TSP DAILY DEVOTIONAL
EMBRACE YOUR IDENTITY
5TH MARCH 2020
Dr. Phil Ransom-Bello
KEY SCRIPTURE/MEMORY VERSE: John 1:12 (NKJV)
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:
Two months ago, when we learnt about the advantage of the mind of Christ for the believer, we broke down the process into three categories; Your Identity, Your Transformation and Your Expression. And one of the lessons we highlighted was that transformation doesn’t happen before identity in this kingdom.
Although it may be different in the world, where you may need to undergo a transformation or change process before you are labeled with an identity, it’s not the same for us because we start out with an identity. And that identity is who you are in Christ. Everything else flows from there.
2 Corinthians 5:17 says anyone who is in Christ is a new creation.
From our text today, we see that you were called God’s son immediately you became born-again not the moment you began to behave like a son of God.
Notice the difference?
This reality must sit in your heart.
When this reality seats deeply, it will be the measuring scale against which you weigh everything that comes in through your ear or eye gates.
It is because you have received an identity, that you then begin to behave in the manner that is reflective of that identity. You begin to behave in the way that sons do.
Think about it as the way you are born into your biological family and by reason of your identity in that family, you begin to behave like them.
As sons, the way we come to the knowledge of our identity is by God’s word. So like we reiterated yesterday, it is so important to never lose sight of the truth of God’s word about our identity. Rather, we must let it dwell richly in us.(Colossians 3:16)
We must make sure the word of Christ is resident in our hearts.
In Numbers 13, Moses sent Caleb and Joshua and the other spies to go scout the promised land. If you remember, every other person besides Joshua and Caleb didn’t come back with a good testimony because of what they saw.
In verse 33, we see that they gave themselves an identity, reducing themselves to grasshoppers and they even went as far as saying that’s how the inhabitants of the land saw them. Can you imagine that?
They had already determined who they were just because of what they were seeing, the giants they were seeing.
Look, it doesn’t matter who or what you see. You must be unyielding in your conviction about who you are.
It’s so important for you as a believer to direct unshifting attention to the picture of who you are in Christ regardless of how you feel or what you see or where you are or what you are going through.
You started out with an identity. Stick with it!
REFLECTION
Is my report or perception of situations in line with the truth of my identity or what I am seeing/hearing/feeling?
DECLARATION
-I am born of God. My sonship is my identity.
-My identity comes before my behaviour/actions. This is what defines my identity.
-All that this identity in Christ encompasses is my experience.
-Regardless of what I see, hear or feel, I interpret situations only from the lenses of my identity.
-The word of Christ dwells richly in me and is resident in my heart.
-I make evident progress, daily. In season and out of season.
-Today, testimonies abound for me because the Gospel works.
-Hallelujah!
HEARING BY THE WORD
(Recommended Listening)
Listen to The Believers Heart – Instruct Your Heart >> Dr. Phil by The StandPoint Church on #SoundCloud
