“Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?”
John 1:22
A new leader had burst on the scene and the Pharisees wanted to know more about him. Since he wasn’t one of them, they questioned the validity of his ministry. Although people were being attracted to John and were listening to his message, he lacked the credentials of the religious elite. So they demanded to know from him: who are you and what do you say of yourself? Those are the questions that every believer has to answer to before they can produce any lasting fruit for the Kingdom of God. Who are you and what do you say of yourself? Because we are in Christ we can know exactly who we are. “As He is, so are we in this world” (I John 4:17). That means whatever is true of Jesus is also true of you. If Jesus is righteous, then so are you. If He is victorious, strong, prosperous, all-conquering, then so are you. You are not who others say you are nor are you who the devil wants you to think you are. You are who God says you are. His testimony is that you are just like Jesus. Once you have that settled in your heart then the next step is to say it of yourself. You have to agree with God and your own lips have to confess what the Lord has decreed. Jesus knew who He was and He testified to it repeatedly by stating I am. What do you say of yourself Jesus? “I am…the light of the world…I am the good shepherd…I am the way the truth and the life…I am the bread of life…I am the door,” were just a few of the things He said about Himself. What other people say about us does affect us but what we say about ourselves is far more impacting. How did John the Baptist answer the question concerning himself? I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness… (John 1:23). Maybe it’s time for you to join with Jesus and John and begin to make some I am statements of your own. Look at any of your weaknesses and boldly acknowledge Jesus' strength in you. Just as the prophet said: “let the weak say I am strong” (Joel 3:10). From now on, you can address any problem area of your life with a faith confession that will never fail: “As He is, so am I in this world.”