WHO ARE YOU??? Where is your identity??

WHO ARE YOU??? Where is your identity?? In your job, in the opinions of others, in your heritage, in your past, or something you own? One of the major problems today is that people simply don’t know who they are. They are trapped in self-rejection. Therefore, many individuals are other people; they imitate others, & adopt their opinions. They place their identity w/ the herd. The latest fad of the herd is to surgically remove one’s nipples. Nowadays, to be identified w/ the herd, you must mutilate your body, i.e. symbolically destroy who you are.

A Marxist, when teaching social engineering instructed, “Any revolutionary change must be preceded by a passive, affirmative, non-challenging attitude towards change among the mass of people. They must feel so frustrated, SO DEFEATED, SO LOST, so futureless in the prevailing system that they are willing to let go of the past and chance the future.” (Caps emphasis mine.) If you feel lost & defeated, who you are can be manipulated. Controllers will try to break down your sense of identity. TBMC works by fragmenting & destroying a person’s identity, so it is called DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder). They called Christ all sorts of names, for instance: sinner, blasphemer & drunk. If they asked him, “What the hell are you doing?” He would have recognized who he was, and continued to be himself. He never let people steal his dignity. Don’t give you identity away. Your identity has nothing to do with whether people like you. Other people do not define who you are, although they will sure try, & very often in self-serving ways.

Hollywood & the World’s meat markets will try to convince you that your natural beauty is ugly. It was a joy to witness beautiful Kate Winslet (of Titanic movie fame) refuse this manipulation. She stood up to a Br. magazine that redrew her body using computer software so that it looked like a twig. She objected, “This is me. Like it or lump it…. I’m not a twig, and I refuse to be one. I’m happy the way I am.” Our joy & happiness are at issue here. Life is life, and we have to take the good w/ the bad, & vice versa. What is perplexing is we often don’t know how to frame something…is it ugly, beautiful or what? Some then take the easy way out and let the crowd decide. If the crowd says it is ugly, then it must be. Decide your own image, for out of that image you will build yourself. I loved how Scotsman William Wallace (Braveheart) kept his own identity when they called him a traitor to the King. He simply states, that he never swore allegiance to this king.

PEOPLE WILL TRY TO PLAY YOU FOR THE SUCKER. There are a million ways we are all deficient, and these people will insist that if they find some imperfection in you, that you have an obligation to strive for their personal standard of perfection for your life. Your identity is not in being error free! The next thing you know, if you don’t have a self-identity, is that you are trying to give reasons for your imperfections. You answer to God, not to every Tom, Dick & Harry. Your identity with God allows you to make your own judgment call as to whether you want to improve. Don’t buy the lie that your identity is in your genes. Science has recently discovered that humans and mice have only 300 genes different…not enough for your genes to be your identity…now they are postulating that an internal spirit controlling those genes gives us our human identity. Nor are we hairless apes, apes have a different no. of chromosomes than humans. For those who don’t identify themselves as hairless apes, but special creations of God, let us examine your identity.

YOUR I.D. IN GOD IS “BELOVED”. Beginning in DT we read of the “beloved of the Lord” (for instance, DT 33:12). Many of the men inspired to write Scripture refer to God’s “Beloved”. Here is a small sampling: Paul, “…the elect of God, holy & beloved” and “They are beloved for Father’s sake”; Peter, “beloved be not ignorant of this…”; and John, “beloved follow not evil”, and “beloved let us love one another”. As a child of God, you are beloved…don’t let them label you “monster” or “puppet” or “reject”. Adam & Eve let their identity be stolen. The Word is placed into the heart & spirit. Of course the enemy tries to steal or choke the Word by overwhelming us with cares. So how can we neglect our identity as “beloved”??

BEHOLDING WE BECOME. There is a principle that you become what you focus on. The Word teaches us to focus on the ideal standard of Christ, and in so doing we will naturally conform to his example.(A) When we resent others & react to them, our focus & comparison draws us towards becoming like they are.(B) Forgiveness is what raises us out of this negative dynamic. So we behold Christ to become like Christ. When Peter was on the stormy sea…Christ was there, but Peter did not focus on him, but on the storm, and his fear was magnified. Our eyes have a natural ability to magnify what they focus on. Likewise our spiritual eyes do this too. If we glorify our Creator, praise with uplifted hands, worship with prostrate bodies, then we magnify His glory in our lives. But how can we magnify a Creator that has everything? we can’t boost His light? Yet I tell you, our praise & worship magnifies the glory anyhow. It has been said that what is beautiful is good, and who is good will also soon be beautiful.

THE MASK VS. THE INNER I.D. Christ taught, “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.”(C) “…the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.”(D) Here we have another problem. People can think too much w/ their minds, without seeing godly beauty with their hearts. What is God quietly doing in this situation?? They whine about some trivial unfairness, & miss the majestic birds & flowers, & God’s agenda to bless. Within the silent beauty of God’s creation is death & pain. The flower grows & blooms & wilts. It happens. Some of us as we are blossoming are plucked in the prime of life, like a harvested flower. Can it all be understood with the mental concept of fairness? NO. Nature has its beauty & its storms. The beautiful sunset becomes a lightning storm. The storms of life can bring out the joy, goodness, patience, kindness & generosity in mankind. Beauty can shine through the storm, like the crystal sparkles after the snow storm. Life provides its own sermons, if we would care to listen. Love provides its own rewards if we would care to apply it.
PART OF YOUR IDENTITY IS GOD W/IN YOU. His inner gentle voice at times is perceived more as “inner pressure”, or an “inner witness”. Others call it the peace of God. “Let the peace of Christ rule [brabeuo—to arbitrate, to goven, to guide & umpire] in your hearts.” Your identity can be in him. His inner voice can guide you. The peace of God can be part of your identity. Your identity is not in some sin. Your identity is not “a divorcee”, an “unemployed bum”, or a handicapped person, not unless you reject the identity God has for you. Remember, you still get the heavenly prize, even if you have to walk through mud, trip & fall on your face, or get temporally distracted & lost. Refocus and reclaim your identity. Your identity is not understanding everything in the universe or reading the minds of others. Ultimately, God’s desire for your life is your identity in Him. May you my friend continue to learn more about who you are!!!

(A.) MK 12:30 & 2 COR 3:18 (B.) 2 COR 10:12 (C) JN 7:24 (D) 1 SAM 16:7b cf. 2 COR 10:7