My cousin Matthew played football as an offensive lineman in high school. His senior year, the school got a new offensive coordinator who was a former college coach. One day, the coordinator pulled Matthew aside and told him that he was really good and had a lot of potential. He said that if he were still a college coach, he would be trying to recruit Matthew. Realizing this for the first time, Matthew’s identity changed. He saw himself differently and began to work harder to achieve the potential he now knew he had.
Throughout the Bible, God has revealed Himself to us as “I AM.” In His mercy, He has offered salvation to all who will put their faith and trust in Jesus. When we are saved, our identity changes and becomes tied to God’s identity, which is revealed through the way we live. We become His children who bear His name and image to the world. Our new identity is a reflection of God’s identity. We start to see ourselves in light of who God is and He has done. Based on who God has revealed himself to be, 1 Peter 2:9-12 shows us three things we are because God is “I AM.”
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. – 1 Peter 2:9-12
In these verses we see:
1.You are Chosen
God’s purpose has always been to have His people know Him and follow Him. Christ chose to die for you and I so that we could fulfill that purpose. We should live differently from the world as we proclaim what God has done so others may receive the same hope we have.
2. You are God’s People
At one point, we were all dead in sin and separated from God. We do not deserve God’s love, but He has shown us His great mercy and given us eternal life through Christ’s death and resurrection. As His people, we should extend the same mercy God has shown us to others who are still lost in sin.
3. You are Sojourners
We know that this world is not our home, we are just passing through as citizens of Heaven. Since our identity is somewhere else, we do not live the way the world says we should live. We abstain from sin and reflect the glory and righteousness of God.
We are created in the image of God to have a relationship with Him. Because God is “I AM,” we are able to live a holy lifestyle and represent Him to the world.