"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love" Ephesians 1:3,4
Challenges to our identity come in this life through many different avenues throughout life. It could be when our spouse rejects us or when our children grow up and leave home. At some point, our employer tells us we are no longer needed. We lose our sense of belonging in a church we have attended for years. A culture of identity politics further divides and defines people apart from God's design. If we are not careful, we can be seeking to fulfill our needs for love, acceptance, and security apart from Jesus Christ!
The Blessings Found In Christ
• I have been justified—wholly forgiven just as if I never sinned and made righteous. (Rom. 5:1)
• I died with Christ, and the power of sin is no longer the ruling principle in my life. (Rom. 6:1-6)
• I am free forever from condemnation, shame, and false guilt. (Rom. 8:1)
• I am in Christ Jesus only because of God's work in my life. (1 Cor. 1:30)
• I have received the Spirit of God into my life that I might know the things freely given to me by God. (1 Cor. 2:12)
• I have been given the mind of Christ and can understand the things of God. (1 Cor. 2:16)
• I have been bought with a price. I am not my own; I belong to God. (1 Cor. 6:19-20)
• I have been given the Holy Spirit guaranteeing my inheritance to come. (2 Cor. 1:21-22; Eph. 1:13,14)
• Since I have died, I no longer live for myself but for Christ. (2 Cor. 5:14,15)
• I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. The life I am now living is Christ's life through me. (Gal. 2:20)
• I have been blessed with every spiritual blessing. (Eph. 1:3)
• I was chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy, and I am without blame before Him. (Eph. 1:4)
• I was predestined—determined by God—to be adopted as His child. (Eph. 1:5)
• I have been redeemed and forgiven, and I am a recipient of His lavish grace.
• I have been made alive together with Christ. (Eph. 1:7-8, 2:5)
• I may approach God with boldness, freedom, and confidence. (Eph. 3:12) Hebrews 12
• I have been rescued from the domain of Satan's rule and transferred to the kingdom of Christ. (Col. 1:13)
• I am rooted in Christ, and as my roots in him grow, I am built up in Him. (Col. 2:7)
• I have been spiritually circumcised; my old unregenerate nature has been removed and received a new heart. (Col. 2:11)
• I have been made complete in Christ. (Col. 2:10)
• I have been given exceedingly great and precious promises from God by which I am a partaker of God's divine nature. (2 Peter 1:4)
I want to encourage you to let these truths penetrate your heart! You possess these blessings as His child in Jesus Christ. Look up the scriptures. Read these statements every day…let the truth of scripture renew your thoughts and change your perspective. Encourage one another in who God says you are and the blessings we possess with other Christians in your life.
Serving Christ,
Jeff
The Reality of What We Possess