Identity

Identity is such an important thing for us as people. We want to know who we are and we also want to know that we belong somewhere. When Peter writes to the early church he reminds them that there was a time when they didn't really belong, but through the mercy of God and through the love of Jesus they have been given a new identity.

“Once you had no identity as a people;
    now you are God’s people.
Once you received no mercy;    now you have received God’s mercy." - 1 Peter 2:10

Living in the 21st century is, in some ways, no different than struggling in the 1st century - once we know we have an identity and that we 'belong' this gives us a reason to live. It is Christ who gives us our new identity - we are children of God.

What do you think?

“When I discover who I am, I’ll be free.” -  Ralph Ellison

Living in Grace
D3LM3

The question of Identity

We get so many people coming to the church for help nowadays and it is always tricky to discern which are the genuine cases and which are not. What we have been finding is that many of the 'homeless' people ask for money so they can get a new ID book. It seems to be the standard line to try and get some money from the local churches and of course we can't always help these people for a variety of reasons.

However, out of all of this, it has made me ask some questions about our Identity, because if I lost all my documentation and had no way of proving who I was, where would I go to get this sorted out? Does my ID reveal who I truly am or is it just a passport to be accepted as a 'normal person' in society? And what about how God sees us? Surely I AM SOMEONE in the eyes of God, regardless of whether I have a piece of paper or not?

What do you think?

"Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.” - Matthew 5:48

Living in Grace
D3LM3

My faulty Rep

In following on from my last post about Reputation vs Identity, I wanted to add a few things. Isn't it funny how we spend so much time and energy trying to defend, shine up or create our Reputation, and then so little time on discovering WHO WE ARE in the eyes of God.

When we stand before God one day, God is not going to ask our friends or peers to give a glowing report on our Reputation, but rather to ask "Do you know my Son?" God already knows that I have a faulty reputation, because God knows who I am in the darkest shadows on my life. It is because of my sin, that Jesus came to offer me a new identity.

So, here is a challenge for you this Lent period. Try and match your time spent on the internet, with time spent in the Word, prayer or in worship. Allow your identity in Jesus to shape your Reputation, instead of trying to win favour with a worldly Rep.

2 Corinthians 5:17-19 - "Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore. Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins."

Living in Grace
D3LM3

Reputation versus Identity

As a society we have become obsessed with 'Reputation' and social media has just added to this whole hype. We can 'make or break' our reputation by posting something dodgy onto one of the social platforms or by speaking out of turn. I confess that on some levels Reputation is important, but it isn't everything. The reason I argue for this is because sometimes 'Reputation' is tainted by others who will do all they can to destroy our reputation - and again social media aids in this process.

Scot McKnight offers us an alternative to REPUTATION and that is the word IDENTITY. In sharing about the story of Jesus' earthly father, Joseph, he writes:

"Joseph learns that who he is before God (his identity) is more important than who he is in the circle of his pious friends (his reputation)."

And this is so TRUE. Who I am in the eyes of Jesus is far more important than who I am in the eyes of the world. It is my IDENTITY in Christ that sets me apart from others and ultimately will be the deciding factor in eternity.

Luke 6:35-36 - “I tell you, love your enemies. Help and give without expecting a return. You’ll never—I promise—regret it. Live out this God-created identity the way our Father lives toward us, generously and graciously, even when we’re at our worst. Our Father is kind; you be kind.

Living in Grace
D3LM3