Last Updated on November 14, 2022 by OCF Communications
…If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
—2 Corinthians 5:17
As we enter as new year, the Scripture promise usually associated with Christmas, God with us—Emmanuel (Matthew 1:23), ought to be the buoy of hope we not only cling to but operate and confidently move in each and every single solitary moment of 2022.
We are coming into uncharted territory that, given the last few unprecedented and trying years, likely has us wondering well, what on earth is next? Yet He whose fingerprints are all over us, who created us in His very image and likeness (Genesis 1:26)—He knows. The Potter who deftly crafts the clay of our lives according to His blueprints—He has been there. And His call to each of us to whom He assigned a precise place and a purpose on the timeline of His perfect plan of creation is an unrevoked invitation: “follow Me.” Yes, Jesus Christ is God with us—our Emmanuel. But He is also God in us—and our hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).
The Fall 2020 COMMAND magazine with the Who Am I? cover story on the topic of identity in Christ was hands-down the single issue that OCF has ever received the most feedback on, at least during the past 15 years. The Who am I? question “is foundational for all believers,” wrote Joshua Schumacher, “because when we are saved by Jesus, we become a new person.”
But as Schumacher wrote, understanding that, and “the characteristics of our new nature is an ongoing process in living a life that reveals Jesus to the world.” The resounding chord that seemed to have been struck with so many—whether those interviewed or reading the article—was that we struggle with our identity in Christ. God, the Master Potter of our clay, will make use of our entire lifetime to free us from the false narratives and empty, passing goals we’ve built, embraced, and chosen to live in—with the help of worldly influences, including the enemy of our souls.
Our loving Father will vigilantly chip away at the achievements, talents, positions, power, rank, status, possessions, etc., we are prone to default to for our self-worth. His goal is to hone and refine our identity into the very image of Jesus Christ.
Thank you for stepping into your identity in Christ as an ambassador for Him in your life and service, particularly as an OCF prayer warrior.
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