THE ABC’S OF YOUR IDENTITY IN CHRIST

I’ll be honest with you: I used to think all the identity in Christ stuff wasn’t really a big deal. I remember sitting in church and wondering why the pastor keeps talking about who I am in Christ. The whole “I’m God’s special princess” stuff wasn’t really landing with me. Seemed kinda mushy, weird, and soft to me. I remember thinking, just tell me how to live my life, tell me what to do, tell me what not to do, and let’s get on with it. 

But then I began to realize something: Who you think you are affects everything else you do. If you don’t believe me…

• Watch what happens when a teacher tells a first grader they’re stupid.
• Watch what happens when a coach only tells his team they are losers. 
• Watch what happens when a child is told his whole life he was a mistake. 
• Watch what happens when a wife treats her husband everyday like he’s trash. 
• Watch what happens when a father never says the words “I love you, I believe in you, and I’m proud of you” to his daughter. 
• Watch what happens when the story YOU tell YOURSELF is “I’m a failure. I’m worthless. I’m forgettable. I don’t matter.”

Think about that first grader, that team, that child, that husband, think about you, – are you going to flourish in any of those scenarios? Of course not. Why not? Because who you think you are affects everything you do. 

During World War 2, in order to demoralize their enemies, Nazi Germany refused to call prisoners of war by their names, instead they just used numbers. Why? Because they understood the power of personal identity, the power of a name, and the power you have when you take that away from somebody – when you call somebody the wrong name. Because who you think you are affects everything else you do. 

A few years ago, I was becoming more and more convinced of this concept — that who you think you are affects everything else you do. And so I did something kinda weird, but very normal for me. I made a list. In fact, I made a complete A through Z list of my gospel identity in Christ. Turns out the Bible has a lot to say about your new identity — your new name. And so I want to share that list with you now. I hope it is a blessing to you and empowers you to walk in the calling and purpose that God has for you!

Because of Jesus, I am…

A: Accepted (Rom 15:7), Adopted (Eph 1:5), Approved (2 Cor 10:18), Alive (Eph 2:5), and an Ambassador for Christ (2 Cor 5:20)

B: Beloved (Jude 1:1) Blessed (Rom 4:7) born again (1 Pet 1:23), bondservant (2 Tim 2:24)

C: Child of God (1 John 3:1) and a citizen of heaven (Philippians 3:20)

D: Disciple (Matt 28:19), delivered from darkness (Col 1:13) and dead to sin (Rom 6:11)

E: Elect (Romans 8:33)

F: Forgiven (Col 2:13) and free (Gal 5:13)

G: God’s workmanship (Eph 2:10)

H: Heir of God (Gal 4:7) and hidden in Christ (Col 3:3) 

I: In Christ (1 Cor 1:30) 

J: Justified by faith (Gal 2:16)

K: Kept for Jesus (Jude 1:1), known by God (1 Cor 8:3)

L: Light of the world (Matt 5:14) and loved by the Father (1 John 3:1), 

M: More than a conqueror (Rom 8:37) and a minister of reconciliation (2 Cor 5:18)

N: New Creation (2 Cor 5:17): I am not alone (Matt 28:20), not ashamed (Rom 1:16), not forsaken (Heb 13:5), not condemned (Rom 8:1)

O: Oak of righteousness (Isaiah 61:3)

P: Priest of the Most High (1 Peter 2:9)

Q: Qualified by the Father (Colossians 1:12)

R: Redeemed (Gal 3:13), righteous (Rom 5:19), rescued (Col 1:13), ransomed (Mark 10:45), and reconciled (2 Cor 5:18)

S: Saint (Rom 1:7), the salt of the earth (Matt 5:13)

T: Temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19)

U: Under grace and united with Christ (Rom 6:5, 14)

V: Victorious through Christ (1 Cor 15:57) and vindicated by God (Psalm 135:14)

W: Witness of Jesus (Ac 1:8), worshiper of God (Jn 9:31), washed by the Spirit (1 Cor 6:11)

X: X-enemy of God (Romans 5:10)

Y: Yoked with Christ (Matthew 11:29)

Z: Zealous for good works (Titus 2:14)

AUTHOR: SOLOMON REXIUS is the Co-Founder and Creative Director for Rype.tv. He is also the Lead Pastor of Generations Church in Eugene, Oregon. Before that, he was the Director of Salt Company at Cornerstone Church in Ames, Iowa.