Who do you think you are? Do you think of yourself as a fat person? A slob? A glutton? Or do you embrace the identity that Christ died to attribute to you, to infuse into your reality? If you have identified Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then you are a saint, saved by grace, a part of a royal priesthood, a daughter (or son) of the King, holy and precious, redeemed and called before the foundation of the earth!
So who DO you think you are?
When I was training for marathons, I embraced the identity of “runner.” Because of who I felt I was, the shoes I wore on my feet *all* the time were different. (There are certain shoes that identify a person as a runner. :-)) I wore certain clothes with specific labels and logos. I read certain books and had certain types of magazines sent to my home. I ate a specific way and specific things…sometimes even on the run! Not many people do that if they aren’t training for a long run!
When I thought of myself as a glutton, do you know how I lived? I lived like I *was* a glutton. I hid myself behind baggy clothes, sat on my rear a lot, didn’t want to go anywhere and definitely did NOT run, let alone eat on the run. I ate in the car, ate standing in the kitchen, ate all the time…after all I was convinced I was undisciplined and a sloth. So…well, I lived like I was.
We are likely to LIVE like that which we believe we ARE.
This is a truth taught in scripture and it is highlighted in the Thin Within book and in this lesson of The Lord’s Table workbook, as well.
When the Lord takes over a life, he doesn’t just save us from eternal judgment. He saves us from what we have been. He attributes to us an entirely NEW identity. Sure we struggle with sin at times, but our sin DOES NOT DEFINE US. GOD defines us!
Here is a truth, though. The same grace that brings salvation also teaches us to say no to ungodliness. There will be, babystep by babystep, progress toward living a more surrendered life. The Lord’s Spirit imparted to us ensures this is so.
So sure, we WERE gluttons. We WERE sloths. But NO MORE! You may argue “But I KNOW I am a glutton and a sloth! I prove it all day every day!”
I challenge you…embrace the identity that GOD has imparted to you. BELIEVE GOD. (Notice I didn’t say believe IN God!). Believe what HE says is true about you. That HE CHOSE you before the foundation of the earth to be holy and blameless in His sight. In LOVE he predestined YOU to be adopted as His precious child! If you believe these things, what GOD says to be true of you, you will be amazed at how your actions will line up with these beliefs. I have seen it in my own life and I know you can see it in yours, too!
Christians are no longer who they used to be. (TLT, p. 119)
We do what is according to our nature. If we are sinners who are trying to be good we will inevitably fall. But if we are saints, who occasionally stumble and sin, then our nature is such that we hate sin, and our habitual pattern of life will be to walk in righteousness. (TLT, p. 119)
We should no longer see ourselves as overeaters…instead, come up with names that we can use to identify ourselves with our “new man!” (TLT, p. 120)
If we are in Christ we are not who or what we were. My identity is not in being a fat person any longer. (TLT, p. 120)
Choose to believe God today!
Wow… Heidi. Dare I say your best post yet. Follows on the heels of a conversation I had with Pastor David the other day. God has given us the ability to choose.
When the Lord takes over a life, he doesn’t just save us from eternal judgment. He saves us from what we have been. He attributes to us an entirely NEW identity. Sure we struggle with sin at times, but our sin DOES NOT DEFINE US. GOD defines us!amen amen amen Alleluia!
“The same grace that brings salvation also teaches us to say no to ungodliness.”, whew… what powerful truth. I spent many years stuck in salvation, not seeking godliness. Thank you Heidi for being you.