Who?

Who are you? I think I've asked this question of you before. I know I've asked myself the same. Sometimes I've recorded my answer on the pages of a journal not catalogued or organized in any particular way but by date. If I was to rummage through those seemingly endless pages of study notes, observations, meandering trains of thought, prayers, and things longed for, if I was to spend days looking for all my replies to that question, the answers would probably be varied, inconclusive, all right and all wrong simultaneously, circumstantial in nature but, hopefully, showing signs of maturity in my understanding of who God is. Without knowing who God is, I can hardly know who I am. And though I might believe I know who I am, my perspective is not enough, nor is it accurate in all ways without acknowledging the One who made me and conceding what He says of me.

Let's suppose you and your wife are going to have a child. You have plans for this child --plans that, as a parent, are your responsibility to bring to fruition: a safe home, a good education, healthy food, etc. In the long term, you might like to see your child grow up to be a kind, creative person who uses their talents to serve mankind. You can do all you can to set them up for success, but ultimately, the decision is theirs. Nothing fatalistic about this; it is simple free will. But in the meantime, you will do things like tell them how much you anticipated their birth and point out the way their deep brown eyes look like those of their mother. This will instill in them a sense of being wanted and being a part of something larger than themselves. You will celebrate their achievements: building a block tower or tying their shoes or hitting their first home run, reassuring them of their ability to learn and make progress, and declaring your desire to be present every step of the way. You will tell them stories of your life growing up and how Mee-Maw always made you clean your room and go to church each Sunday. By sharing your memories, they will know who you are, and they will discover your desire to have a deep relationship with them. You will immerse them in history, that of your family and your nation, so that it becomes their history as well, and gives them membership in a legacy. You will highlight their unique talents and maybe even suggest how perfectly made they are for serving others. This will reveal to them a good path, a path designed by one who loves them and wants the best for them; this will allow them to see themselves as others see them and encourage them to walk in that if they choose. But without listening to your excitement, without taking the time to observe similarities between them and those around them, without joining you in a celebration of who they are and what they can do, without respecting your history, your identity, your desire for relationship, without treasuring the legacy of which they are a part, and without, at least, giving ear to your aspirations for them, they will only know in part who they are. They will understand only the part of them that they observe (or think they observe). They will see things only as those outside of the home see them and disclose to them. They will have no history upon which to stand. They cannot possibly know in full who they are.

So, I ask you again: Who are you? If you've not heard that you are God's child and He is your Father; if you've not heard that Jesus calls His followers "friends;" if you've not heard that you are no longer a slave to sin and will not be condemned for the wrong things you have done; if you've not heard that a believer is one with Jesus and His body is the place where God dwells; if you've not heard that in Christ, you are new, you have been called to bring others to reconciliation to Christ, you are His ambassador and you are the righteousness of God; if you've not heard that you were chosen before the world was formed and you are loved deeply and perfectly --if you've not heard any of these things about yourself and the gracious, merciful, almighty God who has vouchsafed all of this to you, don't you think it might be time you listen to what He is telling you? Don't you think it might be time you hear Him and draw near to Him? Don't you think it might be time for you to seek out the entire picture as it exists in your relationship with the One who placed you here on earth? Who you are depends on who God is to you. Wouldn't you like to be able to answer completely and accurately the question, Who are you?