Christ our identity!

Christ: Our identity
By JanEgil – Dec. 2014

Many Christians
are not living
free and productive lives
because they
don’t understand
who they really are…

But:
This is the truth!
and the truth will set you free!

Do you have a
Abba Father (daddy)
relationship with God ? Rom. 8:15

Or is he an angry God
that you one day fear to meet?

Our sense of worth is not a
question of giftedness,
talent, intelligence
or beauty.

Our sense of worth comes from
knowing who you are
as a child of God

The apostle Paul always starts
his letters by proclaiming
who we are as Christians
Then he goes on to explain how
we are to live out the
Christian life

Who are you ?
Or more precisely:
Who does the bible
say that you are ?

It is not what you do as a
Christian that determines
who you are –
it is who you are that determines
what you do
2 Cor. 5:17 – Eph. 2:10 - 1 Peter 2:9-10 -1 John 3:1-2
Get this
REVELATION

Understanding your identity
in Christ is essential for
living the Christian life

If you perceive
yourself wrongly,
you will live wrongly

But if you see yourself
as a child of God who is
spiritually alive in Christ,
you will begin to live
accordingly

The devil don’t want us to
understand this principle.
He is trying to get us
to believe a lie – that we don’t
have our identity in Christ

The apostle Paul was aware of
the devils tactics:
To remind the church of their
identity, he called them “Saints”
(believers in Christ or holy ones)

In fact, in the Bible believers are
called “Saints” or “Holy ones”
more then 240 times

And unbelievers are called
“sinners” more then 330 times

Clearly the term “Saint” is used in
scripture to refer to believer
(only), and
“sinner” is used in reference to
unbeliever (only)

Either you are a Saint –
or you are a sinner,
You can never be a Saint
and a sinner at the same time
You can not have
it both ways
And you don’t go
back and forth
between the two…

A Christian is never “a sinner”
in the biblical definition of
the word…

This is one of the biggest
misunderstandings
in Christianity

Let’s look a little closer:
What is a sinner ?

Webster’s (on line) dictionary
(2008) gives this definition of
a sinner:

“A person that sins
without repentance”
(without remorse or feeling sorry for his sinful action)
This is clearly
a non-believer / unbeliever

In other words:
If you are sorry for your sinful
behavior when you have done
something wrong,
you are not “a sinner”

And if you have a clear
understanding of what Christ
accomplished on the cross,
You will go to Him,
You will praise Him,
You will thank Him,
…that the wrong you just did
also was included in the sin He
bore on the cross…

And do you know what:
The new testament does not
mention one time that
Christians had to ask God’s
forgiveness to have
forgiveness.
Not once!!!

Does that mean that Christians
don’t sin?
Absolutely not.

Christians do sin on occasion.
(I remember back in 1974…)
But they are not “sinners”

Don’t confuse the verb “to sin”
with the noun “a sinner”
What you (occasionally) do
does not
determine who “you are”
as we mentioned earlier…
Get
this:

How about the Apostle Paul
talking about himself being the
worst of “sinners” ? (1 Tim chapter 1)
This term was clearly describing
him in remembrance of
what he was before
Christ transformed him
There is wide agreement among the scholars that Paul
was not the worst of sinners after his conversion…

Before we received Christ we
were all sinners –
but not any more!

Why is this
distinction
important?

It is important for out self-image
to understand who we are
that we are Saints – not sinners.
That we are made Saints by His
grace – that we are not sinners
under the burden of the law
Listen
closely:

Many Christians are deceived by
the devil and dominated by the
flesh…
To constantly be told that you are
a sinner
only fastens the devils grip
and keeps you in bondage

John 16 tells us:
The Holy Spirit came to convict
us (the believer) of our
righteousness….
as a counterweight to Satan –
the accuser –
who constantly try to tell us (the
believer) that we are
sinning – sinners – no good –
worthless and useless…

Stop listening to the accuser…

What believers need to hear is
that they are
Saints
which we truly are – by the grace
of God…

Realizing the power of your
identity in Christ, gives
victory in your
daily living

Positive confession
of biblical truths,
is a powerful tool to
“get in to”
who you really are…

The more you reaffirm who you
are in Christ,
the more your
behavior will begin to
reflect your true
identity…

Let us together confess
who the Bible say’s
we are!

“I AM ACCEPTED”
Speak it
out loud:

I am Gods child
John 1:12
Speak it
out loud:

I have been justified
Rom 5:1
Speak it
out loud:

I am united with the Lord, and
I am one Spirit with Him
1 Cor. 6:17
Speak it
out loud:

I have been bought with a
price and I belong to God
1 Cor. 6:20
Speak it
out loud:

I am a friend of Jesus
John 15:15
Speak it
out loud:

Who I am in Christ:
I am a member of Christ’s
body
1 Cor 12:27
Speak it
out loud:

I am a Saint
Eph. 1:1
Speak it
out loud:

I have been adopted as
Gods child
Eph. 1:5
Speak it
out loud:

I have direct access to God
through the Holy Spirit
Eph 2:18
Speak it
out loud:

I have been redeemed and
forgiven of all my sins
Col 1:14
Speak it
out loud:

I am complete in Christ
Col 2:10
Speak it
out loud:

“I am Secure”
Speak it
out loud:

I am free from
condemnation
Rom 8:1-2
Speak it
out loud:

I am assured that all thing
work together for good
Rom 8:28
Speak it
out loud:

I am free from all condemning
charges against me
Rom 8:31-34
Speak it
out loud:

I can not be separated from
the love of God
Rom 8:35-39
Speak it
out loud:

I am confident that the good
work God has begun in me
will be completed
Phil 1:6
Speak it
out loud:

I am a citizen of heaven
Phil 3:20
Speak it
out loud:

I am hidden with Christ in
God
Col 3:3
Speak it
out loud:

I have not been given a
spirit of fear
2 Tim 1:7
Speak it
out loud:

I can find grace and mercy
in time of need
Heb 4:16
Speak it
out loud:

I am born of God
1 John 5:18
Speak it
out loud:

“The evil one”
cannot touch me
1 John 5:18
Speak it
out loud:

“I am significant”
Speak it
out loud:

I am God’s temple
1 Cor. 3:16
Speak it
out loud:

I am God’s co-worker
2 Cor 6:1
Speak it
out loud:

I am seated with Christ in
the heavenly realm
Eph. 2:6
Speak it
out loud:

I am God’s workmanship
Eph 2:10
Speak it
out loud:

I may approach God with
freedom and confidence
Eph 3:12
Speak it
out loud:

I can do all things through
Christ
Phil 4:13
Speak it
out loud:

“I am somebody”
Speak it
out loud:

Now I understand
who I am in Christ
Speak it
out loud:

The Devil shall never
again rob me of my
confidence
Speak it
out loud:

I am a child of
God for ever!!!
Speak it
out loud:

Praise the Lord !
Speak it
out loud:

In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song;
this Cornerstone, this solid Ground,
firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
when fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
here in the love of Christ I stand.
Verse 1:

Verse 2: In Christ alone! who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones he came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied -
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.

Chorus 3 There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain:
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave he rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine -
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

Chorus 4 No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the power of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath.
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
Till He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand.

Our identity in Christ
by JanEgil Gulbrandsen
gulbrandsen@islandnet.com
Victoria BC, Canada Nov.2014

Christ our identity!

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Christ our identity!