ford, was born in a shack in South Carolina. He was abandoned by his parents and was living in a brothel by the age of seven. As a child, Brown picked cotton, danced, and polished shoes for money. Neither of these men came from nobility or was born privileged.
I used to read a great deal of comic books. Some of my favorite stories were the origins of the various super heroes. Peter Parker, an outcast and “science geek”, was bitten by a radioactive spider to become the Amazing Spider-Man! Bruce Wayne’s parents were gunned down in front of him, motivating him to fight crime as the Batman! These kinds of stories inspire us to believe that people with humble beginnings can become anyone they desire. I believe that God chose the individuals we read about in scripture for this reason. The Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is packed with the accounts of simple people who were able to accomplish great things.
We read in Luke 5 to Luke 6:16 about the gathering of the apostles. Jesus doesn’t choose the church leader, the historian, or the great orator. There is nothing wrong with being one of these people, but one of the biggest obstacles people face in accepting Christ is the belief that his message is not for everyone. Jesus used people that we fisherman and tax collectors. He asked seemingly average men to leave their old lives behind and teach the gospel. No matter how average we think we are, this is our responsibility as well.
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