My True Identity

Pastor Dave Monreal, Lead Pastor

Often when we think of our coming to Christ, we think of it merely in terms of our forgiveness and justification. When we read through Scripture, we find that there are multiple things that occurred simultaneously in time the moment we came into a relationship with Christ. Although these things may have occurred simultaneously, there is a logical order in which they must have occurred. ¹  The Bible tells us that these things are equally true for every genuine believer. There are no second-class citizens in God’s kingdom. There are no unwanted stepchildren in God’s family. We may feel that way because of our ongoing struggles and feel like these things are not true for us, but they are true and tell us who we really are in Christ.

First, is the reality of the Holy Spirit’s effectual calling. God has so worked in your heart that you hear the word of God and were drawn into a relationship with Christ. Further, we who were spiritually dead have been regenerated or made alive in Christ so that we were able to believe. The regenerating work of the Holy Spirit is what enables us to repent and rest in the finished work of Christ alone. We respond in faith, are justified or declared not guilty, and clothed with the righteousness of Christ. We have also been adopted into God’s family as a beloved son or daughter. We are no longer strangers, aliens, or orphans because we have God as our loving Heavenly Father. He has also called us out of the world and set us apart for himself which is our positional sanctification. We have been forever united with Christ in his life, death, resurrection, and are even now seated with him in the heavenly places. Ultimately, we will persevere in our faith because of his sustaining grace and preservation. There is coming a day when the full fruits of our salvation will occur when we receive our glorified bodies and dwell with him forever in the New Heavens and New Earth.

What is true of every other believer is true of you too! This is who you are in Christ! Presently we battle the world, the flesh, and the Devil but these are our momentary circumstances. When we read through Paul’s struggles as a believer outlined in 2 Corinthians 11:24-33 he called all these struggles, “light momentary affliction.” Listen to his whole assessment, “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” ²

How are we think of ourselves in our hearts shapes us and informs our decisions. We interpret our lives in light of a narrative we believe is true, either the story of redemption or another story. We are simultaneously saints, sinners, and strugglers but we are not defined by our sins and struggles. ³  Because we are defined by who we are in Christ we are able to be honest about our sins and struggles because we know what our heavenly Father thinks of us.

1  For a full treatment of these realities, read John Murray’s book, Redemption Accomplished and Applied.
2  2 Corinthians 4:16-18.
3  I am indebted to CCEF for the categories of “saint, sinner, and struggler.