How does one put on the truth when the reality of their life says one thing about their identity yet God calls them something new?
• My lack of understanding or ability to see what God sees never negates the truth! That brings me great joy and peace as I pursue Him.
• I simply respond to the truth in faith regardless of whether I feel like a new creation or not.
• The truth has the awesome ability to transcend any feeling or circumstance I face.
• The truth sets me free from the snares of fleshly feelings and actually taps me into the emotions of my Creator.
• The truth sets me free from the snares of hopelessness by taking my eyes off of me and my circumstances and placing my gaze upon the goal of my calling, Jesus Christ.
God saw something in Gideon that Gideon could not see. In Judges, we find the story of the Israelites being held captive by the Midianites. The whole nation is reduced to fear and trembling for many years. Our story begins with Gideon cowered down in a threshing pit fearfully going about his work yet hidden from the eyes of the Midianites.
Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appears to Gideon and declares, “The Lord is with you, O valiant warrior!”
Valiant warrior? Wouldn’t the term yellow-bellied chicken have been more appropriate? Yet, when God looked upon Gideon He saw a valiant warrior! As Gideon learned to walk in his true identity he was given more and more authority among his own people...and eventually led them to overcome all their enemies. If Gideon had not believed the Word of the Lord he never would have walked in the reality of his true nature. He never would have seen the potential of his destiny fulfilled.
• As a new creation learning to see myself as God sees me, I must also learn to see others the way he sees them. I can no longer judge people according to all I see, but I choose to judge them according to their destiny and true calling.
• With other believers I can make appeals for them to put an end to sinful behavior based upon their identity in Christ.
With my own children, if I see them sin - caught lying, for instance - I can say, “Son or daughter, you lied to me...but that is not who you are. You are not a liar. A new creation’s true desire is to tell the truth. You are a truthful person. Portraits of God’s grace to the world...like trophies that declare the power of God!”
Who does Father say I am?
• He calls me a trophy grace. While this is not a Scriptural term, it does express Scriptural truth. What is a trophy? A trophy is a tangible reminder of some great accomplishment or achievement. The redeemed life is a trophy or reminder to all who see of one of God’s greatest achievements - you! Paul the apostle suffered much, yet he believed his sufferings and the display of God’s grace to carry him through them had a profound purpose. ‘...That the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God (2 Cor. 4:15).’ We must learn to put off the old and put on the new of who we really are. In that way, we confront and deal with sin, yet we tear down only the sin...and not the person. This is how we build one another up. This is how God builds us up! In this way, we each become testimonies of grace.
Who does Father say I am?
• He calls me a letter, written to all mankind (2 Cor. 3:2-3).
As others see the changes God brings about in our lives, it is as if He has written a love letter for everyone who comes in contact with us to read! My life without Jesus spoke volumes. My redeemed life reads like a letter that was written with the greatest of care. My desire is that God be glorified for all He has done for me - so I open up that letter (my heart) for others to see and read. My desire is that, as they read, their lives are brought to a saving faith in Jesus Christ as well!
What do others see when they read our lives?
• Will we allow others to see and read or will we hide what we have experienced of God? We have nothing to be ashamed of by being honest.
• Honesty is a byproduct of truth. Truth sets us - and others - free! Let us ssee beyond our own perceptions and see what we cannot always see. Let us see ourselves as Father sees us. Let us see others as Father does.
Who does Father say I am?
• He says I am a winner!
He gives me the strength to fight the good fight of faith and to run the race toward the goal for the prize of my highest calling! Though I fall, I get up and keep running! To win a race I must run that race.
“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you win (1 Cor. 9:24).”
The Word also says, “Let us lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you may not grow weary and lose heart (Hebrews 12:1-3).”
What is a failure?
• A failure is the one who falls and does not get back up
• Freedom is worth fighting for
• Falling does not determine one’s identity. The Creator does that!
• I am not defined by past failure; present temptations; circumstances
Who does Father say I am?
• He calls me a fighter!
I do not give up - I am tenacious concerning my desire to conquer sin and to glorify my Redeemer. I fight the good fight of faith by taking hold of the eternal life to which I am called, declaring the truth to all who would see or hear - I am redeemed! (1 Tim. 6:12)
• Father delights in me more than I in Him. His thoughts toward me outnumber the sands of the sea (Psalm 139:17-18). Mine towards Him come nowhere near that!
• I do not have to earn His acceptance or approval. I already have it by virtue of the redeeming work of Christ upon the cross. God’s Word says that He has made us accepted in the Beloved...accepted in Christ! (Ephesians 1:6).
• He calls me His bride...and calls Jesus my bridegroom. One day, my truest identity will be fulfilled in the consummation of true oneness with Christ in the eternal glory of heaven. What joy and pleasure to know I do not have to wait until heaven to experience that joy. I am known by my God in a deeply personal and intimate way...and He allows me to know Him! This is my destiny... ‘…that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection...’ (Philippians 3:10)
My destiny?
• To be all God has called me to be! The overcoming testimony of my life? A fragrant aroma. ‘Thanks be to God, who always leads us in His triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place (2 Cor. 2:14).’
• In am a treasure born of God’s spirit to be given back to Him as a sacrifice of praise.
‘But t we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the surpassing greatness of the power may be of God and not ourselves (2 Cor. 4:7-12).’
We will be afflicted in this life - but we will not be crushed. We may be perplexed by the twists and turns of our life - but we will not despair because we have hope. We will be persecuted for the sake of righteousness - but we will never be forsaken. We may even be struck down because of our faith - but we cannot be destroyed! Why? Because this is part of our identity and destiny in Christ. This is who we are!
“Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal (2 Cor. 4:16-18).”
Believer. This is your destiny. This is who you are called to be. I am so proud of you! Keep your eyes fixed upon Jesus. Enjoy the journey. Enjoy getting to know your God. I cannot wait until we have the time of eternity to share one another’s stories of God’s redemption. Look for me around the throne...I’ll be waiting to hear and testify of God’s goodness with you forever!
Dennis Jernigan
Listen to The Dennis Jernigan Podcast to hear the song This Is My Destiny at https://www.patreon.com/posts/this-is-my-86950615
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