Your Old Identity Is Holding You Back - Barry Bennett - Charis Daily - Season 17 Ep. 5

Key Wellness / Self-Care & Productivity Themes (Identity & Mindset Transformation)

1) Your self-image shapes your direction and outcomes

Scripture emphasized:

• Proverbs 23:7 — “as he thinks…so is he”
• Proverbs 4:23 — guard your heart

Practical takeaway:

• Monitor how you “see yourself,” because it influences your boundaries, behavior, relationships, and even what you believe you can achieve.

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2) Let go of the “old identity” rooted in fear or performance

The speaker highlights common patterns of the old self:

• Inferiority, timidity/shyness
• Fear and anger/bitterness
• “Superiority” or inflated self-esteem (treated as a distorted identity)
• Victim mentality or codependency

Wellness angle:

• Freedom from emotional prisons (fear, anger loops, bitterness) comes through identity renewal, not willpower alone.

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3) Adopt a New Testament “new creation” identity

Scripture emphasized:

• 2 Corinthians 5:17 — “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation”

Core idea:

• The past is “gone,” even if memories and influences remain.
• Growth takes time, but you’re invited to “begin a new adventure” and let the new identity penetrate deeper than surface behavior.

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4) Reframe acceptance: stop “earning” belonging—live from grace

The teaching contrasts:

• Old approach: improving behavior, hoping God accepts you through “enough good deeds”
• New approach: recognizing you are already God’s righteousness in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Practical takeaway:

• Shift from striving-to-be-accepted → to discovering and living out who you already are.

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5) Replace old influences with God’s Word and the Holy Spirit

The talk urges choosing identity influences from:

• Word of God
• Holy Spirit

It frames secondary life categories (job, education, culture, sports teams, etc.) as:

• Important, but not identity-defining.

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6) “Dying to the old self” and living in spiritual renewal

Scripture emphasized:

• Romans 6:6 — the old man crucified; no longer slaves to sin
• Romans 7:6 — serve in renewal of the spirit, not oldness of the letter

Practical takeaway:

• Old patterns (inferiority, addiction struggles, competitive drives for status, anger, etc.) are treated as crucified with Christ.
• The invitation is to immerse in newness rather than revisit old scripts.

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7) Words reveal (and reinforce) identity—use speech as self-regulation

Scripture emphasized:

• Matthew 12:34-35

Key mechanism:

• “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”
• Spoken self-descriptions (e.g., “I’m a failure,” “I need help with everything”) reinforce the identity you carry.

Practical takeaway:

• Audit self-talk and spoken identity statements.
• Replace “life-or-death” identity language with truth from Scripture.

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8) Decide where you “live”: old identity vs. new reality

The talk repeatedly frames this as a decision point:

• Turn off influences that keep molding you into the old image.
• Actively choose the “new creation” path and stop clinging to an old covenant/law/victim framework.

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9) Mindset renewal is a process (not an overnight switch)

The speaker notes identity change takes time (his journey took years), but includes ongoing steps such as:

• Learning studies like “Who I Am” and “All I Am in Christ”
• Engaging in mind renewal (Romans 12:2), reframed as transforming self-image rather than conforming to the old one.

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Implied Action Steps from the Teaching

• Come before God with the Word and ask for identity revelation

  • Prayer framing: “Father, this Word says I am new—show me what that looks like.”

• Memorize and apply key identity Scriptures

  • Examples referenced: 2 Cor 5:17, 2 Cor 5:21, Rom 6:6, 1 Pet 2:9, 1 Cor 6:17, Col 1:27, Rom 8:37, 1 John 4:4.

• Practice “identity language” change

  • Catch statements that reinforce inferiority/victimhood and replace them with Scripture-based identity statements.

• Shift influence sources

  • Let Word + Holy Spirit define identity, rather than family history, culture, job status, or achievements.

• Choose new daily alignment (“where you live”)

  • Keep choosing the new creation reality, even if old memories remain.

• Use study as reprogramming

  • Engage recommended curriculum/study series to renew the mind and build confidence in “new creation” identity.

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Presenters / Sources

• Presenter: Barry Bennett
• Institution / Context: Charis Bible College (Colorado)

Scripture passages cited

• Proverbs 23:7
• Proverbs 4:23
• 2 Corinthians 5:17
• 2 Corinthians 5:21
• 2 Timothy 1:9
• Romans 6:6
• John 8:32
• 1 Peter 2:9
• Romans 7:6
• Matthew 12:34-35
• Romans 12:2
• 1 Corinthians 6:17
• Ephesians 2:6
• Colossians 1:27
• Romans 8:37
• 1 John 4:4

Referenced authorship (brochure mentioned)

• Andrew Wommack (Grace—The Power of the Gospel)