Discovering Your True Identity

I recently had a chance to play golf at Bluejack National Golf Course. One of our members invited me out there. He has a friend who recently lost his wife and he wanted me to connect with him.

It was the prettiest golf course I have ever played. Wow!

This guy is a professional counselor and it was amazing to me how deep our conversations went. He began to ask me about my view of mental health and how tied to faith it is.

We talked about it from two perspectives…

• …Where there is a chemical imbalance in our brains that needs addressing. And we discussed this aspect and just how significant it really is.
• …Identity – this is the second part of our discussion – how misunderstanding our identity can lead us into challenging seasons – seasons of despair and depression; seasons of anxiety, and constant fretting.

I said, “I see this aspect of mental health the most – where there is a misplaced identity and it leads to struggle in the life of the believer.”

Now, what might this misplaced identity look like?

• where there should be joy, there is struggle…
• where there should be a deep satisfaction, we find one constantly striving for more…
• where there should be confidence and a settled heart, there is a tremendous lack of peace.

I’m not a Psychiatrist who can help you with your brain chemistry.

But I am a pastor, and I can help you with your identity. This is actually what the Apostle Paul is doing as he is trying to lead the Galatian Churches away from the captivity of a life placed once again under the law. Instead, Paul is saying, “Remember who you are and how that changes everything.”

You see, until we understand our identity, we risk power being placed over our lives. Sometimes that is the power of our emotions that keeps us from getting out of bed. Sometimes it’s more sinister than that. Sometimes it’s a manipulation of someone by another party, whether that be in business, in marriage, or in school.

When we fail to understand who we truly are because of Jesus Christ, we risk being on the other side of a power play that holds us captive.

But when our identity is clear, and when we walk in the Liberty of the Spirit, we can live out God’s call upon our lives and make an impact where we feel useful to Him.

Today, we are going to discover, or be reminded of, our identity as a child of God.

Galatians 3:23-4:7
23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. 24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.
 
4 I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, 2 but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. 3 In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. 4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
 
Here is what we are going to learn today: In Christ, you are not a spiritual slave trying to earn your place—you are a fully adopted son or daughter who already belongs.

And here is the flow of the message…

In Christ…
1. Your Identity Has Changed (3:26–29)
2. Your Status Has Been Secured (4:1–7)

Let’s dig in to this one at a time.

In Christ, your identity has changed.

Galatians 3:23-29
23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. 24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.
 
Now, there is a reason that I moved back to verses 23-25 a bit earlier. Last week, as Tim preached his first sermon as our campus pastor, he mentioned the idea of the Law of God being a Tutor or Guardian that trains us. But there is also other imagery of the Law of God.
Notice it in verse 23.

Galatians 3:23
Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed.
 
One of the primary purposes of the Law is that it is given to us to “imprison” us.

Warren Wiersbe says…
“The Law separated Israel from the Gentile nations (Eph. 2:12–18); it governed every aspect of their lives. During the centuries of Jewish history, the Law was preparing for the coming of Christ. The demands of the Law reminded the people that they needed a Saviour.”[1]

The law of God put an expectation of holiness – living a separate life—on the people. It called them a love God and their neighbor. Yet they were unable to fulfill this. As Paul has argued, this didn’t make the law inadequate, it actually served a purpose… and that purpose was to:

• Expose their enslavement to sin…
• Reveal their need for a Messiah…

So, notice what he now says, which leads us to our point about identity.

Galatians 3:25-26
But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.
 
Notice the movement in these verses.

“We were held captive…imprisoned.” – The identity there is one of a Prisoner.

Then, in chapter 4:3, we are going to see that “we…were enslaved.” – That’s the identity of a slave.

The picture is of ones who have:

• no rights,
• no freedom,
• no seat at the table.

Instead, before Christ came, it was an existence of bondage.

Warren Wiersbe states,
“The Law could reveal sin and, to a certain extent, control behavior, but the Law could not do for the sinner what Jesus Christ can do.”[2]

But the movement – “But now that faith has come…”

What does that mean, “faith has come?”

Keep in mind, Paul is writing to churches he planted when he was on his first missionary journey. He and Barnabas were taking faith to the Jews and Gentiles of the region of Galatia.

And “faith” arrived there through the preaching of their message. And that faith was a message of an opportunity of a new identity in Jesus Christ.

And the message that they proclaimed to them was simple: By putting your faith – your belief that the sacrifice of Jesus of Nazareth on the Cross and his resurrection from the dead, was sufficient for your salvation and standing before God – By putting your faith in the work that he did for you, you are now sons of God.

Your identity has changed!

Remember, in Christ, your identity has changed!

Friend, if you have never put your faith in the work that Christ did for you, your identity hasn’t changed. You are still striving. You are still striving for others’ acceptance. You are still striving for others’ approval. You are still striving to please God and be good enough for God.

But when faith comes…and you put your faith in Christ, you become sons and daughters of God, through faith – Not your behavior, not your heritage, and not by observing the law.

Notice what this looks like:

Galatians 3:27-29
For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.

John Calvin:
“Faith unites us to Christ, and in Him we are accounted sons of God.”

This is all union language.

“in Christ Jesus”

• Union language—your identity is not independent, but derived from Christ
• Everything changes because you are in Him

“sons of God”

• Legal standing (Roman inheritance)
• Not about gender—about status and access

Warren Wiersbe states…
“When a sinner trusts Chrsit and is saved, as far as his condition is concerned, he is a ‘spiritual babe’ who needs to grow; but as far as his position is concerned, he is an adult son who can draw on the Father’s wealth and who can exercise all the wonderful privileges of sonship.”
 
“put on Christ”

• Clothing imagery → identity covering
• You now stand before God in Christ’s righteousness

I love this imagery.

Wiersbe gives us great help here. He states:
“The phrase put on Christ (Gal. 3:27) refers to a change of garments. The believer has laid aside the dirty garments of sin (Isa. 64:6) and, by faith, received the robes of righteousness in Christ (see Col. 3:8–15). But to the Galatians, this idea of “changing clothes” would have an additional meaning. When the Roman child came of age, he took off the childhood garments and put on the toga of the adult citizen. The believer in Christ is not just a “child of God”; he is also a “son of God.” The believer has an adult status before God—so why go back into the childhood of the Law?”[3]

Then it says, “we are one in Christ Jesus.”

“All one in Christ Jesus”—what a tremendous claim!

• The Law created differences and distinctions, not only between individuals and nations, but also between various kinds of foods and animals. Jesus Christ came, not to divide, but to unite.
• This must have been glorious news for the Galatian Christians, for in their society slaves were considered to be only pieces of property; women were kept confined and disrespected; and Gentiles were constantly sneered at by the Jews.

The Pharisee would pray each morning…

“I thank Thee, God, that I am a Jew, not a Gentile; a man, not a woman; and a freeman, and not a slave.” Yet all these distinctions are removed “in Christ.”[4]

So, imagine how transforming this message of Jesus was to these people and this culture.

What else do we see here?

Let’s look at this second point today…

In Christ…
1. Your Identity Has Changed (3:26–29)
2. Your Status Has Been Secured (4:1–7)

In Christ, Your Status Has Been Secured

Did you know that God is never late? He is always on time. He knows the right time, to do the right thing, in just the right way.

This message is being spread during what history calls the Pax Romana – the Peace of Rome.

From the historical point of view, the Roman Empire itself helped prepare the world for the birth of the Saviour. Roads connected city with city, and all cities ultimately with Rome. Roman laws protected the rights of citizens, and Roman soldiers guarded the peace. Thanks to both the Greek and Roman conquests, Latin and Greek were known across the empire.

Historians tell us that the Roman world was in great expectation, waiting for a Deliverer, at the time when Jesus was born.

• The old religions were dying;
• the old philosophies were empty and powerless to change men’s lives.
• Strange new mystery religions were invading the empire.
• Religious bankruptcy and spiritual hunger were everywhere.

God was preparing the world for the arrival of His Son.

Galatians 4:1-7
I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, 2 but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. 3 In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. 4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
 
In the fullness of time means at just the right time.

Isn’t this amazing to learn more about the heart of God?

• The Peace of Rome created a road system that connected all roads back to Rome.
• The Pax Romana created a common language.
• This time in history set up a message that could go to the ends of the earth, so that everyone could learn about Jesus.

Now, as chapter 4 opens, Paul is still talking about the difference between a slave and a son. But here, he brings us into one’s home and draws our attention to a child being raised by a slave.

You see, it was quite customary for a wealthy Roman citizen to have an educated slave that would rear the children. There were an estimated 60 million slaves in the Roman Empire.

And it’s interesting to note, the son and the slave had a similar position.

• The slave was under the master,
• and the child was under the slave.

That is until the child grew up.

• You see, though the child’s identity was one of a son of the father,
• he couldn’t access his wealth or his rights.
• He was reared by the slave who was charged to prepare and teach him.

But there was a moment when he put on the toga and was no longer under the slave. It happened at just the right time.

And here, Paul tells us why Jesus came…He came, “to redeem those under the law.”

The word redeem means, “to purchase out of slavery,” “to set free by paying a price.”

One writer states…
A man could purchase a slave in any Roman city either to keep the slave for himself or to set him free. Jesus came to set us free.

So, to go back into the Law is to undo the very work of Christ on the cross.

He did not purchase us to make us slaves, but sons!
 
Now, here are a few facts about sons…
1. The son has the same nature as the father, but the servant does not.
 
When we trust Christ, the Holy Spirit comes to live within us; and this means we are “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4).

• The Law could never give a person God’s nature within.
• All it could do was reveal to the person his desperate need for God’s nature.
• So, when the believer goes back into Law, he is denying the very divine nature within, and he is giving the old nature (the flesh) opportunity to go to work.

2. The son has a father, while the servant has a master.
 
No servant could ever say “Father” to his master.
 
Wiersbe says,
“When the sinner trusts Christ, he receives the Holy Spirit within, and the Spirit tells him that he is a child of the Father (Rom. 8:15–16)…When the Spirit enters the heart, He says, “Abba, Father” (Gal. 4:6); and, in response, the believer cries, “Abba, Father!” (Rom. 8:15)…This shows the closeness of the child to the Father. No servant has this.”

I love how J.I. Packer puts an exclamation on this.

J.I. Packer states…
“To be right with God the Judge is a great thing, but to be loved and cared for by God the Father is greater.”
 
In Christ…
1. Your Identity Has Changed (3:26–29)
2. Your Status Has Been Secured (4:1–7)
 
We all need to be reminded of that truth, don’t we?  And the truth is that many of us today are struggling to accept our identity as a child of God. So, I want to look at a couple of things that may be preventing us from realizing our identity as a child of God:
 
1. We forget who we are and who we belong to. We suffer from spiritual amnesia. We have an identity crisis.

There is a story of girl who kept a notebook and would often write her thoughts. On one occasion, she drew a picture of her father and wrote his name and address below the picture. Someone saw this and asked her why she did this. She had just watched a movie called Amnesia. She said, “If I ever forget who I am, I want everybody to know who I belong to.”

This may be a bit extreme, but it is an all-too-often experience in our spiritual lives. Guilt from our past. Shame over our sin. We have stuff come into our lives…worries, fears, anxieties, and difficulties…that causes spiritual amnesia.

A Pastor once said…”trust in your permanent identity, not your temporary insecurity.”
 
Maybe because of the insecurity in your life, you feel unworthy of God’s love. You don’t see how God could care about you.

I want to remind you today: if Christ lives in you, you are His child! Listen, we will not be who we can be if we don’t know who we are…if we don’t settle the identity crisis, we will not live out God’s purposes.

Transition: For some here today, your problem is not forgetfulness but it is a deeper problem. It is your perception of God. This leads to the second thing that may prevent us from realizing our identity as a child of God.

2. We have a false perception of God. We can have a false perception of God because we project onto God the unloving characteristics of people we look up to.

A Christian psychologist did a study in this area and said that people too often develop their image of God, not just from God’s Word (as we should), but also from relationships. And here is what the psychologist said; “No child arrives at the ‘house of God’ without his pet God under his arm.” In other words, our image or perception of God is affected by the relationships you have with those closest to you.

Let’s use our Fathers as an example of what we’re talking about. It could be an uncle, coach, mother, sibling, etc. So, apply the analogy to your circumstances.

If your father was distant and uncaring…you may see God as distant and uncaring.
If your father was critical…you struggle to believe God loves and accepts you as you are.
If your father was weak…you may not believe God will protect and support you.
If your father left you…you think God will abandon you and you struggle trusting Him.
If your father abused you…you feel unworthy and too defiled for God’s love.

We could go on, but here’s the point: you struggle to accept your identity in Christ because these relationships have caused you to have a false perception of God.

The challenge for us is this: We must let God’s word inform our image of God.
 
And here is what it says:

1 John 3:1
“How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!

• We are Called Children of God, because that is what we are!  That is what the second sentence of this verse says – “And that is what we are!”  

Once I understand my identity as a child of God through what Christ has done for me, I can begin to live into it.

Listen to these words in the book, Abba’s Child, by Brennan Manning:
“Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. God’s love for you and his choice of you constitute your worth. Accept that, and let it become the most important thing in your life…the basis for my personal worth is not my possessions, my talents, not esteem of others, reputation…not kudos or applause and everyone telling you how important you are…our worth is anchored in God who tells me “You are my son, my beloved one.”

He goes on to say: “Being the beloved is our identity—our core existence.”

Are you consistently receiving the love of God?

• Be who He says you are! 
• Be who you have been called to be. 
• Because that is Who He already sees you being.
• 
  

Today, live into this truth—you are God’s child, the Beloved. Be Who You Already Are!

[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 703). Victor Books.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 704). Victor Books.
[3] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 704). Victor Books.
[4] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 704). Victor Books.



This blog is based on the message shared by Senior Pastor Dr. Roger Patterson on Sunday, May 3, 2026, at our CityRise Bellaire campus. Check out the full message below!