 |
 |
||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
January 2006
February 2006
March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
July 2006
August 2006
September 2006
October 2006
November 2006
December 2006
|
Sunday 24, Time after Pentecost Mark 8:27-38 September 17, 2006 This passage has everything to do with identity— 1) Jesus’ identity. 2) The disciples’ identity 3) Our identity. Identity. An identity is one of the greatest gifts imaginable—in some ways, life itself is a journey all about the discovering of identity—“Who am I,” we begin to ask ourselves at the earliest stages of life—In a manner of speaking, to know one’s identity means an end to a lot of worrying—if you know your place, your role, what you are to be to the people around you—there is no more second guessing your actions—no more self-doubt—no more worrying about what other people’s opinion of you is, you don’t need them to tell you—you already know. Problem What could be worse than not knowing who to be? What could be sadder and more pitiable than the child who has been given no self-understanding…no identity? Throughout life, we get put constantly into situations where we have to deal with our identity. Each of us has been put into situations where we don’t know exactly what is expected of us, A new job. A new school. Any new situation. and God knows how uncomfortable how stressful that can be? Worse Yet There are many people who are more than willing to tell the vulnerable person what to be—give you a label. “Trouble maker,” “man’s man,” “tom boy,” “drama queen.” So, who are you? What names or labels have been given to you? Do you like your labels? Do they help you to know your place? Oh, how precious it is to know our identity! Idolatry These names and labels, though, however comfortable they are they can get us in trouble can’t they? What I think we may need more than anything else is to be saved from the temptation to reinvent ourselves. At baptism, I was already given a name. To follow Jesus is to say no to oneself, not by practicing asceticisms (being extremely religious/extreme self-denial) or developing low self-esteem, but by placing the will of God above one’s own feelings, desires, and urges.
On the contrary,
exactly the opposite—Jesus was confident in the extreme—we are
called to be likewise. Not with pride or arrogance, but confident
in God’s will and power to bring vindication to the faithful. Joshua W. Magyar, Pella Lutheran Church 418 W. Main Street Sidney, MT 59270
|
||||
