Finding your identity in Christ

[RenewedInHim]

What does this phrase mean to you and how has finding your identity in Christ changed your life?

 

[LilLamb219]

What does this phrase mean to you and how has finding your identity in Christ changed your life?

Being a Christian is all about identity. But it's not about what I've done or who I am. It's about the Savior, who He has done and is still doing for me. It's about the cross. it's about forgiveness of sins. My identity lies solely in Him.

 

[turned around]

Hi Renewed,
Prior to believing in Jesus my identity was in Adam. I was dead in trespass and sin. I might have believed in God but no searching for him. I was basically a average guy, not realizing how far I was from God. There's much to be said about that. But when the Spirit began ministering I began to get a awareness of Jesus. I got saved but was never properly taught about the new creation.

The in Christ realities have everything to do with the new creation I'm in a whole different creation with Jesus as the head. The Spirit teaches these realities mainly through the apostle Paul's writings. In Christ is a position. The Spirit teaches me how to put on the new man. He convicts me of righteousness so I stay in the new creation reality.

Grace to you.

 

[Peripatetic]

My identity starts with: "just a guy". As Christians, I think we have a tendency to overestimate our relative goodness as compared to others, or dwell too much on our shortcomings or "wickedness". If I'm honest with myself, I'm pretty ordinary from an objective viewpoint.

But it ends with something extraordinary - my adoption into God's family. So my identity here on Earth is: "a member of the Church." It isn't a glamorous title, but I could not be more thankful. It makes me want to do my part along with (or separate from) the other members of my adopted family. I hope I'll never need any more in this life.

 

[Bible2]

RenewedInHim said in post 1:

Finding your identity in Christ

What does this phrase mean to you and how has finding your identity in Christ changed your life?

For believers in Jesus Christ, their primary identity is as children of God (John 1:12). They also take on a secondary identity within the body of Christ depending on that particular spiritual work which he has given them as individuals to do (Ephesians 4:11; 1 Corinthians 12:28, Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:8-11). So if they haven't already, believers should pray and ask Jesus what their particular spiritual work is for him, and do it every day (Luke 9:23, Titus 3:8, Mark 13:34, John 12:26).

 

[ToBeBlessed]

Initially, my identity in Christ was skewed by the 'works' thing.

Know that you are saved by grace. All of your works are as filthy rags. Do not do works out of atonement, do works out of love.

Realize what that means because many, many have problems with the works vs. grace part. The bible is clear that we are born again by the grace and gift of Jesus Christ atoning death for our sin. Period.

As you grow closer to God. Begin your experience of 'loving the Lord with all your heart, soul, and mind you will want to grow in Christ. The Holy Spirit will always be there providing little nudges for you to move forward and grow. You however have to seek to have more because our walk with God is always our choice.

"Seek and you shall find, knock and the door will be opened. Ask and it shall be given".

Through prayer, reading the bible and spending time with God, He will reveal who He is. Once He does reveal His love and forgiveness to you in a real way, you will never want to part from this love. This love you will find no where else. You will never find a person (we are all sinners and hurt others) who will be as steadfast as God.

He tells us "I will never leave you nor forsake you" and He never will. He will become your best friend because besides being so faithful and loving, He also knows you perfectly. He knows you better than you know yourself.

He sends the Holy Spirit to each of His children, to reside in their hearts, to help them, comfort them and to pray for us when we no not what to pray for ourselves. You are promised that when you repent for your sin, your sin is forgiven.

Realize the intense beauty in all He gives you. Live in that for a few moments.

I wish I would have begun my journey with the Lord in awesome wonder and awesome love. There was love and wonder, but I put a damper on that when I started doing things my way (works) and thought that would make Him happy.

It doesn't.

He wants YOU.

Enjoy how intensely and perfectly He loves you.

All the rest will progress nicely.
"Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you."

That is part of a bible verse, and there is complete TRUTH there.

 

[peterandrewj]

"I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me".

Identity in Christ is for the inward man by way of baptism. It begins with remission of sins, then newness of life by the cross, then on to perfection.

When I got saved God showed me something new had begun in me, and that my sins were in the past and under the blood. He taught me to fight by faith through the blood of Jesus for peace against guilt and shame from sin. As I did so I saw its power to cleanse and heal, to purge my conscience...it was my beginning of putting on Christ.

 

[Bible2]

ToBeBlessed said in post 6:

Know that you are saved by grace.

Amen.

Initial salvation is by grace through faith without any works at all on our part (Romans 4:1-5, Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 3:5). But other passages show that initially saved people must have both faith and continued works of faith (1 Thessalonians 1:3, Galatians 5:6b, Titus 3:8) (not works of the letter of the Old Covenant Mosaic law), if they're to obtain ultimate salvation (Romans 2:6-8, James 2:24, Matthew 7:21, Matthew 25:26,30, Philippians 2:12b, Philippians 3:11-14; 2 Corinthians 5:9, Hebrews 5:9, Hebrews 6:10-12; 2 Peter 1:10-11, John 15:2a; 1 John 2:17b). For believers must actually continue to do righteous deeds if they're to continue to be righteous (1 John 3:7, James 2:24,26). And there's no assurance that believers will choose to do that, instead of wrongly employing their free will to become utterly lazy without repentance, to the ultimate loss of their salvation (Matthew 25:26,30, John 15:2a).

ToBeBlessed said in post 6:

All of your works are as filthy rags.

That's right, insofar as on their own, believers aren't good enough to earn their salvation (Romans 3:10). But if they continue to abide in Jesus (John 15:4-6), they can become good enough to earn their ultimate salvation (Matthew 25:21, Romans 2:6-7, James 2:24, Philippians 2:12b; 2 Corinthians 5:9). For while believers can't do good apart from continuing to abide in Jesus (Romans 3:12, John 15:5b), if they do continue to abide in him, they can do good (John 15:5, John 5:29, Philippians 2:12-13; 1 Timothy 6:18; 1 Peter 3:11; 3 John 1:11, Galatians 6:10, Ephesians 6:8, Hebrews 13:16, Luke 6:35).

Also, Jesus has made it possible for believers not to sin (John 8:34-36, Romans 8:2-14, Romans 6:1-23; 2 Corinthians 7:1), even when they're tempted to do so (2 Peter 2:9a; 1 Corinthians 10:13; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Romans 8:13, Galatians 5:16). So they can become perfectly holy before God (2 Corinthians 7:1, Romans 6:22, Hebrews 12:14; 1 Thessalonians 4:7, Ephesians 4:24). And Jesus has made it possible for believers to repent and confess their sins to God and be completely forgiven if they nonetheless wrongly employ their free will to commit a sin (1 John 1:9). They will lose their salvation ultimately only if they continue in a sin without repentance (Hebrews 10:26-29; 1 Corinthians 9:27, Luke 12:45-46).

 

[insurchoftruth]

One of the things about our identity in Christ is that, when you become a born again christian, your receive the very life and nature of God, in your spirit. Your spirit is excellent, perfect, therefore, there is all excellence from God deposited in your spirit about any area of your life. Do you understand it? We are a new creation, in the image of God, excellent in our born again spirits. All we need to do, is to find a way to get out that excellence into our life, and let what God has deposited in us, be manifested. It is our choice to do that or not.

 

[Jaelyn Liza]

I am actually still often struggling to find my identity in Christ. One thing I know - He has loved me with an everlasting love and has given up His all for me. Wow! It makes me feel cherished, treasured, and kind of important. And all that I have, all that I am and all that I can do isn't really of me or mine, it's all His and to Him be the glory forever.