'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name,
Robs me of that which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed.
-- Shakespeare, Othello Act 3, scene 3
The devil comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10). He wants to rob us of the very essence of who we are in Christ by taking away our God given identity. Shakespeare understood that a good name is more important than riches. The enemy of our souls understands this too, and so he is not just after our identity, he wants to take away our Heavenly Father's good name. Satan believes, if he gets God's children off track, then he will smear God's illustrious identity. In some ways that is true.
An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. Titus 1:6
Paul was clear that elders should have obedient children and God also expects us, His children, to obey Him also. Many times it has been stated in the Bible that loving God is obeying Him. If we truly don't know God as a good Father, then we will act as wayward children. Even the prodigal son comprehended that it would be better to live as a servant in his father's house than stay wallowing in the pig sty. Why then do we stay in the quagmires of life instead of run to our loving Father? It is because out identity has been stolen.
The devil tried to cheat Jesus out of His identity by daring Him to throw Himself down "if" He were the Son of God (Matthew 4:6). That little word "if" can be detrimental to our being, when we give in to its conditions. Jesus knew better, however, as He knew who He was, whose He was, and His purpose. Jesus responded, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Matthew 4:7. In addition, He had an intimate knowledge of His Father, so He knew what God would have Him do during His time of temptation.
Consequently, our lack of intimate knowledge of God as His children creates in us a tendency to give in to the devil's "ifs". Which results in us losing our true identity.
The United States Department of Justice provides us with insight in identity theft.
The short answer is that identity theft is a crime. Identity theft and identity fraud are terms used to refer to all types of crime in which someone wrongfully obtains and uses another person's personal data in some way that involves fraud or deception...
The devil is a fraud and a deceiver. This crafty con-artist uses us against ourselves and we become the poser, pretending to be someone we are not. There are so many ways that he takes away our true selves, hence,we walk around as amputated beings searching for wholeness in all the wrong places. We need to apprehend this diabolic fiend's devices or else we will be constantly trapped in his snares.
This nefarious pilferer really is not that creative, so he uses similar schemes of any identity thief.
Sticking close to us, he and his demonic forces gets our information, so that he can use it against us. This is why we must be careful with our words, remembering that the tongue has the power of death and life. Satan will use our own negative words against us. Our thoughts will be invaded with messages that make us feel less of ourselves and often times, these are words we have said against ourselves. We combat this by knowing the truth of how God perceives us and walk in this truth.
Liking messes, the devil rummages through our garbage, to use information from our past. He continuously brings up all we did and so we keep on returning to the junkyard of our old life feeling like this is where we belong. We need to grasp that we have moved on, we are no longer that old man, but we have been made new in Christ.
Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” John 3:6-8
When we have been born again in the Spirit, we are new people and we move by the wind of the Holy Spirit. We are no longer wanders in the wilderness, but citizens of the promised land. The devil wants us to stay in the wilderness always longing for more, believing there is no real place to call our home. But, we already have a home in Christ. He has prepared a place for us, we just need to accept it.
Just like the Internet, the devil sends us a lot of spam. It may look like we are being offered something good, but we open up what is an enticing opportunity and when we respond we end up with regrets and empty promises that leave us in a quandary. This is why we must put on the full armor to take our stand against the devil's schemes.
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Ephesians 6:10-18
The key is we need to know God and understand that we are His. We should let what He says about our identity sink in our minds.
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 1 Peter 2:9-10
We are God's people, we should let no one, not even ourselves, make us out to be who we are not. We are royal , we are holy and we belong to God. Knowing this, we should no longer fall prey to Identity Theft.
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