Tag: identity

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1. HUMAN IDENTITY:  Creation Design & The Fall

This is the first of three talks given at Freedom House Church, in Salt Rock, South Africa. These are the notes for the video recording of Talk One.

HUMAN IDENTITY:  Creation Design & The Fall

HUMAN IDENTITY 

Definition:  Identity is our sense of self, in relation to others, decided and formed in a mix of beliefs, values, culture, personality, gender, ethnicity, social status, achievements, and even hurt/pain.

Process:  Identity is given, but also formed, and/or chosen, and even imposed (if one accepts it).

The Question is:  Who are you?  Post-modern confusion (dysphoria) is not knowing who we are. We identifying with what we feel/sense about ourselves, what we think others think of us, and so on.

Way of the world:  ‘Self-identifying’ – the basis of ‘expressive individualism’, i.e., to be my authentic self, and thus to be happy, I must self-identify as I choose, as suits me, and be free to live it out.

Biblical view of identity:  ‘God-identifying’ – the basis of ‘fulfilled personhood’, i.e., God identifies us in creation and in new creation, to fulfil our true nature and destiny as God intended for us.

FIRST CREATION – Identified in/through Creation Design – the Genesis Story:

1st Human identity:  Genesis 1:26-27, “let us make ha adam (the human) in our image and likeness”. Human identity is God’s image – to reveal God’s likeness as his image-bearers.

2nd Sexual identity:  Gen 1:27, “male and female created he them” – man or woman image-bearers.

3rd Personal identity:  Gen 2:20,23; 3:20, “he named them…” – names identify the person; they call forth and describe the nature and purpose of the person (“Eve” = “living”, mother of all living).

It has been the same, in the same order, throughout history. The wife first says to husband, “we’re going to have a baby!” Then, “it’s a girl (or boy)!” And then, thirdly, “her (or his) name is….”

That means: “Let US (Trinity) create ha adam in our image” = we’re born and identified in relationship, by relationship, for relationship.  Mom + Dad = me!  Gabriel Marcel said, “The ‘I’ is the child of the ‘We’”, i.e., community defines personhood. The individual (individualism) does not define community.  We are defined by those to whom we belong, by those who love and form us for life.

This is embodied in the Semitic idea of naming and the use of names.

1) “Simon bar Jonah” = Simon the son of Jonah:  we are known by those who whom we belong.

2) Names embody identify and call forth (prophetically) the nature and destiny of the person. “You shall call his name Yeshua, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matt 1:21). God changes names of people if needed, ‘Jacob’ to ‘Israel’ (Gen 32:27-28). What does your name mean?

‘THE FALL’ RESULTS IN BROKEN IDENTITY – human rebellion against God:

Man’s identity. Genesis 3:17-19, his ‘bent’ (identity) will be toward work (the earth): he was taken from the earth and ‘in pain’ he will toil the earth to bring forth food. Thus, male identity since ‘The Fall’ of humanity in the garden has traditionally been: Provider, Protector, and Procreator.

Woman’s identity. Genesis 3:16, her ‘bent’ (identity) will be toward man (her husband): she was taken from the man and ‘in pain’ she will bring forth children for the man. Thus, female identity since ‘The Fall’ has traditionally been: Wife, Mother, and Home-maker/keeper.

Creation design identity reversed: now broken and illegitimate identity, not derived from our being (being God’s image), but from our doing (doing work, performing, achieving, etc).Biblically, ‘being’ precedes ‘doing’, which is natural outflow of being. To find our identity in our doing is broken creation, having to be the protector, provider, procreator, etc. It is ‘The Fall’ from “Simon bar Jonah” to “Simon the fisherman”, from “Alexander son of God” to “Pastor Alexander”, or “Apostle…”, “Doctor…”.

To be known (called and identified) by our doing, as in our achievements, position, title, social class, etc, is false identity. To find our identity in our ministry, or work, or in what others say or don’t say about us, is a disaster waiting to happen. Jesus rejected titles, dress codes, preferential treatment, positions of prominence, etc, as a means of identity and honour in his Kingdom (Matthew 23:5-12). That is the way of the world, not the way of Jesus.

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Act 6 continued: The Gospel Mandate of Reconciliation

To listen to the audio teaching of these notes click on the link

http://followingjesus.org.za/sermons/act-6-continued-the-gospel-mandate-of-reconciliation-part-5/

Last week I taught on Act 6 in God’s Drama: The Holy Spirit in & through the Reconciled & Reconciling Church – described in the Book of Acts. Paul called this “the message and ministry of reconciliation” given to us in Messiah (2 Cor 5:18-20), to reconcile people to God, and thus to oneself, others, & creation. This was made real in the Early Church by water baptism. The key to reconciliation and baptism is transformed identity.

Jesus’ Baptism in water

The Early Church got their understanding and practice of water baptism – by Messiah’s Co-Mission in Matt 28:18-20 – from Jesus’ own baptism. The key issue in both baptisms was identity. By choosing to be baptised Jesus identified himself with ALL sinners. As he stood in the water of John’s ‘baptism of repentance’ (Matt 3:13-17) he had no sins of his own to confess – as the only sinless One he confessed our sin on our behalf. Immersed into the waters, he symbolised he would willingly die our death in our place to wash away and bury our life of sin. His coming up out of water symbolised he would rise again. It was Jesus’ public act of obedience of his discipleship to God – that he willingly gave his life in faith to the Father, for HIS purpose. The Father then ‘tore’ the heavens open (Mk 1:10 cf. 15:38) and sent the empowering Spirit of Love on him, and publicly affirmed his identity: “YOU are my Son, my Beloved (Greek Agapetos), with whom I am well pleased” (Mk 1:11). This was Jesus’ identity, Beloved Son of God, from which he lived his life, did his ministry, fulfilling the Father’s call of reconciliation in the world.

Believers Baptism and change of identity

Early Christian baptism was not a ‘baptism of repentance’, but a ‘baptism confirming repentance and faith in Jesus’. When people put their faith in Jesus, saying ‘yes’ to following him, they were asked to express that publicly – to witness to Jesus – by being baptised in water for all to see. Thus baptism is our first act of obedience as a disciple of Christ. Standing in the water, we identify with Messiah (the only Righteous Saviour of the world), symbolising our death in/with him on the cross – we die to our sin (Rom 6:3-14). Immersed beneath the waters, we symbolise our burial with Christ. Or past life of sin is buried, together with whatever identity that defined us in THAT life. Raised up out of the water, we symbolise our resurrection in/with Christ to a new life in God, to a new identity in Messiah. The early Christians then laid hands on the baptised believer to impart the empowering Spirit of Love, affirming them in the new identity, conferred on them by the Father in the open heavens. I’m sure they looked up expecting the heavens to open, a dove to come down, a voice to speak, saying, “Gilli, YOU are my daughter… Alexander, YOU are my son… My Beloved, in whom I am well pleased.” Our new identity is Beloved Child of God, from which we live our new life in Christ, do our ministry with and for him, and fulfil his plan of reconciliation in the world. Continue reading Act 6 continued: The Gospel Mandate of Reconciliation

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The Life of The Beloved

Recap: You as THE Beloved

 Jesus’ life and baptism is the model for Christian life and baptism. Believing in Jesus, we are “accepted in The Beloved” (Ephesians 1:6 KJV). Our baptism in water and the Spirit confirms and empowers our identity as God’s Beloved – made real in God’s Family of Love, the local church. THEN questions arise:  how do we daily live the meaning of our baptism? What is the basis of our identity, of being loved? How do we die to the old and rise to the new? I.e. how do we live the life of the Beloved? We must go back to Jesus and apply what we learn to ourselves.

The Life of THE Beloved – TESTED

After his baptism – his affirmation of identity and destiny as God’s Be-Loved – “the Spirit drove Jesus into the desert” to be tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1-11). A careful study shows that when Satan tempts us, it is also a test from God. The three temptations that Jesus experienced are common to all human beings, testing our basis of identity and destiny by challenging God’s love for us. Jesus’ first followers not only took his baptism as the model of Christian baptism, but also took his desert temptations as the model for Christians to overcome evil, to grow mature through spiritual warfare, dying to our old life and identity, and rising to the new.

The First (Economic) Temptation: “After fasting forty days he was hungry. The tempter said, ‘IF you are the Son of God (Be-Loved), tell these stones to become bread’” Prove or use your newly confirmed identity and newly acquired power to be relevant by meeting human needs – your own and others. Then you will feel good about yourself, proving yourself to others! The deeper challenge is to God’s character of love: Will God feed you? Act independently of him and meet your needs! Jesus refused by quoting Deuteronomy 8:3: “God humbled us (Israel) in the desert, causing us to hunger, then fed us with manna to teach us that we do not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from God’s mouth.” And his words that give me life are: “You are my Son, my Beloved, I’m pleased with you.” I.e. I will trust God for my (and other’s) needs, refusing to prove or to find my identity by meeting economic-material needs apart from God, in my own power. In fact, I am so secure in my Father and his love for me that I will give myself as his manna, his bread of life for the world (John 6:35). Continue reading The Life of The Beloved

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YOU as God’s Beloved

Recap: Jesus as THE Beloved 

The mamzer from Nazareth ‘discovered’ and grew into his identity and destiny as God’s Be-Loved. Then it was supernaturally confirmed at his baptism: “You are my Agapetos.” He was who he was and did what he did because he was so free to love, knowing Abba’s love. His life and baptism is the model for Christian life and baptism: When we believe in Jesus we are “accepted in The Beloved” (Ephesians 1:6). Then OUR baptism confirms and empowers US to be God’s Beloved daughters and sons.

Christian Baptism, Gal 3:22-29 

“You are all sons and daughters of God through faith in Messiah Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. Therefore, there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Messiah, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.”

Jesus is Abraham’s seed fulfilling the sacrifice of love in Genesis 22:1-14. In the Septuagint (Greek translation of Old Testament) the Hebrew yachid, “one and only son” is translated Agapetos (verse 2). In Jesus WE are God’s seed, “born again” by his Spirit as his “one and only” sons and daughters. That gives each of us a whole new identity and destiny as God’s dearly “Beloved Child” (see Ephesians 1:6 cf. 5:1). The Early Church used the intimate Abba (“Daddy”) in their address to God, which they learnt from Jesus: “As God’s children, he sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, ‘Abba’ (Galatians 4:6, see also Romans 8:15-17). Continue reading YOU as God’s Beloved