I Am Who God Says I Am: Finding Your True Identity In Christ
“Who am I?” This is a question many of us wrestle with throughout our lives. We look to our circumstances, accomplishments, relationships, and even our own thoughts and feelings to determine our identity and self-worth.
But as followers of Jesus Christ, our true identity is found in who God says we are.
If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer: Our identity is not based on our performance or the labels the world puts on us. Through faith in Jesus, we become children of God. This means we are dearly loved, chosen, forgiven, and empowered to live for Christ.
God sees us as new creations in Christ – and that is our true identity.
In this article, we will explore in depth what Scripture reveals about who God says we are and how knowing our true identity in Christ transforms every area of life. We’ll look at powerful promises and examples in the Bible that assure us we are dearly loved children of God, chosen and forgiven, with a new identity and purpose in Jesus Christ.
Let’s dive in!
We Are Dearly Loved Children of God
Chosen Before the Foundation of the World
The Bible tells us that God knew and chose us even before He laid the foundations of the earth (Ephesians 1:4). We did not choose Him, but He chose us out of His great love to be His dearly loved children. God declares that we are precious, honored, and loved in His sight (Isaiah 43:4).
He intricately designed each one of us and knit us together in our mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13-14). Even if our earthly parents have failed us, we have a perfect Heavenly Father who knew us intimately before anyone else did.
Adopted into God’s Family
When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, God adopts us as His own children. He grants us full rights and privileges as heirs in His family (Galatians 4:5, Romans 8:17). We become brothers and sisters with Christ and call God “Abba, Father” (Romans 8:15).
This adoption is irrevocable – God promises He will never leave or forsake us once we are firmly planted in His family (Hebrews 13:5). Though we are unworthy, He joyfully brought us into His household to be treated as cherished family.
Objects of God’s Great Affection
As our Heavenly Father, God looks at us with delight, tenderness, compassion, and unconditional love. He rejoices over us with singing (Zephaniah 3:17). No matter what we have done, we remain the apple of His eye and engraved on the palms of His hands (Zechariah 2:8, Isaiah 49:16).
There is nothing we can do to make God love us more or less – He already loves us perfectly and completely. This great affection spurs Him to provide, protect, and shower spiritual blessings on us as His beloved sons and daughters (1 John 3:1).
We Are Chosen and Called
God Has Chosen Us for Relationship with Himself
God, in His infinite love and grace, has chosen each one of us to be in an intimate relationship with Him even before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4). We did not choose God, but He chose us and predestined us to be adopted as His children through Jesus Christ. What an awesome privilege!
As His chosen ones, God desires for us to know Him personally and deeply. The more we seek Him in prayer, worship, and studying His Word, the more we discover how loved we are by our Heavenly Father. We get a glimpse into the great plans He has for us – plans to prosper us and give us hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).
Our identity rests securely in being the chosen sons and daughters of God. This truth protects us from seeking validation from other unstable sources. Since the Creator of the universe intentionally picked us to belong to His family, we can live confidently in who God says we are.
We Are Called into God’s Purposes
Out of His great love for the world, God has also called us to participate in His redemptive plan (2 Timothy 1:9). After choosing us, He appoints and empowers us to fulfill unique Kingdom assignments. We each have a specific role to play in expanding God’s influence on the earth.
Part of answering God’s call involves discovering and developing our spiritual gifts. Through life experiences, relationships, and the inner working of the Holy Spirit, our giftings and passions surface.
As we offer them back to God and submit to His leadership, He molds us into vessels ready for every good work (2 Timothy 2:21).
Living out our calling gives deeper meaning to our lives. We shift from pursuing selfish gain to making a lasting impact for Christ’s sake. Walking in tandem with God’s will, despite the cost, brings profound joy and peace.
Equipped with Spiritual Gifts for God’s Work
The Holy Spirit generously apportions spiritual gifts among believers for the unified purpose of building up the church (1 Corinthians 12:4-11). Some grace gifts include teaching, hospitality, generosity, administration, encouragement, and evangelism.
But there are also greater extraordinary gifts like healing, miracles, prophecy, and speaking in tongues (1 Corinthians 12:28-31). God usually grants these to spiritually mature Christians who can handle greater responsibility.
Nevertheless, we must earnestly desire the higher gifts (1 Corinthians 14:1) and not forbid their operation (1 Thessalonians 5:19-21).
As good stewards, we maintain spiritual gifts by using them frequently for God’s glory (2 Timothy 1:6; 1 Peter 4:10). Otherwise, we risk losing these special abilities. Therefore, let’s discover our grace-gifts and put them into practice.
The Church and the world urgently need an outpouring of the Spirit through surrendered believers.
We Are Forgiven and Redeemed
Forgiven Because of Christ’s Sacrifice
When Jesus died on the cross, He paid the penalty for our sins so that we could be forgiven (1 John 2:2). His sacrifice covers all our transgressions, no matter how dark our past is. As Ephesians 1:7 (NIV) says, “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins.”
We don’t earn forgiveness – it is freely given because of what Christ did for us.
God removes our sins from us, as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12). He separates us from our wrongdoings, choosing to remember them no more (Isaiah 43:25). What an incredible gift! The Creator of the universe forgives us and gives us a clean slate.
As believers, we stand before Him blameless and spotless because Jesus’ blood makes us pure and holy (Hebrews 9:14).
Set Free from Bondage to Sin
Before we knew Christ, we were slaves to sin and death. But Jesus came to set the captives free (Luke 4:18)! When we put our trust in Him, His Spirit breaks sin’s mastery over us so we can live a new life (Romans 6:1-14).
We still struggle with temptation, but now have power through Christ to say “no” to sin.
What’s more, Romans 8:1-2 (NLT) assures: “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to Him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin.”
We can walk in freedom because God removed sin’s penalty and broke its control over us. Of course, we should still confess when we mess up. But 1 John 1:9 promises that when we do, God forgives and cleanses us from unrighteousness.
Bought Back from Darkness into Light
We were all lost, trapped in darkness and dead in our sins. But then Jesus came to give us new life! Ephesians 5:14 declares, “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Christ bought us back from slavery to sin at a great price – the sacrifice of His own life (Mark 10:45).
Colossians 1:13-14 explains that God “…has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” We went from being enemies of God to becoming His cherished children.
Jesus redeemed us from darkness and brought us into His wonderful light (1 Peter 2:9)! We were blind, but now can see; we were slaves, but now are free – all because of what Christ did for us on the cross.
We Have a New Identity and Purpose in Christ
We Become New Creations
When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, we become new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17). The old has passed away, and the new has come! This means our identity is no longer based on our old sinful nature, but on the righteousness of Christ.
As new creations, we have a restored relationship with God where we can call Him “Abba, Father” (Romans 8:15). We are now children of God! This new identity gives us worth, value and purpose. What an awesome truth to embrace!
Our Identity Is Secure in Jesus
Our new identity in Christ is secure. Jesus promises that nothing can snatch us out of His hand (John 10:28-29) and that He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). When Satan tries to condemn us, we can boldly declare that we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Our identity is not based on our own goodness or abilities, but on what Jesus did for us on the cross. He took all our sin and shame and gave us His perfect righteousness. Wow, we can truly rest in this identity that is rock-solid in Jesus!
We Have a New Mission in Life
As new creations in Christ, we also have a new mission in life – to love God and love others. Jesus said the greatest commandments are to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and to love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:30-31).
God has gifted each of us and designed us with a unique purpose to fulfill on this earth. We can joyfully pursue this Kingdom mission knowing our identity rests in who God says we are. Some ways we can live out our mission include sharing our faith, volunteering, mentoring others, creating beauty, meeting needs, and simply reflecting Jesus’ love through our words and actions each day.
What an adventure!
Conclusion
Recognizing that we are dearly loved, chosen, forgiven children of God completely changes how we see ourselves and live our lives. We no longer have to strive to prove our worth – our identity is secure in Christ.
This truth uproots lies we’ve believed about not being good enough and frees us to embrace the purposes God has for us.
You are who God says you are. You are His beloved child. You are chosen, adopted, redeemed, forgiven, and made new. This is your true identity. As you grow in understanding who you are in Christ, you will become more fully the person He created you to be.
