[One of the requirements of a class I’m taking is reading several books and writing a book report. I’m only allowed 300 words to summarize the book, which is not nearly enough for me. This posts is all I wanted to write, but had to condense to fit into the 300 words allowed. This book is probably the best exegesis of our identity than any book I’ve read or message I’ve listened to. It should be a must read for all believers.]
Most of the struggles we face as believers stem from an identity issue. We know what the Bible says, but our experience fails to back it up, so we begin to believe we are less that we really are…less than what He says we are. Or, we believe it on an academic level, but not at a gut level where we live from. When we begin to grasp the full truth of our identity in Christ….when we comprehend the finished work of the Cross and our identification with Christ in every aspect of His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection, ascension and enthronement, we begin to live out of that Reality and find freedom from sin, boldness in place of fearfulness, faith instead of doubts and unbelief, confidence instead of insecurity, true humility rather than arrogance. We begin to realize that the actions and reactions of others do not need to affect us and this knowledge frees us to love others despite their response, remain in relationship. It enables us to have joy in the midst of any trial….emboldens us to face all that life can throw at us.
So, who are we….in Christ? We are triune: spirit, soul and body. When we were created, we we created to be ruled by our spirit, which was one with God. We were created in the image of God(Gen. 1:26). He also foreordained that we would be His children(Eph. 1:5) He chose us before the foundations of the world that we would holy and blameless.(Eph. 1:4) But, when sin entered, that oneness was ruined. With our spirit dead and cut off from God, the source of our identity, our soul and body then created an identity dependent upon self-effort, accomplishment and the opinions of men, which only serve to increase guilt and feelings of inadequacy. We began to believe that we must do so we could become.
In God’s eyes, there are only 2 men: Adam….Christ. You are either in Adam or in Christ. We were in Adam, subject to his destiny: death and defeat. Because of the finished work of the Cross, we now are in Christ, subject to His destiny: life and victory! Our identification with Christ is a spiritual Reality that is hidden from our natural eyes and can only be seen with the eyes of our heart. It cannot be understood with the mind, only with the heart.
My identification with Christ means:
I am crucified with Him.(Gal. 2:20, Rom 6:6, Gal. 6:14) This means I am dead to this world., dead to the physical realm and alive to the spiritual realm. The passions, temptations, desires of this world have no power over me and neither do the stresses and pressures of this world.
I died with Him.(Col. 3:3, 2 Cor 5:14, Col 2:20, Rom. 6:8, 10,11) I no longer regard myself according to the flesh. But, not only myself, I am to regard others according to their spiritual reality-their true identity in Christ. They are all potentially new creations. They were all created in His image. Also, because I died with Him, I am dead to my old life and my old ways.
I was buried with Him.(Rom. 6:4, Col. 2:12) Only dead people are buried. And they aren’t buried until they show absolutely no signs of life. I was fully dead….no longer breathing or showing even the faintest signs of life.
I was made alive with Him.(Eph. 2:5, Col. 2:13) This is the proof that my sins-my past-is entirely wiped clean. I am now alive, my spirit is recreated, my nature completely changed! Dead to sin, but alive to God! My heart is no longer deceitfully wicked….I have a new heart. His spirit resides in me, living through me.
I was raised with Him.(Eph. 2:6, Col 3:1) I can now stand before God…boldly come to His throne…because I was raised with Christ. I can come into His presences without any condemnation or fear. Being raised also means I am above my circumstances, no longer bowed down by them.
I am now enthroned with Him, seated with Christ in heavenly places.(Eph. 2:6) This is the amazing climax of our identification with Christ. We are seated with Him, having triumphed over the enemy. To triumph over the enemy means more than to simply win. It is to parade the defeated foe through the victorious throngs of people, roped behind a chariot that we are driving! It is making a spectacle of his defeat and our victory. The victory that is ours because we are in Christ.
Understanding this message that Paul preached so eloquently enables us to comprehend that we are a New Creation, the product of God’s creative act that recreated our human spirit that was ruined when sin entered. His creative act changed our very nature! Despite what we feel or our physical reality declares, old things have passed away! We are to no longer regard ourselves after the flesh, according to the physical realm, but according to the spiritual Reality. This spiritual Reality says we are, as we were created to be, children of the Most High, holy and blameless before Him having had His righteousness imputed to us! We are freed from the bondage of doing in order to become.
While it is a fact that we are a new creation, we may continue to walk as if we are not because of the thoughts that prevail in our minds. It is here that our behavior is determined; a crucial battlefield that must be won. We need to retrain our minds to accept and believe what has transpired in our spirit. It is here that we find the greatest obstacle. Our minds tell us these things cannot be reality….they cannot be seen with the eyes or understood by reason. They do not defy reason….they are above reason. So, we have a choice: will we continue to walk in what our mind tells us is true? Or, will we renew our minds(renovate our thinking) with the Word, believing that what He says is reality, is reality whether or not our experience validates it or our mind believes it? If we choose the latter, our mind will eventually come to believe that which our spirit already knows is true.
We renew our minds by devoted study to the Word, confession or declaration of the truths of the Word, and then meditating on those truths. Confession is more than confessing of sins. It is declaring with our mouths the truths we have been studying…the truths that our spirit accepts but our mind does not. We begin to declare truths that we don’t see as if they were and meditate on those truths throughout the day, recalling them to mind when tested. What we meditate on will normally affect our attitude and heart posture. As we meditate on the truths of the Word, our attitudes begin to change, which in turn, affects our emotional life. When our emotional life and attitudes are conformed, our behavior will follow. I’m not suggesting that we are slaves to our emotions. But, when our emotions are conformed, our behavior flows more naturally. When my emotional life is not conformed to His word, I find I must work to put on the behaviors God desires of me. But, when it is reflective of biblical truth, my behavior flows naturally, without striving. As our behavior changes-not through striving but through resting in the truths that have become a part of us-we develop a lifestyle, one that is rooted firmly in our true identity as a new creation; a lifestyle that is God-honoring and natural. When our nature is changed, which His word says it is, anything contrary to His Word is unnatural.
My experience would not convey these biblical truths to me. But, I trust His Word, not my experience. I am dead to sin! Period. Sin no longer has dominion over me…it does not rule me. And, as I walk in these truths by faith, I find they become more a part of my experience. I no longer have to bite my tongue or have imaginary conversations in my mind. I can sleep at night without stewing over conflicts of the day. I don’t get agitated when someone disagrees with or contradicts me. I am no longer driven by the opinions of men, seeking their approval. I know who I am and whose I am.
My life is hidden with Christ in God.(Col 3:3) This is the reality of our identification with Christ in a nutshell. The is my position….the place I am….in Reality. This truth has impacted me tremendously. I need not be affected by the circumstances and people around me. I am free to respond the way He would respond, to love passionately, to live victoriously and joyfully, to be at peace in the midst of storms, to laugh in the face of danger and more.
I am not saying I will not face trials. I’m not saying that embracing the truth of our identity will free me from suffering. I am saying the presence of trials does not change the truth of my Reality. I live from the reality of my residence in Christ, not from my residence in this world. And that reality affects my attitude, my heart posture, my responses, my actions, my thoughts, my beliefs, my outlook….my lifestyle.