You Are Not Just a...

Good morning children of God! What an incredible honor it is to be His child. We are just a week away from Palm Sunday and two weeks away from Resurrection Sunday. Jesus spent that time preparing his followers for what was coming.

Everything leading up to the cross, the horror of the cross itself, three days in the grave, the resurrection, and ascending to the Father. Everything he did was for you and for me. Never-ending grace.

About a month ago, I was giving a talk to a group of men about God’s Sacred Moments of Grace in our lives. If you started trying to count all of the moments of grace God gives us, it would blow your mind. We are in a Sacred Moment of Grace right now. Coming together to worship God. Loving one another and loving Jesus together.

We will be taking communion as part of our service today. Another Sacred Moment of Grace that Christ gives us to participate in with him and each-other. There are so many moments of Grace he gives us, I do not think we could possibly count all of them.

After I gave this talk about God’s Sacred Moments of Grace, an older gentleman came up to me and asked if he could talk to me. I said “Of course.” He said to me, “I enjoyed your talk, but I have a problem with something you said.” I immediately thought “Oh Lord, please don’t let this be a theological debate.” This man said to me “What did you mean when you said you are ‘Just a?’”

I will admit that I was a bit confused, but this was about to become a moment of iron sharpening iron. The funny thing is that sparks are created when you sharpen something, right. I was the one on the receiving end of the sparks this time. Somewhere in this talk, I said “I am just a pea brained guy trying to share the good news of Jesus Christ.”

He asked me “are we created in the image of God?” I said “of course we are.” He then asked “Does God have a pea brain?” To which I answered “No.” Barry, this older Gentleman, replied “Then neither do you.” “You are not ‘just a’ anything outside of what and who God says you are.’”

Ya’ll, that will preach. I received that. He was right. What I meant to be funny, was not funny at all. By degrading myself, I was degrading who God says I am. God does not create junk.

I thanked Barry for the not so gentle reminder and for giving me the topic for today’s sermon. This wonderful brother took the time to remind me of who I am, who we all are in Christ.

Brothers and sisters, I bring the same reminder to you this morning. You are not “just a.”

You Are Not Just:

Another Number

Another Person

Your Job Title

Your Physical Ailments

Your Mental Health Struggles

Your Family Title

God did not create a “just a” when He created you. He created someone who is fearfully and wonderfully made. He created you to be in fellowship with Him. He calls you His very own.

There are times we feel lost and out of place because the enemy likes to challenge our identity. He plants doubts in our minds so that we question the person God created us to be, and we will blindly pick up the fake identities the enemy throws our way.

What ends up happening is that we develop false ideas about God. We twist things around to where we start trying to tell God who we are, and expect God to agree with us!

God is very clear in His Word about who we are as believers. You and me, we do not get to “overrule” who God says we are. You may not want to believe who He says you are, but God’s Truth is unbending, unyielding, and immutable. God’s Truth does not change.

You are His greatest treasure, and He proved that by way of the cross. The cross and the empty tomb are His way of proving His great love for you. God does not have to prove anything to us, yet He does. He wants you to know this morning that you are the living proof of His great love.

How many of us can look back on our lives, even recently, and say “And there was God, and there was God, and Here is God.” You are not “just a” anything you can come up with that will change who God says you are or change His love for you.

Let’s take a quick look at the definition of “am.”

Definition of "Am": Identity

The primary usage of "am" pertains to identity, where it helps to assert the nature or character of the speaker.

When we say “I am...” we are stating our identity to others. I am here to tell you this morning that the GREAT I AM may tell a different story about who you are.

God has given you His promise and His Word. His Word is meant to correct us, affirm us, and edify us. Next time you find yourself in that negative head space, listening to the lies, or you find yourself thinking or saying “I am just a...” or “All I am is a...” remember who God says you are. I would love if you all join me in speaking these truths this morning!

God Says -

I am Saved (2 Timothy 1:9)

I am Chosen (1 Thessalonians 1:4)

I am Forgiven (1 John 2:12)

I am Redeemed (Ephesians 1:7)

I am Free From Sin (Romans 6:22)

I am More Than a Conqueror (Romans 8:37)

I am One With Christ (1 Corinthians 6:17)

I am Called (1 Corinthians 7:17)

I am Loved (John 3:16)

I am Accepted (Romans 15:7)

I am Precious to God (Isaiah 43:4)

I am a Child of God (1 John 3:1)

AMEN AND AMEN! Your Identity is found in God. Not this world, not someones opinion about you, or how you may feel about yourself. Your identity is found in who GOD SAYS YOU ARE, UNTO HIS GLORY, TO GLORIFY HIM!

Imagine using the same verbiage, “I am just a” or “All I am is,” when we talk about who God says we are? Let’s see how it sounds.

“I am just one with Christ”

“All I am is loved by God.”

“I am just accepted by God”

“All I am is a child of God”

Can you imagine looking Jesus in the eye and saying those things! Jesus would rebuke us! So the question for each of us this morning is “Who am I?”

Are you who the world says you are? Are you buying the lies of the enemy and identifying as who he says you are? Are you getting stuck in your own head and believing the lies that you tell yourself? I get it, it is a struggle at times.

I have spoken biblical affirmations to myself at times and immediately thought “I sure don’t feel like it though.” “LORD, you say I am called.” “I sure don’t feel like it I failed again.” What does God say? “I love you and you can’t change that.”

We either believe and have faith in who God says we are, or we are calling God a liar. If God is a liar, we have a big problem. GOD IS NOT A LIAR, GOD DOES NOT FAIL, and GOD KNOWS WHO YOU ARE BETTER THAN YOU DO. We can’t hide from Him. He knows your heart and mind, He created you!

These next few verses boggle the mind. Jesus says something so out there, so crazy, that nobody knew what to make of it. Let’s look at who JESUS SAYS YOU ARE.

Mt 12:46–50 NIV

46 While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. 47 Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.” 48 He replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” 49 Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

Who says stuff like that? Our King! Do you know how many of those “You are just a...” Jesus heard from other people, including his own family? “You are just a carpenter.” “You are just a crazy guy.” “You are just a heretic.” “You are just a man.” “You are just another criminal.” If Jesus Christ identified himself in any way outside of God, we would be having a much different conversation today.

Like Jesus, one of the reasons we face those lies is because we stand with Jesus Christ. We all know someone or have been on the receiving end of rejection by family or friends. Jesus knows how you feel.

Jesus was not disowning his earthly family in these verses. Jesus held his family close to his heart just as he does every soul and every home.

What Jesus was saying is that you belong to a unique family that the world cannot understand. You belong to a spiritual family that only Jesus could bring together. You belong to an eternal family in His forever Kingdom.

Let’s look at Matthew 12:49-50 again.

Matthew 12:49–50 NLT

49 Then he pointed to his disciples and said, “Look, these are my mother and brothers. 50 Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!”

If you are a student of Christ, a follower of Christ, a disciple of Christ, IF YOU ARE SAVED BY GRACE, Christ points to you and calls you his brother and sister. BEING A BROTHER OR SISTER OF CHRIST TRUMPS EVERY OTHER IDENTITY OR TITLE YOU CAN COME UP WITH.

You are who God says you are because God is the GREAT I AM! God has the final say. When we walk and live in and by the Spirit, we are walking and living as brothers and sisters of Christ, children of God, adopted into the Kingdom of Glory. The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 8:14

Romans 8:14 NLT

14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.

The Greek word for led (ah-go) means a few different things in this context. I sometimes chuckle and shake my head in joy at the utter amazement of the love of God. Ah-go means that the Spirit leads and carries us through the trials of this life. It means that the Spirit guides us along the path of righteousness into all Truth. That the Spirit directs us, He blazes a path ahead of us, as we walk in this life, until He brings us into the presence of God Himself.

I have said it before and it is worth repeating. Holy Spirit is God’s mark on you. Never mind the mark of the beast, you carry the very mark of God, Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:15–16 NLT

15 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” 16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, you are not a “just a,” you are not a “has been,” you are not a “could’ve been,” you are not a “never was,” “you are not a “never will be.”

You are His. Speak THAT truth into your life and into the lives of others.

Communion

I want to spend a few minutes talking about Holy Communion this morning. Earlier, I said that communion is a “Sacred Moment of Grace.”

Holy Communion allows us to express unity with our brothers and sisters in Christ while experiencing an encounter with the Risen Lord. Communion is a sacred moment of grace that Christ shares with us, and we share in with him, and one another.

In Luke 22:15, we are told that Jesus “eagerly desired to eat the Passover meal with the disciples...”  even Judas, who would betray Jesus. If you read scripture carefully, Jesus placed Judas near him.

Jesus wanted Judas to have the same opportunity he gives each of us. To truly know Him. To learn from Him. To choose him. To repent. To forgive. To follow Him. Jesus EAGERLY wants us to come to him.

We are not to take communion lightly. Scripture tells us to examine our hearts and mind before taking communion. When we take Holy Communion, it is an act of reverence; an act of worship. When we eat the bread and drink the wine, we are worshipping through remembrance and a renewed dedication.

When Jesus took the bread, first he thanked God, and then broke the bread. He thanked the Father knowing what was coming. Jesus is the bread of life. He said “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.”

Jesus then took a cup of wine, gave thanks to God, and said “This is my blood which confirms the covenant between God and His people. It is poured out for the sacrifice of many.” That is the blood oath we have talked about. His blood sealed the promise. It is only through his atoning sacrifice that we are made righteous before God.

Prayer

Father God, we thank you for the opportunity to come into your Royal Courts through the blood of your perfect son, Jesus Christ. Fill us with your love, grace, and mercy. Teach us and lead us as we become more like Christ. We thank you for this opportunity to unite with one another in your presence.

As we remember your Son, Jesus Christ, we thank you for all you do in our lives and the lives of others. For your forgiveness, for your grace, and for your mercy, which is renewed every morning. We praise you, LORD, in the mighty, unmatched, unparalleled name of Yeshua Hamashiach, Jesus the Messiah, Amen.

We are not going to rush through this moment of grace. If you would like to receive communion at the alter this morning, you are welcome to. If you would like to receive communion standing, you are welcome to. When you are ready, come receive in remembrance of Him.