21 Aug Who Am I? Learning to respond to life from your position not your condition.

Posted at 07:47h in Joy Church by

 

It has always been an identity issue!  From the very beginning in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve were tempted by the devil…it was an identity issue!  “If you eat of this tree, you shall be like God” (see Genesis 3).  When Daniel was taken into Babylonian captivity, the first thing they tried to do was change his diet and then change his name (see Daniel 1).  This is a type and shadow that if the devil can get you off the diet of God’s Word, then he can change your identity. 

When the religious crowd approached John the Baptist, they questioned his identity.  John knew who he was and he knew who he wasn’t (see John 1:17-23).  Even our Lord Jesus as He was water baptized had His identity affirmed, “This is my Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased” (Mark 3:17).  Immediately after this, Jesus was tempted in the wilderness by the devil.  Three times the devil tempted Jesus and all three temptations began with, “If thou be the Son of God…” (see Matthew 4:1-13).  In all four of these biblical examples, the common denominator is…it is an identity issue!

Your identity is so important because:

1)      You behave according to your self-image (Mark 12:31)

2)      You marry according to your self-image

This is why many women I’ve seen over the years repeatedly go after “bad boys”.  The reason they go after “punks” is because they don’t see themselves as God does as “princesses”.  They subconsciously don’t feel like they should be treated well.

3)      You succeed or fail according to your self-image (Prov. 23:7).

If you succeed beyond your self-image, you’ll begin to sabotage yourself until you retreat to what you think you deserve.  Remember this…it’s not who you are that matters, it’s who you think you are!

Philemon verse 6 tells us, “That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.”  For our faith to be effective, we must begin to acknowledge all the good things in us…in Christ.  As you can see, this identity issue is so important! =

With this in mind, please allow me to share with you “3 Wonders of Who I Am”:

1.      Who am I…you are a spirit (John 3:3-6).

You are a spirit, you have a soul (comprised of your mind, will and emotions), and you live in a body.  I was never so aware of this as when my father went on to be with the Lord.  After my mother, I was the second person to see dad’s body.  It was so obvious to me that it was simply his “earth suit” and that he was long gone.  The Bible tells us, “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord” (II Cor. 5:8).  While dad’s body is dead, he has never been more alive in his life!  He (the real him) is a spirit!

The Bible tells us about the real you:

II Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away, behold, all things are become new.”

  • If you are a born again child of God, you are a new creation.  This is obviously talking about your spirit…the real you!
  • If you were physically chubby before you were saved, you were chubby after you were saved!  If you were skinny before you were saved, you were skinny after you were saved!  In your spirit, however, you became a new creation!

Ephesians 4:24, “And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.”

  • In your new man (your spirit) you are now righteous and have true holiness (see also II Corinthians 5:21).
  • Someone said, “I am just an old sinner, saved by grace.”  You are either an old sinner or you’re saved by grace, but you cannot be both.
  • If you are a born again child of God, the real you is righteous!  Not because of what we have or have not done, but because of what Jesus Christ has done for us!

Colossians 2:10, “And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.”

  • Some people say:
  • “If I could just get married, I would be complete.”
  • “If I could just have children, I would be complete.”
  • “If I could just get that college degree, I would be complete.”
  • In your spirit, you are complete now!

When you were born again God placed in your spirit (the real you) His fruit…love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).  Do you remember the last time you were depressed?  That entire time, the real you was full of the joy of the Lord!  Do you remember the last time you were worried or fearful?  The entire time, the real you was full of the peace of God!  Do you remember the last time you were struggling with bitterness or unforgiveness?  The entire time, the real you was full of the love of God!

I thank God for Alcoholics Anonymous and how it has helped so many.  I do take exception with one thing however…the first thing they do is stand and say, “Hi, I’m Jerry and I’m an alcoholic.”  Therefore it’s behavior modification instead of life transformation.  They still identify with the wrong thing.

Let’s identify with who we really are!  Let’s identify with who we are in Christ.  Remember this…your outward circumstances will never out perform your inward portrait!  Let’s learn to respond to life from our position not from our condition!

 

Next week we will continue our series on, “Who Am I?”