Matthew 7: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

Identity Theft Who you are is worth something…

How is our identity defined? 0 Social security number 0 Driver’s license 0 Credit cards 0 Birth certificates 0 Certificates and documents obtained from schools for training, graduations, college degrees etc…

Identity Theft 0 The FTC estimates that over 9 million people suffer from some form of identity theft each year. 0 There are many ways in which your identity can be stolen: 0 Information found in your trash 0 Stealing your credit card numbers when you use it 0 Phishing & Pretexting… 0 Changing your address 0 Steeling your wallet or purse

What about Spiritual Identity? 0I0I dentity Theft is defined by pretending to be somebody you are not for the purpose of obtaining benefits that aren’t due to you… 0I0I would like to suggest that Spiritual Identity Theft is far worse than any other form of Identity Theft because it has eternal consequences…

Our Spiritual Identity begins with who Jesus is… Matthew 3:16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”

Our Spiritual Identity begins with who Jesus is… Matthew 4:1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” 4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” 5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple.

Our Spiritual Identity begins with who Jesus is… Matthew 4:6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” 7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” 10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Our Spiritual Identity begins with who Jesus is… Matthew 16:13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Identity Theft is not a modern problem… II Corinthians 11:12 And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. 13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.

It’s important to know who we are… It creates: balance direction and focus in our lives…

When I decided to be a: 0 Preacher everything fell into place… 0 When I decided to be a teacher everything fell into place… 0 When I decided to be an administrator everything fell into place… 0 The same thing happened when I decided to be a christian, everything fell into place, I knew what I needed to do…

The problem with Spiritual Identity Theft is… We can be a victim and not know it until it’s too late. Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

It’s important to ask the right question… 0 If you were asked to prove who you are you could show me multiple things to demonstrate and prove who you are… 0 If you told me you are a christian how would you prove that?

Are you a christian? Matthew 7:13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.