Identity Revealed
Everyone has a personal identity; however, we do not just have a natural identity, but a spiritual one as well. For the believer, it is the discovery of who they are in Christ. We are known about in both Heaven and Hell, for both wants us to be theirs. We get our natural identity by being born in this earth, but we get a new spiritual and heavenly identity by being born again into the family of God. That is why through the new birth not only are we saved but we also become children of God. You see we get into a brand-new family, the family of God. We also get a new identity; the Bible calls it being in Christ. As you read the New Testament letters written by Apostle Paul, you will find the phrases: “in Christ”, “in Him”, “in the Lord”, “in Whom”, or “with the Lord”, approximately 130 times. They are terms that reveal both relationship and identity. In other words, it is the new identity we receive because of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He is the one we are now identified with because of our salvation.
1 Corinthians 6:17 KJV says, “But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit”. That means spiritually speaking we are one with Christ or we are joined together spiritually. That is what the Apostle Paul is telling us when he uses the term “in Christ”. 2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT says, “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun”.
God is telling us He sees us as new spiritual beings. Who you used to be is not who you are now. It is important that we know our past is both forgiven and forgotten by God. It is also important we understand we become a brand-new person that really was not in existence before. This is why and how we have a new identity in Christ.
This new identity is part of what God calls redemptive revelation. That means an understanding of all that God planned and did through Christ and all that we become by being in Christ. God is calling us to understand and live by our new identity.
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