The book of Isaiah is TOUGH! It’s full of piercing words of conviction and judgement as well as beautiful promises of love and redemption, prophetic hope, and whispers of Jesus. Isaiah’s messages hit WAY TO CLOSE to home for the people of Judah. As a result of their worldly, polytheistic, “pagan-adapted” views and idolatry, Israel had forgotten the covenant promise that God made with them via their ancestors. Because of this, they didn’t truly know who they were, what they were called to do, or where they were called to be. Fast forward to today and this is still happening! Many people nowadays believe the lies of the world and feel lost. They don’t know who they are or where they belong because they’ve forgotten who God created them to be and what He ACTUALLY says about them.
At TRIBE408, we believe in the value of knowing your TRUE IDENTITY! So, let’s stand up! Let’s refocus and dig into the TRUTH! Here’s a list of the TOP 8 IDENTITY STATEMENTS from The Lord in the book of Isaiah. If you need encouragement, and who doesn’t, speak these over yourself DAILY:
- YOU’RE NEVER FORGOTTEN – “Yet Jerusalem says, “The Lord has deserted us; the Lord has forgotten us.” “Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I WOULD NOT FORGET YOU! See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands. Always in my mind is a picture of Jerusalem’s walls in ruins.”” (Isaiah 49:14-16 NLT)…Do you feel deserted or forgotten by God? You aren’t! Your name is tattooed on the palms of his hands where He’ll always see it. No matter what life may look like…YOU’RE NEVER FORGOTTEN! You’re His child! He loves you and is fully aware of you and your needs!
- YOU’RE NOT A FAILURE – “He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, and you will bring me glory.” I replied, “But my work seems so useless! I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose. Yet I leave it all in the Lord’s hand; I will trust God for my reward.”” (Isaiah 49:3-4 NLT)…Here, God tries to remind His servant that he is valued and that he is a vessel for the Lord’s glory! Pretty awesome! His servant responds with despair and proclaims that he feels like a useless failure. How often do we look at our life, failures, or “lack of achievement” and speak similar things over ourselves? In the end, however, Isaiah acknowledges where his focus truly is regarding the work he’s been assigned to do by God. He is focused on serving the Lord and not defining success and failure by the world’s standard (see Colossians 3:23-24 and 1 Corinthians 15:58). When you commit everything you do to the Lord and stay focused on His purposes, you’ll never feel like a failure!
- YOU’RE HELD – “From eternity to eternity I am God. No one can snatch anyone out of my hand. No one can undo what I have done.” (Isaiah 43:13 NLT)…He’s got you NO MATTER WHAT! End of story!
- YOU’RE KNOWN – “I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers.” (Isaiah 65:24 NLT)…He is Jehovah Jireh - “The Lord Who Provides”. Because of this, we can rest in the knowledge that we are that important to Him! He loves us so much that He goes ahead of us and prepares the way for us including answers to our prayers. Sometimes we see the immediate fruit of His plan and other times we go long periods without seeing Him move only to wake up one day (having gone through a lengthy desert or wilderness season) and have everything He promised. He knows you and He loves you!
- YOU’RE FULLY LOVED – “For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain.” (Isaiah 54:10 NLT)…Regardless of who you are or what you’ve done, God is IN LOVE WITH YOU! Romans 8:38-39 says it perfectly! If you only remember one thing, remember that you are loved!
- YOU’RE HEALTHY/HEALED – “I have seen what they do, but I will heal them anyway! I will lead them. I will comfort those who mourn, bringing words or praise to their lips. May they have abundant peace, both near and far,” says the Lord who heals them.”” (Isaiah 57:18-19 NLT)…Right before this passage, God declares that He’s frustrated, but He won’t always be angry. His heart is for us to be healthy, healed, and hope-full! He declares here that He sees the way we hurt ourselves, each other, and even Him and He still wants to make everything right. However, we have to repent (change our mind) and look to Him in everything. In God (via Jesus) we are healed! We simply have to receive it and proclaim it!
- YOU’RE FORGIVEN – “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.”” (Isaiah 1:18 NLT)…Simply put…THANK YOU, JESUS!
- YOU’RE HIS – “As surely as my new heavens and earth will remain, so will you ALWAYS be my people, with a name that will NEVER disappear,” says the Lord.” (Isaiah 66:22 NLT)…END OF STORY! There’s the covenant promise of His presence and His name. God expands on this when he says, “I have called you by my name; you are mine.” (Isaiah 43:1 NLT) In the end…we are HIS…we are LOVED…and, we are ONE IN HIS NAME!
Whoever you are and wherever you are, don’t let yourself fall into the habit of speaking death over yourself and believing lies. The Lord always has been and always will be for you! Declare THE TRUTH in everything and stand on your TRUE IDENTITY!
In love,
TRIBE408