Identity: Discovering the Truth of Who You Are
Who Am I? I look around the world today and see intense pressure to have a culturally relevant answer to this question. Answers to questions like what is your personality type? What are your pronouns? What is your sexual preference? What is your political party? The list could keep going on and on, but these are the questions that seem front and center, bombarding our attention and demanding definitive answers. Not only is the question of “who am I?” one that everyone asks at some point, but today we are forced to display it on our social media bios. There is no time to wade through these questions thoughtfully. Culture is demanding you must have an answer, it can’t be neutral, and you better be ready to answer NOW.
It is no wonder that our culture and society are so divided. We tend to see each other through the lens of the last thing we posted on our social media feeds and assume that represents who we are. But what if the answers to these questions aren’t really who we are at all? What if we are missing the true definition of what it means to be a unique human created thoughtfully in God’s image?
I was in my early 20s when I began to ask the inevitable question of “who am I?” and “what is my purpose?” I had walked away from the faith I had grown up with and felt so desperately lost. I was seeking meaning and wanted to know what life was really about. I was turning to anything and everything to fill that void and make sense of the world around me. Yet, I had no idea who I really was and what I believed in. This Bible study was written to 22-year-old Callie, a girl trying everything under the sun to figure out who she truly was.
This study was written as the capstone paper for my master’s program. After studying so many topics in theology, I spent time praying for what I should write about, and it hit me. SO many others are in the same place that I was in my early 20s trying to make sense of the world. Except today, I believe there is even greater pressure to have an answer. What set me free was discovering the truth of who God is and how He has made me in His image.
Do you feel lost? Do you feel a longing to know who you truly are? Or do you feel pressure to try and constantly perform to prove yourself? This study is for you. Perhaps you are already a Christian but still struggle to answer the “who am I” question? This study is for you too. Over 8 weeks, this study explores the following topics:
· The Trinity - What does it mean that you image a Trinitarian God?
· The Characteristics of God
· What does it mean to be made in God's image?
· How does salvation impact your identity?
· How does this impact your daily life?
· What is my purpose here on earth?
· How will your identity be fully restored?
By digging into scripture, we will walk through Genesis to Revelation to see how God originally created man in His image, how that image became distorted by sin, how salvation begins to restore that image, and the future hope we have in Heaven when that image is fully restored. By really understanding who God is and why He created you, I hope that you too will find freedom, peace, and confidence in knowing the truth of who you are.