Christian Identity

Tokyo Small Church Network // Celebration // 2022.06.04 // Kevin Moore

Discussion Questions:

Where are you seeking your satisfaction? How do you think you can seek to be filled up by God instead?

Which of J.I. Packer’s six truths resonates most strongly with you, and why?

1. I am a child of God.

2. God is my Father.

3. Heaven is my home.

4. Every day is one day nearer.

5. My Savior is my brother.

6. Every Christian is my brother too.

Transcript:

Romans 8:14-17

14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

Introduction

I’d like to start today by asking you all a question: are you satisfied? Think about it. Do you feel a deep sense of satisfaction in the bottom of your heart and soul? Or do you feel like you’re missing something? I am guessing that, if we are honest with ourselves, many of us are not experiencing that deep satisfaction. Let me ask you a second question: where do you seek satisfaction? Is the source of your satisfaction infinite, able to sustain you forever, or is it limited, bound to dry up some day?

Another concept closely related to being satisfied is the idea of identity. Where are you placing your identity? Is your identity primarily as a mom or dad? As a Japanese person or another nationality? As a student? As a businessman or woman? As a missionary? Of course none of these identities is bad, but understanding where we place our identity can help us understand where we seek satisfaction and fulfillment. Do we seek satisfaction from our spouses, significant others, or friends? From our kids? From our parents? From our work or our studies? Do we seek satisfaction from ministry success?

For me personally, I’ve sought satisfaction from many different things and people throughout my life. As early as elementary school, I began to place my identity in academic success and the approval of my teachers. I won many academic awards, which on the surface I could receive humbly, but beneath the surface boosted my ego and further drove me to be defined by academic success. I became so obsessed with gaining approval from teachers that any small criticism or reprimand sent me spiraling into anxiety. In other words, when the approval I placed my identity in was momentarily taken away, I crumbled.

I also placed my identity in my own spirituality, or rather the outward spirituality I presented to people. I attended a Christian school which gave out a Christian Character Award to one boy and one girl in each grade every year, and I won this award for several consecutive years. Again, this award was not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself, but it did drive me to find satisfaction in my outward spirituality—how nice I was, the missions trips I took, the church ministry I did—rather than paying attention to the actual condition of my heart.

For a long time, I have also placed my identity in friendships and relationships. I’ve realized years later how much my high school self placed my identity in a girlfriend. I realized how my value and worth was found in her, and in the times when we would break up and take breaks, how worthless I felt. After this relationship ended in high school, I felt abandoned and went to other friends to find my satisfaction and identity. I wanted to be known and loved by someone, so I tried to pull love out of certain friends, leaving them drained and our friendship hurting. I became defined once again by the approval of the people around me.

The Problem

I think that my experience throughout life highlights our tendency as humans living in a broken world to seek satisfaction and find our identity in the seen, rather than in the unseen. Pastor Tyler Staton defines sin as “an attempt to meet my deep needs with my own resources.” The problem with this is that our own resources and every seen thing on this earth is limited. The people around us only have so much love and energy. Our studies can only give us a certain amount of knowledge and success, and our jobs can only give us a certain amount of money. Even our Christian ministry itself often fails to satisfy. If our deepest identity is placed in something in this world, and it is someday tragically taken from us, we will topple like a house whose foundation was pulled out from beneath it. I think the reason we are perpetually unsatisfied with our lives is that we are placing our identity in these limited things, rather than in an unlimited and infinite being.

Therefore, what if, instead of identifying primarily as “Japanese” or “doctor” or “professor” or “student” or “businessman,” we identified ourselves above all else as “child of God?” If we have been adopted into God’s family, we are the brothers and sisters of Jesus and fellow heirs. If heirs then we receive the Holy Spirit. If we have the Spirit, we are filled with the fullness of God and can find contentment and satisfaction in God alone. If we can be filled up by God first, we can gratefully accept anything God provides for us (work, relationships, etc.) as a good gift from God, rather than as our ultimate source of fulfillment. And when those gifts might fade or be taken away, we will not be shaken because our identity is in Christ and we are content simply with Him.

In Philippians, there is a verse that you probably know: “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” This quote was actually written on the wall of the gym at my school to inspire athletes as they lifted weights. While it isn’t a bad thing to apply this verse to training your physical body, I do think Paul had a different idea in mind. Have you ever noticed the context of this verse? Paul says, “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” In other words, Paul has learned the secret of contentment, which is relationship with God himself. Notice that he doesn’t say, “when I was brought low, God picked me up” or “when I was hungry, God gave me food.” Instead, he emphasizes that he has learned to be content even in the very midst of that hunger and need, when his physical needs have not yet been provided. The blessings and provision of God are of course wonderful and should be enjoyed, but it’s God himself who should be enjoyed above every good gift. Even when our environment and surroundings are fickle, God is unchangeable. Even as we go back and forth through seasons of abundance and need—physically, mentally, emotionally—if our identity is first and foremost “child of God,” we will not be shaken.

The Solution

The theologian J.I. Packer gives 6 truths we can remember daily that remind us of our true identity as Christians:

1. I am a child of God.

2. God is my Father.

3. Heaven is my home.

4. Every day is one day nearer.

5. My Savior is my brother.

6. Every Christian is my brother too.

Let’s look at each of these briefly.

1. I am a child of God.

First, what exactly does being a “child of God” mean? At the beginning of John’s gospel, he says “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” In other words, not every person on earth is a “child of God.” While every person has innate value because they were created by a perfect and holy God, becoming a true “child of God” is a privilege that can only be received if we believe in the name of Jesus and receive him. Looking back at Romans 8, Paul says “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” If we choose to follow Jesus and accept the salvation that he offers to us, then we will receive the Holy Spirit. As children of God who have the Holy Spirit residing in our hearts, we have the power of God within us. This power helps us gain victory in the battle against our own flesh, or sinful nature. When our flesh distorts the God-given and holy desires of our spirit, the Holy Spirit will help correct our course. He will remind us that nothing on this earth can satisfy us—God alone can fill the whole in our hearts. Let’s remember that we are God’s sons and daughters.

2. God is my Father.

Later in Romans 8, Paul says the line, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (v31). God is all-powerful and holy, and we are only able to enter his presence because we have been adopted as his children and justified. Even when we didn’t deserve it, God forgave us and named us righteous through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Paul even makes it clear in this passage that those without the Spirit, who are not yet adopted into his family, are hostile to him. Playing on the opposing team against an all-powerful and holy God is not a safe place to be. Thankfully, having God as our Father means that he is fighting for us, not against us. When we forget that God is on our side, fighting our battles and satisfying us with himself, we will go to other things to seek safety and fulfillment. Let’s remember that God as our Father is the only one who can provide true contentment.

3. Heaven is my home.

The theologian C.S. Lewis wrote, “If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.” As Paul says in Philippians, our citizenship is in Heaven—we were made to be in perfect relationship with God, so nothing that we can see on this earth can satisfy our hearts. While still on earth in our worldly bodies, our sinful flesh still resides within us, constantly trying to separate us from God’s presence. But one day, we will have new bodies with no sinful nature. We will be face to face with God in Heaven, our true home, and fully satisfied in Him. Let’s remember that Heaven is our home.

4. Every day is one day nearer.

As Christians, we often talk about an idea called “eternal perspective.” In James 4, it says “…you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” In other words, compared to eternity in Heaven, our lives on earth are just a short moment. They are not unimportant, but eternity is comparatively so much more important. We can have joy and satisfaction in the midst of our struggles, knowing we can look forward to eternity in God’s unadulterated presence. Let’s remember that each day we live on this earth is one day nearer to Heaven.

5. My Savior is my brother.

If we are sons and daughters of God, and Jesus himself is God’s son, then Jesus is our brother. Paul says in verse 17 that we are fellow heirs with Christ, meaning we inherit the same things he inherits: mainly, a seat at the table in heaven for eternity. But as Jesus’ brothers and sisters, Paul says that we will “suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” But Jesus tells his disciples, “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (16:33) So we will face hardship, but Jesus will never leave us nor forsake us. He has already won the battle against evil. Let’s remember that Jesus, our savior, is our brother walking alongside us through seasons of abundance and seasons of need.

6. Every Christian is my brother too.

Lastly, if we Christians are all sons and daughters of God, then each Christian is our brother or sister. God as our Father is fighting for us, but we can fight for one another as well. As we learned in the study on church, we can work together using our individual gifts as the body of Christ. We can love one another, support one another and pray for one another. This last point also implies that every nonChristian is not my brother, which is a hard pill to swallow. But, as the church, we can proclaim the good news that God created each person with dignity and is inviting them into his family. Each person has the chance to be adopted, to become a child of God, to receive the Holy Spirit and find fulfillment in the only one who can truly satisfy. Let’s remember that every Christian is our brother or sister, and let’s also remember that there are many around us who aren’t yet adopted into the family of God.

Closing

At the beginning of this year, I was feeling very discouraged. I felt like I was failing in ministry, that I could’ve done a better job sharing my faith and raising up disciples. While I was in the US, I even had thoughts about wanting to quit ministry in Japan. I was feeling lonely and wishing I had a deep friendship that would make me feel completely known and loved. I was feeling anxiety that was rooted in experiences as far back as junior high. I had forgotten who I was: a child of God. I had sought satisfaction in so many things throughout my life, and I was attempting to fulfill the deep desires of my heart with my own resources—with limited things. As I met with a Christian counselor over a few months, I was able to understand myself more deeply, recognizing my tendency to seek satisfaction in other people’s approval of me. I realized that I became most anxious when the things I placed my identity in failed me, and when the approval of others around me was taken away. Though I have known this in my head for a long time, I was able to experience more deeply in my soul the fact that God is the only one who can satisfy, and that he truly desires for me to experience deep joy and peace.

I am praying that each of you can not only know this with your head but also experience it with your heart. I challenge you to memorize those six statements about who you are as a Christian. I am a child of God. God is my Father. Heaven is my home. Every day is one day nearer. My Savior is my brother. And every Christian is my brother too. I pray that your identity as a child of God will shape you from the inside out, bring you satisfaction and fulfillment, and correct your course away from the flesh and toward the Spirit. You have great value, not because of any worldly title or accomplishment, but because you were created by a perfect God. And you can be content because you are the child of a King: He has adopted you into his family, calling you righteous, naming you son and naming you daughter.