 Good morning everyone. Welcome to this new session on our identity. We are covering, we are starting on BC 110, our identity, our identity in Christ. So what did we cover from past last three classes? What did we cover? We spoke about who we are in Christ is who we really are. So our identity is not on the social or the economical or the self-image that we have built for ourselves but then our identity is in Christ. So when we say our identity in Christ, what do we mean? What do we mean by that? It's knowing our authority, knowing our dominion in Christ that makes us aware of who we are in Christ. The awareness, we need to embrace that truth that I am in Christ. Because I am in Christ, I have carrying an authority. I have a dominion over things around me. And we need to walk in that authority. How? We need to embrace this authority within ourselves. We need to embrace this truth. Let this truth become a reality. How can this truth become reality within us? By we meditating on the scripture. That's why this class is more to do with the scripture. We have continuously been reading the scripture time and again. Why? There are times we have been repeating the scriptures. Why? So that our mind, a self-conscious mind can embrace the scripture, can embrace this truth and know that there is an authority and we have the power to have dominion over other things in natural because we have the authority in Christ and we need to embrace this authority in us. So our identity in Christ is a function and a relationship that we develop in Christ. It all depends on the relationship that we have, the fellowship that we have with Christ. So how do we develop this relationship and fellowship? It's only by meditating on the word. Tony on meditating on the scripture. The more and more we meditate, the more and more we read the word and claim it over our self. This truth becomes our reality. This word has the power to change our mind and our heart. As we know the battle is in the mind. The enemy can knock us down with many kind of rights. But then when we know the truth, we can speak the truth. Just like how when Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, how did Jesus handle the temptation? How did Jesus handle the temptations? By the word, by the scripture. He spoke the word. So what happens is when we meditate on the identity, on our identity in Christ scriptures, we have this word of God in us. So when the enemy knocks at the door, so you and I know to speak the word and the enemy has to obey to the word of God and he will flee from us when we release, when we speak the word. So our identity in Christ again is not based on our education, on a family background, on economic and social culture or status. But our identity is in the relationship that we have in Christ. So that's what that's what we see in the word time and again that the scripture says in Daniel chapter 11 verse 32. Daniel chapter 11 verse 32, it says, the people who know their God shall be strong and carry out great exploits. What does it say? The people who know their God shall be strong and carry out great exploits. So when we identify ourselves in Christ, we will be growing stronger and we will, you know, and we will carry great exploits in Christ. So in simple terms, to put it across, we can say when we know our God, intimately, we carry great exploits through him. So Paul writes in 1st Corinthians chapter 15 verse 57, thanks be to God was given us the victory in Christ Jesus. Thanks be to God was given us the victory in Christ Jesus. 1 Corinthians chapter 15 verse 57. So in Christ, believers has got the victory. Jesus got our victory on the cross where he defeated the Satan and took the keys of the heads and death. So in Christ, we have this victory over sin, poverty and every kind of sickness and disease. So when we know our victory, when we know our stand, when we know our authority, we can take a stand against this enemy. So this is where we fight our battle from. We fight our battle from the place of victory and we are no more the victims. Jesus fought our battle and gave us the victory in him. With that, we know our identity is in Christ. So when we say that we have been identified in Christ, we are a new creation. Can we turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17, which says, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. So what happens when we become a new creation in Christ? What does the verse read the first? Can you read? So what happens here? If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. It's what is a new species. So all things have passed away and behold, all things have become new. So there are two Greek words here. When we say new creation, there are two Greek words. One is Kynos and the other is Nios. Kynos means it is a new in quality. It's a referring to something new. What is it? New in quality, new in essence, new in nature, new in structure or new in character. That which was not there before, it is now in. So when we say Nios, what is Nios? Nios means new in time, something that is recent, something that is younger. So there are two things, something that is new in nature, something that is new in time. So there are two Greek words. What happens with new creation? So when we say this person has changed, he is a new creation. We are calling that person as a new man, something new, new in nature, new in time. So everything in him changes. So when we see the person is same, the outer shell of the person is same. But what changes? This character is attitude changes. He's been trying to adapt the attitude of the spirit. We see the fruit of the spirit has been stirred within him continuously. So this new creation, this new man is working towards the fruit of the spirit. He may not be imperfect, but he's working progress. You see, he is not the old person, the old man is passed away. Behold, he's become new, the new creation. We see the nature of Christ. We see the fruit of the spirit in this person. So what are the fruit of the spirit? Can you list? These are the qualities that we can see being developed in a new man. There is love, joy, peace, patience, self-control, faithfulness, kindness, generosity, gentleness, long suffering. All these things develops in that new person. How? Because the spirit of the Lord who's in him develops these character in them. So the old man which began back in the time of Adam has no more access and because he has started this new man journey in Christ Jesus. So what happens? The nature of God, he's got the access to the nature of God which can be seen or implemented in him. So we term this, we use the term called biology or the genetics. So what happens? This new man is a new species now. Something that is genetically distinct or distinct in nature has become his character, the new character in him now. So the new create, the new creation of the new creature, the new species that we see as a man now is no more the carnal minded. He's no more leading his life carnaly but he's spiritual. He's trying to please God in all the way. The spirit man who's in him has become active now which gives him a new identity. So that's what we see in 2 Corinthians 5.17 that he's become new, he's a new creation and all things have passed away and all things have become new. So the new identity in a man that is, what are the new identity we can see in a person or in our own self? We were dead but now in Christ we are alive or we were far off from God but now in Christ we have been brought near to God. The relationship has been restored with God where we have become the child of God and we have this authority to call God as a Abba Father. How? Through the spirit of God. We have the spirit of adoption within us. This is what the scripture says that you have been adopted to the kingdom of God as a child of God. So our relationship is restored. Now our relationship with God is different. We are close to him. We have been made one with him. Before we were strangers but now in Christ we have become citizens. We have become the member of God's family. There were times we were in darkness but now in Christ we are the light in the Lord. This is what in the book of Ephesians it says. So once we were sinners but now in Christ we are saints. Our identity is in God. We don't, there is no more condemnation. We have been justified in Christ. No more we have guilt has no power over us because we have been made righteous. We have been justified. We no more see ourselves as unrighteous sinners but we see ourselves being made righteous in God's side and we are no longer what we used to be but we have the spiritual relationship with God. This is what Apostle Paul instructs us to renew our mind and know our new identity and embrace that. Only when we renew our mind and we embrace to this new identity we can lead our life victorious. So in Ephesians chapter 5 verse 8 it says for you were once in darkness but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. So we need to know that we are the carrier of the light. We are the carrier of Christ in us. So the way we think, the way we talk is different. We need to think differently. We need to think just like how God thinks. We need to see ourselves like how God sees us instead of we condemning us. So speak to yourself with all that Christ would speak about you. You need to believe in that we have been wonderfully and fearfully made. We have victorious. We have been redeemed. We are blessed. We need to speak these promises over ourselves. We need to declare it over ourselves for these words to become reality and natural. So when we recognize and embrace our identity we see our inheritance in this new life. This is what the apostles did right. This is what even the disciples did. They never laid themselves back saying that I am not an educated man. I am a sinner. I betrayed Jesus. Peter never condemned himself that much but then the very encounter with Jesus after his ascension restored him back, restored his identity, restored his call back and here he stood with courage and boldness and he shared the gospel of Christ. He went on doing what God had called him to do. So you see the new identity in him. He was bold enough to address the people, address the issues. So we need to carry ourselves in that new identity. We need to lead ourselves with the new identity that God has given to us. Call ourselves what God has called us. That we are the child of God. We are the child of the most high God. So in the book of Ephesians chapter 4 in the letter of Ephesians chapter 4 verse 24 we see that the new creation is in the image of God. The new creation is in the image of God. So what we read in this verse that you put on the new man which was created according to God in true righteousness and holiness. So here we see the scripture says that God made man in his own image. Where do we read that? At the beginning. Genesis chapter 1 when God created the nature, when God created everything, God created man on the which day? Sixth day. God created man and what did God say? Genesis chapter 1 verse 27, God made man in his own image and likeness. So what happened? God created this man and what did God do? God breathed his life into him. So what happened? This man became the carrier of God's nature, God's life. So he put something of himself into man. What was that? The nature of God. So we carry God's likeness and image. But what happened later? Because of sin, this identity was lost. But then God had a plan. God had a plan through Jesus to redeem the mankind who he created in his own image and likeness. So what happened? Through Jesus he redeemed us. Through Jesus he redeemed this man. He restored that image. He restored that likeness in us. So the nature of God is in us. Now you may think, how can this nature of God come into us? We all have seen babies, isn't it? So the baby is small. Can a baby talk a one month or two month baby? Can we expect that baby to talk? So what are the ways that the baby communicates to another person or communicates to the mother? Through cry. Can the mother recognize why the baby is crying? Is it for stomach pain or is it hungry? Is it asking for food? And the same baby maybe it's in the development stage or four months or five months when it can recognize the mother. Still the baby is not talking at five months, but the baby is developed into recognition. Now if the baby sees the mother carrying another baby, okay, but the baby is seeing his mom carrying somebody else. Now how will this baby react? Is he very happy laughing at the mom? How does he react? He starts crying. Why? Is he jealous that his mom is carrying another baby? So who thought this jealousy to this child? Have you thought? Who thought jealousy to this child? So there's something, the carnal mind from birth that is there. The same way when we are born again, we are born new in Christ. So the fruit of the spirit, the nature of God will also be born into us. Slowly it will start developing in us. It will draw us close to God. It will draw us to be more like Jesus. So there's the nature of God, the image of God, the likeness of God when we are born again in Christ, all these character of God will also be born again. Slowly it will take root and grow. The more and more we meditate on the word, the more and more we pray, the spirit of the Lord. We are enabling the spirit of the Lord to work in us so that this carnal nature, the flesh nature that is birthed in us will have no more dominion over us. But the nature of God will take root and grow in us. You got it? No matter physically we may be grown up. We may encounter the Lord in our age like 18 or above. So this person is well grown up. So the minute he receives Jesus as a Lord and Saviour, the spirit man is born new in the Lord. So he will come across various temptation, various obstacles, but the way he handles it will be very different from the way he handled it before. Sometimes he will handle it the way it needs to be, like in the likeness of God or in the nature of God. But there are times he may fail. But what happens? The spirit of the Lord who is in him will quicken it to him. Talk to his subconscious mind and say what you did was not right because you are no more the old person. The old man has passed away. Behold you have become a new creation and Christ. You have this new image, new likeness and Christ. You are no more identified as the single person. For example, I'm no more identified as Diana, but I'm identified as a daughter of Christ. So if I do any mistake, it's like, hey, she's been a Christian and look at her attitude. Look at the way she talks, look at her action. It's not matching. So they don't compare me with me, but they compare me with Christ. You got it? So we are not compared with ourselves, but you have been compared with Christ. So when there is a change in our nature, change in our behavior, even that has been recognized by people around us. So they don't see a carnal nature anymore with us, but they see a changed in our behavior, in our character, in the way we handle each one, each situation, people around us with love, with the fruit of the spirit. And here again, people recognize us with that nature. They say, there's a change in this person. There's something new in this person. There's something that this person is different. And I liked it that people have been attracted to us because of this God's nature in us. So as a believer, what we need to do as a child of God, what we need to do, we need to develop this nature of God in us. So that's the process that we are in. It's not a one-time process. As I said, it is a progress. As we meditate on the word, we try to become more like him. So we lead our life with the nature of God in us. That we will move on to the next scripture, 2 Peter chapter 1 verse 3 and 4. 2 Peter chapter 1 verse 3 and 4. As his divine power has given to us all things that pertain in life, pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by glory and virtue by which you have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature. Having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. We also see this divine power of God which is enabling us to lead a godly life in the knowledge of Christ who called us. We also see in verse 4 which has been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises so that we can be the partaker of this divine nature. We also read in 1 John chapter 5, 1 John chapter 5 verse 1. It says, whoever believes that Jesus is Christ is born of God. So there is something happening here. Continuing the verse, and everyone who loves him who begot also loves him who is begotten of him. So what do we notice here? Everyone who believes Jesus is the Lord and Savior has been born of God. There is a new birth that happens in our spirit. The new man has been birthed. So there is a new characteristic that has been developed in this new person inside him. What is that? That he has been made righteous. He has been made in the true nature of God and he feels that he need to walk in holiness. There is a need to walk in holiness because the God who created him or this born again life, the God who created him is holy. So he gets this understanding that the God is holy and we need to lead our life in that holiness to please God. So this new creation that we become is in the image and in the nature of God that develops our spirit person to lead our life of righteousness and holiness. So that's what happened when in Paul writes in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17, time and again I'm repeating the scripture so that we know our identity is in Christ. How? Because when we are in Christ, we have become a new creation and all things have passed away and behold all things have become new. So this sin nature that is in man has no more power over us. As no more has any authority or dominion over us, we need to believe it and embrace this new nature in God. So in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17 and 18, what does it say? Following verse 18, it says, all things are of God who has reconciled us to himself through Jesus Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. So all things are new from God has come into us. So all things that are new, all things are of God has been birthed into us. So everything about this new creation, the new man, the new man in the spirit has been birthed into us. So we no more lead our life carnally, but we lead our life spiritually. So how do we lead our life spiritually? As we discussed, it is not a one-time effect. It is a process. So we need to grow into the full measure of this new creation, of this new identity. So we become new creation, how? In our spirit, in our mind. We apply it in our mind. So what we receive in spirit grows into us. So there can be two nature in us, a carnal nature and a spiritual side. So what happens? A carnal mind and a spiritual mind. As we grow in the Lord, as we walk in this fellowship, as we walk in journey with the Lord, as we pray and meditate on these words, the more we read, more we meditate on the word and more we lead our life in this new identity, we feed the spiritual person so that he can build and he can grow. But does that happen generally? What happens? You see, for example, a college going person, a college going student encounter, as an encounter with Christ and he receives Christ as the Lord and Savior. He knows about Jesus. Now he's a born again believer. Now if he makes a decision to give him to the carnal lifestyle, can you see the new creation, the new identity, lifestyle, nature in him? Can you see the spiritual side grow in him? That means there is an effort that this person need to put in that he chooses to meditate on the word of God. He chooses to lead a life that pleasing God. He needs to feed the spiritual person within him to dominate the carnal mind in him. So always you see there's a bad thing, flesh, spirit. So whom we feed is what we see the action in us in our life. So it's very important that we feed the word of God within us so that the spirit person will be strengthened so that he can dominate the flesh side in us. So in naturally we need to feed ourselves with the word of God. We need to train our mind with the word of God. So what is in us is what you can see come out of us. If we carry a bottle of mango juice and shake it and when you open and when you press, what would come out of this bottle? Mango juice. Can I expect an orange juice to come? No, just like that. So what is inside that vessel is what comes out. So what we feed inside us is what will show up out of us. The scripture says guess you are born again but the tree is known by the fruit. The tree is known by the fruit. We all know we are born again. We are believers. We go to church regularly. We read the word but if you don't apply it in your life, still we are carnal minded. Still we lead our life in flesh. We cannot see any fruit, the spiritual fruit in that person. So there is an effort that this person needs to take in. So how this is what we read in Ephesians chapter 4 verse 13. Till we all come to the unity of the faith, yes you can turn, Ephesians chapter 4, Ephesians chapter 4 verse 13, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect man to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. But speaking the truth in love may grow up in all things into him who is the head of Christ. What do we see here? Growing is a process. Growing is a process. A spiritual growth is measured against our growth toward the full measure in nature. So the new creation, the spirit that is growing up into us, into the Christ likeness in all things. So it will affect our soul, that is what mind, will, emotion and intellect and our body, the action and the behavior in which we conduct ourselves. So that our character, we need to watch our character and behavior. Is it in Christ likeness? So growing up into Christ likeness requires our effort. How? As we grow in the knowledge, the Son of God. As we read in the scripture Ephesians 4, 13, that we need to grow in Word and in Spirit for us to grow in the likeness and the nature of God. The Word is what gives us the revelation of who we are in Christ. The Word has the power to change us inside out. Only the Word. So only when we have this Word in our heart, now the Word has no power if you have it in the Bible, you carry the Bible with you. But then this Word should penetrate into our heart because the Word has the power to change us, changes inside out. The Word has the power to bring the Christ likeness, to bring the, to give birth to the nature of God in us. So how? It is a continuous process. As we increase in the knowledge of Christ, we see ourselves more in Christ likeness. So we as it said in 2nd Peter chapter 3 verse 18, 2nd Peter chapter 3 verse 18, we see that but grow the grace and knowledge of a Lord Jesus Christ to him be glory both now and forever. So what we see here? We all as we grow in the Lord, we also grow in the grace of a Lord Jesus Christ. What is grace in the New Testament represents? What does grace mean to us? Unmerited favor. Yes, it is God's favor. It's God's character and God's empowerment. So all that is unlimited to us, unlimited. We have the, we have the access for God's unlimited grace and all aspects of our life through Jesus. As we read in John chapter 1 verse 16, we see that of His fullness we have all received and grace for grace. So this grace is made, is been made available to us in Christ so that we can lead our life and grow in the Christ likeness and in His image. So this life, the life in Christ, we need to embrace our identity is in Christ. So that's why God has placed us in Christ Jesus so that we would be the people, we would be the children in the image of God, in the image of the Son of God. So we are the people who would be in Christ likeness. We will be people who pleases God, worships Him. The purpose of God will be fulfilled in and through us when we have this transformed mind, when we have this renewed mind in us which praises God for who He is in our life. So when we have this identity, the new identity in Christ, our heart will only raise praise and glory to God. We will become a new vessel. That's what the scripture says. Our new identity in Christ is what transforms us. We will be no more an ordinary person but we all will be a transformed person. We will be a vessel of honor that pleases God. We will be the carrier of His presence. We will be the carrier of His likeness. The nature of God has been implanted in us which has the power to change our mind, change our heart and lead our life victorious in Christ. So with that, we end the session. Is there anyone in the class who would like to share your insight of being one with Christ or identifying yourself in Christ that has held you in the walk of your life? It can be anyone from on campus or anyone from online. If you would like to share, you can unmute, I mean you can raise your hands by just pressing on that icon, raise hand. You can share or anyone from the campus you can also share with us. Anyone from our campus would like to share how this identity in Christ has held you journey with God or grow more in Him or been drawn close to Him. Yes, Nina, please go ahead. Amen. That's wonderful to hear. We have Nina in class. So she has this experience with God like initially she had this fear, a lot of fear. But then after being born again, she identifies herself with Christ through which a relationship with God has been restored and she could call she could call God as Abba father where the relationship of a father has been restored and she's feeling peace and happy about it. Praise God. Anyone else? Okay, yes, time is up. We can end the session with the word of prayer. Okay, we also have Krisha share something you're on on chat. Krisha, go to me. We see that she has written, I'm able to be more patient with people around. Yes, that's again, the likeness of God, God's nature. You see, God's nature in us when we have been born again, we identify ourselves and God. And because of that, we see the nature of God been manifested in us. That's wonderful. Thank you, Krisha, for sharing that. Okay, with that, we will go into our time of prayer. Dear God, we thank you for this new identity, new relationship that you have with us. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Father, as each of us embrace this truth of word, where we embrace this identity in Christ, we pray that Lord the nature of God will be activated in us, that we see the fruit of the Spirit been activated in us so that each of us may lead our life and grow more in the nature of God. Thank you, Father, for drawing us close to Jesus, that we may be made perfect in Jesus and in Jesus alone. Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thank you so much, class, for joining in today's session. See you all in the next class. Thank you so much. God bless.