Our Identity in Christ

The Authority of a Believer

What is Authority?

Definition: it is the right to command.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary Authority

the power to influence others based on recognized knowledge or expertise.

To operate in Authority we must first understand who we are in Christ.

Romans 5:12–21 ESV

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 5:12

Here we read that Sin entered the world through one man and made every one a sinner.

So in essence its saying its not the act my sin I become a sinner, I am born a sinner.

This is what RC Sproul said

We are not a sinner because we sin, we sin because we are sinners.

Romans 6:23 NASB95

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans

Romans 3

Romans 3:23 ESV

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Romans 1. The Spread of Sin throughout the Human Race (12)

All men: This truth may make us uncomfortable, but it is still the truth. The smallest baby is a sinner, subject to death. David understood this when he wrote, Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me (Psalm 51:5).

i. We can also know that we are born sinners for other reasons. First, think of how selfish and angry the smallest baby can be. Second, think of how we never have to teach our children to be bad—they learn that quite on their own, with old Adam teaching the lessons.

ii. If babies are sinners, does that mean that they go to hell? Not necessarily. First, we know that the children of believers are sanctified by the presence of a believing parent (1 Corinthians 7:14). Secondly, David had the assurance that his baby would meet him in heaven (2 Samuel 12:23). Finally, we know that at the end of it all, God, the judge of the entire world, will do right (Genesis 18:25).

iii. If there are the children of unbelieving parents in heaven, it is important to understand that it is not because they are innocent. As sons and daughters of guilty Adam, we are each born guilty as well. If such children do go to heaven, it is not because they are innocents who deserve heaven, but because the rich mercy of God has been extended to them as well.

Romans 2. An Objection Answered: “I Thought We Were Sinners Because We Broke the Law” (13–14)

An objection answered: “I thought we were sinners because we broke the Law” (13–14)

a. Until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law: We know that at the root of it all we are made sinners because of Adam and not because we break the law ourselves. We know this because sin and death were in the world before the Law was ever given.

i. The law was too late to prevent sin and death and it is too weak to save from sin and death.

b. Nevertheless death reigned: The total, merciless reign of death—even before the law was given at the time of Moses—proves that man was under sin before the law. Death reigned … even over those who had not sinned in the exact way Adam did, showing that the principle of sin was at work in every human.

c. Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come: Paul presents Adam as a type—a picture, a representation—of Jesus. Both Adam and Jesus were completely sinless men from the beginning, and both of them did things that had consequences for all mankind.

Psalm 51:5 NASB95

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.

Romans 2. An Objection Answered: “I Thought We Were Sinners Because We Broke the Law” (13–14)

2. An objection answered: “I thought we were sinners because we broke the Law” (13–14)

a. Until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law: We know that at the root of it all we are made sinners because of Adam and not because we break the law ourselves. We know this because sin and death were in the world before the Law was ever given.

i. The law was too late to prevent sin and death and it is too weak to save from sin and death.

b. Nevertheless death reigned: The total, merciless reign of death—even before the law was given at the time of Moses—proves that man was under sin before the law. Death reigned … even over those who had not sinned in the exact way Adam did, showing that the principle of sin was at work in every human.

c. Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come: Paul presents Adam as a type—a picture, a representation—of Jesus. Both Adam and Jesus were completely sinless men from the beginning, and both of them did things that had consequences for all mankind.

Romans 5:15–17 NASB95

But the free gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification. For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:17 NASB95

For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:15-17

Romans

Romans 3. Contrasts between Adam’s Work and Jesus’ Work (15–17)

Contrasts between Adam’s work and Jesus’ work (15–17)

a. But the free gift is not like the offense: Adam gave an offense that had consequences for the entire human race—as a result of Adam’s offense, many died. Jesus gives a free gift that has consequences for the entire human race, but in a different way. Through the free gift of Jesus, the grace of God … abounded to many. Adam’s work brought death but Jesus’ work brings grace.

b. Many died: This begins to describe the result of Adam’s offense. More came: judgment, resulting in condemnation, and death reigned over men. But there are also the results of Jesus’ free gift: grace abounded to many, justification (because many offenses were laid on Jesus), abundant grace, the gift of righteousness, and reigning in life.

i. “He is not saying that death reigned over us all because we all sinned; he is saying that death reigned over us all because Adam sinned.” (Morris)

c. Death reigned … righteousness will reign: We could say that both Adam and Jesus are kings, each instituting a reign. Under Adam, death reigned. Under Jesus, we can reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ

Romans 5:17–18 NKJV

17 For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) 18 Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life.

Romans 5:18–19 NKJV

18 Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.

Romans 5:19 NKJV

For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.

Here I didn’t say the every one were made righteous. Verse says will be made righteous.

Romans 5:

Romans 4. Summary: The Two Men (18)

Is it therefore true that every person, apart from their personal choice, will receive the benefits of Jesus’ obedience? Not at all. First, Paul makes it clear that the free gift is not like the offense—they are not identical in their result or in their application. Second, over three verses Paul calls the work of Jesus a free gift, and he never uses those words to apply to the work of Adam. It is simply the nature of a gift that it must be received by faith. Finally, Paul clearly teaches throughout the New Testament that all are not saved.

i. In what sense then did the free gift come to all men? It came in the sense that the gift is presented, but not necessarily received.

What is the purpose of the law then?

Romans 6. The Purpose of the Law (20a)

The law makes man’s sin clearer and greater by clearly contrasting it with God’s holy standard.

And show how Holy God is and how big sinner I am and how I need a the saviour

John 1:12–13 ESV

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

John 1:12 ESV

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,

John 1:14 NASB95

14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 1

ONE OF THE MOST important revelations we can get from the Word of God is to understand who we are in Christ. Identifying with Christ will change the way we live and cause us to rise above adversity. Not understanding our identity in Him will keep us living far below our rights and privileges in Christ.

John 1:

John 1:

What does it mean to identify with Christ? It's normal for us to identify with something or someone. It makes us feel connected and gives us a feeling of belonging.

In our everyday lives, we identify with a person, organization, occupation, nationality, or church. We also have an identity in the spirit realm. The scriptures say we have been crucified with Christ

Galatians 2:20 NASB95

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Not only did we die with Him on the cross at Calvary, we also have been raised with Him. We can see this in the following verses.

Not only did we die with Him on the cross at Calvary, we also have been raised with Him. We can see this in the following verses.

Not only did we die with Him on the cross at Calvary, we also have been raised with Him. We can see this in the following verses.

Ephesians 2:4–7 NKJV

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

According to this passage of Scripture, we are seated with Christ in heavenly places. Unfortunately, some Christians are having an identity crisis. They don't know who they are in Christ or where they are seated. Instead of identifying with Christ, they identify with the problems that confront them. You can tell they do this because they call themselves by their problems: divorced, bankrupt, and so forth.

(NKJV) 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

According to this passage of Scripture, we are seated with Christ in heavenly places. Unfortunately, some Christians are having an identity crisis. They don't know who they are in Christ or where they are seated. Instead of identifying with Christ, they identify with the problems that confront them. You can tell they do this because they call themselves by their problems: divorced, bankrupt, and so forth.

Some identify with a profession. They say things like, "I'm a salesman," I’m a doctor, Banker , "I'm a lawyer or whatever. But their profession is not who they are; it's what they do. Others identify with the disease that is attacking their bodies. They say, "I'm a diabetic," "I'm ADD," or "I am bipolar."

When we really understand our identity in Christ—who we are in Him—it changes the way we think and live.

2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Before we were in Christ, we were destined for death and destruction. Now we are destined for eternal life ().

come new." That same verse in The Living Bible says, "When someone becomes a Christian, he becomes a brand new person inside. He is not the same anymore. A new life has begun!"

2

1 John 2:25 NASB95

25 This is the promise which He Himself made to us: eternal life.

1 John 2:25

Before Christ, we were destined for despair, degradation, and poverty. But in Christ, we are destined to have life and have it more abundantly ().

John 10:10 ESV

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

In Christ is where our identity should be. It's in Jesus that we are somebody!

Before Christ, we were destined for despair, degradation, and poverty. But in Christ, we are destined to have life and have it more abundantly ().

In Christ is where our identity should be. It's in Jesus that we are somebody!

Did you ever notice in the Scriptures that God often changed people's identities? They looked at themselves one way, but God told them who they really were.

This is what happened to Gideon. He was so terrified of the Midianites that he hid inside a winepress to thresh his wheat. He believed the Midianites would take what little he had if they saw him threshing grain ().

One day the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon and said, "The Lord is with you, mighty warrior" ( NIV). Gideon was acting like anything but a mighty warrior! However, when he finally saw himself the way God saw him, he went on to deliver the Israelites ().

God also changed Abram's name. It was impossible for Abram and his wife, Sarai, to have children. But God said, "No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations" ( NIV). He also changed Sarai's name to Sarah (). And God's words were fulfilled when Sarah gave birth to Isaac.

God calls those things that are not as though they were (). In the natural realm, what God is calling us may not exist.

But in His eyes, it does. So we need to talk about ourselves the same way God does.

“Any time we go out of shifting our identity from being significant in God’s eyes to being unimportant we get into trouble.”

“I can’t afford to have a thought about me in my head that He doesn’t have in His head about me. Any time it entertains things that are not absolutely true and central in His perspective about me then I’m visiting something that will war against what He thinks about me.”

What God says about us is found in His Word. Here are some things we are and have in Christ:

We are new creatures (). We are the righteousness of God (). We've been healed ().

Your are adopted

I am the temple of the Holy Spirit () We've been made rich (). We are accepted (). We are free from sin ().

I am the temple of the Holy Spirit () We've been made rich (). We are accepted (). We are free from sin ().

I am the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19)

I am the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19)

Lot of people have problem with Sin Consciousness than committing sin.

Also many times we though we come to know the Lord we are orphan at heart and live an insecure life.

This is why is so important. This is what it says in the message version.

Romans 12:2 The Message

Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

says, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil." I like to say that verse like this: "Yea, though I walk through all of the mess that the devil tries to put on me, I will fear no evil. Through my identification with Christ, I can walk on anything that tries to get in my way and come out victoriously."

It's time for us to stand up and be who God says we are. And we need to let the devil know that we know who we are in Christ. Then anytime he tries to attack us, we can throw our shoulders back and say, "Don't mess with me. I'm identified with Christ!"