From Hebrews: The Past is Gone—Our New Identity in Christ
Orientation
Many believers struggle with the false assumption that their past sins or ongoing efforts determine their standing before God.
- The feeling that we must 'do something' to complete our sanctification is a common burden.
- This mindset shifts confidence from Christ's finished work to our own fluctuating performance.
- It obscures the reality that God has already acted decisively on our behalf.
And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: (Ephesians 2:6)
— Ephesians 2:6
Clarification
Forgiveness is not the whole story; God condemned and crucified our old self in Christ, breaking sin's dominion.
- Our old self was not merely pardoned; it was condemned in the flesh of Christ.
- This is a finished judicial reality, not a gradual process we maintain.
- The goal is freedom from sin's power, not just periodic relief from its guilt.
For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: (Romans 8:3)
— Romans 8:3
Structure
Biblical logic reveals we are united with Christ in His death and resurrection, giving us a new identity and source of life.
- We are to 'reckon' or account ourselves as dead to sin and alive to God—this is based on fact, not feeling.
- Our new life is 'hidden with Christ in God,' secured in Him, not in our fluctuating condition.
- This union is the foundation for bearing fruit unto God, as we are joined to the risen Christ.
Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:11)
— Romans 6:11
Weight-Bearing Prose
The core assertion is that believers are perfected forever by Christ’s one perfect offering (Hebrews 10:14). This is a definitive, positional reality. Our transformation is not achieved by human effort, which Paul categorizes as ‘the flesh.’ It occurs through our union with Christ in His death and resurrection—the Pauline category of identification. We were buried with Him in baptism into death (Romans 6:4). The old self was crucified with Him (Romans 6:6). Therefore, sin’s dominion is broken. We are now ‘alive to God’ (Romans 6:11). This is not progressive sanctification but a settled fact that produces fruit as we walk in faith. The law could not accomplish this, being weak through the flesh, but God condemned sin in the flesh of His Son (Romans 8:3). Our past sins were borne by Christ (Isaiah 53:6) and are gone, not merely covered. The error to reject is any teaching that shifts confidence from this finished work to our own striving, which forfeits the rest and fruitfulness of grace.
Integration
Your assurance rests entirely on what Christ has done. He bore the iniquity. He condemned sin. He crucified the old man. He seated you in heavenly places. This is your history and your position. There is no pressure to advance or mature into this; it is already true of you in Christ. Your calling is to believe it—to reckon it true. When your mind returns to old patterns of guilt or effort, gently return to this anchor: Christ is your sanctification. Your life is hidden with Him in God. This is a landing place of rest, not a challenge to undertake. The same grace that saved you now sustains you, not as a reward for effort, but as the continuous expression of God’s kindness in Christ Jesus.