When you know who you are, the rest will fall into place.
Jesus could be nothing less than perfect, loving, powerful, forgiving, because He was the Son of God. “She will give birth to a Son; and you shall name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Mt 1:21. Jesus at his essence was a preacher and teacher. At his essence he wasn’t a carpenter. At his essence he wasn’t a great fisherman. Jesus was the Son of God. He knew Himself and so His real self was seen in everything He did in life.
Sometimes when asked ‘who are you’, we respond with what we do. “I’m a lawyer.” “I’m an electrician.” “I’m a Minister of the Gospel.” And so our value is seen in the things we have sought to do in this world. “I’m an outdoorsman.” “I’m a vegan.” “I’m a car rebuilder.” This is their identity. At his funeral, he will be remember for that one box office hit in 1952. “Man, was he was a good golfer”, or something like that.
But what are you is the real you. When all of the things are stripped away, our essence is spiritual and were we evil or good? People will unintentionally reply back, ‘Jesus said no man is good.’ These people do not understand context and they ignore Paul said there are good men, Rom. 5:7. So are you good? Everything else you do do will grow out of that good. All of the things that we claim as our identity, are just outgrowths of what we are.
A man who steals for a living, is doing something that’s an outgrowth of what he is at his essence. Are you a good man? Is your spirit trying to connect with the One who made you in his image?
We learn that Joseph listened to the angel when told to take Mary as his wife. He obeyed and fathered the holy child because at his essence he was a spiritual man who sought God. Herod was a killer of children because he was a bad man. Paul was a man who persecuted Christians, but he thought he was serving God. Such people who act always with a good conscience will have an inner compass that goes for the truth when confronted with it.
So what are you? Are you a good man?
Categories: Uncategorized
A Conquering Faith 
Leave a comment