Who are you?

Part 2: Who is at the centre of your life?

Yesterday, we took a look at YOU. And we discovered that you shouldn't be defined horizontally (by others), but instead your identity should be defined vertically (by God). Today we're going to see the amazing new life God has in store for those who follow Jesus.

A new way of seeing things

In the 1500s, Nicholas Copernicus, a mega maths nerd, put forward a revolutionary way of thinking about the relationship of the sun and planet earth. Up until that point, it had been considered that the sun revolved around the earth. Copernicus said it was the other way around. People thought he was crackers. But we’ve since realised that Copernicus was 100% correct. It might be that you need a revolution to see that JESUS (the Son) is at the centre of the universe, and not YOU. Our lives - online, offline and everything in between - need to revolve around him. Make much of Jesus by using your image to point to His Image.

The new self

The good news of Christianity is that not only are we MADE by Jesus, we are also SAVED by Jesus. Created and then Recreated.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV)

Those who are in Christ are a new creation, called to live a life shaped by the vertical self and vertical identity. Earlier in 2 Corinthians 5 it says,

For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. (2 Corinthians 5:14-15, ESV)

As those who have trusted in the death and resurrection of Jesus - we are to not live for ourselves, but for the sake of Jesus. We are to turn from self-centredness. Define your identity by who you are in him. Created. Recreated.

A vertical life

I met Athena Grace in 2013 when she volunteered at the three weekends of the KYCK (Katoomba Youth Convention). If you were to view her Instagram or Tumblr, I’m sure you’d conclude she’s a pretty cool person. She takes photos of typewriters, landscapes, vintage bicycles and all things hipster. She also takes selfies. However, what you’ll notice is that she constantly oozes love for Jesus.

Jesus helps me to be honest and open about my failures and flaws. He covers my sin because of His saving love. The deeper my worth as a woman is grounded in this reality, the more my desire grows to spread this love. Although the world will hate us, we are called to be unashamed of Jesus. For me, that doesn’t just mean having ‘Christian’ as my Facebook religious status, but actively and daily pursuing Christ in all of life – including social networking. And I pray that is what comes through in my photos. (Athena Grace from forthcoming Feb issue of MICI Magazine)

Check out her tumblr, I’m sure you will be encouraged to know Jesus more. She is a great example of someone living within the culture and even part of the culture, but living counter-cultural in her approach.

Who are you?

Are you spending too much time defining yourself horizontally and not enough vertically? If the thought of not taking selfies or not checking for likes on Instagram or not photobombing other people’s pics freaks you out … maybe you need to go on a selfie fast.

But the key is to make much of Jesus. Live and post online for his fame, not your fame.

Use your self to project God’s Self. Use your image to point to God’s Image.

Who are you?

You are not cool, sexy or famous. You are made by Jesus, made for Jesus. You are saved by Jesus, saved for Jesus.

Ground your identity in that reality.