Saturday, July 9, 2016

SELF-LABELING



This is an interesting video, & the values it expresses really appeal to a lot of people. 

There is a lot to be said for not passively letting our culture define who we are; but the question then arises about where we get that definition. The definition is just as limited if it is centered on the self. It must recognize God’s sovereign plan for people.

I read Matthew 20 today; there are three accounts there that reflect God’s authority to say who we are. The first (verses 1-16) is about the “unfair wage practices” of the owner of the vineyard, which Jesus says resemble the Kingdom of Heaven.

The second account (verses 17-28) talks about how God determines the future & fate of His servants. For Jesus it was the cross. For His disciples, it is whatever path that He is His wisdom determines will make each one a servant to others & to the Kingdom.

The final account (verses 29-34) shows that the crowd didn’t want to be troubled or inconvenienced by a desperate need. But Jesus dismissed the “majority opinion” & stopped to ask what may have seemed like a silly question. He then healed them. He does what He will regardless of the often sensible-sounding reasons we give to question His wisdom.

This passage & this video both reveal a major part of our real problem – our hearts are in a state of rebellion against God thru our self-will.


We cannot accurately or completely define ourselves. Only the God who created us & gave His Son for us can do that.  And He’s very happy to lead us along the process of finding out who we are.

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