Overcoming a Grasshopper Complex, Pt. 3
I started this series two weeks ago using Numbers 13, which describes the twelve leaders sent to spy on the Promised Land.
The story reveals that wrong identity, fear, and unbelief affected ten leaders, which affected an entire generation, prohibiting them from receiving what God had already promised. Many today struggle with a false identity and a misunderstanding of who they are in Christ.
I want to help the body of Christ understand her identity in Christ and gain principles to overcome wrong beliefs and gain confidence because of who we are in Him.
Have you ever felt inadequate for a new job or ministry opportunity? If so, you are not alone. I suspect most of us have felt overwhelmed at one time or another when facing new responsibilities.
Further compounding the issue for many is unresolved identity issues and or feelings of inferiority. Did you know God will even move you into uncomfortable positions where you may feel unqualified or unable? Yep! To prove He is God!
But here is the excellent news: in Christ, you are a new creation and have a new identity. You now overcome because Jesus has overcome! As we renew our thinking to this truth, we become more confident in life’s circumstances and opportunities.
Result: God’s promises are often unrealized for fear of inadequacy and failure. The series is adapted from my book, Fulfill Your Dreams.
Grasshopper Complex, “Who are we to do this?” Num. 13:1-3,17-20, 25-33
Twelve leaders were sent and found the land productive, just as God had promised. But ten of the twelve were shaken with negativity and fear!
The ten spies responded to Moses by saying, “Who are we to do this?” The result, “… we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” Num. 13:33 NKJV
The root of their unbelief was a slave mentality. They still saw themselves as former slaves and concluded they couldn’t do what God asked them to do.
It was their false identity that empowered unbelief and allowed fear to rule them, affecting the nation of Israel. Fear is not a virtue! It is the opposite of faith and God’s perspective on matters.
When the Israelites saw themselves as weak slaves, it was assumed that the Canaanites did also – wrong! But the Canaanites were fainthearted and fearful of the children of Israel. (Josh. 2:9-11)
Even the truth and facts did not make a difference when they saw themselves as small! They looked at the obstacles’ significance instead of how big God is!
The Grasshopper Complex is when we see ourselves unable to move forward in our purpose and destiny because of wrong identity, past experiences, and present circumstances.
Forty years would elapse before another generation of Israelites possessed the Promised Land. The unbelief of the ten spies distorted the truth and caused an entire generation to forfeit what God had freely given them.
In Christ, we have a new identity: a heavenly identity and a new family lineage.
Our true family lineage is that of Christ! We are born from above now and adopted into God’s family. Our past does not define us!
Jesus defines us! His cross and resurrection shape us and our future. We are no longer tied to our past but free in Christ to live new lives filled with hope and purpose.
Paul writes, “… forgetting those things that are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead…” Phil. 3:13 NKJV
The past is closed, but the future lies ahead in Christ and is full of new possibilities!
We cannot live meaningful lives in the future if we are tied to our past failures and mistakes – or – even our past successes. We must learn from our past without being controlled by it to move ahead with what God has for us now.
Can you think of a time when your past held you back?
Why did the spies succumb to a Grasshopper Complex?
The failure of the children of Israel to partner with God and possess the land of Canaan was due primarily to characteristics that formed strongholds of unbelief and fear in their minds. Namely:
False identity, Negative thinking, Fear of transition, and Failure to recognize God’s will.
Today, let’s examine how false identity contributes to a Grasshopper Complex.
False Identity
“… we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” Num. 13:33 NKJV
Their false identity created unbelief about the truth of their situation. Wrong identity fuels negativity, fear, and unbelief.
In Christ, we are no longer fearful slaves. But we are adopted sons and daughters of God through Jesus.
Paul writes to the Roman believers:
15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” Rom. 8:15-17 NIV
In verse 15, The Greek word for adoption to sonship refers to the full legal standing of an adopted male heir in Roman culture. A natural son in Roman culture could be disinherited, but not a bond slave who was adopted.
Paul is telling believers (my paraphrase), “You are heirs of God now and will never be disinherited because of what Jesus has done!”
You are part of God’s family, identity, and lineage! He gave us His Spirit to aid and empower us. We are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. Heaven’s resources are available!
SOLUTION: To overcome wrong identity, see yourself as God sees you in Christ.
How you see yourself matters—your future depends on your correct identity in Christ. The Bible is full of examples of those who missed their inheritance due to false identity, lack of faith, and underestimating the power of God.
You are not a slave in new clothes; you are God’s beloved child reigning with Him presently. You are a new creation in Christ and part of God’s royal family and priesthood.
Paul describes in 2 Corinthians the spiritual change that has happened in us through faith in Christ.
16 Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 2 Cor. 5:16-17 NKJV
Translators have developed the English phrase “new creation” from two Greek words that Paul uses in 2 Corinthians 5:17 and Galatians 6:15. The English word “new” is derived from the Greek word kainós, which means, “What is new and distinctive as compared with other things.” 1 This newness is regarding form or quality.
The English word “creation” is derived from the Greek word ktísis, which means “To make or create something which has not existed before; to create; creation (in the New Testament, used exclusively of God’s activity in creation).” 2
Ktísis is the same word used in Colossians where Paul says of Jesus, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” (Col. 1:15). Ktísis, as used in the New Testament, involves God’s creative activity. Thus, becoming a new creation conveys the idea that you are a new and distinct person through regeneration in Christ.
What did Paul mean in 2 Cor 5:16: “Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh…” (NKJV) He states that just as we don’t know Jesus from a natural perspective but from the Spirit, we should see everyone according to the spiritual realm.
While Paul is stressing the spiritual change that has happened to each one of us in Christ (vs. 17), he is trying to get us to see ourselves and each other differently!
From now on or in the future, we should not view others according to their past or from a natural perspective.
No one includes you! Don’t look at yourself from your past or current reality, but as in Christ. You must see yourself as you are, a new person in Christ spiritually.
You are not a slave anymore! You are a beloved child of God, an heir of God, and a joint heir with Christ. Allow God to renew your mind and change your belief system.
Paul writes in Romans, “…be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” Rom. 12:2 NKJV
Transformed is from the Greek metamorphoō, which primarily means “to change the essential form or nature of something, or to become completely different.” 3
In Christ, spiritually, we have already become something new, of a different form or nature. Therefore, Paul encourages the reader to allow the Spirit to change the essential nature of our thinking; to realize this change, we must cooperate with the process.
When we feel small, we are prone to fall into a victim mentality. If we live from our past and not from our new identity in Christ, we can give in to fear.
This may cause us to fear rejection; therefore, we control others or situations around us to avoid rejection. Shame can cause the same cycle. If we are afraid others will see us from past or present failures, we may control others to avoid rejection.
These are characteristics of false identity that hinder us from growing in Christ and receiving all that God has for us.
