1 Peter 2:9–10 [NLT]

Big Idea

By faith in Jesus, our identity is regenerated, redeemed & restored back into human flourishing.

Imago Dei — Image of God in Humanity

• “Our identity is rooted in our Creator rather than in our culture. Our fundamental identity isn’t fluid or something we decide, but something God determines.“

Genesis 1:26–27 (NLT) Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. …27 So God created human beings* in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

PROBLEM Sin distorts our identity, introducing shame & insecurity.

• Matthew 10:39 (NLT) If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.

“Our identity is received, not achieved.” ~ Jonathan Holmes

BIG IDEA By faith in Jesus, our identity is regenerated, redeemed & restored back into human flourishing.

We are a chosen people, a royal priesthood who to God.

1 Peter 2:9–10 (NLT) But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. ... “Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.”

We’ve been given worth & value that is .

Ephesians 1:3–15 (NLT) All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, ... ...Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, ... …And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.

WHAT NOW?

these gospel truths to your own heart.

1. I’m defined by God’s love, not by my flaws & failures.

2. I’m fully accepted as a child of God.

3. I have a new purpose & mission.

4. I’m being transformed, not just ‘fixed’.

5. I cannot be defined by earthly labels.

CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION

1. In what ways do you think this statement could help people in our society, if they could start living it out?

• “Our identity is received, not achieved.” ~ Jonathan Holmes

2. READ Ephesians 1:3-14 [NLT] together. What seems to resonate most about your restored and God-given identity described in this passage?

3. If you were to preach to yourself these gospel truths about your union with Jesus (by faith), which of these 5 would you start with (and why)?

• You’re defined by God’s love, not by your flaws & failures.
• You’re fully accepted as a child of God.
• You have a new purpose & mission.
• You‘re being transformed, not just ‘fixed’.
• You cannot be defined by earthly labels.