Who Am I?

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptised by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptised by you, and do you come to me?” 15 Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfil all righteousness.” Then John consented. 16 As soon as Jesus was baptised, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”  (Matthew 3:13-17)
 
16 Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said: “Who am I, Lord God, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? 17 And as if this were not enough in your sight, my God, you have spoken about the future of the house of your servant. You, Lord God, have looked on me as though I were the most exalted of men. 18 ‘What more can David say to you for honouring your servant? For you know your servant, 19 Lord. For the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made known all these great promises. 20 ‘There is no one like you, Lord, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. 21 And who is like your people Israel – the one nation on earth whose God went out to redeem a people for himself, and to make a name for yourself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt? 22 You made your people Israel your very own for ever, and you, Lord, have become their God.”  (1 Chronicles 17:16-22)
When King David heard a prophecy which contained some of the truths that we declared over ourselves yesterday, he was blown away by the grace of God towards him. He sat down before the Lord and mouthed in awestruck wonder: Who am I, that you should do all this for me? A guest at the Freedom In Christ course had a similar experience when she spoke those declarations over her life too. She penned the following poem afterwards.

Who am I that You should die to take away my sin?
Who am I that You’d take the time to change me from within?
Who am I that You should pour Your Spirit into me?
Who am I that You would give Your power to set me free?

I am small and I am weak and often I am wrong
I’m sometimes proud and sometimes shy and feel like I don’t belong
I’m forgetful and impatient, stubborn and strong-willed
I avoid the things that I should do and end up unfulfilled.

The world has called me “stupid,” “fat,” and “lazy,” “waste of space”
And I’ve taken on these labels and forgotten of Your grace
I’ve bought the lies that hurt me. By the world I’ve been defined
Forgetting You are shaping me. That in Your love I’ve been refined.

But through it all You love me, You call me by my name
It breaks Your heart to see me, bound by guilt and shame
You urge me to let go of all my fears and selfish pride
To walk each day in Your light and in Your love abide.

You whisper, “You’re My precious child. Find yourself in Me
Forget those other labels. I’ve come to set you free
You’re accepted, you’re forgiven, you’re loved, you are My friend
And I will never leave you. I’ll be with you ‘til the end.

We can make a difference. Help the world to know My love
I’ve given you My spirit, power from up above
I’ll walk each moment with you. Be My hands and feet
The lost and lonely need Me. Evil will retreat.

I trust you with My legacy. I’ll keep you in My will
We’ll battle through together, and sometimes just be still
I’ve loved you more than you could know, since before the world began
Help Me fill the God-shaped void in the heart of every man.”
1)   What kind of things would you write in a poem to describe God’s grace towards you?

2)   Which of the lines in this person’s poem particularly connect with you today? Why do you think that is?

3)   One of the things that we are learning as a church through our Enjoy The New You! series is the massive power that is unleashed when we open our mouths and declare the truth of God’s Word over ourselves. Take some time, therefore, to speak over yourself the same statements of faith that you spoke over yourself yesterday.

I renounce the lie that I am rejected, unloved, or shameful. In Christ I am accepted.
I am God's child (see John 1:12)
I am Christ's friend (see John 15:15)
I have been justified (see Romans 5:1)
I am united with the Lord, and I am one spirit with Him (see 1 Corinthians 6:17)
I have been bought with a price: I belong to God. (see 1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
I am a member of Christ's Body (see 1 Corinthians 12:27)
I am a saint, a holy one (see Ephesians 1:1)
I have been adopted as God's child (see Ephesians 1:5)
I have direct access to God through the Holy Spirit (see Ephesians 2:18)
I have been forgiven of all my sins (see Colossians 1:14)
I am complete in Christ (see Colossians 2:10)
 
I renounce the lie that I am guilty, unprotected, alone, or abandoned. In Christ I am secure.
I am free from condemnation (see Romans 8:1-2)
I am assured that all things work together for good (see Romans 8:28)
I am free from all condemning charges against me (see Romans 8:31-34)
I cannot be separated from the love of God (see Romans 8:35-39)
I have been established, anointed and sealed by God (see 2 Corinthians 1:21-22)
I am confident that the good work God has begun in me will be perfected (see Philippians 1:6)
I am a citizen of heaven (see Philippians 3:20)
I am hidden with Christ in God (see Colossians 3:3)
I have not been given a spirit of fear, but of power, love and self-control (see 2 Timothy 1:7)
I can find grace and mercy to help in time of need (see Hebrews 4:16)
I am born of God and the evil one cannot touch me (see 1 John 5:18) 
 
I renounce the lie that I am worthless, inadequate, helpless, or hopeless. In Christ I am significant.
I am the salt of the earth and the light of the world (see Matthew 5:13-14)
I am a branch of the true vine, Jesus, a channel of His life (see John 15:1-5)
I have been chosen and appointed by God to bear fruit (see John 15:16)
I am a personal, Spirit-empowered witness of Christ (see Acts 1:8)
I am a temple of God (see 1 Corinthians 3:16)
I am a minister of reconciliation for God (see 2 Corinthians 5:17-21)
I am a fellow worker with God (see 2 Corinthians 6:1)
I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (see Ephesians 2:6)
I am God's workmanship, created for good works (see Ephesians 2:10)
I may approach God with freedom and confidence (see Ephesians 3:12)
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me! (see Philippians 4:13)
I am not the great "I Am", but by the grace of God I am what I am (see 1 Corinthians 15:10)
Father God, those are the same truths that I spoke over myself yesterday, but they seem to carry fresh power to speak into my heart again today. I thank you that this is your Word over me, and your Word is true. I thank you that this is not positive thinking – it is believing the voice that speaks from heaven. Please help my heart to become good and fertile soil in which these truths can grow deep and wide. Amen.
If you have time, consider carrying on your conversation with God using one of our helpful Prayer Pathways.
Today’s Everyday Devotions have also inspired a devotional video that you can watch on our YouTube channel.
Today’s Everyday Devotions have been brought to you with help from our friends at Freedom In Christ.
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