Our Spiritual Identity

Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, ² like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation, ³ if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.

⁴ And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, ⁵ you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ⁶ For this is contained in Scripture:

“Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious corner stone,And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.”

⁷ This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve,

“The stone which the builders rejected,This became the very corner stone,”

⁸ and,

“A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense”;

for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.

⁹ But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; ¹⁰ for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

¹¹ Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul. ¹² Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation. 1 Peter 1: 1-12

What is your identity? What determines your identity?

How many people know who you are? How many people know what your name is? How well known are you?

How wide is your circle of friends? (If you answer, don’t include your Facebook Friends) Or are some just acquaintances, not really friends.

People want to be known – sometimes not by what they have accomplished, or who they are, but rather how they feel about certain issues, or how they see themselves.

Identity, these days seems to be a major matter of concern among many people.

Men are identifying as women; women identifying as men; even more disturbing is that, especially among young children, many are identifying as dogs or cats, or other beings.

Of greater concern, however, is that many people are identifying as Christians only, or especially when it is convenient or beneficial to their desires or ambitions.

In Peter’s first letter to the church of Jesus Christ, he writes to remind them of their identity in Christ.

He teaches that they belong to Jesus Christ, their lives must reflect their identity in Christ.

And, for us, who are in Christ, we need to consider our identity in Christ to remember why it is so important that we embrace our spiritual identity.

First, let’s look at The Family of God.

I.             In his letter Peter emphasizes that – in Christ - we are a part of a family relationship.

At our baptism we are born again, where our sins are washed away and we enter into the beginning of a living hope. A great part of that truth is that we are born of God, and we can look forward to an inheritance.

Peter emphasizes our family relationship. We are born again to a living hope. At that point, our lives must be focused on looking like Christ in our daily living.

We conduct ourselves as obedient children. vs. 14

We reflect the image of God who resides within us. vs. 15-16

We are in a family and God is our Father. vs. 17

We are paid for by the blood of Christ. vs 18-19

We are born new with God’s seed planted within us vs.22-23.

So, Peter is reminding us that although we are a part of a worldly government, our true allegiance and our loyalty lie with God as we are a part of the family of God.

II.           We are God’s Own People

We are living stones. Jesus described a living stone as one who is chosen and precious in the sight of God. (2:4)

We are living stones who are being built up as a spiritual house (2:5).

Then, Peter describes Jesus as the Chief Cornerstone.

          Some will reject Him because He becomes a stumbling block to them. Why do they reject Jesus as Lord? To put it bluntly, His teaching, His commands, His purpose – they are all too restrictive – Jesus’ teachings cramp their style of living – the free and easy, carefree lifestyle that suits them.

Paul tells us in Galatians that we – as Christ followers – are a chosen race.

Peter calls us a royal priesthood.

Paul writes to Titus (2:24) and calls us a people for God’s own possession, a people purified for Jesus to redeem us from all unlawfulness, becoming zealous for good deeds.

Then, Peter further says (1 Peter 2:9} we are chosen as “proclaimers of the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

III.         So, now the question is this: “Does our identity in Christ matter?”

What difference does it make in our lives as we go out into the world in our daily lives?

The purpose in Peter’s writing to Christians in his day was that they were facing persecution, and he knew it was going to create hardships for those who are in Christ.

If we go back and look at world history at that time we know that Christians were considered as enemies of the government.

Today, we also live in the midst of a “crooked and perverse generation.”

The world today mocks and accuses those who serve Jesus Christ as Lord, and many of them reject even the mention of His Name. Of course, they do sometimes call on His name – but in a derogatory manner with vulgar speech.

Peter addresses the real answer to the problem of persecution.

We live as exiles in a foreign land – that is, planet earth. I think we could say rightly that we do inhabit a foreign and ungodly land.

As we go back to the Old Testament we find that the patriarchs considered themselves to be exiles in a foreign land (Hebrews 11:13-16).

¹³ All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. ¹⁴ For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. ¹⁵ And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. ¹⁶ But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.

Our encouragement, though, in the face of persecution is this promise of God: To the Hebrews - Habakkuk 2:4: “Behold, as for the proud one, His soul is not right within him; but the righteous will live by his faith.”

The reality is this: Our identity is rooted in suffering for Christ.

While many people try to sugar coat the truth in Scripture, the Old and the New Testament writers wrote it clearly and to the point. Give us the warm and fuzzy feelings we so often want to experience from time to time.

They didn’t attempt to write what they thought would They had no intention of changing or dumbing down the Word that had been given to them through the Holy Spirit.

Here is how Timothy writes clearly and to the point concerning our boldness to speak for Christ, or our attempts to ignore Him at inconvenient times:

2 Timothy 3:12; “If we endure, we will also reign with Him; If we deny Him, He also will deny us,”

So, in summary, our identity in Christ must impact every aspect of our lives. If we claim we are Christians, Jesus is not just a part of our life  ---- He is our life!

Being a Christian is much more than something we do. Being a Christian is who- or what – we are.

And because of whose we are we must live in a way that reflects that identity.

Most of us who live in the greatest nation of the world are proud to be citizens of our country and are willing to defend that identity.

That same passion should be held in our identity with Jesus Christ. That will cause us to be far better off.

Our goal must be to embrace our identity as God’s people and allow that to transform every part of our lives.

I may have said this already, but it cannot be emphasized too much or too often: Our Identity in Christ must impact every aspect of our lives. God is not a part of our lives. Now, if I stopped there, many people would nod in agreement –

Jesus is not part of our lives --- but there is more --- He is not part of our lives --- HE IS OUR LIFE!

Examine yourself today. Consider these questions:

How much of your life have you relinquished to Jesus Christ as your Lord, as your Savior?

Are you holding back a part of your life for yourself?

Are you letting Him guide your life when it is convenient for your lifestyle?

Jesus is the Transformer.

We need to daily embrace our identity as God’s people, transformed by the blood of Jesus Christ. When we can do that, we can and will allow His power and His love for us to guide us in all the events in our lives.