Who Am I?

We will likely never fully comprehend the full beauty of the Gospel. To consider that God has chosen us before the foundation of the world according to His own foreknowledge of us, truly is beyond my own limited capability. To somehow imagine the depths of my sin being forgiven and the riches of God’s grace and mercy replacing it seems too much to wrap my mind around. To think of myself and my brothers and sisters in Christ in the terms that God has used to refer to us is in and of itself a discipline that requires practice. It is so much easier to consider myself from my own perspective. Or to determine who I am based on what everyone other than God says about me rather than resting in His all-knowing, eternal, and sovereign view.

So, I remind myself regularly, from passages just like the one we have been studying in 1 Peter – consider again who God says you are, remember with me who He says we are …

1 Pet 1:1-21 –

• Chosen by the Father – he picked you.
• Foreknown by the Father – before you were, He knew you personally, intimately, lovingly
• Exiles – outcasts in the world because we belong to Him
• Sanctified by the Spirit –  cleansed, purified, set apart, made holy by God’s work
• Sprinkled by the blood of Christ – He atones for our sin, by His death we are made clean.
• Recipients of Great Mercy – deserving of judgment and condemnation but it has been relieved
• Born Again -  recipient of new life, spiritual and eternal life
• Beneficiary of God – He has given us and guaranteed us an eternal inheritance
• Protected by God – His eternal power is shielding us even in the midst of difficulty
• Saved – we are safe, there is nothing that can truly harm us ever again
• Served by God – He has served us in salvation, not the other way around
• Holy – we may be exiles in the world, but we are set apart to be members of His Kingdom
• Children of God – we are more than citizens of the Kingdom we are the adopted children of the King.
• Ransomed – purchased at a price, we are a people that He valued and now possesses. He created us and then even had to buy us in order to free us.

We may not be able to comprehend it fully. We may not even be able to explain it as well as others, but there is no doubt that what God has done gives us great reason to rejoice (1 Peter 1:6). Remember, who He says you are; it is the source of your joy, your peace, your satisfaction and contentment as you wait for Him.

In this we rejoice!