DECLARATIONS OF IDENTITY

 

DECLARATIONS OF IDENTITY

•         At the cross I was made a new creation; therefore, I do not have to be influenced by any baggage of the past.

•         I am not who my past experience says I am; I am who God says I am.

•         I have been set free and released from all bondage through what Jesus has done for me.

•         Today is the day of my breakthrough — I am free!

•         I am clothed with Christ, therefore I release His presence everywhere I go.

•         My touch releases the healing grace of Jesus.

•         I am a God-pleaser, not a people-pleaser.

•         I am able to prophesy, heal the sick, deliver the oppressed, and walk in increased wisdom, boldness, and creativity through the power of the Holy Spirit.

•         God’s Kingdom will advance everywhere I go and in everything I do.

•         I am constantly stumbling into the favor of God.

•         My life overflows with God’s love, making it impossible for me not to love others.

•         People’s responses to me do not determine how I love them.

•         I am permanently tapped into Heaven’s infinite supply of love.

•         I often experience an open heaven.

•         I speak to any worry, stress, or anxiety, and I say you cannot stay. Peace reigns in this temple.

•         My heart and mind are guarded and protected by God’s peace.

•         As a child of God, it is my privilege and birthright to hear my Father’s voice.

•         As I focus on Jesus and spend time in His presence, I am being transformed into His likeness.

•         God’s love for me is not dependent upon worldly measures of success.

•         It’s impossible for me to spend time in God’s Word and not be radically transformed.

•         I encounter God’s love and power every time I am in His Word.

•         I belong to Jesus. My identity is: Beloved child of God.

(With thanks to Steve Backlund.)

The Lausanne Movement on Human Sexuality and Marriage

 

The Lausanne Movement recently wrapped up its convention in Seoul. Five thousand Christians, from over 200 nations, gathered to worship, listen, and write a 97-point, 13,000-word document.

Included are detailed statements on human sexuality and marriage.

You can pull up the document here. See especially point four: "The Human Person: The Image of God Created and Restored."

When Does a Human Life Begin?

 

 

(Frost on car window)

"An amicus curiae (literally, "friend of the court"; plural: amici curiae) often referred to as amicus brief is defined as the legal brief where someone who is not a party to a case assists a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case. The decision on whether to consider an amicus brief lies within the discretion of the court. The phrase amicus curiae is legal Latin and its origin of the term has been dated back to 1605-1615. The scope of amicus curiae is generally found in the cases where broad public interests are involved and concerns regarding civil rights are in question." (From Wikipedia)

One of the legal briefs accepted by the Supreme Court in the Dobbs case regarding abortion rights concerns the following.

(From the brief.) 

"Amici curiae are biologists who work at colleges, universities, and other institutions in 15 countries around the world.

The fertilization view is widely recognized—in the literature and by biologists—as the leading biological view on when a human’s life begins... An international survey of academic biologists’ views on when a human’s life begins reported 96% of 5,577 participants affirmed the fertilization view. 

Fertilization, generally, marks the beginning of a sexually reproducing organism’s life and, specifically, marks the beginning of a human’s life, as it is the point at which a human first comes into physical existence as an organism that is biologically classified as a member of the Homo sapiens species."

When someone asks me why I am against abortion, my response is: Because I am against killing an innocent, defenseless human being.