The Gifts of Lent: Deep Security
Passages (NIV): Matthew 3:13-17 and Matthew 4:1-11
Preacher: Mark Kingston
Two Kinds of Storms
We all face storms. Some hit us on the outside. Things like illness, loss, financial pressure, or conflict. External storms are difficult things we cannot control. They happen to us. We did not choose them. We cannot stop them. They arrive from the outside and shake us.
But some storms are inside us. Criticism that lingers for days. The constant need to curate your "image" to make sure people accept you. The quiet fear of not being enough. The drive to work harder because stopping feels like becoming less. We call that internal storm "insecurity". Most insecurity grows when our worth is resting on something fragile like our performance or other people’s opinions.
External storms test what you believe about God.
Internal storms reveal what you believe about yourself.
Training for External Storms
Last week we heard Psalm 46: “Be still and know that I am God.” That was training for external storms. When life shakes, we practise remembering who God is. Not just that He is “in charge,” but that He is faithful. That He has carried us before. That His mercy does not run out. That His ways are wiser than ours.
When we have been still and come to know His character, those truths hold us when external storms hit. If you want a picture of what that looks like in practice, picture Jesus calmly asleep in a boat in the middle of the most violent storm in living memory, while everyone else is panicking.
Training for Internal Storms, Part 1: Jesus' example
This week the invitation goes deeper: Be still and know who God says you are.
At His baptism, before Jesus healed or taught anyone, the Father said out loud, “This is my Son, whom I love.” Jesus’ identity was given before He had done anything to earn it. Then came the wilderness. Forty quiet, undistracted days for those words to take deep root inside Him.
So when the tempter said, “If you are the Son of God…”, this was the Devil's challenge to Jesus: do you believe that you are who the Father says you are, or will you define yourself on your own terms?
Jesus shows what secure identity looks like. He answers with His Father’s words, not his own. He waited for His Father’s help instead of helping Himself. He refused to prove Himself or take control.
Training for Internal Storms, Part 2: Our training
As it was with Jesus, so it can be with us.
First, know that if you follow Jesus, God adopts you into his family. That means you are a son or daughter of God:
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1, NIV)
“For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God… The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” (Romans 8:14, 16 NIV)
“In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ… in accordance with his pleasure and will.” (Ephesians 1:4–5)
“So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith.” (Galatians 3:26)
Second, just like Jesus, remember that your status as a son or daughter of God is not dependent on your performance. You are named before you perform. Loved before you achieve. If you follow Jesus, you are a son or daughter of God. This is given, not earned.
Third, take time to let your God-given identity sink in. So, find some space from your usual distractions and read again and again the words above that God uses to describe you. This is more precious than gold, so don't miss it! Pray into it. Ask God to help this truth take deep root in you.
The Gift: Being Secure and at Peace
Here's how you will know this truth is taking root: your reactions begin to change.
Instead of replaying criticism for days and letting it undo you, you can hear it, learn from it if needed, and remain steady in who you are.
Instead of pulling back out of fear of rejection, you can step forward, speak, and risk being known.
Instead of carefully managing your image so others only see the polished version, you can be honest about your limits and still feel secure.
Instead of working harder and harder just to feel worthy, you are able to stop, rest, and trust that you are already loved and that God will take care of you.
This is the gift: a steady heart... a quiet confidence. Not because life is easy, but because your identity is secure. As we sung together yesterday, "I am who you say I am".
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
What Are You Standing On?
Right now, what are you relying on to feel steady or valuable? Success? Being useful? Being appreciated? Getting it right? Where does your emotional stability rise and fall depending on how those things are going?Where Do You React?
When something unsettles you this week, pause and ask: what is actually being threatened? Your reputation? Your control? Your sense of being enough? What does your reaction reveal about what you are standing on?Start by Listening
Go back to the verses we read in the recap. Read them slowly. Before you analyse them or apply them, simply listen. What is God saying about identity? About sonship or daughterhood? About security? Which phrase do you need to hear and receive today?Root It In
Jesus had forty days for that identity to sink below the surface. What small, repeatable practice could help God’s voice sink deeper than the noise? Five minutes of stillness. Repeating one line from the passage. Letting it settle into you before the day begins.When the Test Comes…
The wilderness was preparation. The testing followed. When pressure or insecurity shows up this week, how will you respond? What would it look like, in one specific situation, to answer from rooted identity instead of fear?
