I Am a Prince By Bryan Craig

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”  The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”  Romans 8:14-17 ESV

For those of you who have been through The Journey, the Influencers Discipleship process, you have read Rocky’s book, An Orphan No More, and you have contemplated the truth from scripture that we, as believers, are adopted by God.  We are His sons and daughters, and we must learn to renounce the Orphan Spirit, which wants to hold us captive to our old identity and our old sinful life.  It really is an amazing truth to ponder.

One day, several years ago, I was praying for a friend of mine, Tom, who was going through a difficult season, as his past was haunting him.  As I prayed, the Spirit led me to declare that he was a son of the King, which makes him a Prince.  When the prayer was over, he looked at me with tears in his eyes and told me that his parents called him, “Prince” when he was a little boy.  This was from the Lord.

But I had to learn for myself that I, too, was a prince, even though I felt more like a frog.  God has reminded me of this many times through the years.  It helped me to watch the Netflix series, “The Crown.”  It is an in-depth depiction of the British Royal Family.  Despite all the dysfunction that has occurred within that family through the years, I learned some things about being part of a royal family. 

We, as believers, are part of God’s Royal Family.  We serve and bow to the King of kings.  Like the British royal family expects, I believe God would have us represent Him well.  He wants us to put His Kingdom first in all things, and to glorify Him by the way we live our lives.  As I said earlier, there has been much dysfunction and scandal that has tried to tarnish the British Crown.  Similarly, the enemy of our King is always trying to tarnish His reputation by using scandals with His children.  We must understand that our sinful actions don’t just hurt us, and our families, but it hurts the Kingdom of Christ.

This is why Jesus told His disciples, who were sons of the Kingdom, that they must abide with Him.  Jesus, the Son of the King, our Brother, is the Prince of Peace, and He is our model for what God wants His children to look like.   

Think of Jesus, at the end of his short life, on the Cross.  

Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left. And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.”  So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’  Matthew 27:38-43 ESV

Yes, I am a Prince, a son of the King, and I accept this post with gratitude and gravity.  I understand that the Kingdom I represent will be hated, misunderstood, mocked, abused but I am committed to my King and His Kingdom.  I will renounce my old sinful identity and my old worldly perspective to be a noble ambassador for this holy family.  I’m thankful He has given me many brothers and sisters, fellow princes and princesses, to help me as we represent our Father, the King.  Will you join us, taking your place in the family, receiving his benefits as well as counting the cost.  Let’s go serve the King.