I am because of I AM
Last year our ministry theme was “It Is Time to Seek the Lord” taken from Hosea 10:12, and we spent much time talking about the topic of Revival which is the result of seeking the Lord. We also studied about the need for us to redeem the time we have on earth for God’s glory to have a profitable and eternal impact while we are here. On Wednesdays, we continued our series on the Fear of the Lord from 2021, which also has much to do with seeking the Lord, as well as our ministry theme that year which was Satisfied taken from Proverb 19:23. The purpose of these ministry themes each year is to help us dig into the Scriptures in a specific way as we preach God’s Word to grow in our understanding of His truths about Himself, about ourselves, and about our relationship with Him as we live on this earth. This year our preaching is going to focus heavily on the topic of “Identity” in regards to knowing God as He reveals Himself in His Word and knowing ourselves as God declares who we are without Him in our lives and our identity in Christ as a saved person. The religions of man, and sadly many true believers and even churches that have good doctrine, have the wrong focus. Too often we focus too much on what we do more than who we are. The Bible focuses more on who we are in Christ determining what we do and how we act as a witness and a testimony to this lost world for the glory of God in our lives. God sees what no one else sees, our heart. Our heart is the truth of who we are and the truth of who we are will define what we do in a way that brings God glory instead of puffing us up with pride. Man wants to focus on the doing, which makes man look good, but God wants His children to focus on being who we are because of Him in our lives, which brings Him glory instead of us. Jesus rebuked the Pharisees of His day for the focus on how they looked more than what they truly were in their heart, and His rebuke has not changed today. If we are truly in Christ, then His righteousness in us will have a huge impact on our life in regards to what people see. If we are truly alive in Christ spiritually, then we will live life in His life and it will determine our actions, attitudes, and words. The Pharisees lived disciplined lives in the flesh, but they were still lost in sin in their souls. We can look good to others by living a disciplined life and still be lost in sin as well. People can act like a Christian through being a good person or a devout religious person and still be dead in their souls before God. We can go to church because it makes us feel good about ourselves, yet still die and go to Hell for eternity. The only action that will determine the eternal destiny of a soul is acting in faith towards trusting Christ as your Saviour based on the truth of God’s Word working faith in your heart. Who we are is determined by who He is in our lives based on who He is defined to be in His Word by Himself for us. This past Wednesday night, we looked at that reality in regards to who Jesus is as defined in His Word in His future position as our Judge only, which will lead to our eternal condemnation in Hell, or as Saviour and Judge, which will lead to our reward in Heaven forever.