I YAM WHAT I YAM

I’m the least important of the apostles. I don’t deserve to be called an apostle, because I harassed God’s church. I am what I am by God’s grace, and God’s grace hasn’t been for nothing. In fact, I have worked harder than all the others—that is, it wasn’t me but the grace of God that is with me.    

1 Corinthians 15:9-10

There is a cartoon character by the name of Popeye. He is a rough and tough short legged sailor, who always has a can of spinach in his pocket. He is comical looking with a big chin, skinny neck, and tattooed forearms that seem out of place with their extreme size. He is never seen without a pipe in his mouth. I wish I could say he is the poster child of Christian principals, but I cannot. He has a crude manner, and the words he speaks from the side of his mouth are not always desirable. Yet there is something that is lovable concerning Popeye. He fights for the underdog, which many times is his sweetheart, Olive Oyl, and spinach is his powerhouse to fight the foe.

I have a feeling that Paul was a rough and tough guy resembling a Popeye character. He was a persecutor of the church before his conversion to Christianity. It took a blinding of his eyes, to open the spiritual view of his heart to the saving grace of Jesus Christ. But as fervent as he was in his mission to eradicate Christians, it would take a back seat to the zealousness he showed in his enthusiasm for Christ.

After his conversion, Paul too, was a proponent for the underdog, the unsaved of the world, including the dirty Gentiles. And what was Paul’s powerhouse? Just like Popeye’s spinach, Paul received his power directly through the grace of Christ. He stated that he laboured more abundantly than anyone else in his message of Christ, but was careful to say, “Yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” He was admitting, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”  Philippians 4:13 Christ gave Paul the strength to rise above the torments of  imprisonment, beatings, persecution, hunger, sickness, and pain, to spread the message of hope, love and forgiveness through his powerhouse, Jesus Christ.

As a Christian, we have a job to accomplish, just like Paul and Popeye. We need to continue to spread the healing message of hope, grace, and love, to the underdogs of this world. People are hurting, lost, angry, and afraid. We have the power of Christ in us to extend His love to others.

Popeye said, “I yam what I yam.” Paul said, “By the grace of God, I am what I am.” We as Christians can say, “I am what I am.” We can say that with confidence because the great, “I AM” lives inside us as our ultimate powerhouse.

To the great I AM, we thank you for your power within, to do your work. In the name of Christ, Amen