And Who Do You Belong To?
These questions, along with a few others: Where did you come from? Where are you going? are common throughout the Bible. Knowing who we are in Christ is spiritual meat today to those who desperately need to hear it. The answers to these questions should bring comfort, hope, and confidence, but sometimes they prove that someone hasn’t really had the truth go from head knowledge into their heart. I was like this myself until, thanks be to God, His Spirit grabbed hold and said, “Look!”
It appears that, with this recent election, we went over the tipping point in our country, which is scary, but being confident in who He is and who we are (as Jesus is confident) is comforting. He told us who He is, who we are, where we’re going, and what was going to happen beforehand, so we would know when we saw it. We can stand on His faithful promises, as they are Good News. This is blessed assurance for us.
Isaiah 51:12-13 “I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you should be afraid of a man who will die, and of the son of a man who will be made like grass?”
Jesus said, “‘Behold, I have come— In the volume of the book it is written of Me— To do Your will, O God’” (Hebrews 10:7 and Psalm 40:7). He said everything must be fulfilled which was written about Him in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms (Luke 24:44). Truly, all of the Scriptures testify about Him (John 5:39), and His testimony is all of it from beginning to end, is inspired by God, and is the spirit of prophecy; the prophecies, parables, even riddles, help us to see. Yet so many skip right over the Old Testament, saying it’s outdated and irrelevant. That isn’t what Jesus says:
John 5:46 “For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.”
The woman at the well spoke with Jesus and came away so excited, telling everyone who would listen, “He told me everything I ever did!” What’s written about Jesus, our forefathers and brethren – everything anyone ever did in the Word of God – is also testimony about us, as we’re His body, the children of God, and of the house and Kingdom of God. As His body, we see ourselves in the Scriptures and tell others about the things written. We know Him, so we testify of His goodness, grace, and mercy, as we’ve seen and experienced it in our very own lives.
John 4:29 “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did! Could this be the Christ?”
Jesus repeats in John 8:16 and 29 that He is the One who bears witness of Himself; He knows where He came from and where He’s going; He’s not alone but with the Father:
John 8:12-19 “Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.’ The Pharisees therefore said to Him, “You bear witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true.” Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from and where I am going. ‘You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one. And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me.
“It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. I am One who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me.’ Then they said to Him, “Where is Your Father?” Jesus answered, ‘You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also.’”
John 8:29 “And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.”
We clearly see in those verses that the ones who didn’t believe Him, who did not know Him, where He came from, and where He’s going (v.14), they’re the ones who said His witness was not true. He told them alright, but they didn’t believe Him, and denied Him, as many have continued doing up until today. Those who continue to deny Him without repentance are the ones who, like Peter in Luke 22:62, will “go out and weep bitterly” after they realize what they’ve done, when the bitter root springs up to defile many. The rooster (town crier) crowed for Peter and is crowing right now. However, when that Day comes, it will come suddenly.
Paul, “who was sent by Jesus Christ and God the Father, and all the brothers and sisters with him” (Galatians 1:1-2), said Jesus died on the cross to deliver us from the present (impending) evil age (Galatians 1:4), so anyone who has read and heard those words (even right this very second) should not say this is not true, lest they be like the Pharisees, who said His witness wasn’t true. God sent me as a witness, just as He sent Paul and countless other disciples to share the Gospel of Grace and Peace (Galatians 1:3), the words which Paul repeats over and over, he said: “as a sign.”
The words Jesus repeats about not being alone in John 8:16 and 29 above are meant to be comforting and give us hope, which is the anchor for our soul, so we won’t sway when “He rises to shake the whole earth” (Isaiah 2:19,21, Haggai 2:6-7, and Hebrews 12:26-27). “The righteous may fall seven times and get back up, but the wicked fall by calamity” (Proverbs 24:16).
Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”
The Light gives witness to the Light, and our witness is true, because we know where we came from, and where we’re going. Our Light can’t be hidden, and it gives Light to all who are in our household.
John 10:14-15 “I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.”
In John 1:48, when Nathan asked Jesus how He knew him, Jesus told him that He had already seen him – underneath the fig tree! The fig tree represents peace and blessing, where no one can make us afraid. We should be inviting everyone we come across to come sit with us under our vine and fig tree, as it is part of His Gospel of Peace.
Micah 4:4 “But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid; For the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken.”
We are the mouth of God when we speak His Words and invite others to do the same. Joshua shared a prophetic vision which showed the Branch, the Stone with seven eyes, and all of the iniquity of the land being healed in Zechariah 3:
Zechariah 3:10 “On that day, declares the LORD of hosts, you will each invite your neighbor to sit under your own vine and fig tree.”
These are good words to soak ourselves in, as His words never return void:
Ephesians 1:3-4 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.”
John 15:16 “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.”
1 Thessalonians 1:4 “For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that He has chosen you.”
2 Thessalonians 2:13 “But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.”
We’re told that those who are called and sanctified in the Father are preserved in Jesus Christ. The lawless one comes against those who are not preserved; they are perishing because they have not believed (2 Thess.2:9-10).
Jude 1:1-2 “Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ: Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.”
Many who went before us readily confessed the answers to these questions, with faith:
- Jonah 1:8 “Then they said to him, ‘Please tell us! For whose causeis this trouble upon us? What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?’ So he said to them, “I am a Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry ”
- Judges 19:17 “And when he raised his eyes, he saw the traveler in the open square of the city; and the old man said, ‘Where are you going, and where do you come from?’ So he said to him, “Weare passing from Bethlehem in Judah toward the remote mountains of Ephraim; I am from there. I went to Bethlehem in Judah; now I am going to the house of the LORD. But there is no one who will take me into his house.”
Those who are of our Lord’s sheep pen are predestined by God and will hear His voice, obey, and follow Him when He rises up because we do the will of our Father. We will not follow a stranger’s voice. We’re chosen in Him from the foundation of the world, so we know His voice and will choose to obey and follow Him, as it is His Spirit who guides us into all truth. This is debated by many (and even argued over), this topic of predestination; however, it’s been made clear that God is the Head and Master of the House, and we certainly aren’t making any choices He didn’t already know about! The Word says He knew and loved us first, so we could know and love Him.
Galatians 4:8-9 “But then, indeed, when you did not know God, you served those which by nature are not gods. But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage?”
We are no longer in bondage to the enemy who is the shadow of turning, so we should not turn back to bondage again, lest we be like him.
If we look carefully at this verse, Moses asked God that in His grace, He would show him His way, so that he could know Him. This verse in Exodus shows it does go both ways, but God knew Moses first; He’d have had to in order to have chosen us and known/formed us in the womb. While we were yet sinners, He knew and loved us, patiently waiting for us to turn to Him and away from our sins.
Exodus 33:12-13 “Then Moses said to the LORD, ‘See, You say to me, “Bring up this people.” But You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, “I know you by name, and you have also found grace in My sight.” Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is Your people.’”
There is another nation – it’s called “the most wicked nation” (Ezekiel 7:24), the “rebellious nation” (numerous times, prophetically repetitive for those who are looking), “sinful nation” (Isaiah 1:4), “ruthless nation” (Ezekiel 30:12), “ruthless and impetuous nation” (Habakkuk 1:6). That is the kingdom of darkness, Satan’s kingdom.
God’s people, who have gladly received the Sacrificial Blood, are the “Chosen, Blessed, and Holy” nation of the Kingdom of God, the Light of the World, and have been chosen to have an intimate relationship with the LORD. We know Him and know He is gracious, compassionate, and merciful (the two words “gracious and merciful” are repeated in the same verses together in at least 12 places, making a point – look and see); He is faithful and just to forgive, and His love keeps no record of wrongs: we’re “His own special people” (1 Peter 2:9).
We’ve been told we’ll hear of wars and rumors of wars, but the end is when nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be pestilence and famine. The rebellious and ruthless nation is rising up with murderous threats against our chosen nation because it has an ancient hatred, and we can see this happening. He says when this happens, we should lift our heads, for our redemption is near; we’ll rise up before our betrayer, our enemy, comes for us, and escape death because Jesus already paid that price for us. We have no part with that other nation, and it has no part with us! Jesus said He has let us know beforehand (John 14:27-31), so when it does, we’ll believe. Those who believe will follow Him to our comfortable, safe, peaceful, and spacious abode, where there will be rejoicing, feasting, and only light – no more darkness.
Mark 14:42 “Then He came the third time and said to them, ‘Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough! The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.’”
Now may grace and peace be multiplied. Amen!
Angela