Our Real Identity

Three, Great Mysteries in Scripture

• The mystery of the union of the three persons of the Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit

• The mystery of the union of the divine and human natures in one person, Jesus Christ.

• They mystery of the union of Christ being in us and our being in Christ.

1. What our union with Christ means – Galatians 2:20

• “I have been crucified with Christ” 

• “It is no longer I who live” 

• “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me” 

• “And the life I now live in the flesh” 

• “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” 

2. As we understand and live by faith in our union with Christ, it will give us two confidences which will empower godly living.

CONFIDENCE #1 – The confidence that our status with God does not change.

• Our performance does not earn God’s love or keep us in his favor.

• Confident that our status of being loved by God does not change will bring new attitudes about how we perform the duties God requires of us.

• We don’t engage in these duties (reading our Bibles, praying, worshiping, and serving) to earn or secure God’s love.

• We engage in these duties out of a different heart attitude. We do them out of a heart of gratitude for all that Christ has done for us.  We do these duties to joyfully experience the fullness of the love God already has for us!

• Key Truth: The confidence that God’s love for us never varies and that our status with God does not change, should change the motivational structure of our hearts.

CONFIDENCE #2 – The confidence that our ability to grow and make progress has changed.

• Because of our union with Christ, we are made new creatures (2 Cor. 5:17)

• The Holy Spirit’s activity in believer’s lives reverses the effects of the fall. We have a new nature with new desires, new goals, new priorities and new abilities.

• Because of our union with Christ, the power of sin to rule our lives has been defeated at the cross of Christ.

If I am united to Christ, in Christ and Christ is in me, why do I still struggle with sin?

Two-fold answer:

1. We live between the “already” and “not yet”.

2. We are not more intentional about living by faith in our union with Christ.

Constantly, preach this to your heart:

“I have been crucified with Christ.  It is no longer I who live, but Christ 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.”