Passage – Romans 12:1-8

Memory Verse –

“To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27, NIV)

We learn some practical principles to help us grow in our new identity in Christ. The first one is:

1. It Begins with ____________________

• This is our Love Response to God’s mercies (Rom. 12:1).
• It is being transformed instead of conforming (Rom. 12:2a)
• It results in finding God’s will (Rom. 12:2b)

2. It Looks like ____________________

• A servant is Humble (Rom. 12:3)
• A servant is Unified with Christ’s body (Rom. 12:4-5)
• A servant celebrates Church Diversity (Rom. 12:6-8)

Conclusion:

Today’s message is a call to all Christ-followers that instead of being conformed to the world, we should instead be transformed by the renewing of our minds so we might display the will of God in every aspect of our life.

When our focus is on the world and all of its issues, our life will be pulled back and forth between this world system and the Word of God. However, we know that the word is truth will provide a lasting foundation for those who believe it.

We are faced daily with the choice to believe our true identity, which is IN Christ or to put our faith in the identities that others thrust upon us. It’s our choice to believe that we a light in this world used by God to expose the darkness rather than conform to it.

Our Identity Growth begins with the surrender of our bodies and mind to God, and it will be seen in the servanthood that we live out in the lives of others, 1st in the local church, and 2nd in this fallen world.

Have you surrendered your whole self to be transformed?

Begin your spiritual journey today…

Are you actively participating in it by making time to study the Bible personally & in a small group?

Learn the basics for spiritual growth by signing up for the Growth Track classes or join a Life Group today.

Share with me the step you’ve decided to take in your spiritual journey.

NEXT WEEK: Identity Demonstrated

Answer Key:

Surrender

Servanthood

You can share what God is saying to you today by telling Pastor Blake about it on your Next Step form. Click this link to share your spiritual step with Pastor Blake.

Watch our Livestream each week HERE

Passage – Galatians 6:1-5

Memory Verse –

“To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27, NIV)

We find 4 distinct traits that characterize a proper Identity Perspective. The 1^st is:

1. ____________________ (Gal. 6:1a, 2)

• “caught in sin” means ensnared or stumbled into sin.
• Living by the Spirit enables a person to help carry burdens of other believers
• Burdens can be sinful habits of the past or extremely difficult circumstances
• Helping others with burdens lives out the love of Christ (Matthew 22:38-40)

2^nd trait is:

2. ____________________ (Gal. 6:1b, 3)

• We often judge others without any self-examination (Matthew 7:3-5)
• This is the key to helping others and being able to receive help

The 3^rd trait is:

3. ___________________________ (Gal. 6:4)
   • God’s Word, the Bible, is what we examine ourselves against
   • Social Media is a destructive standard to compare ourselves to
   • Nor should we use our own standards to measure each other

The final trait found here is:

4. __________________________ (Gal. 6:5)
   • Burdens in verse 2 are things we are unable to bear
   • Our load is the thing that we alone are responsible to God for
   • Being responsible for our own load and not carrying other people’s load is know as having healthy boundaries

Conclusion:

Do you have a proper Identity Perspective?

How would you answer these four questions?

• What standard are you using to determine how you live your life? The Bible or other people?
• Are you sharing your burdens or keeping them to yourself?
• Are you helping carry other people’s burdens or loads?
• Are you faithfully carrying your own load?

How you answer these questions will give you insight if you have a healthy Identity Perspective.

What step are you being prompted to take today?

Do you need to change the standard for your life to the Bible instead of other people?

Do you have a burden you need to share w/ another believer that you trust? Or maybe you need to invest some time in developing a relationship with your church family.

Are you being responsible with your load of living your life IN Christ?

Or are you ready to begin your spiritual journey as a follower of Christ?

Share with me the step you’ve decided to take in your spiritual journey.

NEXT WEEK: Identity Growth

Answer Key:

Compassion

Humility

Accountability

Responsibility

You can share what God is saying to you today by telling Pastor Blake about it on your Next Step form. Click this link to share your spiritual step with Pastor Blake.

Watch our Livestream each week HERE

Passage – Ephesians 1:3-14

Memory Verse –

“To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27, NIV)

Ephesians 1 shows us where we can find our true identity. As followers of Jesus our identity is found:

1. In _______________

• Paul is writing to “God’s holy people (saints)” in verse 1
• It is here that we receive “every spiritual blessing” (vs. 3)
• This phrase is found throughout this passage!

By putting our faith in Christ, we are part of a community that was:

2. ____________________ Before Time

“For he chose us in him [Christ] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” (vs. 4-6)

• To Be Holy and Blameless
• To Create a Community
• Choosing to follow Christ places you in this community.

As members of this community, we:

3. Experience ___________________________

“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.” (vs. 7-10)

• Provided thru Christ’s sacrifice
• Giving forgiveness & Grace
• Revealing God’s Will & Purpose
• Providing Hope for the Future

In this community, we have:

4. A Future __________________________

“In him we were also chosen (made heirs), having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put out hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.” (vs. 11-14)

• Identifying with Christ gives a guaranteed future.
• Guaranteed by the Holy Spirit

Conclusion:

When you surrender your life to Jesus & put your faith in Him, this is what you become a part of!

This is what it means to identify as a follower of Christ.

Everything else is temporary, empty and leads to a life without the one true God that created you & truly loves you!

So when you look at that selfie on your device, what do you see?

Do you see something sacred and precious that Jesus died for and loves? Or do you see something else, something common & disposable?

What I want you to do is to use that selfie to remind yourself that as a follower of Jesus, you are now:

IN CHRIST (in his community, his team, his gang, his family)!

That being IN Christ means you belong to a community that was planned by God to be holy & blameless from before time began!

That being IN Christ means that you are redeemed, bought out of the bondage to sin & death & given a new life!

That being IN Christ you’ve been marked by the HS & guaranteed w/ a deposit of an inheritance which awaits you when Jesus returns!

Look at that selfie! That is who you are! That is the only  identity you will ever need!

Now I want to encourage you to live your life according to your real identity in Christ!

Have you surrendered your life to Jesus so you can partake in the life He offers?

You can do that right now…

Have you surrendered your life but have not been living with the identity He has given you? Are there other things in your life that are distorting who you are in Christ?

You can make a commitment to live IN Christ right now…

Share with me the step you’ve decided to take in your spiritual journey.

NEXT WEEK: Identity Perspective

Answer Key:

Christ

Chosen

Redemption

Guaranteed

You can share what God is saying to you today by telling Pastor Blake about it on your Next Step form. Click this link to share your spiritual step with Pastor Blake.

Watch our Livestream each week HERE