I Am HIS - Louie Giglio

the labels on our lives. I could have made a list that went on for an hour, but I just really quickly jotted a few things down yesterday. A lot of times the thing that is on us today is that last thing, our last X, the last deal that was closed, the last travel destination we went to, the last test results, the last failure in our lives, the last stat line from your game, the last breakup or the last promotion or bank statement, the last certification you got or the last recognition that you got or the last group text that you were in. In all those things are real definers, but they're not at the end of the day definitive. In other words, you are not your last mistake, and you're not your last success. You are who God says you are in Christ, that's who you are. In Ephesians 1, all the way down to verse 14, we've seen the power of this, but today we just land on these last two verses. And you also were included, can you say these words with me just so we all know what we're talking about? You were included. Where? In Christ. When you heard the message of truth, so how did you get in Christ? This is just so beautiful. How did I get in Christ? You heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and you believed. See, it's not complicated. You heard the gospel, and then you believed in the gospel, and that's how you got in Christ. And when you believed something else happened, you were marked in Him in Christ with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who the Holy Spirit is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession, all of this to the praise of His glory. So the label God wants you to walk out with today and wants me to walk out with today. He wants you to know that you are His. You're His.

Like, what does that mean? Well, the way Paul is saying it is that those of us who believed were marked, were going to come back to that in just a moment. We were marked in Christ with a seal. What does that mean? This Holy Spirit that marked us in Christ and the Holy Spirit in this seal is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are, let's just say it together, who are what God's possession? We are His. So the result of all this wonder, this choosing, this being predestined in love, this being forgiven, this being able, the end result of all this is that God gets a people. And we now are His prized possession, we're His. He's ours, but we're His. We belong to God. Just speeding up ahead to the end of day, you don't belong to you. So there is no mine is His. We are God's possession. What difference does that make? Number one, it lets us know that we have absolute value and worth. What if I ask you today, does anybody in here have a treasured possession? Let's think about it for a second. If I ask you, what's one of, or two of your... Your cat, okay, I wasn't expecting answers out loud, but thank you. And what's the cat's name? Buford. So when you think about Buford, where is Buford right now? He's watching down the road. He's in church online.

You put it on TV. Buford buddy. Mala sees you. You're doing, you're stretching, you're waking up? Oh yeah. All the things I was expecting. Nowhere on my list was a cat. It's so offense to you Buford, you're the best buddy. It's a he. Yeah, that's my guy. When you're thinking about your prized possession, what is it, is it something your parent left you, or whatever it is, it's your prized possession, what does that mean about it? It means at the end of the day that that's the thing you'd grab in a fire. If you could get your hand on something in short notice or two things or three things, maybe you've already thought about that. If I had that long, I'd get that, I'd grab that. I'd make sure I got that. That's your prized possession. And the thing about it is, it's prized. And God wants you to know today that you could print that label out as well. You could put that label on your life in Christ. I am prized. I'm the possession of God. I'm a valuable possession of God. And that gives me my absolute value in worth.

I do not get my absolute value in worth from human approval because I already have God approval. And I have God value in my life. And this has been the story with God, by the way, this could be a whole other angle to this talk. This has been God's plan all along. God's whole plan is to have a people on earth. Deuteronomy chapter seven verse six in the ESV. I don't think it's gonna come up on, it's not on my pad, but it says, "For you are a people holy to the Lord your God." The Lord your God has chosen you, talking about the people of Israel, to be a people for his treasured possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. So God started with Abraham. He eventually formed a people. And out of all the idol worshipers and God rebels on the planet, God wanted to have a people in the midst of them to say, watch them. And then through Christ, we got grafted in to the people. You don't have to be in the line of Abraham on a physical sense 'cause we spiritually now are grafted in to become God's possession. But I love the way he said it in Deuteronomy, his treasured possession. That's where your absolute worth and value come from is because you're his. Secondly, it's where absolute awareness comes from. In fact, God wants you to know today that there's never been a second of your life

that you were not on his mind and in his sight. You ever woke up one day and not thought about Beaufort? Where do you think Beaufort is right now? Well, I mean like where? Like on the cat tree or on the sofa or on the bed? She knows. It's like our cows. Maybe it is, I'm not saying this is our prized possession, but this is our Texas ranch. And there's yours truly. Stare down. But when you kind of flip it around the other way, these guys, why don't you see this if some of you ranchers know what's going on, but you see this right here? That's cow number three. [BLANK_AUDIO] And he would know every single thing about Cal 17. He would know when her last calf was born, exactly what day, time of day, kind of how big it was. He would know when she got vaccinated last. He would know how she did through the winter. He would know approximately how much she weighs. And he would have tracked that through the years of her life. And he did that for every one of the cows on our ranch. Because they were his. And he cared for them. He nurtured them. He fed them. He protected them. And he knew every one of them.

I'd come rolling up. Cal boy, Louie. That's what Shelly's grandmother called me. City boy. And I would just see a herd of cows. Shelly's dad would put her over there on a four-wheeler and he'd look at one good because he was checking on Cal 55. Because he knows every one of the cows. And they're just cows. How much more does God know you? I am the good shepherd, I know my sheep. He didn't put tags in our ears. But he has put a seal on our heart. We're going to talk about that next. And he knows you. And so maybe somebody else would roll into one of these gatherings and just see a bunch of people. And he'd roll in and just put her right up to you and say, "Hey Tom." And not only that, but Jesus went on to say that he gives the sheep eternal life and they'll never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. And he says in Luke 7, verse 7 of chapter 12 that the very hairs on our head are numbered. I was looking around today. That's easier for some of us than others of us. But that's down to the granular of what he knows about you. And he's just making a point. He's not really saying, "Hey, you had 84 hairs fall out overnight." He's saying, "I know you. You are my prized possession." And I have absolute awareness of you. The third thing, and it really comes out of this verse we're reading right here, is that you have absolute security in him. And protection in him. No one will snatch you out of his hand because he is greater than all and no one can snatch them out of my father's hand.

This word that we were looking at in Ephesians 1, he remarked in him with a seal. This is an interesting Greek word. And the Greek word really carries the picture of a signet ring. And so it's authority and the signing of a deal or a document with legal authority because of the signet sign of the one who's sealing it. It's that's God saying, "When you joined in with Christ, I put my signet seal on you." All that transaction happened through the Holy Spirit, but it was me putting my seal on you. So I went and studied around on that word, the Greek word, seal. And this is some of what I think brings this to light. To seal, it signifies ownership. And the full security carried by the backing or the full authority of the owner. So when God put that seal on you, it's letting everybody know that tag by the way. The people around us know if that cow goes through the woods or across the creek or a fence gets broken down, they know, "Oh, that's their cow." That tag alone, some people put a brand on the cow, but that tag alone will let us know. I'll help get the cow back over to where it goes. And when you and I are moving through the world, there's a sign or a seal on us that lets the world know, oh, they belong to God. And not only that, but the God who put the seal on them is gonna put his protection on them. It goes on to say, sealing in the ancient world served as a legal signature which guaranteed the promise of what was sealed. Guaranteed the contents of what was sealed. It's God saying, you're mine and no one can undo that. And we need to know we have that seal, especially walking through a darkened world. Say, don't mess with me. I've got the signet seal of authority and protection from the rancher of all ranchers. I'm a sheep in the flock of the Almighty God

and no one can snatch me out of his hand. He's not one of our main points today, but just going back to it for a second, it's important, I think, to see this. No one can snatch who out of my father's hand, them. Part of being God's possession is being a part of them. It's not you singular individually being his possession, although that's true, is that you singular individually being his possession are a part of the them. That's a message for another day, but just wanted to get it in there. It's not I, it's them. The fourth thing, and we'll end with this today, absolute value and worth, absolute awareness, absolute protection and security, but being God's possession means there's absolute devotion to him and his will. This has been a big text at Passion City, 1 Peter 2, but you are a chosen people. We already talked about that. A royal priesthood talked about that last week, a holy nation, we talked about that. God's special possession. Why, so that you can party hard right here? No, so that you may declare his, the praises of him who called you out of darkness and into his wonderful light. That's why all this operated in us is so that now we can declare the praise of him

for once you were not a people, but now you are the people, the people of God. And once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. And so all this gets lived out. We could just cut it off right there, but it helps if you take the header out and you just keep on breathing. Dear friends, I urge you as foreigners and exiles to abstain from sinful desires, which weighs war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. You weren't a people, but now you are a people and you're the people of God. So yes, I am valuable, praise God. Yes, I am in his sight. Yes, I am secure and sealed. But I also belong to God. And I want to have an absolute devotion to him and to his will. Just one more text in the 2 Corinthians 121. Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ, so much in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal, there it is, of ownership on us. And put his spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

And I'm just compelled today to ask, do you want God's seal of ownership on your life? Meaning from that point on, you're available to him. I'm his. I'm his. I loved being his when it was all about value and security. But do you love it just as much that you're his, that it's about availability and service? It's about ownership. No, not about renting. God isn't renting you. He bought you. He's not trying you out knowing he could take you back. He went all in and he purchased you. We grew up in a renting family for the most part. My Campbell High School go on sister who's right over there and me. We lived in a rented apartment all the way up into college. We rented furniture sometimes. I don't know why, but we're having family over or I don't know. We didn't have a lot of parties at our apartment, but we were doing something. And my dad and I went to Aaron Rents on Cheshire Bridge, not far from 515. We went to rent some card tables and some folding chairs because we were having guests. It's one of the great days of my life. My dad was a very principled person when he came to certain strange things

and we got in there this time. They were like, hey, we need to see your social security number. I don't even, I mean, that's how far back in time we're talking about. You know, we're filling out the contract. He goes, I'm not giving you my social security number. No, we have to have, he's like, well, we're not written here, get in a car. It's like, okay. You know, renting is a certain mentality. And I want to make sure today that we're not renting God. (gentle music) That we're not on a test drive. With the thought, you know, if this doesn't work out, we'll just cash in and take it all back. I want to make sure today that we have a poker player's mentality. And we feel like the hands good enough that we're just going to push all our chips into the center of the table and say, I'm all in. I want to have an ownership mentality. A, I've been bought with a price. And frankly, I belong to God. I do not belong to me and I do not belong to this world. I do not belong to this system. I do not belong to anybody else. I belong to Jesus. He purchased me with his blood and I belong to him. He is all in on me. The question today is, am I all in on him?

Am I willing to say I am yours? I am changing, flipping it around. I'm yours. I'm his, but I'm yours. And I'm ready to do your will. You know what's at stake today, don't you? Is that God is hoping for a people, a prized possession on earth who will show earth how it works in heaven. If earth is going to see heaven, it's going to be because there's a prized possession and a holy people who are ready to do his will. It's like Philippians two where he said, you are like shining stars in this world. And the darker it gets, the brighter you shine. I know God has always wanted a people. He's always wanted a people. I wonder today, are we going to give him a people? He wants a people. I can hear him. You know, there's war and rumors of war. Oh, it's okay. I have a people. Hate and rage seem to be winning the day. Oh, it's okay. I have a people. The nation is divided. It's okay. My people are united.

(soft music) People are hurting financially. It's okay. My people are generous. Fear shrouds the headlines. It's okay. My people will print, show the world holiness is better. We need a miracle awakening. We need revival. It's okay. My people will fast and pray. Depression is king. It's okay. My people will shout down the walls of depression with worship. Darkness is growing. It's okay. My people are shining. Demons are laughing. It's okay. My people will send them fleeing in Jesus' name. The world is so lost. It's okay. My people will run after the last sheep with the gospel of Jesus Christ. False religions blind billions and hold them in the grip of darkness. It's okay. My people got the assignment. The homeless sleep on sidewalk streets. It's okay. My people will sweep them up in gracious love and care. Humans are being bought and sold. It's okay. My people will search for them, free them, and restore them. A billion people don't have a Bible that speaks to them in their heart language. It's okay. My people will do everything possible to get them one. The world needs God's songs. It's okay. My people will write them. The world needs truth. It's okay. My sons and daughters will prophesy. The oppressed need justice. It's okay. My people will fight for them. The world needs a picture of heaven on earth. It's okay. I have a heaven seated people living out their heaven-born identity everywhere on earth. God wants to be able to say today, it's okay. It's going to be okay. I have a people. And what we want is just to know that we're secure and that we're prized and that he knows everything about us. And he's like, I do. But would you be my people? Would you be on earth my people? Because you're all I got. You're all I got. You're all I got. You're all I got. [BLANK_AUDIO]