Forgiven, Favored, & Free: Living as Sons and Daughters of the King

By Jill Tomlinson

In Forgiven, Favored, and Free you will become more aware of who you are, whose you are, and the glorious inheritance that has been provided for your life here and now!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Clovercroft Publishing
• Release date: Sep 1, 2015
• ISBN: 9781942587118

Jill Tomlinson

Jill Tomlinson never intended to be a writer.  She trained as an opera singer, and then decided to have a family whilst her voice matured.  But illness intervened, and she had to find another outlet for her energies. She started on a journalism course, and by the third lesson decided she wanted to write for children.  So she did! Jill Tomlinson’s animal stories are much-loved and have been best-selling children’s books for nearly four decades.

Book preview

Seas

Introduction

Children of God are heirs to the richest inheritance in the world. We are royalty since we were adopted by the King of Glory. Endless promises are available to each and every child of the King. Our true home is in another Kingdom – the Kingdom of unending light and abundant life. As royal children we are special. We are forgiven, favored, and free! Why then, are so many oppressed, hurting, and discouraged? Is it possible to truly live a victorious life in a world where there is so much trouble and pain? Is overcoming power for a few chosen super-spiritual Christians or is it for everyone? Is victory truly attainable or is it just religious jargon? You will find answers to these and other questions in the pages that follow.

The purpose of this book is to help you live a more victorious life by centering on the all-sufficient and powerfully effective sacrifice of Jesus. In my book, No More Lies, I address many incorrect beliefs, unhealthy emotions, and lies, uproot them, and replace them with truth from the Word of God. Exposing the lies of the enemy is a huge step in walking in the abundance that is yours as a child of God. Forgiven, Favored, and Free focuses further on the finished work of Christ, your identity in Him, and practical truths that will empower you to lead a life of triumph.

Lasting victory in the life of a believer is readily available to each of us through the person of Jesus. Don’t let the enemy convince you that you have to wait until you get beyond the pearly gates to live fully in the blessings of God. Instead, they are for your life here and now. As God’s own son or daughter, every good thing that Christ provided is available to you so you can live on top of your circumstances, not be-neath them.

My prayer for you as you read this book is that the truth of God’s Word will be illuminated to your heart in fresh, new ways, that you will be encouraged to stand confidently against the schemes of the enemy in your life, and that you will know and live more fully from the unfailing promises of God every single day! You do not have to settle for anything less than Jesus provided. May you know with your whole heart that you can reign victorious in this life because you are forgiven, favored, and free!

CHAPTER 1

Your Royal Inheritance

…but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, 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 joint heirs with Christ… (Romans 8:15-17)

In the natural realm, a child’s identity comes primarily from the family to whom he is born. He receives the same last name, address, and benefits of living in the home with his parents and siblings. He doesn’t grow up wondering if he will be able to sleep in his bed at night or eat the food that is thoughtfully prepared for dinner. He never questions if he can ride in the family car or join them on vacation. He simply lives each day enjoying the benefits of being a member of his family. Just by being born, by default, he inherits the right to take part in all the provision, protection, love, laughter, and privileges his family has to offer.

An orphaned child doesn’t have this same sense of identity. She has a last name, but no idea about who her parents are. She has never met her mother, father, or siblings. She shares a temporary address at an orphanage with many other children, all with different last names. She shares a room with others like her and she feels like just another face in the crowd. She longs for a home and family to call her own. She only dreams of family vacations, her very own bedroom, and meals shared with people who love her.

This little girl has no rightful inheritance, and her daily life is a continuous series of unanswered questions. That is, until the day she is adopted. On that day, everything changes. She takes the last name of her new parents. This indicates her new identity and inheritance. Now, whatever her parents have to offer automatically becomes hers, too. She instantly inherits a bedroom with her own furnishings, a pantry full of food, a television, warm meals shared with her family, and times of laughter and affection she has only dreamed of having. She no longer goes to bed wondering. She has been spoken for. She now belongs to someone and the burden for her care rests upon that person.

The parents who adopted this young girl are thrilled. They have waited for the day when they could hold her in their arms, tuck her in at night, and share their lives with her. It isn’t a burden for them to take her in as a daughter; it is the most joyous day of their lives! This day didn’t come without any cost. They paid a huge price to become her parents, but the sacrifice was worth the joy of having her in their home, giving her their last name, providing for her, protecting her, and loving her for life. They are delighted to give her the very best of everything they have.

PUTTING YOUR FAITH IN JESUS IS AN ACCEPTANCE OF YOUR RIGHTFUL POSITION IN THE FAMILY OF GOD.

Like this little girl, you, too, have been spoken for. Whether you grew up as an orphan or a son or daughter in this life is not important. Your heavenly Father has chosen you. Putting your faith in Jesus is an acceptance of your rightful position in the family of God. Imagine His table where you have been called to dine. It stretches for as long as you can see and it is filled with gifts and the richest, most exotic foods you can imagine. There is never lack at this table. It is constantly replenished with the freshest, most nutritious, and fulfilling foods imaginable. The continuous supply at the table represents everything you need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). As you approach the table, you see that there is a seat with your name engraved on it. It is the place Jesus died to provide for you. This seat sat vacant until you realized Jesus was the true Way and believed, but this designated spot at the table was always reserved just for you.

How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is! He’s the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in him. Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!) He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son. (Ephesians 1:3-6 MSG)

A constant supply of lavish gift-giving at the King’s table belongs to you – not because of anything you accomplished or even deserve, but because of the One who adopted you and made you His rightful heir. He carefully chose you and made every provision for you to be His, to sit at His table and commune with Him. He held nothing back; it cost Him everything to claim you for His own. Yet, the sacrifice was worth it because of the joy you bring to Him. It brings Him the greatest pleasure to bestow His inheritance upon you in both this life and for all of eternity.

A CONSTANT SUPPLY OF LAVISH GIFT-GIVING AT THE KING’S TABLE BELONGS TO YOU – NOT BECAUSE OF ANYTHING YOU ACCOMPLISHED OR EVEN DESERVE, BUT BECAUSE OF THE ONE WHO ADOPTED YOU AND MADE YOU HIS RIGHTFUL HEIR.

As wonderful as this divine inheritance is, many believers stop short of sitting down to partake of the good things stretched out on the Father’s table. Instead, they settle for the crumbs that scatter about on the floor around the place setting designated for them. But it is at the table that you will find everything necessary to sustain you in this life. It has already been prepared and provided for you. Still, it is up to you to pull out the chair, sit, and eat.

Now just imagine the little girl who was adopted. What if instead of sleeping in her warm bed at night she insisted upon sleeping outside because she didn’t think she really belonged to her new family? What if she refused to eat the hot meals put before her because she just could not comprehend that kind of goodness? What if her parents filled her closet with nice, clean clothes, but she insisted on wearing the old rags she wore when she was still an orphan? This would surely break her parents’ hearts. After all, they went to great lengths to ensure she was provided everything she could possibly need or dream of, and yet she refuses to walk in her new life and identity. Sadly, this is what is happening in the majority of the body of Christ. Many people are born again - giving them access to every good and perfect gift - and yet they refuse to put on their royal clothing, dine at the royal table, or rest in the royal chamber.

MANY PEOPLE ARE BORN AGAIN - GIVING THEM ACCESS TO EVERY GOOD AND PERFECT GIFT - AND YET THEY REFUSE TO PUT ON THEIR ROYAL CLOTHING, DINE AT THE ROYAL TABLE, OR REST IN THE ROYAL CHAMBER.

Victory is yours for the taking IN THIS LIFE, but you must choose it. God has never and will never take control of your free will. His desire is for you to walk with Him by choice. So, while He has given us access to all of His glorious goodness, perfect promises, overcoming power, and complete victory, He will never force us to partake of any of it. It is no different from the richest man on the planet leaving all he has to his children. Yet, they never touch it. Instead, they drive broken down cars, live in tents, and struggle to pay bills even though they are heirs to more money than they can spend in a lifetime. It makes no sense, and yet it happens in the family of God each and every day.

Children of the Living God should be walking, breathing testimonies of His glory and goodness. When people look at our lives, it should be obvious who and Whose we are! God’s sons and daughters should be the healthiest, happiest, most fruitful people on the planet. This brings glory and joy to God. It doesn’t bring Him glory when His children are beat down, sick, and living in lack. He loves us all the same, but it simply does not testify of His goodness. Yes, problems

Reviews for Forgiven, Favored, & Free

[harley0326 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The book is very insightful and give you practical tools to walk in forgiveness , and live a free life in His presence. The author talks about how God is "never finished with us." We are a work in progress and should always seek intimacy with God. We should be excited to know that He wants good things for us and to continue to seek Him. One of the things some of us forget , is the importance of our relationship with God. He should be the one you call on in times of need and also have a desire to spend intimate time with Him. It's like meeting a friend and wanting to get to know them better. That is what we should be doing with God. The more time we spend with Him, the less the enemy can whisper lies to us. We have been set free and need to start accepting our freedom. The enemy is always close by waiting for a narrow path to slip in. As we become strong in our faith, the passageway closes and locks out the enemy from our lives. I loved the author's example of tearing down walls that keep us from living a free life. Don't let your circumstances dictate your freedom. He loves his children and does not want to see us struggling with depression, feelin worthless, or unloved. We need to take authority of those lies and rest in His assurance that , " he will never leave us, nor forsake us." As Christians we can become complacent in our relationship with God and this book gives us encouragement and tools to rebuild trust with Him. The book is a very practical tool to show you how you can be free from distraction caused by the enemy. Ms. Tomlinson says, " As you trust Him, and your roots grow deeper in His love, you will grow stronger." "There is no greater promise than His." I received a copy of this book from The BookClub Network for an honest review.