You may read Athalie’s story and think, “That’s crazy! What princess in her right mind would refuse to wear her crown?”
The fact is, many of God’s princesses, all over the world, hide their crown before they even step foot out the front door each day. Tucked away in the closet, hidden behind dresser clutter, boxed under the bed . . . somewhere the crown sits collecting dust.
In this little parable, Athalie’s finery represents the blessings of being a daughter of the king. Her crown represents who she is to the king (see the “Your Royalty in Him” blog page). Just the same, as God’s daughter, you have all of Heaven’s goodness at your fingertips! It’s more than an earthly inheritance of jewels or homes. It’s more than a good name in a society of idol-seekers. It’s the eternal lineage and all that it entails!
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you… (I Peter 1:3-4)
OUR BLESSINGS
If you study the word “salvation,” you’ll find it means more than just having your sins forgiven. It includes all the blessings that were bought for you when Jesus died on the cross: healing, deliverance, protection, provision, and peace. All this was given to you when you received Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Your king made sure you weren’t going to go through life with just enough to survive. You were going to be decked from head to toe in His blessings (3 John 2)!
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.” (Ephesians 1:3-6)
OUR CROWN
God hasn’t just lavished you with blessings; He’s also given you a crown – a crown that represents who you are to the world. That crown is your identity as His Princess – His child. When you were born again, God placed His nature on the inside of you. That single act elevated you from pauper to princess – His very own! It does more than give you a good self-image. It gives you the understanding that you have the genuine presence and glory of God reigning on the inside! It’s more than enough to make all fear of failure, or lack of confidence, disappear!
But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. (I Peter 2:9)
THE TEMPTATION
You now have your inheritance of blessings and your new identity. As wonderful as it is, though, the challenge has only begun. The moment you received Jesus as your Lord and Savior, the devil will try to distract you from being the light you were meant to be. The temptation is to be selfish and squander your inheritance, ignoring the world around you.
He may also choose to intimidate you by sending pressure from your culture and other people to keep you in hiding. Even worse, he may entice you to be like them, and to slowly let go of your identity and choose to be more like the world rather than like God. This is exactly what God doesn’t want you to do.
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Romans 12:2)
The idea is to avoid being “squeezed” into the world’s mold. When you consider what “conforming” looks like, it sounds manipulative and messy. But that’s exactly what happens every time you decide to sport the world’s bad attitudes, or copy their way of talking. That’s the result when you decide to date an unbeliever or show off the revealing outfit. Slowly, with each adjusted standard, your royal “crown” is being broken and tarnished – all to please the world around you.
It’s not always the broken standards and obvious moral changes that make you want to hide or injure our identity. Sometimes the temptation is to simply be quiet about who you really are. The goal becomes to be silent about your beliefs, or to make excuses for the way you live. That, too, can be as fatal to your royal identity as denying that you have a crown at all.
THE TRAGEDY
The tragedy of giving up your royal identity is that you are not the only one who pays the price. Yes, you may lose blessings and the peace that follows a holy lifestyle. You may not feel the joy of hearing Jesus say, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23). It’s a sad picture for you, but what about those around you?
Your commission is to “go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). Without you, Jesus has no one to shine the way to Him. Whether they realize it or not, other girls desire to wear a crown, too! But they have no way of knowing how good God is or how much He desires to have a relationship with Him. If you are not being that “light,” you’re doing a disservice to those around you, hindering them from knowing the One person who loves them the most. Every time you try to adjust your habits and lifestyles to be “conformed to the world” you are drawing them farther away from their Savior, and blemishing God’s reputation.
When you get around the world, they ought to see a difference by the way you act and speak. They ought to know you’re of royal blood. They ought to know that Jesus is alive and is coming back soon. You may not be into wearing physical headpiece, but you do have a responsibility to let your spiritual crown shine without intimidation!
“You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16)
THE BEAUTY
When the temptation to hide or throw away your crown rears its head up, you need to remember this verse:
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. (Romans 1:16)
What makes you so beautiful is that you are so different. You have no reason to be ashamed of your crown just because you’re not like everyone around you. You are like Jesus, shining His nature from the inside out. Everything about Him is pure, lovely, and good. In a dark world, you couldn’t possibly fit in – nor should you desire to try!
Next time you stand before a mirror, bemoaning your uniqueness, you need to remember who you are, what you have, and the power within you. You need to remember whose final opinion really counts. No demands of a boyfriend, parent, or teacher trumps the reality of who your King made you to be. Nothing has any right to say you’re anything other than a child of the one and only King!
Christa Madrid 