“Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,” Ephesians 1:5.

“Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular,” 1 Corinthians 12:27

Most of us in our western culture take our identity from what we do in terms of a job, business, or career.

And yet we have an identity with the One that knows us and has carved out that place deep within us of who we really are.

Some of us are teachers or farmers, lawyers, nurses, or custodians. We come from a myriad of different skills, backgrounds and work. We may have spent several years preparing and studying for a particular career.

Some have spent thousands of dollars for specialized schooling in preparation for these skills and knowledge that would allow them to work in the given fields that they have chosen. And of course we are also mothers and fathers, sons and daughters.

However, there comes a time in our lives when the work that we have done for decades slowly comes to an end, or at least “shifts “ into another area. Those who teach in the school system, or any other field, eventually decide that it is time to retire, if they can.

But throughout the work that one does, this does not necessarily define who they are in their deepest self. Certainly a teacher who has chosen to end a career never actually ceases to be a teacher. Certainly someone who has been involved in the medical field as a nurse, never ceases to care about people, or is compassionate towards others. But the work that we have done does not again, define “who” we are.

Our culture is so wrapped up in the doing of certain things that I believe we have lost sight of our inner focus and the awareness of who we are in Christ. Jesus, Yeshua, the soon and coming King, has a calling, an identity with Him, that far exceeds anything that we could ever “do” in society.

Many of us wear labels even in the body of Christ. Someone who pastors a church would certainly be labeled and known as a pastor. Those who have greeted others in a church setting, are recognized as greeters.

But what of those who have taken up their abode, their residence not in the orthodox buildings of churches, but only in the ultimate communion of the Lord Himself?

There are many among us who certainly know who they are in Christ without wearing the labels that some seem to need. Those who have faithfully reached out and have been called to gather in souls for the Kingdom would certainly be considered as an evangelist by many.

Those who have faithfully reached out to the hurting and lost would certainly be known as givers of mercy. For their compassion and love are the very fruits that have identified them as this type of a person.

One doesn’t necessarily need to receive a certificate of completion to be known as a prophet. One doesn’t actually need to enroll in a “School of the “Prophets” to know how to prophesy. And more importantly, no amount of schooling can make one into a prophet.

For the training that is done is ministered by the LORD Himself. Someone who has been called to this ministry or any other one, is known by those around him of who he is.

He or she, doesn’t need to wear a label on their lapel that identifies them as a prophet, evangelist, pastor, teacher, giver of mercy, or any other function or ministry of the body of Christ.

Certainly it is true that study and preparation has its merits and indeed, is quite necessary in the maturation of this process. Jesus knew Peter, James, John, and the other disciples who He had called.

They were “known “ before the foundation of the earth. Their identity had been formed before the rocks and the trees had come forth.

Know who you are “in Him.” Don’t allow the world with all of it’s rules and regulations to keep you from knowing your identity in Christ. That place deep inside cries out and shouts from the rooftops of your self in Him.

 

Selah,
~ Stephen Hanson

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Stephen Hanson of In His Truth Ministries came to the LORD is a special way in 1975 and has prophesied regularly since. In these end-time birthing pangs we are reminded that judgment must first begin with the household of God. Will we be prepared and ready?

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