Known Part 2

God Knows Your Identity

Psalm 139

1 John 3:1

Main Idea: A temporary identity equals a temporary value.

Me:

Temporary— Superheroes secret Identity— I love superheroes

I think where we are at currently we love superheroes.

Who are your favorite superheroes

Now I do think that superheroes are getting old in some respect.

As in how many more movies can they possibly make.

But growing up I have always loved Batman.

Bruce Wayne billionaire turned vigilante.

He is awesome.

No powers, just skills, gadgets and a great mind.

The best!

Batman is incredible!

I will fight anyone on that!

We:

I with the superhero craze— have you ever thought about your own superhero name?

Mine would be the NIght Eagle— super powers Flying/ and freedom

Or what your superpower would be?

While I think it would be awesome to be a superhero— having a false identity would be really tough.

Like at some point what is your true identity?

Would it be you, you or the superhero you?

What I want to talk about tonight is us having a false identity.

Or a fake identity.

Not one, that is a superhero— because they aren’t real.

But with our false identity we are trying to build something that is not real either.

A false identity is built on a superficial, shallow, and temporary things.

For some of us, this identity is wrapped up in playing sports.

For some of us, it’s in our grades.

For others, it’s in our looks.

We all have certain things that “define us,” that we’re known by, or that make us feel valuable.

BUT why do we do this?

Why do we build our identity in things that are false, fake, superficial, shallow, temporary?

It is because that is what we value.

What you value is what you will become.

So let me ask you a question— I am going to write your answers on the board over here.

**What are some things that make people feel valuable at school?**

(Have the words Position/Appearance/Wealth/Skills/ on whiteboard but covered up.)

—ANSWERS FROM STUDENTS

We tend to value Position, appearance, wealth, skills— Paws

Let’s look a little deeper at each of these categories.

1. Position - standing, popularity, who your friends are, how many people know you, how many likes your statuses get, your position on a team, or in leadership, your accomplishments.

People can get caught up in their positions.

They can feel really feel good that they’re not just a regular cheerleader, they’re the head cheerleader.

Or they’re 1st chair in the band.

Or captain of the football team.

They begin to feel they have value because of their position.

2. Appearance - how cool/cute your clothes are, how often people tell you you’re attractive, have the right make up, good hair, nice skin clarity, good weight etc.

People can really feel valued for their looks.

They get compliments all the time, a lot of attention, and they start to feel like they have value and that their identity is in being the attractive kid.

3. Wealth - how much money you have, what phone you have, how big your house is, etc.

People can feel valuable because they have money.

They feel like they are somehow worth more than others, that their time matters more than others.

4. Skills - how talented you are, how athletic, how smart, etc.

People can feel valuable because they are smart, because they are good at skateboarding, at football, singing, etc.

They feel valuable because they are talented.

Now heres the thing:

All things we mentioned are not 100% bad right.

Here let’s look at it this way:

Examples:

· Just made the football team – I feel great.

· Just got a fresh, new haircut – I feel cold but amazing.

· Just aced my chemistry test – Feeling fantastic, I am so smart!

· Just got new shoes – Wow, I’m gorgeous.

· Just got a huge check at work – I’m Elon Musk!

However, when these categories are down, then we feel bad about ourselves and like we have no value.

Examples:

· Just got cut from the team – I’m a loser.

· Got a bad haircut – I’m ugly.

· Failed my test – I’m stupid.

· I’m poor – I can’t do anything.

· Tons of pimples today – I think I’m gonna switch to homeschool.

To make things even more complicated, sometimes we’re high in some categories but low in others. When this happens, we often try to overcompensate. For instance:

· If for some reason we don’t feel very smart, we might put everything in to sports.

· Or if we’re not athletic, maybe we put everything in to our looks. If we can’t be athletic, at least we will be attractive.

· Or maybe we’re not attractive, so we put everything in to grades and getting a job. If we can’t be attractive, at least we will be rich.

And around and around it goes.

People spend all day chasing after these worldly things, just to feel valuable.

Their identity is totally caught up in these shallow and superficial things.

It honestly breaks my heart, seeing people feel completely destroyed and depressed because they don’t feel valuable.

I hate how much emphasis girls have to put on their physical appearance just to feel valuable.

I hate how much pressure gets put on kids to have perfect grades, extracurricular activities, etc., just so they can be successful.

hate how students who come from poor backgrounds can feel worthless, like they have no future.

I hate how students who are not athletic get bullied and are made to feel like garbage just because they aren’t good at sports.

It breaks my heart.

Unfortunately, we live in a culture that puts so much value on temporary, shallow, and superficial things.

We live in a culture that says your position, appearance, wealth, and skills are your value and your identity.

But that’s not what God says.

He has some much to say about you then just your position, appearance, wealth, and skill.

God sees value in you that can’t be taken away.

God:

Your real value can never be taken away because it is eternal

As we open up to 1 John 3 this is the truth I want us to wrestle with tonight.

A temporary identity equals a temporary value.

Meaning that an eternal identity equals an eternal value.

Your identity has value that carries past this life.

And if we recall identity means: Who you are//The real you

And I think that 1 john does an excellent job telling us who we are, our identity but it also tells us why the world will not understand our identity.

1 John 3:1–2 CSB

See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children—and we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it didn’t know him. Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when he appears, we will be like him because we will see him as he is.

John the author of this book in the Bible, is getting down to the real you.

As in the you that God sees and what God calls you.

He calls you his children.

It is incredible when we think about this, because it is God saying, look even in your state.

Your broken, sinful state, I still pour out my love on you.

I still will call you my children.

And John is even saying here, that the world doesn’t understand this.

The world will keep pushing us to put stock in things that are temporary.

Things that are superficial.

And all of those things while they may lift us up at time— they can also tear us down when we don’t live up to them.

And when those these things are taken away— because that is how temporary stuff works— we lose them.

Then we are left with an identity crisis.

And John is saying look— you can have an identity that is lasting and forever.

And you can do these things but do not build your life on these things.

Build it on the eternal.

When we think of eternity— for us it is so far away.

If it is not present and obtainable we tend to not want it.

If it is not a position, it’s not an attribute, or wealth, or a skill— I don’t want it.

If it is not something that you can attain on your own— why would you want it

And putting our identity in something that we can’t show off seems to be counter cultural— But I think that is the point.

The world is not going to understand this.

They will not understand that you are son or daughter of the King.

1 John 3:2 CSB

Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when he appears, we will be like him because we will see him as he is.

God has not sent Christ back yet.

but when He does if your identity is in Him then you will be a refection of Jesus.

Your real identity, and your real value come from one thing and one thing alone: You are a child of the King.

It’s not something you can earn.

If you have given your life to Jesus, and you’re following Him, He has washed every wrong thing you’ve ever done away, and He looks at you and sees you as his precious son or daughter.

You don’t need to earn His love.

You don’t need to earn your value.

You are a child of the King.

That is your real identity.

Listen to what John says again:

1 John 3:1 - See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!

If you have any question about your value, just think about the fact that Jesus was willing to give His life for you.

I believe that even if you were the only person on the planet, Jesus would have still given His life for you.

Think about it.

You are so valuable, that the King of the universe would come down from heaven, be locked in a frail human body for 30 years, pray, fast, endure temptation, be mocked, beaten, spit on, and ultimately be killed, all because He saw value in you.

He didn’t die for you because you were attractive, because you were good at football, or because you had so much money—

He died for you because you’re His child.

Your identity is not wrapped up in who you say you are.

It is not wrapped up in who others say you are.

It is not wrapped up in your abilities or your lack of them.

It has everything to do with Who God Says You ARE!

He calls you loved— he calls you his children.

I get it— we tend to want to run from God.

We have an impulse to run from who we are.

Or better yet who we are suppose to be.

We have this impulse to run from the Father.

This impulse has been present since the day of the fall.

Think about in the garden when Adam and Eve sinned and they heard God what did they do?

Did they run to him and tell Him their wrong doing— heck no!

They hid—

They couldn’t escape God’s presence and neither can we.

Look at Psalm 139:7-12

Psalm 139:7–12 CSB

Where can I go to escape your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. If I live at the eastern horizon or settle at the western limits, even there your hand will lead me; your right hand will hold on to me. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me, and the light around me will be night”— even the darkness is not dark to you. The night shines like the day; darkness and light are alike to you.

And I know we are reading out of 1 John but I do want us to turn to Psalm 139 as well.

Because as David is writing this Psalm— we know that God knows everything remember he is “omniscient” (all-knowing).

But David also turns to God’s omnipresence.

As in God is everywhere.

While we may not be in eternity yet— we still have loving God who is with us.

If our identity is found in him then we know that nothing in this world can stand against Him.

For God is for you.

He knows who you are.

He knows your real identity.

He know if you are not for Him.

He knows if you are giving lip service.

He knows what you find value in.

And my hope, my wish, is that we stop trying to find value in the stuff that at the of our life won’t matter.

Again— I’m not saying that we curl up and just read the Bible, pray all day, do a missions trip every other week.

But when it comes to choices we make about what to put our identity in— I think we weigh our options— There is for a sure a balance.

And here is why:

You:

If your value and identity are dependent upon superficial and temporary things, they can be taken away.

What are the superficial things that make you feel valuable to others, or to God?

What thing in your life, if taken away, would make you feel less valuable?

If you could allow me to be dramatic for a moment:

What if tomorrow, you got in a car accident, and your face was mutilated, or you lost your legs and you couldn’t walk anymore …

- Would you feel like you were less valuable?

- Would you feel like God loved you a little bit less

- That God would spend a little less time with you?

- That God would kind of just forget about you?

OR – Are there GOOD things that you could do, that you feel like would make you more valuable or more loved by God?

If you became the president of your school, or a great preacher, or a Christian singer …

- Would you feel that God would love you more and spend more time with you if you did more stuff for him?

Sinned less?

The bottom line is, if your identity and value are wrapped up in anything other than the fact that you are a son or daughter of the King, you’re living in your false identity.

You can’t control about 90% of what happens to you.

But you can choose how you respond to life.

And how you respond depends a lot on who you are.

IF you are a son or daughter of the king— you know that how you live will look differently to the world.

Because they don’t know Him.

But what if we were able to show the world who our identity is found in?

We:

If we lived out our true identity as a child of God we would find our value secured and we could help others find a secured value as well.

Would you like to know what 99% of the world is looking for?

They want to know who they are.

They want to know their purpose, they want to know what is their value.

If we live secured in our identity how do you think people would respond?

Like when adversity hits and you are know who you are in Christ and trust in his plan— people will see that and they will notice.

It is not living a life of being nonchalant.

We don’t live a life of who cares.

But we live secured in who we are.

And our circumstances of life don’t change who we are nor does it change whose we are.

And when you live secured and you know who you are, that is something a world full of insecurities will notice.

And we will have a chance to speak into those lives of others who are just desperate to be known and loved.

And we serve a God who has an abundant amount of love to go around.

Allow God to be who you find your identity in because he already knows yours.

You can’t find it from Him.

He knows everything and he is everywhere.

He sent his one and only son to live and die for you.

It has nothing to do with your abilities it has everything to do with His love for you.

It has everything to do with his grace and his mercy.

Meaning that if it has nothing to do with us but yet we are still called sons and daughter of the King.

Put your trust is the one who will outlive and exist for eternity, not the temporary

A temporary identity equals a temporary value.

You are worth so much more then anything this world can offer you.

Will you pray with me:

My prayer today is that you will leave here knowing that your worth doesn’t come from anything you can do on your own, but by what God has already done for you.

I pray you leave feeling full of value, knowing God loved you enough to die for you.

1. Pray for people to stop living in their false identity, and to embrace their real identity as a child of God.

2. Pray for them to know they’re valuable enough for God to die for them, and adopt them as his children.