Unshakeable Identity in Christ: When Heaven Defines Who You Are

How the Blood of Jesus Restored Your Identity and Sealed Your Worth Forever

Matt 27 v 26 to 30

Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.

a. When he had scourged Jesus: The blows came from a whip with many leather strands, each having sharp pieces of bone or metal at the ends. It reduced the back to raw flesh, and it was not unusual for a criminal to die from a scourging, even before crucifixion.

i. “Scourging was a legal preliminary to every Roman execution, and only women and Roman senators or soldiers (except in cases of desertion) were exempt.” (Dr. William Edwards in the article “On the Physical Death of Jesus Christ” from the Journal of the American Medical Association, 3/21/86)

ii. The goal of the scourging was to weaken the victim to a state just short of collapse and death. “As the Roman soldiers repeatedly struck the victim’s back with full force, the iron balls would cause deep contusions, and the leather thongs and sheep bones would cut into the skin and subcutaneous tissues. Then, as the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh. Pain and blood loss generally set the stage for circulatory shock. The extent of blood loss may well have determined how long the victim would survive the cross.” (Edwards)

b. When he had scourged Jesus: Commonly the blows of scourging would lessen as the criminal confessed to his crimes. Jesus remained silent, having no crimes to confess, so the blows continued with full strength.

This trial was an attempt of the devil to deny Jesus’s identity and he does the same thing to each of us today So we are gong to kook at scriptures that confirm who we are. As a man thinks so he is and in not thinking of ourselves the right way gives the devil right to pull us down.

Every human being is born with a deep ache to know who they are. We search for identity in our achievements, our failures, our families, our careers, our culture, and even our pain. Yet none of these things can carry the weight of defining us. They shift. They break. They disappoint. And when they do, we are left asking the same ancient question: Who am I?

Into this crisis, Scripture speaks with clarity and power. The apostle Paul declares in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” This is not a motivational slogan. It is a spiritual reality. It is the foundation of Christian identity.

Paul writes these words in the context of explaining the eternal destiny of believers, the temporary nature of our earthly bodies, and the transforming work of the Holy Spirit within usenduringword.com. He reminds us that we do not define ourselves by what is seen, but by what is unseen. Not by the temporary, but by the eternal. Not by the flesh, but by the Spirit.

Identity in Christ is not self improvement. It is not behaviour modification. It is not a new set of religious rules. It is a new creation—a supernatural work of God that begins the moment we place our faith in Jesus.

The Foundation: What God Has Done, Not What We Do

Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:18, “All this is from God.” Our identity in Christ begins with God’s initiative, not our effort. He reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ. He made the first move. He bridged the gap. He restored the relationship.

This matters because identity must be rooted in something unshakeable. If your identity is rooted in your performance, then when you fail, your identity collapses. If your identity is rooted in people’s approval, then when they reject you, your identity shatters. If your identity is rooted in your past, then you will always be chained to what God has already forgiven.

But when your identity is rooted in Christ, it is rooted in:

• His finished work on the cross

• His righteousness, not yours

• His love, which does not change

His Spirit, who lives in you as a guarantee of what is to come

Paul says God has given us the Holy Spirit as a “guarantee”—a down payment of our future glory. This means your identity is not based on how you feel today, but on what God has promised eternally.

You are not trying to become a child of God—you are one. You are not trying to earn righteousness—you have it in Christ. You are not trying to be accepted—you are accepted in the Beloved.

Identity in Christ is not achieved. It is received.

The New Creation: What Has Changed in Us

Paul’s declaration—“all things have become new”—is not poetic exaggeration. It is spiritual reality. What exactly becomes new?

1. A New Position

You are no longer in Adam; you are in Christ. You are no longer condemned; you are justified. You are no longer an enemy; you are reconciled.

2. A New Nature

The Holy Spirit now lives in you. Your desires begin to change. Your heart is softened. Your mind is renewed.

3. A New Purpose

Paul says we no longer live for ourselves but for Him who died and rose again (2 Corinthians 5:15). Identity shapes purpose. When you know who you are, you know why you are here.

4. A New Perspective

Paul writes, “We regard no one according to the flesh.” Our identity changes how we see ourselves and others. We no longer measure life by earthly standards—appearance, status, success—but by eternal realitiesenduringword.com.

5. A New Destiny

We walk by faith, not by sight. We long for our eternal home. We know that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. Identity in Christ gives us confidence in life and hope in death.

This new creation is not the improvement of the old—it is the birth of something entirely new. God does not renovate the old man; He crucifies him and raises a new man in his place.

The Exchange: Christ Became Sin So We Could Become Righteous

The heart of Christian identity is found in 2 Corinthians 5:21: “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

This is the great exchange:

• Christ took our sin

• We receive His righteousness

• Christ bore our shame

• We receive His honour

• Christ endured our separation

• We receive His acceptance

This is not symbolic. It is not theoretical. It is not partial. It is complete.

Jesus did not become a sinner—He became sin for us, treated as if He were the embodiment of sin itself, so that we could be treated as if we were the embodiment of God’s righteousness.

This means:

• You are not defined by your past

• You are not defined by your failures

• You are not defined by your wounds

• You are not defined by your weaknesses

• You are not defined by what others say about you

• You are not even defined by what you say about yourself

You are defined by what God has declared over you in Christ.

Identity in Christ is not fragile. It is not temporary. It is not dependent on your performance. It is anchored in the finished work of Jesus.

Living Out Our Identity: Ambassadors of Christ

Paul concludes the chapter by saying, “We are ambassadors for Christ.” Identity leads to mission. When you know who you are, you know what you are called to do.

As ambassadors:

• We represent Christ in a world that does not know Him

• We carry His message of reconciliation

• We speak on His behalf

• We live with the honour of the One who sent us

An ambassador does not speak his own opinions—he speaks the words of the King. He does not represent himself—he represents the Kingdom. He does not live for his own comfort—he lives for his assignment.

Identity in Christ is not passive. It is powerful. It transforms how we live, how we love, how we forgive, how we endure suffering, and how we see eternity.

And so Paul pleads, “Be reconciled to God.” Identity begins with reconciliation. It begins with surrender. It begins with receiving what Christ has done.

You speak to the wounded: “Your past is not your identity.”

You speak to the bound: “Your chains are not your identity.”

You speak to the ashamed: “Your mistakes are not your identity.”

You speak to the searching: “Your feelings are not your identity.”

You speak to the church: “Your identity is in Christ—and Christ alone.”

And then you call them:

“If you are ready to step out of the old and into the new… If you are ready to lay down every false identity… If you are ready to receive the identity heaven has declared over you… Come. Come now. Come into the arms of the One who makes all things new.”