James 1:22-24
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.
I am sure that you do spend time looking at yourself in the mirror. The physical mirror reveals the true state of physical things and helps you in making necessary changes and adjustments.
Did you know, the Word of God is a mirror? It reveals your true identity. It is tragic that believers spend more time in the mirror of the world than in the mirror of God’s Word. The world will give you a wrong picture of your identity. This results in believers living like the world. In Christ you have received a new identity for you were recreated with the life and the nature of God. Something happened the moment you got born again.
2 Corinthians 5.17
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, old things have passed away and behold all things have become new.
The Word will show you – Who you are in Christ and what you have in Christ. The Word reveals the IN CHRIST REALITIES. You must know these new covenant realities. Once you know who you are, you can live it out. This knowledge of your identity will affect your thinking, your speech and your behaviour.
God’s people are destroyed for a lack of Word knowledge. You are not trying to become a child of God. You are a child of God, live accordingly. You are not trying to get victory. You are victorious in Christ, live accordingly. You are not trying to defeat the devil. Satan is defeated, live and talk accordingly and keep him under your feet. Identity affects your behaviour and your response.
When a person becomes born again, he or she doesn’t know their new identity in Christ. This is why the Apostle Peter says, ‘as new born babes, desire the pure milk of God’s Word so you can grow thereby.’ It is your responsibility to study your Bible with the help of anointed teachers and discover your true identity in Christ. If you don’t, then like many other believers, you too will conclude that living the Christ life is difficult and full of struggles. You will struggle in living a righteous life if you don’t know that you have been made the righteousness of God in Christ. But if you do know this reality and are established in it, then living righteously would be struggle-free for you. Many believers are working on their behavior to achieve some identity. This is not the way! You have an identity in Christ. Strengthen your understanding concerning your identity in Christ and your behaviour will get in line with your identity.
We don’t work from the outside in – that’s religion. We work from the inside out. As you study the Pauline epistles, write down the In Christ Realities and confess them daily. Take time and meditate on these realities till it develops a Christ mindset in you. I have put together a In Christ confession in this website – I AM confession. You can confess this daily and I believe it will help you see who you really are in Christ.
James 1:25
But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
Allow the mirror of God’s Word to reveal your true identity, to teach you the truth, to expose your mistakes, to correct you when you are wrong and to instruct you in right living. Behold steadfastly onto this mirror and submit to the mighty Word of God, you will be equipped and prepared for every good work. You will be blessed in everything you do. Hallelujah!
Your Victorious Life 