“If our identity is in our work, rather than Christ, success will go to our heads, and failure will go to our hearts.”
Timothy Keller
While cruising through Facebook, I stumbled upon this quote a mom had written to her daughter. “If I could give you one thing, it would be to see yourself through my eyes; then you’d see how amazing you really are.” When I read that I instantly thought of God, my Father, saying the same thing to me. Take a moment and reread the quote aloud as if your heavenly Daddy’s voice repeated those words while His hands tenderly cupped your face.
Our enemy does not want us to see ourselves through the eyes of God. Satan desires us to focus on our failures, mistakes, sins and shortcomings. He is a liar and an accuser of the brethren. He wants us to allow people with their judgmental and critical statements to define who we are. Instead, let God and His Word describe your identity in Christ because what He says about you is true!
You are Christ’s friend. (John 15:15)
You are loved. (John 17:23)
You are freed from condemnation. (Romans 8:1)
You are an heir of God, co-heir with Christ. (Romans 8:17)
You are more than a conqueror through Him. (Romans 8:37)
You have the mind of Christ. (I Corinthians 2:16)
You are victorious in Christ. (I Corinthians 15:57)
You are a new creation in Christ. (II Corinthians 5:17)
You are chosen in Christ to be holy and blameless. (Ephesians 1:4)
You are adopted into God’s family. (Ephesians 1:5)
You are accepted in the Beloved. (Ephesians 1:6)
You are God’s workmanship, created to do good works. (Ephesians 2:10)
You are redeemed and forgiven of all your sins. (Colossians 1:14)
You are complete in Christ. (Colossians 1:28)
You are a member of a royal priesthood. (I Peter 2:9)
You are a partaker of the Divine Nature. (II Peter 1:4)
Knowing God and understanding who we are as His children, sets us free from the bondage of seeing ourselves from our own eyes or the eyes of others. See yourself through God’s eyes and begin to believe who He says you are.
“Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. This is the true self. Every other identity is illusion.”
Brennan Manning
Relevant Reflections:
1. Which of the bulleted statements above do you struggle to believe? Spend time speaking those truths aloud so what you know to be true in your head can drop down into your heart.
2. If you really believed who you are in Christ, how would your life be different?