by Ms. Anastasia Rebello
Living as a Child of God, Basking in His Love
1) Who am I?
Introduction:
I once read a story of an eagle whose egg was hatched with the chickens so when the eaglet was born he behaved like a chicken until the farmer realized that this was an eaglet. The farmer tried to teach the eaglet to fly but as the eaglet was comfortable in his surrounding he refused. After several attempts made by the farmer he learnt to fly & soar high and he never came back. We too are called to soar high provided we know who we are in Christ.
a) Who are you?
I have noticed that there seems to be a trend in the mindset of many Christians that I think is de generating our effectiveness. This trend seems to be present in many Christians. I am talking about a fact that there are so many Christians that have absolutely no confidence (or even knowledge—head or heart) of who in the world they are. Many of us at the prayer meeting this evening have found Christ, but have not found out WHO WE ARE IN HIM. We may know all about him, and believe it. We believe that He is who he says he is; but, somehow seem to escape believing what he says we are.
b) The Difference between i) Identity and ii) Sense of identity
To illustrate this point I would like to share two stories
Illustration: The dilemma of an unclear sense of personal identity was illustrated by an incident in the life of the famous German philosopher Schleiermacher, who did much to shape the progress of modern thought. The story is told that one day as an old man he was sitting alone on a bench in a city park. A policeman thinking that he was a vagrant came over and shook him and asked, "Who are you?" Schleiermacher replied sadly, "I wish I knew."
Source Unknown.
We, who are in Christ, those who have trusted Christ as their personal Savoir and Lord, are blessed with every spiritual blessing. (Eph. 1:3) Paul writes, “Blessed be the God of Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with every spiritual blessings, in Christ.” People who fail to realize this will continually feel insecure not praising God for all the good things they already possess in Christ. The world sees us as poor, naïve and ill-equipped, but we can be confident that we can do everything through Christ who gives us the strength and power. (Phil. 4:13)
Illustration: Setting out from Hamburg , Germany , one day to give a concert in London , violinist Fritz Kreisler had an hour before his boat sailed. He wandered into a music shop, where the proprietor asked if he could look at the violin Kreisler was carrying. He then vanished and returned with two policemen, one of whom told the violinist, "You are under arrest."
"What for?" asked Kreisler.
"You have Fritz Kreisler’s violin."
"I am Fritz Kreisler."
"You can’t pull that on us. Come along to the station." As Kreisler’s boat was sailing soon, there was no time for prolonged explanations. Kreisler asked for his violin and played a piece he was well known for. "Now are you satisfied?" he asked. They were!
c) Importance of knowing actual identity. A person may perceive himself in different ways based on
Ø Family background
Ø Comparisons made
Ø Negative speech patterns of those around
Ø Role models
Our Behaviour, Attitude, Insecurities/securities, Ability to do or accomplish this or that, Success level (future, career…), Relationships with others are seriously affected by our perception of ourselves and our Relationship with Christ.
Well, I want to remind or inform you of a few things that God believes about YOU. Simply hearing what I am going to share with you is probably not going to make a difference in you, mainly because you have probably heard it all before.
My hope for is that you would work very intentionally at BELIEVING these truths (not just hearing them). Our belief about who we are in Christ needs to be a part of our core value system! We have to believe it way deep down.
2) Our Identity as Christians
2.1 Children of God: Romans 8 v16
We must base our identity on the truth. How does God see me?
a) as His child
b) Good
2.2 His love for me: Qualities of God’s Love
Ø Tender, loving, compassionate, merciful, forgiving Luke 15:11
Ø Intimate: Isaiah 49:16
Ø Faithful: Isaiah 54:10
Ø Personal, called by name: Isaiah 43:1,4
Ø Everlasting, compassionate: Isaiah 54:8
Ø Unconditional: Romans 5:8
This is a wonderful story that shows us how even with a little faith, a lot can be achieved and give us an insight into the love of God
Missing the Rabbit and The Squirrel…
There once was a man who had nothing for his family to eat. He had an old rifle and three bullets. So, he decided that he would go out hunting and kill some wild game for dinner. As he went down the road, he saw a rabbit. He shot at the rabbit and missed it. The rabbit ran away. Then he saw a squirrel and fired a shot at the squirrel and missed it. The squirrel disappeared into a hole in a cottonwood tree. As he went further, he saw a large wild "Tom" turkey in the tree, but he had only one bullet remaining. A voice spoke to him and said, "Pray first, aim high and stay focused."
However, at the same time, he saw a deer which was a better kill. He brought the gun down and aimed at the deer. But, then he saw a rattlesnake between his legs about to bite him, so he naturally brought the gun down further to shoot the rattlesnake. Still, the voice said again to him, "I said 'Pray, Aim high and Stay focused." So, the man decided to listen to God's voice.
He prayed, then aimed the gun high up in the tree and shot the wild turkey. The bullet bounced off the turkey and killed the deer. The handle fell off the gun and hit the snake in the head and killed it. And, when the gun had gone off, it knocked him into a pond. When he stood up to look around, he had fish in all his pockets, a dead deer and a turkey to eat for his family. The snake (satan) was dead simply because the man listened to God.
Learning: Each thing in this story represents something we face in our daily lives. It may be our failures (missing the rabbit and squirrel), or the distractions and diversions we face each day (trying to decide which of the other 3 animals to shoot with the last bullet). The man's hesitance to obey God's voice the first time represents how we try everything humanly possible before we ask God to meet our needs, and how little faith we have that He will take care of the things we face each day no matter how small or big they seem to us.
2.3 You are unique: Special
God has gifted each one of us with gifts and talents. If you accept that you are a child of God, you have responsibility to behave as a son/daughter and like Jesus establish His kingdom in your life and others.
I would like to share a testimony based on an actual experience of God’s love or a healing experience.
Illustration: Suffering from terminal spinal cancer at the age of 47, former North Carolina State basketball coach Jim Valvano spoke with a reporter. He looked back on his life and told a story about himself as a 23-year-old coach of a small college team. "Why is winning so important to you?" the players asked Valvano.
"Because the final score defines you," he said, "You lose, you’re a loser. You win, you’re a winner."
"No," the players insisted. "Participation is what matters. Trying your best, regardless of whether you win or lose -- that’s what defines you."
It took 24 more years of living. It took the coach bolting up from the mattress three or four times a night with his T-shirt soaked with sweat and his teeth rattling from the fever chill of chemotherapy and the terror of seeing himself die repeatedly in his dreams. It took all that for him to say it: "Those kids were right. It’s effort, not result. It’s trying. God, what a great human being I could have been if I’d had this awareness back then."
3. My response: Steps to grow in our identity.
Ø Communicate daily with the Father like Jesus did- Prayer
Ø Read the Word of God to know about him, his love and His will
Ø Believe that you are a child of God- Ask the Holy Spirit to help you.
Ø Accept that truth and act on it.
Prayer: Father you created me and put me on earth for a purpose, Jesus you died for me & called me to carry out your work, Holy Spirit help me fulfill the work for which I was called in Jesus name, Amen