When we are young, we are told who we are by our parents. The comfort and security of our family become our starting point in our search for who we are. For some without the luxury of family, our starting point becomes a bit more skewed and confusing... and our initial identity is a bit more blurred.
As a child we are told we are students and our occupation is laid out for us. Without the acute awareness and ability for self-evaluation, we are told who we are by our parents, our friends, and society. You are tall, you are short... you are athletic and you are smart... you are well behaved, you are a troublemaker... you are cool you are not. It is a fertile and impressionable time and the foundation and starting point as we mount our case for who we truly are. As we hit high school, we are no longer satisfied with who our parents tell us we are. We are ready to climb out of our cacoon and explore who we want to be... and thus begins our "rebellious teenage years". In college, the question hits us a bit more in the face as we are asked, "are you an engineer? a mathmatician? a businessman? or a politician? we are forced in some degree to decide who we are and who we want to be. We eventually learn to juggle and prioritize our numerous identites and alot of times, cling to the ones that give us the most meaning and fulfillment.
Point is, our search for identity dominates our life and remains a strong undercurrent in how we act, what we do, and how we view life. The search for identity IS the serach for purpose.. for meaning.. for belonging. All the things that we naturally desire from deep within. Now, it is well known that when we find God, we find our true identity in Him. The bible tells us that we are children of the most high, a chosen people, a royal preisthood, a holy nation. We were once objects of wrath but now recipients of mercy and grace. We recieve new citizenship and become heirs to God himself. Our spiritual identity is no longer that of an orphan who is fatherless, but of a child adopted into His kingdom. And on and on... The bible is chalk full of promises and revelations of our reformed identity in Him. And as we are made in His image, it is natural that the more we understand who God is, the more we understand who we are.
The understanding AND prioritizing of our identity in Christ is so central to our faith that I believe it has also become the biggest spiritual battlegrounds for the devil as well. I believe that our understanding of our identity in Christ can determine whether we are Christians that stand in the front lines or Christians who remain ineffective in our walks. The hurts and pains, the scars and memories that go unattended will remain as walls and blocks that blind us from deeply understanding and embracing our identity in Christ. Women who feel undesirable and without value, men who feel like they dont measure up and cannot make something of themselves. All whispers of the enemy that cripple and handicap Christians from embracing their new identity in Christ and become soliders for His kingdom work.
The paradox in the redemption process is that first we must not only humble our selves, but truly see ourselves in our most raw and naked from. As I've talked about, to see ourselves as depraved and sinful, empty and truly in need. That trying to measure up, to find value through self attainment... through societies standards will either leave us wounded and crippled... or arrogant and disillusioned. As we repent and bring before the cross our sins.. including our broken identities and pains, we can then embrace the new identity that Christ has called us to. And as a soldier at war must constantly remind himself of his identity, so as Christians we should constantly preach to ourselves, the identity we share in Christ.
Lastly, we should strive to prioritize our Identity in Christ as the focal point of our lives. It should shape who we are more than any other label given to us. Should we ever be stripped of our temporary identities as father or mother, as son or daughter, or as husband or wife... our identity as Children of God should always stand.
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