Your Identity In Christ

Hello folks,

I spent last week in London speaking at Revive, the annual get together of Ichthus Christian Fellowship headed up by Roger and Faith Forster.  It was, as they say over there, “lovely” and “brilliant.” In fact, it was fantastic!

The worship in particular was magnificent. Worship at Ichthus is always great (this is the fourth time I’ve ministered with this tribe), but this year I felt God’s presence in ways I rarely have before. In the evening of my first talk I felt like I had electricity flowing through me — but in a way that felt good. I actually had trouble composing myself enough to preach my sermon.

Anyway, turns out there’s quite a few folks at Ichthus who are podrishoners of my sermons at Woodland Hills Church (www.whchurch.org) and who read my blog (hi you guys!). In response to one of my messages I told some folks I’d post a sampling I have of what the Bible says about our identity in Christ, so here it is. I encourage you to take each truth on this list and not only SAY it throughout the day, but SEE it and HEAR it and LIVE IN it.  Be transformed by the renewing of your mind (Rom. 12:2).

In Christ you are…

•    God’s beloved child (Jn 1:12:  Eph 1:5)
•    Christ’s dear friend (Jn 15:5)
•    Declared perfectly righteous (“justified”) (Rom 5:1)
•    Free from condemnation (Rom 8:1; Col 2:14-16)
•    United with Christ, “one spirit” with Christ  (I Cor 6:17; Eph 5:31)
•    A member of Christ’s body (I Cor 6:15/ 12:27)
•    The Temple of God (I Cor 6:19)
•    Filled with the “fullness of God” (Eph 3:19)
•    A “holy one” [saint] (Eph 1:1)
•    Blessed with every spiritual blessing (Eph 1:3)
•    Holy and blameless (Eph 1:4)
•    Bought with an infinite price and forgiven (I Cor 6: 20; Eph 1:7; Col 1:14)
•    Bathed with wisdom and understanding (Eph 1:8)
•    The recipient of an eternal, infinitely rich,  inheritance (Eph 1:11, 18)
•    Possessed with the mind of Christ (I Cor 2:16)
•    Inseparable form God’s love (Rom 8:35-39)
•    One who will NEVER be abandoned (Mt 28:20)
•    The beautiful bride of Christ who “ravishes” the heart of God (Song of Songs, 4:1ff; 6:4ff).
•     One over whom the Lord rejoices, sings and claps his hands(Zeph 3:17)
•    One for whom the Lord throws a party (Zeph 3:17; Lk 15:7-10)
•    A recipient of God’s own peace (Jn 14:27)
•    Filled with the peace and joy of God (Rom 14:17)
•    One in whom Christ’s joy is fulfilled (Jn 15:11)
•    Given direct access to the Father by the Holy Spirit (Eph 2:18)
•    Seated with Christ in heavenly realms (Eph 2:6)
•    Seated “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion” with Christ (Eph 1:21).
•    Hid in Christ in heavenly realms (Col 3:1-5)
•    Crucified, Buried and Raised with Christ (Rom 6:1-11)
•    Made perfect forever (Heb 10:14)
•    Made complete in Christ (Col 2:10)
•    Indwelled  by a fearless Spirit (2 Tim 1:7)
•    One of God’s precious works of art (Eph 2:10)
•    Indwelt by a spirit of power, love and stability (2 Tim 1:7)
•    A citizen of heaven (Phil 3:20)
•    Predestined to look like Jesus and see him in his glory (Rom 8:29; I Jn 3:1-5)
•    One in whom God is working to bring good out of evil (Rom 8:28)
•    Salt of the earth (Mt 5:13)
•    A branch chosen to bear fruit (Jn 15:16)
•    A co-worker with God (I Cor 3:9)
•    An ambassador of Christ and  minister of reconciliation (2 Cor 5:17-20)
•    A priest of the most high God ( I Pet 2:5-9)
•    More than a conqueror in all things (Rom 8:37)
•    One who knows Satan is a disarmed laughing stock (Col 2:14-15).
•    One who knows the truth and is set free (Jn 8:32).
•    One who can do all things in Christ (Phil 4:13)

I encourage you to reprogram your mind meditating on these truths.  Further help on being transformed by the mind can be found in Seeing Is Believing and (with Al Larsen) Escaping the Matrix.

Be Blessed !