“But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel:
‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.’” Isaiah 43:1
In our culture, identity is everything. I constantly tell people my name, my grade, and my occupation. I explain everything that defines me. But, how often do we stop to think that we are God’s?
As humans, we live in a self-sufficient society. Everything we do is about us. We strive and struggle every day to maintain or create a good reputation. We want to be accepted and respected by others, and ultimately we want to make a name for ourselves. But we all should remember that we are bearing God’s name. God chose us to be His, we are His children, we are made in His likeness. Our reputation should always be a reflection of Him.
My grandmother and my father have always told me to “remember who you are, and whose you are”. Do I honestly stop and think about that enough? Who am I? And what do I let define me?
The Bible tells us exactly who we are, and exactly who we belong to.
Psalm 100:3 ESV says, “Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.”
John 1:12, ESV says “…to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,”
1 Peter 2:9 ESV says “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;”
This is just a short list of passages that explicitly state that we are God’s. Before the world was even formed, He chose us. He loved us so much that He wanted us to be His.
Every single human is connected by the desire that we all want to be wanted and we all have a desire to be loved. Everyone is longing to have a good name and be liked, and that is a lot of pressure. But God is telling us not to worry about that because only He can fill the God-sized hole in our hearts. We have the awesome opportunity to live in the peace of His name and His reputation.
God says we are His. The next time you feel overwhelmed or pressured to make a name for yourself, remember that it’s not about you and you don’t have to struggle with that stress. God is right there with us, telling us we are His and we bear His name. That stress can be on Him. We can live in the comfort of belonging to God.
I want to end with this verse. Think about how incredible it is that a God so perfect only wants you. He chose you!
Ephesians 1:4 NLT says, “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.”
Everything God says about me is true, and He says I am His!
In Christian Love,
Julianna
