Baptized and Beloved: Knowing Who You Are by Knowing Whose You Are

Throughout every generation, people have struggled to answer the fundamental question about their identity. The answer to this question determines our life decisions, relationships, and life direction. We search for our identity through various broken paths because the world offers excess noise, conflicting expectations, and confusing signals. We pursue status, success, approval, and pleasure because we think these promise fulfillment, but they ultimately leave our inner selves empty. The Christian confession reveals a counterintuitive truth: our true identity comes from understanding our relationship with God. Our identity exists beyond personal introspection and external judgments based on what others think about us.

The gift of true identity emerges from God's eternal grace, which Jesus Christ alone provides.

The Lostness of Self

The world constantly encourages us to discover our personal identity independently. From the start of life, we learn to focus on individual achievements, personal desires, and self-expression to define ourselves. From a very young age, we're asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” This question presumes the belief that we have the power and authority to shape our identity through our choices. People advise us to stay true to ourselves, but this advice assumes that our inner selves are reliable guides. Luther correctly noted that the sinful human heart develops a self-centered bent, causing it to turn inward. This is precisely the sin that our parents, Adam and Eve, fell into: believing they could be their own north star.

The fundamental nature of sin lies in our refusal to follow God, instead focusing on ourselves and our own interests. Our attempt to create an identity outside of God's creation leads to this outcome, resulting in mental uncertainty, emotional turmoil, and physical unease. From his prison cell, Bonhoeffer wrote about his identity crisis by asking, "Who am I?" They say I leave my cell with composure, contentment, and absolute confidence... Do I actually match the description that others give about me? I am either the person others describe or the person I personally recognize as restless, longing, and sick — just like a bird trapped in a cage."

The question Bonhoeffer asked reveals the human conflict between external perceptions and internal flaws, as well as between social labels and personal inner damage. This internal conflict manifests itself in all areas of life. We define our identity through professional accomplishments and achievements. Our sense of worth depends on our success, as we feel valuable when our work succeeds, but worthless when it fails. We also establish our identity through our relationships as parents, spouses, and friends. These blessings are indeed gifts from God; however, they can become destructive when we rely on them to establish our sense of self-identity.

The truth is, we often base our self-worth on our achievements, social standing, and material possessions. However, none of these bases fully supports the complete value of a human being.

Jesus declared that gaining everything in the world is worth nothing if it costs you your eternal soul (Mark 8:36). The biggest problem of our time is that people gather many possessions but lose their true selves. People often go through life with fake personas because they crave attention, yet they fear that others will uncover their true selves.

Identity Received, Not Achieved

There is good news: The Gospel offers freedom by declaring that our identity is a gift, not something we earn. The gift of grace gives us our identity, rather than relying on any profound performance.

Martin Luther experienced this profound truth firsthand. His life journey shifted from chasing self-achievement to trusting peacefully, and from anxiety to faith. After years of dedicated devotion, he sought God's favor but realized his efforts alone couldn’t make him righteous. The Gospel of justification by faith revealed to Luther that righteousness is a divine gift, not a human achievement, which changed his whole outlook. Luther described his experience as a total transformation that opened the doors to paradise.

Through Christ, he found his true self—what everyone searches for—because his identity was in Christ's finished work, not his own. Jesus said, “…and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32).

The Lutheran confession centers on three core principles, which state that salvation comes through God's grace alone, faith alone, and through Christ alone.

Paul expresses his experience with these words: "I have been crucified with Christ. Through faith in the Son of God, who gave His life for me, I now live in the flesh" (Galatians 2:20). Christian identity, therefore, is demonstrated through self-surrender, as this act leads to personal transformation and growth. Through Christ's crucifixion, we surrender our sinful nature and self-deceptive ways of thinking. By grace, God creates a new self that arises from His divine power. Paul stated that anyone who belongs to Christ becomes an entirely new person. The entire previous life has disappeared because a new reality has emerged (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:1).

Waters of Identity

Baptism serves Lutherans as more than just a ritual declaration of self-identity. God uses this sacrament to reveal our Christ-given identity. Through baptism, God places His name on us to establish our hearts and declares us as His precious children. Luther explained that believers, through baptism, receive forgiveness of sins, escape death and the devil, and obtain eternal salvation by believing in this truth.

When we recall our baptismal experience, we discover that our authentic self exists beyond our accomplishments and mistakes, because God declared us His children through the words, "You are mine" (Isaiah 43:1).

Luther urged believers to shout, "I am baptized," whenever they faced temptation or felt hopeless. The statement served more than as a catchphrase; it was a declaration of personal identity. When we declare "I am baptized," we affirm our membership in Christ, and our lives exist with Him in God's presence. The devil, along with the world and my physical nature, tries to define me, but they lack the power to do so.

Beginning of Life

The core of the Christian faith is expressed through the cross, which symbolizes both the loss of the self and the gain of new life, as well as death and resurrection. Through the cross, God reveals that our self-made identities are useless. The cross shows that all human efforts at self-improvement, self-importance, and self-righteousness must die.

Through the cross, God displays an endless love that enters our broken state to transform it into something holy. Through the cross, Jesus embraced all our sinful nature, our false self-image, and our shameful actions, which distort God's image within us. By fully accepting all things, He made us new. Luther referred to this process as the "joyful exchange" because Christ takes our sins, death, and judgment, and gives us His righteousness, life, and salvation.

Our identity stems from God's actions in Christ rather than our actions for God.

Through the cross, God reveals our true nature as beloved children who have been redeemed and forgiven.

Whose You Are

The Gospel presents Jesus’ divine promises as an alternative to self-definition, which dominates our current world. Your identity exists beyond your past mistakes and your present achievements. Your identity comes from God's declaration that you are His beloved child, made possible through Jesus' blood and the work of the Holy Spirit.

God declares your identity as His beloved child through Jesus' blood and the Holy Spirit's seal.

The world's loud voices will fade away when you understand that your identity emerges from knowing whose child you are. The One who made you and bought your freedom and knows your name possesses you completely. You are His. Your identity as His child will guide you through all the challenges and uncertainties of life.

Luther prayed with beauty when he said, "Lord Jesus Christ, You are my righteousness while I remain Your sin. You have accepted all my burdens while giving me all that belongs to You. Through Your sacrifice, You took on what I had so I could receive what You possessed. The true and enduring self can be discovered only through Him." Amen