Discover Who God Created You to Be – Part 2

God loves you and He has an amazing plan for your life! He created you because He desires to have a personal relationship with you, and He wants you to fulfill your destiny as His son or daughter.

Knowing who He created you to be and how you can develop your full potential is foundational to your journey each day in this life. Ephesians chapter 1 gives eye-opening insights to help you make progress one step at a time.

In part 1 of this teaching, you studied Ephesians 1:4-6. Now we’ll move forward with verses 7-10 and focus on who you are in Christ and what that means.

Jesus Gives You a Whole New Identity

Ephesians 1:7-10 (AMP) says…

In Him we have redemption [that is, our deliverance and salvation] through His blood, [which paid the penalty for our sin and resulted in] the forgiveness and complete pardon of our sin, in accordance with the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and understanding [with practical insight] He made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ, with regard to the fulfillment of the times [that is, the end of history, the climax of the ages]—to bring all things together in Christ, [both] things in the heavens and things on the earth.

In these verses, we see the phrase “in Him” or “in Christ” several times. Being “in Christ” means that those who, by faith, have received Jesus as their Savior are seen by God as being “in Christ,” and because of that, all of the promises of God are theirs.

It’s life-changing when we realize what we have through our relationship with Christ!

Think about it: According to these verses, what happens to us when we accept Christ as our Savior, confessing our sin to Him and receiving His forgiveness? How does it change our identity?

Here are 5 Scripture-based statements that reveal who you are and what you have as a believer in Christ:

1. I am a new creation in Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
2. I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. (2 Corinthians 5:21)
3. I have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:16; Philippians 2:5)
4. I can do whatever I need to do in life through Christ who gives me strength. (Philippians 4:13)
5. I am more than a conqueror through Him who loves me. (Romans 8:37)

Think about it: Journal your thoughts about what God is showing you and who He created you to be.

The Fundamentals of Becoming the Person God Made You to Be!

Many years ago now, when I first started reading the Bible and getting serious about my relationship with God, I began to see all of the things that needed to change in my life. There were so many! I needed to clean up my mind and the things I said about my life. I had to overcome being so negative and judgmental. And my behavior toward my husband, Dave, needed to improve.

I immediately went to work, trying to do it all myself, but I just ended up very frustrated and didn’t make any lasting progress. It changed everything when I realized that I can’t change my heart, but He can. And God is not expecting me to do it on my own.

In John 15:5, Jesus says, I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. When we try to do things that only God can do, we’ll just struggle. But when we live in His grace—spending regular time with Him in prayer and Bible study, giving Him control of every part of our lives—we find ourselves changing, slowly but surely, little by little.

I want to encourage you to make your relationship with God your number one priority. When you’re reading the Bible, give yourself time to really look at what it says and pray for the Holy Spirit to help you gain insight and wisdom that reveals who God is, how much He loves you, and how you can live for Him.

If you’ll make a commitment to study God’s Word, you’ll be amazed by all of the life-transforming truths you can discover!