Who Am I

If there has ever been a time that has been more challenging for personal identity, It has not been in my life time. You all are surrounded by some extremely difficult challenges. In a world where you can literally be anyone and anything you want to be, how do you determine who you are? You see for me that answer is pretty easy. I am a middle aged man with 4 kids and a beautiful wife and well I consider myself to be pretty well rounded. My identity is pretty set. For you though you are young and that question is more difficult today than it ever has been before.

You know I have had identity crisis in my life. For a time I went through the goth stage, you know I dressed in all black, I drew on my desk at school, I even considered getting an eyebrow piercing, but I was afraid of needles. I grew up in a small country town so I went through my western stage, I wore a big cowboy hat and boots every where, then I wore jeans that were 3 sizes too small and almost made me pass out. After that I went through my Regee stage. Yep I said it, I wore Bob Marley shirts all the time and while I was not a smoker of any kind I did enjoy some rastafari music and hanging out with the crowd who did as well. As I migrated from there I went into my coffee house junkie mode. I wore beanies and jean jackets and learned to play guitar and played in the local coffee shop. I have had a little bit of everything in my life.

Where are you with your Identity? Tonight I want to offer some help in you finding your identity. One thing I can tell you is that all of those different things I tried, it was because I was looking for a place where I was accepted and loved and felt secure. No matter who you are, we all want to be accepted and to feel loved and cared about. You may be trying different things to find out who you are and you may even be trying things that well, are not good for you or others around you. It is not because you are a bad person, it is because in each one of us God has created this desire to be accepted. So turn with me in your Bible tonight to Ephesians 2. In Ephesians 2 we will be in verses 11-20 then back to verse 10. In these Scriptures we will find 3 things. First we will see that we were not on the list. Second we are invited in. Third we will see that we are to pay it forward. Let’s read the Scripture tonight.

Not on the List

Ephesians 2:11–12 ESV

11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— 12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

We were not on the list for this initial party. Have you ever wanted to go somewhere or be a part of something, but you were not invited? It is not a great feeling. That feeling of being left out is one of the things we are all trying to avoid feeling. We do everything we can to feel accepted and wanted. What this scripture is telling us though is that at one point we were not on the list, we were not invited. Essentially we were not verified. The picture we are given here is being on the outside looking in. Have you ever been on the outside looking in? I have.

I told you that I grew up out in Macclenny a small country town west of here, some of you may know it. I enjoyed growing up in Macclenny but one thing I learned early on is that there were family names and specifically popular people based only on the fact that thier families had been in Baker County forever. When I was in middle school the whole school knew about Josie Crew’s birthday party. Anyone who was anyone was going to be invited. Only the coolest of the coolest kids would be invited to Josies birthday party. There was one slight problem for me. Josie and I did not really get along very well. As a matter of fact my grandmothers home was across the street from Josies house and we started out as friends. That all changed one day though when I borrowed his new bicycle, possibly without him knowing about it and built a ramp across the ditch. I was prepared and knew for a fact I was going to clear the ditch hit the road and ride myself into history books around the world. The flimsy board that I laid up against the fence had held my weight when I stepped on it so I knew it would hold when I jumped the bike. I started my approach and everything was going perfectly. My brothers were cheering me on, the neighbor lady was calling my grandmother because we told he that she said it was ok. Life was good! I came up to the ramp and was lined up perfectly. I had one miscalculation in this entire process. I had nothing holding the end of the board down for when I got to the other end that was on the fence. As the board adjusted to my weight and to the bike the board slid off the top rail of the fence. At the same time the front wheel of the bike hit the rail and stopped moving. You know the problem with a wheel that stops moving? The problem is that I did not stop moving. I went over the handle bars and was thrown into the ditch. the bike went flying into the roadway and literally split into 3 pieces. At that very moment Josie came outside to get on his bike and found that well, he did not have a bike anymore, he had a unicycle. So Josie needless to say did not like me, there was no chance I was getting invited. My brother on the other hand, my twin brother, well he was going to be invited becasue Josie was still friends with my brother. So the problem was that we were not allowed to go anywhere separate. My brother begged me and I finally agreed that I would tell my mom that we were both invited. She took us and dropped us off and I went across the street thinking I would see my grandmother. She was not home. So I stood out there and watched the party from across the street.

This is what it was like for all of us in here. God had His people the Israelites and those of us who were considered Gentiles were outsiders, we had to look from the outside and just wish we could be a part of that party.

Isaiah 59:2 ESV

2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.

Romans 3:23 ESV

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Even the coolest person in here tonight is alienated from being a part of that party. We were not invited and we were without hope. Worse than that we were without God. God though did not leave us that way. We may not have been on the original list but God amended the list and made sure that we were invited in.

Invited In

Ephesians 2:13–22 ESV

13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

We were on the outside looking in and Jesus looked at us and God looked at us and they said, we cannot leave them there! They look like the type of people I want to spend time with. You may not feel this way in your life, others may not want to spend time with you. Maybe you are going through a rough break up and the worst part about a break up is feeling like that person does not want to spend time with you. It is hurtful. Maybe your old friend group has moved on and left you behind. Being left out is painful. With God though you will never have to worry about being left out or left behind. God wants you to be a part of His party. He wants you to be in His group and He promises to never leave you.

Deuteronomy 31:8 ESV

8 It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”

Jesus gave himself up so that you can be invited in to His group. Into His family. To feel wanted and loved. Have you ever had someone do something crazy to show you how much they loved you?

My wife is here tonght and she will tell you that she though I was crazy when we first got together. I was working with a friend of mine and I wanted to see her. At that time she was not even my girlfriend I had just asked her out. She told me where she worked and so I asked my friend to drive me 33 miles over to her work to see her. I had limited cash reserves and so I had to borrow money from my mom to pay my buddy for gas. He drove me 33 miles to her work and I texted her and said can you come outside? She though I was insane! Who does that, who just shows up at someones job to say hey? When that did not work I thought about scheduling an appointment with the dermatologist she worked for just to go in. She threatened to call the cops.

I wanted to spend time with her, I wanted to be around her. That is the same feeling that God has towards you. I dont know where you are with your relationships, friendships, friend groups. Some of you may be feeling like you do not matter and you are just trying to find a place where you fit in. Here is what I can tell you. God wants you in His inner circle. He wants to have a relationship with you. God loves you. The Devil he may tell you that he loves you and he cares about you but he is only looking for what he can get out of the relationship. He will make you feel wanted and loved then will leave you on the side of the road looking for a ride. God though once you are with Him, He will never leave you or forsake you. He loves you the way you are. You do not have to become anyone different for God to love you. You don’t have to change your clothes, hair, accent. You are perfectly loved right where you are.

Romans 5:8 ESV

8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

John 3:16 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

1 John 4:16 ESV

16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

God sees you standing on the outside looking in and He is willing to do crazy things to get you into the party! He is the only one who ever gave up life for you. Jesus gave His life up for you because Jesus and the Father looked at you and said you are worth it. The way you are, who you are, all your flaws. They look at you and they love you and want you to be in the family. You may be standing on the outside looking in but God is inviting you in. God though does not want an exclusive party, He wants a party with everyone invited in and He wants you to share that love so others can see how much He loves you, and them.

Pay it Forward

Ephesians 2:10 ESV

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

God has invited you into His family and into His group the way you are and the only thing He wants in return is for you to let others know that He loves them right where they are. God did not send us to clean people up and to help them get right for Him. God picked me because I am so messed up that others will say, if God wants that guy, well I have a real shot then! God wants us to share in the good works that He has designed for us to live in so that others can come to know Him. So what does that look like? Are you willing to be firends with people who do not look like you? Talk like you? Dress like you? Are you willing to tell your story? You may feel like your story does not matter, that you are not important enough to share your story. That is a lie from the devil. Your story is so important that Jesus died on the cross so that you can share your story. We should be inviting everyone in to the family of God even if they do not look like us and act like us. Where are you tonight? Maybe you are here tonight and you will say, I don’t know who I am in God. I never knew He wanted me to be a part of what He has going on. I can tell you with confidence tonight He wants you. Do you need to turn away from trying to fit in with this world and simply be held by God? He is offering that to you tonight. Maybe you do have that relationship but you have never really believed how much God and Jesus love you and so you don’t really see oyurself as valuable. Yeah you have a relationship but you are not passionately chasing God. You can change that tonight. Maybe you know God and you know you are valued by God but you are not sharing that story because you don’t think it matters. It does matter. You may be the voice that gives someone else their sense of purpose and seeing how you are loved by God will lead them to that saving relationship. Who are you? You are greatly valued. You are greatly loved. Your story matters and has power to change the World.

Jeremiah 29:11 ESV

11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.