And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.
—Romans 8:30 (NLT)
God declares in this verse that He chose you to know Him. You were chosen to be His child and receive all the inherent blessings in that relationship. Jesus gave His life for you to have this relationship with God. God called you to come to Himself, and when you came to Him, you received right standing with Him. You now stand blameless and without guilt in God’s presence. And when Jesus gave you right standing with His Father, you received God’s glory (Ephesians 1:3-8). He became your Abba Father (Galatians 4:6). Christ, the hope, of glory is within you (Colossians 1:27). His glorious power lives within you (Ephesians 1:19).
This is how God sees you, and He desires for you to see these truths in yourself. But we become frustrated when we try to earn the truth of His righteousness we have already been given. We must allow the Word to transform our understanding of the gift of righteousness that is ours in Christ. We haven’t called ourselves. We can’t forgive ourselves and make ourselves right with God. We can’t earn His righteousness because He gave it to us when He died for us. Your new life in Christ is a gift you can never earn. You have to believe that His gift of righteousness is yours.
“Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.” What then shall we say to these things?” (Romans 8:30-31a, NKJV).
After declaring these truths about us, Paul asks a crucial question. “Do you believe who God says you are—that God chose you and having accepted Him, you are called, justified, and glorified?”
The Word can declare these truths about you. But they do not make a difference in your life until you take ownership of what God says about you. When you have power in your life that you are not utilizing, you are not receiving the benefits of your inheritance in Christ. But when you believe what God declares about you in His Word, you receive what His truth declares (Hebrews 4:2). You believe what God says about you by faith (Romans 10:17). You don’t always “feel” what God says is true. You have to know what is true. You exercise by faith that what His Word says is true. And when you believe His Word in your heart, His power is alive and realized in you.
What is your response to who Jesus says you are? This is where who you are in Christ comes down to your personal relationship with Him. No one else can answer the question Romans 8:31 asks you, “what do you say to these things?” It is your personal question. You might say, “God saved me but for me to believe I’m chosen, called, justified, glorified, and filled with the power of God, I don’t know about that.” And with this response, you close the door to believing who you are in Christ.
It is truthful for you to say, “God chose me. I am called by God. I am justified in Christ. I am glorified with the Spirit of God within me. I have the shed blood of my Savior living in me. So what do I say to these things that God says about me? I am forgiven. I am whole. I am healed. I am delivered. Jesus is alive in me. I see myself as God sees me. This is true for me.”
“What shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us” (Romans 8:31, NKJV).
What do you say to these things about yourself? God sees the image of His Son in you. You are new in Christ. All the old is gone. God is for you and not against you. Nothing has any power to stand against you when you believe in who God says you are. You are chosen, called, justified, and glorified.
“Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17, NKJV).
© 2022 Lynn Lacher
www.lynnlacher.com/2022/12/who-are-you-in-christ.html
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