The War Over Our Identity

The War Over Our Identity

 

Let me tell you something, there is a full-fledged war over your identity. Want to know why? It’s because the enemy is afraid of you. He doesn’t want you and me to succeed by fulfilling the calling that God has placed over our lives. If you and I begin to walk in the fullness and authority of what God has called us to walk in we will create havoc for the enemy. When the light of Jesus shines through us, we will begin to dispel darkness and break bondages. Imagine that? Imagine what the world would look like if each one of us lived the way Jesus intended for us to live. Naturally, the enemy will do everything in his power to stop us, to slow down our process, and send us on a path headed straight for destruction. The bible says in 2 Corinthians 11:14 that the enemy disguises himself as the angel of light. This means that you are not going to even realize when and how he attacks if you’re not careful. He’s not wearing a black cape with red horns. He’s been doing this for a long time since the garden of Eden. 

The earliest example of the enemy attacking one’s identity occurs in the garden of Eden with Eve. The serpent got into her mind to target her identity. Take a look at this… Genesis 3: 1-6 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ 4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Adam and Eve had access to God like no other human being. They walked and talked with The Great I Am every day. There is no doubt in my mind that they knew they were wildly loved by God. Yet, the enemy caused Eve to doubt her identity as a daughter of the Most High and believe that her Father would withhold something good from her. Adam followed suit. Thus there was the fall of man and the rest is history. I’ve often wondered how the story would turn out if Eve told the serpent, I know who I am and I know who my God is. He will not withhold any good thing from me. If my Father has said not to eat from the tree, I’m not going to.  

The easiest way for satan to take us down is to attack our identity. If we allow even one wavering thought to enter our minds and take control of us, we are treading through murky waters. I was recently reading a book titled The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, this book contains 31 letters written by a senior demon named Screwtape to his nephew Wormwood, a junior tempter on how to lead a British man referred to as a ‘patient’ to damnation. In these detailed letters, Wormwood is trained to divert the patient’s attention from God to himself. He’s taught to put thoughts of fear into the patient’s mind and divert his attention from taking those thoughts to God. Furthermore, he tries to find a weak link in the patient’s identity to try and take him away from God. All of this sounds familiar? I could go on and on but you get the gist, right? I wasn’t kidding when I said that our minds are a battleground. We need to fiercely protect it with the mind of Christ. 

We need to be aware of the importance of guarding our identity and mind fiercely. I’ve struggled with this personally. Sometimes all it takes is just one negative thought and I begin to question my identity and often my existence. I’ve let lies of self-worth, baseless insecurities, irrational fears control me and cause me to forget the truth about who God says I am. If you identify with me, you are not alone. 

Do you know that satan even tried to tempt Jesus by attacking his identity? Check this out – In Matthew 4:1-3 it says, “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted[a] by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” See this? Out of all the things the enemy could have tempted Jesus with he went with IF you are the Son of God. He tries to make Jesus prove that He is the son of God but Jesus doesn’t have to prove his sonship. He knew his identity and so he could resist satan’s temptation. 

So how do we get secure in knowing who we are? The answer is simple, and maybe a little too simple for your liking. The truth is, the only way we will be secure in who we are is if we know who God is to us. I was able to find at least 20 verses in the Bible that talk about sonship. The God of heaven and earth and our loving father reminds us over and over that we are HIS children and HIS heirs. 

Romans 8:15
For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” 

1 John 3:1
See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.

Ephesians 1:5
He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,

Guard your identity fiercely and speak the promises of the word over your life until your heart and mind believe it. 

 

(4) Comments
  1. ‘I’ve often wondered how the story would turn out if Eve told the serpent, I know who I am and I know who my God is. He will not withhold any good thing from me. If my Father has said not to eat from the tree, I’m not going to.’
    BRILLIANT!!! I love this. May this be the attitude we can all have as we walk in obedience in the way of Yahweh.

  2. I can relate to questioning of identity so much . Fear , anxiety , self worth are words which have haunted me a lot and if given a chance I realize Satan sits just beside to crawl in ! I am saved through Jesus, my Father . Thank you for a reminder once again ! Strong in Christ !

  3. The words self worth, fear and anxiety have been my friends for years , now I am saved through Christ , but still Satan tries to crawl in . But I know He is my Abba , he owns me and my identity is through Him. Stronger in Christ ! Thank you for provoking thought once again !

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