As children of the Most High, we must understand that forces around us want to rob the children of God of their heavenly destination and the life of fellowship with our Father while on Earth. As a man of God, He does not leave us without insight into the spiritual forces that want to rob us and our children of our true identity.God created man, and as such, we have been designed and built to be identified as children of God. When we hold onto who we are, we stand on a firm, never-shifting rock of our Father in Heaven. (Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God – John 1:12). We were created to spend our lives in fellowship with Him on Earth and eternity with Him in Heaven. We are children of the Most High!
But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2 Peter 2:1
Notice how the false prophets among us secretly introduce destructive heresies, denying (turning away from) the very Father who redeemed them. Despite Jesus paying the price for their sins, they have turned their backs on the One who purchased their freedom. They even exploit the weak with fabricated stories. 2 Peter 2:2-3 says, “Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.”The challenge arises when we doubt our identity and fail to recognize who we are in Christ. We were redeemed at a price through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Doubting that can easily lead us to shift from being children of God to becoming slaves of our flesh. A child of God never moves from being a child of the Most High that is set free from the penalties of sin to the sinner putting back on the chains of sin unless they doubt who their Father in Heaven is, and that always starts with doubt in who you are. Did God really make me? Doubt that you are made in the likeness of Him. Doubt that God wants to bless and protect you. Doubt that you have a calling. Doubt that you are called to live a righteous life. Fully matured doubt in who you are in Christ ends in a life of destruction. Doubt is the first step toward rebellion against God. In the garden, Satan planted doubt with his words, “Surely you won’t die.” That doubt took root in Eve’s heart and ultimately led to rebellion when she ate the forbidden fruit.
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment. 2 Peter 2:4-9
God tells us that if He didn’t spare the angels when they sinned, He won’t save you and me if we rebel! As men of God, our identity is in Him! My business is not my identity; my family is not my identity; my wealth is not my identity. Where I live is not my identity. I am a child of God, and as a child of God, He will protect me even if the world around me is falling apart. God promises that He will never leave us or forsake us. As children of the Most High, we have the assurance that no matter the conditions of the world around us, He will always be there.Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others were saved from the flood that came to kill the unrighteous. Lot and his family were taken out of Sodom and Gomorrah, a city full of unrighteousness, before God burned it in ashes and flames. God uses men of God to save not just their families but also others around them. But this only takes place if we know who we are in Christ and we stand firm in that calling. As children of God, we are assured of His constant presence. However, those who doubt fail to understand that even a whisper of doubt, when fully matured, leads to destruction. 2 Peter 2:17-22 offers insight into the devastating outcome of fully developed doubt.
As a man, I must remind myself daily who I am in Christ and tell my friends and loved ones who they are in Christ. I must stand at the door of my house with the Word of God and not let those who are led astray with false doctrine to enter. Our best weapon in doing so is the Word of God. RTM doesn’t just stand for Red Truck Men; RTM stands for READ THE MANUAL! His Word!
Have a great week.
Stephen L. Thomas