Who am I? What am I doing here? God what do you want me to do?
Questions asked by thousands. Questions I’ve asked thousands of times. It’s called an identity crisis. You feel like you are free falling through your days. What is the cure for an identity crisis? Know who we are in Christ.
Webster defines crisis as a time of intense difficulty, trouble or danger. Synonyms of crisis include emergency, disaster catastrophe , and calamity. It is a time when a difficult or important decision must be made. A time of crisis is a critical point. It is the time when things must turn around or you can’t go on. You are at a point of no return. We are at our zero hour, and we must know who God says we are.
Jesus got His affirmation in the middle of the flowing waters of the Jordan River. His identity was confirmed, not by man, but by His Father in heaven. What a sight it must have been as Jesus came up out of the Jordan River on that day!
“One day, Jesus came from the Galilean village of Nazareth and had John immerse him in the Jordan River. The moment Jesus rose up out of the water, John saw the heavenly realm split open, and the Holy Spirit descended like a dove and rested upon him. At the same time, a voice spoke from heaven, saying: “You are my Son, my cherished one, and my greatest delight is in you!” Immediately after this he was compelled by the Holy Spirit to go into an uninhabited desert region. He remained there in the wilderness for forty days, enduring the ordeals of Satan’s tests. He encountered wild animals, but also angels who appeared and ministered to his needs.”
Mark 1:9-13 TPT
As the Spirit of God descended onto Jesus like a dove, God endorsed and verified to Jesus who He was in God’s eyes. Those words gave Jesus the emotional support He would need for the next phase of His life.
Jesus’ first act before beginning public ministry was an act of obedience to Father God. He humbled Himself and was baptized by someone He created. Jesus came humbly and as a servant to show us the way to the Father and the Father says, “That completely pleases me.”
Only after receiving His identity from His Heavenly Father, did the Holy Spirit of God drive Jesus into His wilderness. Jesus’ identity was in place. He knew where He had come from, but the voice of His Father booming from heaven gave Jesus that extra boost of confidence that He would need for the wilderness.
Wildernesses happen in each or our lives also. They are places of loneliness. We find ourselves in neglected or abandoned regions. The wastelands that surround us are inhospitable. We need affirmation to survive these desert places. We need to hear that we are valued as a person. We need to know who we are in Christ.
“But you are God’s chosen treasure—priests who are kings, a spiritual “nation” set apart as God’s devoted ones. He called you out of darkness to experience his marvelous light, and now he claims you as his very own. He did this so that you would broadcast his glorious wonders throughout the world. For at one time you were not God’s people, but now you are. At one time you knew nothing of God’s mercy, because you hadn’t received it yet, but now you are drenched with it!”
1 Peter 2:9-10 TPT
Waypoints to your destination:
What did God say to Jesus as He came up out of the water?
Why do you think that declaration was important?
Are you suffering from an identity crisis?
Who are you in God’s eyes and what are you supposed to be doing?