Who am I?

Last week Pastor Chris spoke on who God says He is and we saw the attributes of God. Following on from that, today I want to look at who God says we are, as revealed in His Word.

“Who Am I?” Is a great question that we should ask ourselves?

Even Jesus had to discover who he was. Virgin birth. In Luke 2 we read about his birth, how he was presented in the Temple. By v 39 he is 12 years old. Parents and family leave, Jesus stays behind and his parents come looking for him. V46-47 After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. Church is a good place to listen and ask questions and find out who you are.

v49 Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house.

v52 Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and men Jesus grew to understand who he was and his purpose for his time on earth.

Same for us.

God knows who we are, but we have to find out for ourselves. You may have been raised in a home where those who told you who you are were not speaking from God’s viewpoint. Or maybe actions spoke louder than words and through acts of abuse, you acquired a distorted idea of who you are (you’d be amazed how prevalent this is and how many suffer from this).

BUT Jesus came that to proclaim freedom for the oppressed and to set the captives free. And He does it through His Word - He said in John 6:63 that his words…. are spirit and they are life. His Word transcends the merely physical realm and affects the real us, our Spirit. Even if we grew up in a healthy home, we still have to discover who we are.

Just like Gideon in Judges 6. Threshing wheat in a winepress hiding from the Midianites – the Angel of the Lord came and said to him “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior”.....dialogue …..” Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand” The Lord calls us from obscurity into a life of purpose, a place of service for Him. He gives us a new outlook through His life-giving Word which penetrates our very being in our spirit. We begin to understand who we are.

John 8:31,32 If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

As we see the truth in God’s Word, we are set free in our thinking. As a result, we build our lives on the Rock of His Word. Storms will come - but we stand firm and are secure.

Believe who God says you are

I am a New Creation

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
If Jesus is your Lord, then the old you is behind you and a new you was created. Proverbs 4:18 The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.

We all need a new beginning. Lamentations 3:23 declares that God’s mercy is new every morning.

I am known by God

Psalm 139:1,2 O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.

It is wonderful for me to know that God understands me completely. He made us. One of our most basic needs is to be understood by someone – who better than God. We must also be in community and seek to understand others and be understood ourselves.

I am loved by God

Jeremiah 31:3 The Lord says I have loved you with an everlasting love

His love for us in constant, unchanging, unconditional. As I know His love, I am free to love others. Rom 5:5 His love is in us

I am Forgiven

This is huge. Ephesians 1:7 In (Jesus) we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace

Why did Jesus need to come – because a Holy God demands punishment for sin and Jesus satisfied those righteous requirements. Isaiah 53:11 My righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.

Forgive yourself

I am a child of God

1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!

I am in a great family – it is not dysfunctional. Love abounds and holds it all together. The family is God’s foundation for community following the example of Godhead Trinity.

Ephesians 5 and 6 Family

You have a heavenly father who is perfect, and absolutely trustworthy, and He always has your best interests in mind

I am chosen by God

John 15:16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. We are chosen by God with a purpose in mind. Philippians 2:13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose.” God has a plan, lean on Him.

As Proverbs 3 declares: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths
You are not just along for the ride

I am an Overcomer

2 Corinthians 2:14 But thanks be to God, Who in Christ always leads us in triumph…..

Notice the word “ALWAYS”. Whatever you are facing, you are on the winning side.

Psalm 34:19 A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all

I am Delivered

Colossians 1:13,14 (God) has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. We are in the kingdom of God. And as we saw above – he continues to deliver us from our troubles

I am Blessed

Ephesians 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ

You might not feel blessed in your current circumstances, but remember that the spiritual heavenly realm is in control

I am Protected

Isaiah 54:17 no weapon that is forged against me will prevail….

Psalms 91:14,15 “Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honour him.”

I am Valuable

Ephesians 2:10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

1 Corinthians 3:9 says For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building. Just as with a garden, He looks after it and tends it – He cares for us.

Too many think they are unimportant, insignificant. Not true

I am not Alone

Hebrews 13:5,6 God said Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

The church family.

I am Strong

2 Timothy 1:6 God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and self discipline.

Joel 3:10 says Let the weak say “I am strong”

I am the Head, not the Tail

Deuteronomy 28:13 says that we will be the head not the tail…always at the top, never at the bottom

I am Healed

Isaiah 53:4,5 Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows… by his wounds we are healed.

Matthew 8:16,17 Peter …When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. 17This was to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “He took up our infirmities ?and carried our diseases.”

In Summary, I AM:

A new creation.
Known by God.
Loved by God.
Forgiven.
A child of God
Chosen by God
An overcomer
Delivered from darkness and brought into the Kingdom of God
Blessed
Protected
Valuable
Not alone
Strong.
The head not the tail, above not beneath
Healed

Purpose Micah 6:8 “…the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy,?and to walk humbly with your God.”

Paul Addison, 30/08/2009