Who Are You?

We all want to be somebody.  And we all want to be somebody special.  We want to be somebody unique.  We all want to know that we are the most unique human on the planet.  Beyond our fingerprints, beyond our DNA, beyond our talents and our personalities, we want to be unique.  And we want others to know just how unique we really are.

So Who are you?  Are you an American?  Are you Asian?  Are you Indian?  Or Middle Eastern?  Are you African or from the Himalayan Mountains?  Are you rich or poor?  Gay or straight?  Are you a transsexual?  Do you want to be everything or nothing at all?  Here in the United States we might ask if you are a Conservative or Liberal.  Are you adventurous or timid?  Are you a doctor or a lawyer?  Are you an artist or an engineer?  Are you a rock star or a country music star?  Or perhaps a little of both?  Do you have tattoos or piercings?  Do you color your hair or shave your head?  What is it that makes you, well … you?

We all want to be somebody.  And we all want to be somebody special.  So who do you want to be and how do you want to be that person?  And to what lengths will you go to be that person?

It has occured to me that given our three base world views, the vanity found in who we want to be takes on a different meaning and significance.  By that I mean we should consider the impact and worth of our desires to be special through the lens of our world view.

If your base world view is Atheistic, then you are clearly trying to be whatever person you are for yourself and noone else.  After all, what does it really matter?  Given enough time you will be forgotten and any small impact you may have made on the cosmos will have been so insignificant that it wouldn’t even be distinguishable within the annals of time.  There is no higher purpose, no afterlife, no worth, no rhyme or reason.  For the Atheist we are all just one great big cosmic accident and whatever you can grab in the here and now is the sum total of significance you can apply to life.

If your base world view is Agnostic, then I’m not really sure why you care.  For the Agnostic, the true Agnostic, one wouldn’t care how special or unique someone else is; so why should we care how unique you are?  An Agnostic trying to stand out in a crowd has got to be one of the most confunding things you would ever come across.  The Agnostic is supposedly indifferent.  Uncaring and just wanting to be left alone.  The Agnostic could either be special or not.  As long as they are happy and they aren’t bothering you, you shouldn’t bother them.  So for the Agnostic world view, why even try to be unique or special at all?  None of the rest of us really care.  Any more than you care about how special we are.

But if you are Theistic in your world view, then your uniqueness or specialness takes on an entirely different prespective.  A Theist will claim to be created, and that they are made them special.  I’ve heard a lot of people make this claim; “Well that’s just who I am.” or “Well that’s just the way God made me.”.  When in reality, they are just doing what they want to do and God probably has nothing to do with it.  At least the Theist understands (or should understand) that they are a uniquely created being even before they strike off on their own to prove to the world just how special and unique they really are.

For the Christian though, who you are should take on a slightly differnt perspective.  When talking about who they are, most Christians will use words and phrases like: “Saved”, “Redeemed of the Lord”, “A soldier in God’s Army”, “Of the Family of God”, “Saint”, “Sinner saved by Grace”, and “Joint heirs with Jesus”.  When describing who they are, most Christians will describe themselves as “who they are IN CHRIST” first and who “they used to be” secondly.

Let me preface what I am about to say with I think knowing who you are IN CHRIST is vitally important.  There is nothing wrong with knowing who you are IN CHRIST and you should strive to understand the new position in all of time and creation that he has afforded you.  However, what is interesting to me is that we know more about who WE are in Christ than we do about who CHRIST is in us.  There is a subtle distinction here.  And that is where the preimminence is placed.  Knowing who we are in Christ is all about US first.  It is all about me.  Knowing who Christ is in us is all about Him first.  It is all about the Lord Jesus Christ, and actually nothing about us at all.

When I consider all of who Christ is, I am simply amazed by His Glory and His Splendor and His Wonder.  Sure, I can tell you all that Christ has done for me.  The many times he has watched over my life and carried me through the fire.  But we have the Gospels.  We have the Old and the New Testaments.  They speak for what God has done in an indivdiduals life.  You don’t really need mine.  What I really want you to know is “WHO CHRIST IS”.  And I want you to know that I can sincerely and honestly tell you WHO CHRIST IS because I know who Christ is in me.  And that is much, much more important than who I am in Christ.

My desire today is that I would decrease and that He would increase.  And that means it is not all about me but it is ALL about Him.  I don’t need to be special or unique, but I do need to tell you how Special and Unique God is.  And I can tell you He is Special and Unique IN me.