“He has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts.” (2 Corinthians 1:22 NLT)
Your faith will grow stronger as you focus on your identity in Christ (Galatians 2).
What this means is that you abandon any image of yourself that is not from God. You stop accepting what others have said about you, how others have labeled you, and how others have defined you.
You start believing what God says about you, that he is pleased with how he created you, and that God defines you.
You’re not defined by your feelings. You’re not defined by the opinions of others or by your circumstances. You’re not defined by your successes or failures. You’re not defined by the car you drive, the money you make, or the house you say you own when the bank really does.
You are defined by God and God alone. He identifies you as his own (2 Corinthians 1:22).
The thing is, if you don’t know who you are, then you’re vulnerable to other people telling you who you are. But the concrete, solid, gospel truth is that you are who God says you are, and no one else has a vote in the matter.
This “identity issue” is an important part of living the abundant life. Jesus was able to face the incredible demands of his mission because he knew exactly who he was. He knew that he mattered to God, and that gave him confidence to move purposefully in faith.
You are now identified with Christ and have the power of the Holy Spirit within you. You are God’s precious child, and he created you in a way that pleases him.
“Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ—which is to fulfill his own good plan. And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth. Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan. God’s purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God. And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.” Ephesians 1:4-14 NLT
WHO AM I
2 Corinthians 5:17 — Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
1 Peter 2:9 — But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Galatians 2:20 — I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
John 15:15 — No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.
2 Corinthians 1:22 — set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
John 1:12 — But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.
Romans 8:17 — And if children, then heirs – heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
Colossians 3:3 — For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
Galatians 3:26 — For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.
Romans 8:1 — There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:20 — But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians 12:27 — Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 — Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
Ephesians 2:10 — For we are God’s masterpiece, created to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Ephesians 4:24 — And to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
John 1:12 — Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.
Ephesians 1:5 — he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will.
Romans 15:7 — Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.
Colossians 2:9-10 — For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.
1 Corinthians 6:17 — But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit.
2 Corinthians 5:20 — We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.
Romans 6:6 — For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin.
Genesis 1:27 — So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
Jeremiah 1:5 — “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
1 Peter 1:1-2 — Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
Galatians 3:27-28 — for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
1 John 3:1-2 — See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
Colossians 3:1-3 — Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
Matthew 11:30 — For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (How valuable am I that Jesus wants my burdens – supported)
John 10:10 — The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Luke 23:34 — Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (We are far more important than our behavior -forgiven)
Genesis 12:1 — I will bless you… and you will be a blessing.
John 3:16 — For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
Several Bible verses can be seen to support the idea that each person is a unique creation of God, made in His image, with inherent value and purpose:
1. **Genesis 1:26-27** – “Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’ So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” This passage directly speaks to humanity being made in God’s image, emphasizing the unique dignity and purpose conferred upon humans.
2. **Psalm 139:14** – “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” This verse celebrates the intricate and marvelous creation of each individual, suggesting a uniqueness and value to each person’s existence.
3. **Ephesians 2:10** – “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” This implies that each person is not only created by God but for a specific purpose or set of purposes.
4. **Jeremiah 1:5** – “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” While this was specifically said to Jeremiah, it’s often interpreted as a general statement about God’s knowledge and plan for each individual before they are born, highlighting their unique role and purpose.
5. **Isaiah 43:4** – “Because you are precious in my eyes and honored, and I love you.” This verse conveys a sense of individual worth and value to God, which can be seen as part of being made in His image.
6. **1 Peter 2:9** – “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” This scripture speaks to the special and unique role believers have in God’s plan, suggesting a purpose and calling for each individual.
These verses collectively convey the notion that humans are uniquely created by God, each with a singular purpose, reflecting His image, which aligns with the sentiment of being “an incredibly magnificent, unbelievably rare, unrepeatable miracle.”
