Most people spend their lives trying to prove who they are—through success, approval, or achievements. But true identity isn’t something you earn; it’s something you receive. Your identity is received, not achieved.
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! “- 1 John 3:1
Your identity in Christ is not based on performance, reputation, or emotions. It is a gift—unchanging, secure, and independent of circumstances. When God speaks a thing, He creates it. And He has spoken a great identity over you.
But what about the aspects of our life that are seemingly unspiritual that make up who we are? Do those matter? How do we live lives as healthy, integrated people once we understanding our identity in Christ?
That’s where the Three Circles of Identity come in.
The Three Circles: A Construct for Wholeness
Each layer of identity matters, but only when they are properly ordered.
1. Communal Identity (Outer Circle) – External & Unstable
This is how others see you—your reputation, roles, and social identity. It includes:
Your job title (CEO, teacher, nurse, artist)
Your income and social class
Your nationality and cultural background
Your reputation in the community
The expectations placed on you by family, friends, or society
The problem: These things change—sometimes overnight. If you let them define you, you’ll feel constantly insecure, riding the highs of approval and the lows of criticism.
"Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ." — Galatians 1:10
These things are very important as they shape our lives and sometimes our professional and personal outcomes, but they are not dependable. It’s not that they might change - it’s that they probably will.
2. Created Identity (Middle Circle) – Unique but Evolving
This is how God uniquely designed you—your personality, talents, and life experiences. It includes:
Personality (Enneagram type, Myers-Briggs, introvert/extrovert)
Talents and gifts (musical ability, leadership, athleticism)
Preferences (food, fashion, hobbies, personal style)
Cultural influences (where you grew up, traditions, language)
Physical traits (height, hair color, athletic build)
Life experiences (triumphs, failures, trauma, or achievements)
The problem:
We can be wounded in this area and get stuck. Pain, rejection, or trauma can shape how we see ourselves—sometimes in ways that aren’t true. A child told they aren’t “smart enough” may carry that belief into adulthood.
These things change. Your preferences, skills, and personality traits can shift as you grow.
"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." — Ephesians 2:10
Maybe you once identified as “the athletic one,” but an injury ended your sports career. Or you saw yourself as “the extrovert,” but now you find yourself craving solitude. If your identity is built on these things, you’ll feel lost when they change. This creates the common “identity crisis.”
3. Core Identity (Interior Circle) – Received in Christ
Everything above the surface of your life can shift. Skills evolve. Roles change. Reputation rises and falls. But at the deepest level—beneath your personality, achievements, and circumstances—there must be something solid. Otherwise, identity fractures.
A fractured identity leads to insecurity, anxiety, and exhaustion. You start chasing external validation and adjusting yourself to fit the expectations of others. Psychologist Carl Jung warned about this kind of fragmentation, writing, “The world will ask you who you are, and if you do not know, the world will tell you.”
Core Identity is what keeps you from being pulled in a thousand directions. Without it, you end up constructing a version of yourself from what people expect, what culture values, or what your emotions tell you in the moment. But those things are unstable.
Core Identity is not built. It is received.
Why Integration Matters: Identity and Spiritual Health
Ancient Hebrew thought connects identity to wholeness. The word shalom—often translated as "peace"—carries a deeper meaning: completeness, integration, everything in its right place.
When identity is disordered, life feels chaotic.
When identity is properly aligned, life has clarity and confidence.
A fragmented identity makes every failure feel personal, every criticism feel crippling, and every change feel like a threat.
An integrated identity—one grounded in something unshakable—creates resilience.
Psychologist Carl Rogers described this as congruence: the alignment of one's true self with one’s actions. When your deepest identity is secure, there is no need for pretense, performance, or self-protection. You live from identity rather than striving for it.
The Foundation of Core Identity
Your Core Identity is not found in:
Achievement—because that can disappear.
Talent—because that evolves.
Reputation—because that shifts.
Instead, it is found in who God says you are:
Loved. No accomplishment, failure, or moment of shame changes this.
Chosen. Not an accident. Not a second option. Called with intention.
Redeemed. The worst thing you’ve done, the biggest regret you carry—it has already been accounted for.
Secure. Not a slave to fear, not waiting to be discarded.
Paul had status, education, and influence. Then he lost it all. Reputation destroyed. Freedom taken. His body beaten. From a Roman prison, he wrote:
"I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content." — Philippians 4:11
This is not self-help philosophy or emotional detachment. Paul was not saying circumstances didn’t matter. He was saying they didn’t define him. His Core Identity was untouchable.
Here’s the big idea: without a stable foundation, identity becomes a reaction to circumstances rather than an anchor through them.
Harvard psychologist Robert Kegan describes self-authorship as the ability to define oneself rather than being shaped by external pressures. Christianity takes this further: You don’t have to author your own identity—it has already been given. Identity is not something you construct. It is something you stand on.
The Integrated Identity: Living in Shalom
When your Core Identity is properly ordered:
Created Identity (talents, personality, and experiences) becomes a reflection of God’s design, not the source of your worth.
Communal Identity (reputation, roles, and external perception) becomes a way to influence others, not a place to seek validation.
When identity is properly integrated, you stop chasing approval and start living with conviction. The result is wholeness. Shalom.
Integrating your identity through understanding the Three Circles, and the various forms of self expression God has given you, is a key piece to developing a healthy expression of your identity in Christ.