Discover Your Spiritual Identity: The Revelation of the Names and Titles God Has Given His People
“Now we, brothers, like Isaac, are the children of promise” (Gal. 4:28).
A “promise” is a pledge, a firm and unwavering agreement, an announcement that one will do, or will not do, something specified. God’s Word is replete with promises. Herbert Lockyer writes in All the Promises of God, there are exactly 7,487. Having studied them for years, I am convinced these divinely inspired pledges cover every area of need we could ever face during this earthly sojourn.
How important are these biblical promises? Simple answer. If they were removed from the Bible, no one would want to study its content. A Bible without promises would only serve to decry our dark and dreadful condition as fallen human beings and forewarn us of the utter bleakness and emptiness of our future—eternally. Ephesians 2:12 describes those outside of a relationship with God as being “Strangers to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world.”
Yes, that was the grievous condition of our souls until the Word of God became our treasure trove. By mining its contents, faith-filled readers become convinced that no matter what happens—God has already given His people promises strong enough to push us through any opposition to sure victory on the other side—one way or the other.
Here’s a short list of just 10 needs all human beings possess, matched to 10 powerful promises revealing God’s commitment to meet those needs:
Forgiveness. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
Mercy. “For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him” (Ps. 103:11).
Peace. “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will protect your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:7).
Joy. “Therefore with joy you shall draw water out of the wells of salvation” (Isa. 12:3).
Love. “And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Rom. 5:5).
Wisdom. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men liberally and without criticism, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5).
Authority. “Look, I give you authority … over all the power of the enemy. And nothing shall by any means hurt you” (Luke 10:19).
Health. “Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed” (1 Pet. 2:24, NKJV).
Mental stability. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7).
Eternal life. “And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life” (1 John 2:25, MEV).
Just these 10 promises alone could launch any person into an orbit of triumph over this world and its destructive power, but there are still 7,477 more to go. How amazing is that! No wonder Peter passionately and excitedly concluded:
“His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who has called us by His own glory and excellence, by which He has given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, so that through these things you might become partakers of the divine nature and escape the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Pet. 1:3-4).
Of course, if we are to see these “precious promises” fully manifested in our walk through this world, we must fulfill the conditions (and usually each promise has one). When we do, we become absolutely, irrefutably unbeatable and unconquerable—and that’s a promise (see Rom. 8:28-39).
The Connection Between Isaac and the Church
Our key verse compares New Covenant children of God to a well-known, Old Covenant personality: the firstborn son of Abraham and Sarah. Galatians 4:28 insists that both Isaac and all born-again believers of this era can be described as “children of promise.” What’s the spiritual connection? Read carefully.
Though childless, Abraham and Sarah had a promise from God that He would bless them with offspring as numerous as the stars in the sky above. Over a decade had passed, and nothing had taken place to move this promise toward its fulfillment. So Sarah came up with an ingenious plan and persuaded Abraham to participate. They decided to “help” God by Abraham entering Hagar, Sarah’s maid (an Egyptian bondwoman), and having a child by her. Ishmael was the result of that union. Then 13 years after his birth, it happened according to God’s predestined plan. Ninety-year-old Sarah became pregnant with Isaac (no wonder his name means laughter—can you imagine the reaction among all who heard it).
Note the following carefully:
Ishmael was the product of human effort.
Isaac was the product of the promise of God.
Galatians 4:23-24 (NKJV) explains, “He who was of the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and he of the freewoman through promise, which things are symbolic.” There is more than one way that this symbol can be applied. One powerful application is this—that there is an “Ishmael Church” and there is an “Isaac Church.” Let me explain.
The “Ishmael Church” is the professing church—A large portion of those who “profess” to embrace Christianity are actually Christian in name only—a product of human effort. The various organizations and their church gatherings may look and sound very “Christian” with high-spired cathedrals, ecclesiastical clothing, Bible-based theology and songs, rituals, ceremonies and a religious calendar—yet far too often, the absolutely essential experiences of being “born again” and “filled with the Holy Spirit” are noticeably absent: unpreached and usually, unreceived.
The “Isaac Church” is the possessing church—A smaller nucleus of believers make up the true church—a transdenominational group who have been regenerated and actually “possess” a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ (see Titus 3:5, NKJV). They don’t just know about God; they know God. They are not just members of an organization; they are part of an organism: the living body of Christ. This marvelous transformation took place in their lives by acting on divinely inspired promises like the following:
“Yet to all who received Him, He gave the power to become sons of God, to those who believed in His name” (John 1:12).
“That if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved, for with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Rom. 10:9-10).
“That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith” (Eph. 3:17a).
All blessed individuals who are “saved” by this process become the New Testament fulfillment of Old Covenant prophetic promises that foretold what was coming. Ezekiel prophesied that God would put “a new spirit” in us and give us “a new heart”—and also, by putting His “Spirit” in us, He would cause us to walk in His statues (Ezek. 36:26). Jeremiah claimed that the same God who wrote the Ten Commandments in tablets of stone would write His law on our hearts and in our minds—supernaturally changing us (see Jer. 31:31-34). No wonder the writer of Hebrews described this plan as a “better covenant established on better promises” (Heb. 8:6).
Most wonderfully, if we are truly “children of promise,” we can also claim being “heirs of promise”: inheritors of all the wonderful divine pledges that will successfully carry us through time and into eternity (Heb. 6:17).
Explore this wonderful subject more deeply by listening to three former episodes of Mike Shreve’s weekly podcast on Charisma Podcast Network, Discover Your Spiritual Identity. These teachings explain three related titles God has given His people, our calling to be: Children of Promise, Heirs of Promise, and Partakers of His Promise in Christ. {eoa}
Mike Shreve has taught on the spiritual identity of believers for over 30 years. This powerful revelation is featured on his weekly podcast on cpnshows.com and a weekly TV program on “It’s Supernatural Network” (ISN)—both titled Discover Your Spiritual Identity (also posted weekly on YouTube here). It is also the theme of his Charisma House book titled WHO AM I? Dynamic Declarations of Who You Are in Christ. A product of the Jesus movement era, Mike has traveled evangelistically in the United States and overseas since 1970 with an added emphasis on healing and the prophetic.
Curt Landry 
Michael L. Brown 
Rabbi Eric Tokajer 
