Remember Who You Are

By Gary Gaddini

My family and I were having a wonderful, although sweltering, day one summer on vacation in Mexico. Our agenda was to venture deep into the heart of Puerto Vallarta and explore a bit. As we were driving, my daughter Elizabeth said, “Look, Dad!” pointing to a billboard. In Spanish, appeared a seemingly handwritten message to my family, and to me personally. “Recuerda quien eres,” the billboard read: “Remember who you are!”

It is a message I desperately need to renew my mind with daily. It is the last statement I leave Elizabeth with when I drop her off to school on Thursday mornings after our weekly date. And I believe it is a message that is pivotal to everyone who believes in Jesus. What we see, hear and think can be so limiting when it comes to perceiving accurately, eternally. In my opinion, one of the greatest benefits to following Jesus is that living into His definitions is liberating and life-giving!

What follows are 12 truths I am committed to reading through every day to remind me of who I am. Will you join me?

In Christ we were chosen by God before creation. Eph 1:4, “God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world.”
In Christ we are loved by God with an inseparable love. Ro 8:38-39, “I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
In Christ we were redeemed and have been forgiven for all our sins. Eph 1:7, “In Christ we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses.”
In Christ we are justified before God and the righteousness of God in Christ is credited to us. 2 Cor 5:21, “For our sake God made Christ to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
In Christ we have become a new creation and a child of God. 2 Cor 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Gal 3:26, “In Christ Jesus you are all children of God, through faith.”
In Christ we have been raised and seated in the heavenly places even while He lived on earth. Eph 2:6, “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”
In Christ all the promises of God are Yes for us. 2 Cor 1:20, “All the promises of God find their Yes in Christ.”
In Christ we are made holy and faithful. Eph 1:1, “To God’s holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus“
In Christ everything we really needed will be supplied. Phil 4:19, “My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
In Christ the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds. Phil 4:7, “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
In Christ we have eternal life. Ro 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
And in Christ we will be raised from the dead at the coming of the Lord. 1 Cor 15:22, “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.”

Gary Gaddini is the lead pastor of Peninsula Covenant Church in Redwood City California.