You're Approved!

            When John baptized Jesus in the Jordan River, as Jesus came out of the water, His heavenly Father spoke these words, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17).
           
               Jesus received His approval from the divine realm, not from this earth. He knew human beings are a fickle lot - supportive one day and opposing the next. Palm Sunday and the crucifixion the following Friday is a prime example of the changeability of people.
           
              Jesus delighted in His Father’s approval. “I have come down from heaven not to pursue My own agenda but to do what He desires. I am here on behalf of the Father who sent Me” (Matthew 6:48 VOICE).
           
              If we ask those around us what they think of us, we’ll get different answers, some positive, some negative. But as born-again believers, when we ask God what He thinks of us, these are some of the things He will tell us.
           
            “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” (Ephesians 2:10 NLT).
           
            “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes” (Ephesians 1:4 NLT).
           
              “And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows (Luke 12:7 NLT).”
           
              “But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God’s instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted” (1 Peter 2:9 MSG).
           
           “My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm 139:15-16 NIV).
           
            “I have engraved you on the palms of my hands. Your walls are always in my presence” (Isaiah 49:16 NOG).
           
              Can you hear the approval of your heavenly Father in these words? Just as the Father spoke His approval over Jesus, He speaks it over you. “If we are God’s children, that means we are His heirs along with the Anointed, set to inherit everything that is His” (Romans 8:17a VOICE). We are one with Jesus.
           
​             Meditate on the above Scriptures. Let them go down deep into your spirit. So, when Satan tells you you’re no good, your family background is lousy, you’ve done a rotten job of raising your children, you’re not as smart or educated as everyone else, tell him you’ve been approved. A stamp of approval rests on you – the stamp of the Most High God. You can’t get any better than that.