It all begins with God — what we think about God shapes what we think about ourselves and those around us and our world. It begins with God. What is our “narrative” of God? What are the narratives that hinder our perception and life in God?

James Bryan Smith, in The Good and Beautiful God: Falling in Love With the God Jesus Knows (The Apprentice Series) , has a chapter called…

“God Transforms.”

The false narrative is this: “I am a sinner.”

Yes, Smith’s argument is that because we tell ourselves that “we are sinners” we both sin and inculcate a tolerance for sin. What then is the Jesus narrative?

Do you define yourself as a sinner or a saint? Do you define yourself “in Christ” or “in Adam”? Which is the true narrative? Why is the false narrative so alluring?

That Jesus is risen from the grave and God’s grace is here to transform us into saints. The narrative of Jesus is “I am a saint. Sin has been defeated. I have been reconciled. I am in Christ.” So Romans 6:6: flesh and the body of death have been destroyed.

Smith: “Christians are not merely forgiven sinners but a new species: persons indwelt by Jesus, possessing the same eternal life that he has” (154). Analogy of butterfly: why would a butterfly want to live like a worm?

How can we live as a saint? Abide in Christ (John 15:4-5). Our brokenness — cracked Eikon — does not define us; what defines us now is Christ.

What can we do to help us live our “sainthood” instead of our “sinner-hood”?