Loved and Strong || Who Am I? || Week 7 (FINALE)

This is it, folks! Welcome to the final part of a series we’ve been doing called “Who Am I?” If you’re new to this series, I encourage you to read or listen to the previous six parts to help you understand the variety of topics we talk about. This series has been about understanding our identity through Christ. As children of God, we are called a variety of titles, and it’s been my goal to walk through said titles to give you a greater understanding of them. Today, we’re only looking at two titles. These two titles, in my opinion, really hit home as to what it means to be a Child of God. Let’s get into it. 

Title #1: I am greatly loved by God. 

Romans 1:7 – This letter is to all of you in Rome. God loves you, and he has chosen you to be his holy people. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Ephesians 2:4 – But God is rich in mercy, and he loved us very much. 

Colossians 3:12 – God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So your new life should be like this: Show mercy to others. Be kind, humble, gentle, and patient. 

1 Thessalonians 1:4 – Brothers and sisters, God loves you. And we know that he has chosen you to be his chosen people.

There’s a lot to unpack here, but we will walk through this slowly and methodically to make sure you can understand what this means for you. 

In Paul’s letter to the church in Rome, the Greek writing separates this verse as three separate privileges:

• God has set his love on his own
• He has extended to them not only the general, external invitation to believe the gospel, but his effectual calling – or his drawing to himself all those he has chosen for salvation.
• God has set believers apart from sin unto himself so that they are holy ones.

Again, a LOT of information to unpack. I can’t go through all of this in today’s blog of the ample scripture references, but I can take these three points and elaborate on them with what I know about God to see if we can elaborate on this.

To say that God has set his love on his own makes complete sense to me. We can’t decide who God will and won’t love. God’s already taken care of that, and all we’re called to do is love everyone as God loves us. This is a tough call because we have many preconceived judgments and biases about different demographics of people. Still, we need to set aside those things to make sure we love intentionally. We are not judges, juries, and executioners. We are called, loved, and a child of God. God loves who he decides through his invitation of a relationship to all who are willing to receive. As stated, God not only extends the invitation to believe the gospel and be free of your sin, but he takes it a step further. God uses what’s known as an effectual call. Based on my research and understanding, an effectual call is God’s power of conviction to draw people salvation. That’s probably oversimplified, but I can encourage you to do some research yourself. We can have a conversation in the comments below. God sets those free from sin apart from others. As believers, we acknowledge that our sins are forgiven through the sacrifice Jesus made. As believers, we are elevated to a higher calling (saints as used in this text) to act as ambassadors of God. We are called to show the world who God is, what He’s about, and what He can do for those who may not have a relationship with him. 

In Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus, we see this verse about how God has abundant mercy and love towards us. It serves as a reminder that salvation is for the glory of God because it displays his boundless mercy and love for those who are not saved from their sin. It’s a gentle reminder that our God forgives no matter the circumstance and loves us no matter what. This happens no matter where we are in our walk with Christ. He is always willing to accept us as we are no matter the flaws we have, no matter the failures we go through, no matter the anxieties we deal with, and so much more. Plus, this doesn’t depend on human mercy and love. People can judge critically and love harshly because of the various agendas, biases, judgments, and perceptions that hold close. It makes it hard for us to talk to others because we fear being judged, but God doesn’t do that. Believers of Christ shouldn’t do that, but we aren’t perfect. That’s why I encourage you to seek a relationship with God, talk to him about where you are in life, and see where he leads you. 

We’ve talked about the verse from Paul’s letter to the church in Colossae before, so I don’t want to rehash it too much. It talks about different characteristics we need to share with others because of how God is with us. 

• Merciful – be compassionate and forgiving to all you meet. Let this be the foundation of your words and actions.
• Kind – be good in a way that washes them of all their negativity.
• Humble – avoid arrogance and ego as best as possible. Give glory to God at all times.
• Gentle – be caring to all you meet. You may have to walk with individuals through their hurts for God’s healing to occur.
• Patient – be calm with all you meet. As we just mentioned, it will take time for healing to occur, and they may need your support to just endure the waiting.

The verse from Paul’s first letter to the church in Thessalonica covers a topic we’ve referenced a lot, I feel. The church is commonly called “the elect.” In salvation, initiating will is God’s power, not man’s. Our will comes in response to God’s will, as Paul states here. Later in this chapter (verses 6 and 9), the Thessalonians received this word and turned to God from idols. These responses show an example of faith and repentance, something God calls people to throughout scripture. This is very much similar meaning to what we talked about in the Romans verse earlier, so I’d say take the explanation of this verse and mesh it with my Roman’s talk and go from there. While you do that, I’ll begin talking about the last title. 

Title #2: I am strengthened with all might according to His glorious power. 

Colossians 1:11 – that God will strengthen you with his own great power, so that you will be patient and not give up when troubles come. Then you will be happy. 

To talk about this type of strength, we need to hop over to Ephesians 3 and talk about verses 16 thru 20. There are many parts to the equation that Paul lays out to show how God’s power can work through believers. I want to focus on Ephesians 3:16

Ephesians 3:16 – I ask the Father with his great glory to give you the power to be strong in your spirits. He will give you that strength through his Spirit.

This spiritual power referenced here is a mark of every Christian who follows God’s word and the Holy Spirit. It is for all who discipline their minds and spirits to study the Bible, understand it and live accordingly. Although the human body weakens with age, the inner Spirit grows more robust through the Holy Spirit. It will feel energized, revitalized, and empowered. Now let’s tie this back to Colossians 1:11. 

We learned what it means to be strengthened by God and receive the Holy Spirit. Now let’s talk about the fruits of that strengthening. The terms of patience and endurance are closely related and refer to the attitude someone has when going through some trials. “Patience” looks more at the enduring difficult circumstances. “Endurance” looks at enduring difficult people. I absolutely love this explanation. 

God and the Holy Spirit teach us the fruits of patience and endurance to help get us through life, and I want you to think about how often we run into situations that involve that. How often do you deal with difficult circumstances in life? Maybe it’s a loved one who’s sick, a job that’s pushing you to its limits, the anxieties of living during a pandemic, and so many more possibilities. How often do you deal with difficult people in life? Maybe it’s anti-vax/anti-maskers when you’re all for it, maybe it’s a boss who’s driving you insane, and maybe it’s people who don’t have a care in the world for others. It’s patience and endurance that get us through it all and helps us survive the storm. 

Remember, you are greatly loved by God and are strengthened with his all mighty power. We’ll see you next time for another part of “Behind the Beatitudes.”