God desires for us to know how we are known by Him.
Transcript
Today, we are going to take a “Posture of Peace” by not forgetting what we look like.
Posture is a short, audible fist bump to remind you God is with you in everything. Together, we’re going to be emboldened to take a daily Posture of perfect peace.
So we started the week, I may mention of James 1 and we’re gonna go back to James chapter 1 today. I’m gonna be reading from verses 22 through 25, it says, “But be doers of the Word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the Word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in the mirror, for he looks at himself and goes away, and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty and perseveres, be no hear who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.”
You know, God is relational. And we’ve talked about this before. His primary purpose, Genesis 126, is to make us in His image and likeness. God’s passion is to include us in His community, to connect us into fellowship with the Godhead, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And He desires for us to know how we are known by Him, meaning He wants us to see through His perspective, He wants us to live in His glory. So He put His very Spirit in us, Romans 811. He gave us the mind of Christ, 1 Corinthians 216. And He’s given us precious promises, so that we may partner with and partake of His divine nature, 2 Peter 1:4. And you know, not only that, but He’s given us His Word. He’s given a scripture to equip us, empower us to live the life that He has planned for us. And it’s not an easy life by worldly definitions, but it’s a victorious one. It’s one of fullness. It’s a life of strength. It’s one of just not overcoming, but being more than a conqueror. How do I know this? His Word says so.
And what James is describing here in chapter one, is an identity crisis because to read or to hear the Word of God is to see yourself accurately. This is how God sees you. This is how you are known in heaven, this is the true you. But just to read it or to hear it and not respond, not to put it into practice, not to embrace it as the truth, is the same as walking away from a mirror and forgetting what you look like. Don’t forget what you look like today. You know, James says, when we do this, we deceive ourselves, we settle for a lesser reality, you sell yourself short.
So let me ask you this. Is there a scripture that just so deeply resonates with you? Maybe it’s what you would call your life verse, some people call it their inheritance word, you know. Maybe it’s something that you read even recently that you just can’t seem to shake, it keeps popping up in your mind and your heart, you know. Maybe it’s a scripture you read recently about peace or healing or soundness of mind or joy, or power or victory or righteousness or love or freedom and you thought, I wish this were me. I wish this were true about my life. I wanna encourage you, plant yourself in that scripture. Embrace it as your reality because it is your reality in Christ. Meditate on it. Rejoice in it and ask the Holy Spirit to lead you in that truth.
Years ago, I actually did this with Isaiah 61. I claimed it as my life first and I said, you know, in my heart, this is who I wanna be. I wanna proclaim the good news to the poor. I wanna bind up the brokenhearted. I wanna proclaim freedom to the captives. And I know many of you know my story, but you know, a few years ago, I was the captive. I was the one brokenhearted, I was caught up in the chokehold of anxiety and panic and yet in the middle of that, I planted myself in Isaiah 61 as well as several other scriptures and promises about specifically peace that I know I’ve mentioned before in past episodes. No matter what I was facing and my circumstances at that time, I knew enough to know, God wasn’t lying.
God wasn’t lying when He says in Isaiah 61, that they will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor. And now I don’t just know this truth, I’m living it. Let His Word be your certainty today. No matter what life is throwing at you, no matter what swirling around you, this is who you are, and this is who you are becoming. It’s a beautiful journey that the Bible says goes from glory to glory. So today, don’t forget what you look like. Plants yourself in the Word of God and remember, His reality is your reality.