Why Is It Important to Know Your Identity in Christ?
I recently went to lunch with a friend who asked me a life-changing question. We were talking about finding our worth in God when she looked into my eyes and asked, “Why is it important to know your identity in Christ?”
She then shared that she didn’t truly know what it meant to find her identity in Jesus.
I told her about a difficult time in my life when God taught me how to find my identity in him. (You can read about it here.) Then, we discussed why it’s important to find our identities in Christ.
Why Is It Important to Know Your Identity in Christ?
Ultimately, knowing who we are in Christ leads us to freedom. Let’s talk about four kinds of freedom we find when we know who we are in Christ. I also invite you to read to the end of today’s post for a free devotional eBook to help you find your identity in Christ.
Why Is It Important to Know Your Identity in Christ? 4 Reasons
1. Freedom From Excessive People-Pleasing
When I know that I am, first and foremost, God’s dearly loved child, I am set free from the need to excessively please other people.
I spent years beating myself up any time I noticed the slightest hint of people pleasing rising up in my life. Finally, an older friend pointed out that the desire to please others isn’t wrong. People pleasing becomes unhealthy when it is excessive. This might look like putting the desire to please others above serving God or living in fear about what other people think.
When I know who I am in Christ, I’m set free to follow Christ, share his love with others, and let the opinions of others roll off of my back.
I know that God loves me, and this is enough. It frees me from needing to be liked by all people.
2. The Freedom of Having Nothing to Prove
I spent years of my life trying to prove myself to others. I was consistently trying to prove that I was intelligent, fun, and funny.
As I learned about my true identity as God’s beloved daughter, his love began to define me. I learned to spend a few minutes closing my eyes and soaking in the awareness that God loved me every morning. As I basked in God’s love for me, he changed me from the inside out.
I no longer needed to prove my worth to others because I knew that the King of kings loved me and would always love me.
3. Freedom to Love Others Without Receiving Love in Return
When we grasp God’s love for us and allow this love to define us, we are free to love others without craving their devotion or love in return.
Christ’s love sets us free to walk into crowded rooms and ask, “Who can I encourage and love?”
This is much different than walking into a room and asking, “Who will love and include me?”
4. Freedom to Embrace Your Calling
Why is it important to know your identity in Christ as you pursue your calling?
Knowing our true identities in Christ sets us free to follow God wherever he leads us.
We no longer make decisions based on the approval or applause of others.
When we live out of our identities as God’s beloved children, we are free to follow him into our true callings on earth. We aren’t swayed by the need to have others’ approval or even by the love of money. When we know who we are in Christ, he aligns our hearts with his heart, and we follow him because our desires align with his desires.
Let’s now take a few minutes to soak in the truth about our identities in Christ.
Who I Am in Christ According to Scripture:
I invite you to meditate on these truths about who you are in Christ.
1. Psalm 139:13-14
For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.
God formed you in your mother’s womb. He created you with passion and purposefulness. You are fearfully and wonderfully made.
I encourage you to soak in these words and repeat them until you begin to believe them. Hang these verses in a frame on your wall or write them on a note and hang them beside your bathroom mirror.
You will learn how to embrace yourself as you as when you consistently align your heart with what God says about you.
2. John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
God demonstrated your value once and for all when he allowed his precious Son to die in your place. You are dear to him, so dear that Jesus would have gone to the cross if you were the only person on earth. Soak in this radical love today.
3. Matthew 10:29-31
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
You are so precious to God that he has numbered the hairs on your head.
He knows you better than you know yourself, and he cares for you deeply. Lean into this truth when you feel less-than.
4. Song of Solomon 4:1
Behold, you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful!
God’s love for you can be represented by the love a man has for his wife in a healthy, thriving marriage. As a husband looks at his wife and calls her beautiful, God looks at you and calls you beautiful.
5. Genesis 1:27
So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
This verse states that you were created in the image of God. The next time you doubt your worth or experience critical thoughts about your worth, remind yourself that you were made in the image of the Living God.
6. 1 John 3:1
See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!
God is a good Father. He loves you in the way a good dad loves his children. He believes in you, stands with you, and will never leave you.
7. Isaiah 49:15
Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.
God can never forget you. As a mother tenderly thinks of her nursing child, the child she sustains, God’s thoughts are always with you.
8. Psalm 17:8
Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings.
God cherishes you. You are the apple of his eye and his treasured possession. He dearly loves you.
Think of the way you feel about a precious child in your life. God feels this way for you. His heart overflows with love for you.
9. Song of Solomon 2:16
My beloved is mine, and I am his.
If you are a follower of Christ, you belong to him, and he belongs to you in the way a married couple belongs to one another.
Jesus is yours, and you are his. This is the truest part of your identity.
Soak in this and speak it until you believe it.
10. Ephesians 2:10
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
God formed you in your mother’s womb with his hands. No part of you is hidden from him.
He also prepared good works for you to complete. Step into these assignments as you trust that God created you exactly as you were meant to be.
Why is it important to know your identity in Christ?
Do you believe these words are true for you? Before you read more, pause right here. God is with you, and he loves you more than you can comprehend. He wants these truths to reach from your mind to your heart.
Ask him to help these words move from your mind to your heart. Ask him to speak his love over you as he confirms your true identity.
God's love sets me free. #nothingtoprove #identityinChrist #encounteringGod Share on X
Calling All Parents (and Grandparents)!
As the parent of two sons and a daughter, I have a heart for helping parents develop deeper relationships with their children and with God. Our kids, ages 6, 11, and 15, share this vision. They have helped me write three family devotionals for parents or older relatives to read with the children and teens they love. You can find all three books here or read more below.
Attention, All Boy Moms (and Dads)!
God’s Warrior: Devotions for Boys Who Want to Grow in Courage and Strength helps young boys, ages 5-13, learn what it means to trust God and become strong warriors for his kingdom. Now, more than ever, our world needs men who are willing to boldly carry God’s love into the world. I wrote this boys’ devotional book with our two young sons, Aiden and Caleb, ages six and eleven! You’ll enjoy their honesty as we teach boys how to be strong warriors for the Lord. Find this life-changing devotional book here.
Mother-Daughter Devotionals by a Mom and Daughter
Girl to Girl: 60 Mother-Daughter Devotions for a Closer Relationship and Deeper Faith is written for girls ages 7-12. It includes 60 devotions with Scripture, conversation starters, and a shared journaling section for moms and daughters after each devotion. I wrote this book with the help of our daughter, Bekah, when she was eleven. Find this one-of-a-kind shared devotional here.
Heart to Heart: A Mother-Daughter Devotional With 50 Devotions for Teen Girls is for teenage girls ages 13-20. It includes 50 devotions, each with a shared journaling section to help moms and daughters connect through writing. This is a great book for moms who want to communicate about awkward topics—like dating, sexuality, peer pressure, and more—but don’t know where to start. Bekah and I will help you right here.
Find Our Family Devotionals Here
Find all three books right here. They are also free on the Kindle Unlimited plan, which you can enjoy with a free three-month trial! These books make great gifts, and you don’t need to be the parent of young children to read them. Share them with your grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or the young ones you love.
Learn Why Willpower Doesn’t Work and Experience God’s Deliverance and Healing
God wants to work in your life to accomplish what you’ve been unable to do through willpower alone. Lean Into Grace: Let God’s Grace Heal Your Heart, Refresh Your Soul, and Set You Free shares practical ways to experience God’s freedom, healing, power, and presence in your life. Find this life-changing book as a free eBook on Kindle Unlimited or for 12.99 in print right here. (If you do not have Kindle Unlimited, you can try it out with a free three-month trial!) This book will transform your life and revitalize your relationship with the Lord!
Your Free Devotional Book
I invite you to create space for God to transform your life by downloading a free copy of my devotional eBook, The Lean Into Grace Devotional: An 8-Day Devotional for Healing, Deliverance, and Replenishment. This short devotional will help you find replenishment in Jesus’ presence. You will find insights for breaking destructive habits, experiencing God’s presence, in fresh ways, and overcoming doubt and insecurity. Find it for free here.
