Identity!

Identity!

1 John 4:4 AMPC

[4] Little children, you are of God [you belong to Him] and have [already] defeated and overcome them [the agents of the antichrist], because He Who lives in you is greater (mightier) than he who is in the world.

As I read about the reference to 'you' in the verse above, I take a look at the introduction to this letter. Who was the 'you' that John was writing to? John himself was a witness to the Word of Life. He had seen with his eyes, and touched with his own hands, and he was sure of what he was testifying about, and declaring to his audience. The joy of fellowship, as well as the blessing of partaking in the amazing fellowship with the Word were too precious to be kept to himself alone. He wanted to share it with the whole world. It was this confidence that made him speak the way he did. Can I say, like John, that I know who the Word is, what He can do, and can I share my personal convictions about His power, personality, and pre-eminence? Does He also know me as His own? It is usually easier to claim to know Him by speaking the language of the Bible, but it has to go beyond and deeper than just words. 

Those who had come to a personal encounter with this God were the audience of this letter by John. In the event that they had forgotten, or life's issues were pressing, John had to remind them of who they were, whose they were, who was backing them up, and where they were headed eternally. These points are important. My identity defines my enthusiasm as well as my entitlement and inheritance. No matter how many years a servant stays in a house, s/he will never share in the inheritance of a rich man, unless the rich man decides to give. The son is the natural heir to all that the father owns. That is why I must sort out my identity. It cannot be what people say I am, but what I have settled with God. There has to be a strong witness in my heart that I belong to Him, and He knows me as His own. The verse above says I am 'of' God, which means that my value and impact are defined by my ownership of God. Take God out, and I am just dust. 

I have access to all that God is, only if I am of God. Permanent victory over the devil and all his agents is guaranteed only if I am of the One who secured that victory. This is not one of those things that I can afford to sit on the fence on, or I toy with by playing with sin. It cannot be a weekly reminder; it has to be a daily walk. The devil will not give up as long as the earth remains in place. He knows his time is short, and he will try all he can to draw me into sin, as well as ignorance of what God has secured for me. The devil is the prince of this world, but he has no power or influence over all who come to the saving knowledge of Jesus. That is the message of the latter part of the verse above: the One who lives in me is greater than he who is in the world. The world and all who are under its control is due for eternal destruction; the one who is in God inherits eternal life. As always, the choice of eternal destination is mine to make. What would it be? God's time of favour is here.