How Our New Identity in Christ Sets Us Free!

“Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? … Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.”

1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19 (NIV)

One of the most liberating truths of our new identity in Christ, is found in these two passages from 1 Corinthians. The Bible says, “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? … Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.” 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19 (NIV)

What makes these two passages so liberating? Paul was writing to a church steeped in an immoral, perverted, highly sexualized culture, much like ours. Warren Wiersbe writes, “It was a permissive society with a philosophy similar to that which the world has today.” In 1 Corinthians 6:9, he lists a number of sexual sins enslaving people. But in verse 11 he offers hope and good news that God can set the sinner free when he writes this liberating truth: “And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” This is our new identity in Jesus as well!  

Wiersbe adds, “The tenses of these verbs indicate a completed transaction. Now, because of all that God had done for us, we have an obligation to God to use our bodies for His service and His glory. God the Father created our bodies; God the Son redeemed them and made them part of His body; and God the Spirit indwells our bodies and makes them the very temple of God. How can we defile God's temple by using our bodies for immorality?” 

We experience that freedom when we release ownership of our bodies to God through faith in Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit comes to take up residence in our bodies and makes of them His temple! With new ownership, we no longer have the right to use our bodies for anything apart from His service. When the enemy temps you to use your body in a way that would be dishonoring to God or bring self-harm, you can simply respond, “It’s not my body. I gave it to God! It’s His temple.”

This same truth was behind Paul’s command in Romans 12:1-2 (NIV), where he said, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Have you offered your body to God? Do you wrestle with temptations of the flesh that seem beyond your ability to resist? Would you like to be free? Take a moment right now and offer your body to God. Transfer your ownership to Him. Thank Him for sending His Holy Spirit to transform your body into His temple. Honor Him with the use of your body as a living sacrifice that is holy and pleasing to God. You’ll be amazed what God will do through you! You now belong to Him! Your identity is in Christ and there is now no condemnation! You’ve been set free!

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To read this devotional online or catch up on past ones, visit kerryshook.org/blog.

As you continue your quiet time, prayer is a powerful way to stay connected to God and the family of Christ. The Woodlands Church Prayer Board offers a simple space to lift others in prayer and let them know you are standing with them. You can also share your own request and receive prayer support whenever you need it.

Another way to bless others is through giving. This season, we’re celebrating how God is moving in the next generation by placing a Bible in the hands of every student connected to Kerry Shook Ministries. If you’d like to learn more, you can visit: Be Part of Growing Faith That Endures.