This and That
Scripture Reading: Ephesians 1:3-8

Today’s Treasure: “Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith” (Romans 1:5). 

Beginning to believe I was who God says I was had a profound impact on life between the ditches for me.  For years I lived in a cycle of poor self-image followed by poor choices feeding a poorer self-image and even poorer choices.  My continued poor self-image was directly due to believing my feelings and my past’s prediction over my future rather than God’s Word.  In my latter twenties I began to study the Word of God in-depth.  I had no idea at the time that God’s first purpose for stirring an insatiable appetite for His Word was to perform intense and long-term surgery on my broken heart and distorted mind.  

Through the study of His Word, I came upon Scripture after Scripture characterizing a child of God.  Soon I began to believe them for others.  Many of you who are Christian teachers or speakers may be able to relate to my unhesitant willingness to apply these characterizing Scriptures to anyone else but me.  Surely someone besides me has confidently assured a hurting or questioning person of a biblical truth applying to her or him as a child of God that you didn’t accept for yourself.  Perhaps you’ve also noticed that God doesn’t put up with that for very long.  He has a strange penchant for consistency.  God is adamant that we allow Him to teach to us what He wants to teach through us. 

One way God hammered Biblical identity into my belief system was through a number of this and that conversations.  Let me see if I can explain.  When I saw Scriptures characterizing a child of God, I constantly sensed Him saying to my heart, “Beth, you are this.”  For a long time I still responded, “No, Lord, I am that.”  He and I both knew what I meant.  Part of my that derived its names from the hurtful things others sometimes said behind my back.  Your that may represent something entirely different, perhaps names you simply called yourself.  Just think of a that as anything other than an Ephesians 1 this.  Of course, God was right.  I was this, but because I believed I was that, I still had a tendency to think and/or act like that.  Months turned into years, and the voice of God grew increasingly insistent in my heart.  “Beth, when will you ever believe you are this?”  As my husband says, I am one hardheaded woman, but I finally began to respond, “OK, God.  I may be this, but my problem is that I still feel like that.”

With a mustard seed of faith to at least believe I was this even though I felt like that, God brought about a breakthrough.  Through constant doses of His Word and a growing cooperation in my heart, He taught me to believe Him enough to at least start making decisions like a this.  I would literally come to a crossroad of decision and think, “I still feel like that, but God says I’m this.  How would a this behave in my current situation?”  I’d even picture someone who I knew was a this and try to imagine what she’d do.  Over and over I coached myself to make choices based on my this mentality.  Not my old that.  Over time my habits began to change, and I started behaving like this.  After all, this is who I am.

All the while I was preoccupied with this and that, Romans 1:5 was hard at work.  You see, my obedience flowed directly from my faith to believe I was who God said I was even when I didn’t feel like it.  Not surprisingly, the more I acted like this instead of that, the more I felt blessed, chosen, adopted, favored, redeemed, and forgiven. (See Ephesians 1:3-8.)  I guess that’s why I’m like a dog gnawing on a bone in my unceasing insistence that anyone can live victoriously.  Anyone can know the joy and fruit of obedience.  Dear (equally hardheaded?) one, if I can live victoriously through the power of the Holy Spirit, anyone can. 

Lord, thank You for my identity in Christ.  Please help me believe that I am who You say I am.  Give me faith to believe it even when I don’t feel it.  Let obedience flow from that faith.  I pray to live as this and no longer like that.  In Jesus’ name, Amen. 

Adapted from Believing God, by Beth Moore, pages 98-100.  Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2004.  Used by permission.