Who are you? That seems like a very normal, indeed, perhaps even boring question that will lead to a very simple, obvious answer. However, trying to come up with a sufficient, complete, and truthful answer is not that easy. It has to do with more than just your name. It has to do with more than what you do for a living. And it has to do with more than where you're from. The answer is deeper than that. Who are you?
If you try and answer on a deeper level, you might respond with the things that you are good at or the things that you like. I'm an athlete who's into hip-hop, for example. I'm not particularly either of those things, but you get my drift. Maybe you'll respond with certain things about yourself, qualities and attributes, like I'm a kind person or I'm short-tempered or I'm very patient or whatever. However, you're still not truly answering the question, who are you? Why is that question so hard to answer? I think it's because it has to do with identity. The question, if we try and answer it for real, makes us consider things that we don't often consider.
We are quick to come up with our name, our history, our jobs, our likes and dislikes, our attributes and shortcomings, but those are just ways of describing parts of ourselves. They aren't who we are. Our identity is so much bigger than all these things, and we, as people, often try and define ourselves by only a part of the full picture. Humanity is blind to the full picture. We cannot see it on our own, and controversy and conflict thrive in an environment of partial truths and tunnel vision.
My name is Aaron, and I'm an associate pastor at Mountain View Church. Today, we're launching a new series, a new preaching series called Identity. And for this series, we're focusing on a passage from the book of Ephesians, specifically verses 1 through 14. If you have struggled to figure out who you are, or feel an incompleteness in how you define yourself, join us as we dig deep and try and find the answers to the questions that we all seek to answer. We may seek to identify ourselves by the things that we project to others, or the things that we attach ourselves to. And as a result, we never really understand ourselves. However, we know that we are incomplete.
We look in the wrong places to determine who we are. We look to the subjective. And this can be dangerous and destructive. There are many controversial issues which we see flare up in modern Western society that have to do with the question of identity. And though they seem on the surface to be very different issues, there's a common danger in all of them. They're all built on the unstable ground of partiality, subjectivity, self-serving opinion, and false dichotomies. The results are at best divisive.
And at worst, they can devolve into violence, chaos, and hatred. And I'm not talking about the modern dilution of the word hate, which, I mean, honestly, the word's often used just in place of actual disagreement or concern. I mean, actual hate. As a result of our modern thinking that identity is subjective, people often find themselves taking stands on one side or another of these identity controversies. How a person proceeds through life, how they look at themselves and how they treat other people that disagree with them, can ignite such social fires, discontent and rage that we can quickly turn into that which, in a clear state of mind, we would definitely say that we should not be. We very easily find ourselves going to extremes to lift ourselves up and tear down those on the other side of walls that we didn't even notice were there before. In our emotions, our ignorance, willful or otherwise, and the voices that profit from the war,
take us far from who we should be. Most of us would agree that we should not be full of anger, proud or arrogant, closed-minded or judgmental or unkind. But when we look at the subject of identity and attempt to define ourselves, we very quickly find ourselves thinking, acting, and speaking in ways that reflect very poorly in the mirror, should we dare to look. Perhaps the problem is that we shouldn't be attempting to define our own identity. It seems that when we do, camps are created, and that we inevitably end up in a camp that is positioned in direct opposition to another camp.
Seeking to define ourselves is actually a recipe for failure, and devolving into conflicts of our own making seems to be the inevitable result of such an endeavor. The reason for this is we're not the ones who decided who we are in the first place. That is God's prerogative. And he says we were created to, first and foremost, trust, serve, and be in communion with him. In him, our identity as humanity is found. Genesis 1.27 says, So God created man in his own image.
In the image of God, he created him. Male and female, he created them. This is so clear that we are made, first of all, intentionally, but also with intent. God's intent is that we image him. Our sense of self, sense of purpose, sense of worth can all be brought back to the fact that God, the God, made us in his image. All the dignity that we try and tear away from others, it's God-given and is not ours to try and destroy.
All the labels with which we try to define ourselves, our departure from, or at least, the very least, in addition to, that first and most significant label given to us at the beginning. The imago Dei, the image of God. What does it look like for us to seek our answers with that in mind? Perhaps with this in mind, when we look at Jesus, who is literally God in the flesh, we can see a connection we never saw before. He is the image of God without flaw or vice. He is the perfect reflection of what God in human form looks like.
Due to our flaws and our sin, we cannot hope to represent as an imager of God in a worthy manner on our own. But because of Jesus and the good news of the gospel, we can be included in him and his perfect bearing of that image. Throughout this series, you'll notice a focus on the term in him. And Jeremy, Byron, and Erber will no doubt elaborate more on this concept. But for my purposes today, I want to make it clear that it is in him that we are redeemed to properly bear the image of God that we were created to bear. In him, our identity is confirmed.
As Christians, our identity is best understood by looking at who we are in Jesus, our Savior, Sustainer, and our future. Through this preaching series on identity, we will be taking you through the first part of Ephesians chapter 1, and we will seek to bring to light the places where you can look to understand the answer to the question, who are you? All human attempts at understanding identity will be incomplete and fall short in some way, and all those earthly camps to which we assign ourselves are doomed to fall into conflict with each other and will eventually crumble. We must look beyond ourselves for the truth of who we are. We must look beyond the world as well. The world provides us with all sorts of things to attach ourselves to. And these may give us a sense of belonging, at least temporarily, or a flag to wave or a brand to represent, but they won't give us a complete picture of who we actually are. I can give you a small example from my own life that at one time I took way too seriously. I am a Kansas City Chiefs fan. That's right, I said it. The team that has been or at near or at the top of the NFL standings for the last few years, that's my team.
Before I elaborate further, I have to set a couple things straight. I am not a bandwagon fan. I've been rooting for the Chiefs since they were 2-14 and the worst team in the league. Before Andy Reid, long before Patrick Mahomes, and way long before any associations with Taylor Swift, I have called myself a Chiefs fan. Now, to most of you, those are irrelevant details, but to anyone who follows football, it is very important to establish that I was in the Chiefs camp long before there was any talk of a dynasty. Just saying. Also, it's Blue Jays of baseball and Canucks in hockey, but because football season has just begun, I chose to use football as my illustration. Now, did you notice what I did back there? I said, my football team.
Sports fans have a tendency to do this. We think that our favorite teams, we think they're our own, and we subconsciously identify ourselves with them. To hear a fan say something like, yeah, we're looking pretty good this year, we picked up so-and-so, and we're going to go deep into the playoffs. That's normal. And depending on how rabid the fan, one's entire life can be affected by the performance of the team that they cheer for. Many years ago, my girlfriend at the time and I had this sort of running joke that our day from a relationship standpoint was either going to be really great or really bad based on how the Canucks had played the night before. This was funny, and we would laugh and laugh.
But there was some truth hiding amongst the laughter. I was bound to be grumpy if my team lost. It was as if I had some real skin in the game. My self-identification with my team affected how I behaved, and it affected others around me. How crazy is that? But back to football, I have nothing to do with these guys playing a game, and some would argue a kid's game, in a city thousands of kilometers away that has nothing to do with me. I've never even been to Kansas City. And the Chiefs organization and the players certainly have no idea who I am. And yet I say things like, we are looking good this year.
And I sometimes yell at the players on the TV screen as if they hear me and know they should listen to me. The whole thing is absurd, and I know this, but every week I will be watching or at least paying attention to how Kansas City plays. And if I'm not careful, my mood will be affected by the results. Here's the thing, though. No matter how good things go for a time, and they've been pretty good for a time, they will eventually falter and fail, and if I'm tying my identity so closely to them, I will be let down. If I base my identity on something that is fallible, when it fails, I will be adversely affected.
Best case scenario for the fan who identifies too closely with their team is that they'll be sad. But this can go way deeper. This can get really ugly. Think about football hooliganism in Europe or riots in cities when a team loses the big game or sometimes even when the team wins. People get hurt. People lose their sense of self and their grip on reality and real damage is done all the time because we identify with that which is bound to fail. Wisdom would be to base our identity on that which will not fail.
We can have fun having a favorite team or perhaps, you know, to put it in a different context, participating in the democratic process and voting for a certain politician. But do not get stuck in the lie that you are who you attach yourself to as a result of geography or social preference. The one whose definition of you really matters is not the one you attach yourself to, but the one who grafts you into himself and takes you beyond simple allegiance into belonging. He takes us, Jesus takes us, from attachment to identity. To begin understanding the concept of being defined in Jesus, Let's take a closer look at this week's portion of our identity series, which is found in Ephesians chapter 1, verses 1 through 2. Now, the book of Ephesians is actually a letter written by the author Paul to people who were followers of Jesus in the first century. There are a few things to break down in this verse, and they're going to start us on our journey to this whole series. But first, let's read the verse and we'll establish some context. So Ephesians 1, 1 through 2, it says, Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus and are faithful in Christ Jesus.
Now, the letter begins in the typical fashion of the times with the author introducing himself. I want to focus in on how Paul does this. Notice he's introducing himself by stating who he is according to God. Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God. This is very significant because of who Paul used to be before he knew Jesus. All of us who have come to know Jesus later in life can relate to what's going on here, at least on some level.
See, Paul was about as far from what one would call a Christian, a Christian, a follower of Christ, as one could get. Paul was previously a part of the Jewish religious authority group called the Pharisees, and he hated everything relating to Jesus and Christianity. Paul, who at that time was called Saul, made a living hunting Christians, rounding them up to be handed over to the authorities for punishment, imprisonment, and even execution. In Acts 7, we are first introduced to Paul as having been present at and approving of the stoning of the first recorded martyr, Stephen, who was killed for preaching the gospel. and putting Jesus above the contemporary religious authorities at the time. So as far as Christians were concerned, Paul induced fear and brought death with him. However, Jesus is more powerful than fear or death. And he stopped Paul one day while Paul was on his way to round up the Christians in the city of Damascus, and Jesus changed Paul. He made him into a new man. And ever since, Paul understood his identity is who he is in Christ. He became a new creature, and the old worldly ways of defining himself no longer applied. Paul is now an apostle of Christ Jesus.
Christ is a title meaning anointed one. So Paul is essentially introducing himself as one sent by the king, King Jesus. Apostle means sent one or one that is sent. And Paul presents himself as one who serves God and carries out God's agenda in submission to God's will. See, Paul didn't just decide one day to change himself or one day to switch teams or put on a different jersey or adopt a new color. He didn't decide to vote for a different candidate. He didn't just wake up and say to himself, I think I'm going to be something else from now on and be kind to those I hate and serve those I despise.
He didn't do that. Paul was changed. And this is where I say that we can relate with Paul, at least to some level. None of us induce the change of becoming a genuine Christian in ourselves. The will of God was working in us before our eyes were opened to the truth. And he's the one who makes us into something new, something we were not before. He gave us new life, and we are born again. Now, I'm going to go ahead and say you did not enact or plan your first birth, and neither did you your second. It is an act of God in a person that changes a person.
As such, who a man or a woman is, is God's call. So Paul, as an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, he does not define himself by his attributes or what he likes or dislikes or who he voted for or by whatever title the latest person on TikTok says he should call himself. He is who he is and what he is according to God. This is the beginning point for the rest of the series. Now, let us consider whom Paul is addressing. He indicates that he's writing to the saints. What do we think of when we think of saints?
Most times, if we're getting our understanding from movies and such, we end up with the Roman Catholic picture of what makes a saint. We would think of a great servant of God, who has had a profound effect on those around them, someone who lives a very clean and holy life, perhaps even someone who has died for Christ, and someone who has been tied to multiple miracles. This is an extensive list of requirements, and most people will never meet those requirements. However, this is not the definition of saint that Paul would have, and those aren't the only people that he's writing his letter to. In Paul's mind, and I would argue the Bible's definition, a saint is much more accessible and relatable to the everyday Christian. In fact, you know some. Indeed, you are one if you are a born-again Christian. Being a saint is not a status one qualifies for. It is a status one is called to and is appointed to and equipped for by God. Francis Fuchs in the Tyndale New Testament commentary says this, referring to the mention of saints in Ephesians. He says, people are not saints in this sense by personal merit. They are set apart by God, and in consequence, they are called to live in holiness.
Thus the word expresses at once the privilege and the responsibility of the calling of every Christian, not the attainment of a select few. In other words, Paul is writing his letter to believers in Christ. The saint is the Christian. The saint is the person who is imperfect in performance, who still struggles with sin, who gets overwhelmed by the burdens of life, and who falls flat on their face sometimes. but who holds fast to the belief that the one who is perfect, the one who does not struggle with sin, and is never overwhelmed, the one who never falls flat on their face, will pick them up, dust them off, tell them he loves them, and will never leave their side. In fact, it will go so far as to carry us when we cannot move forward. The saint Paul refers to is the one that still needs encouragement, needs support, needs correction, but has found the source for all those things. The saint clings desperately to Jesus Christ.
to be all that he or she cannot be for them and on their behalf. And the saint rests in the fact that who they are is beloved and secure in Christ. The saint knows that they are not their own and thanks God for that fact. The saint is a servant who serves the king. Christ is the king. And he has a royal proclamation for all those out there who know their own shortcomings and are aware of the weight of the burdens that they bear. In Matthew 11, 28 through 30, Jesus says, Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden light. This is Jesus' message to all those who struggle with identity. Whether a person is trying to find out who they are and define themselves by gender or political affiliation, by success in their career, by affirmations from or of their appeal to others, by the power or influence they can accrue, by race, by tradition, or any other criteria that the world builds walls in between or tells you to define yourself by. The weight of these yokes is heavy and our shoulders were not built to bear that weight. Jesus offers rest. And it is to the overburdened, confused, weary man or woman that does not know how they can possibly carry on that he makes this call. The call to become who we were always meant to be. Servants of the Most High. Followers of Christ. Saints. Paul writes his letter to the most ordinary and unremarkable people. Yet because of Jesus, extraordinary and blessed people. People like you and I.
Now, a bit about Ephesus. The book is called the Book of the Ephesians or Letter to the Ephesians, and Paul has addressed in his writing the saints in Ephesus. Now, from what we know about this ancient metropolis, it would have been pretty hard to be a Christian in Ephesus. The city was a vibrant and busy trade hub with many different cultural influences and pagan religions dominating the scene. Speaking of Ephesus, in the Yale Bible Dictionary, Richard Oster says this, it served as the capital of the Roman province of Asia and received the coveted title First and Greatest Metropolis of Asia.
The city was known for its massive temples to the Greek idol Artemis, for example, later the Roman idol Diana, who were thought to be a fertility deity. There was a huge following there. Ephesus was a city rife with sin, profit, and vice, and Paul's letter is meant to be an encouragement to the saints who hold fast to Christ in the midst of such temptation and distraction. He is constantly reminding them of who they are in Christ because the world around them is so full of everything that would keep them turned in a different direction. The world of first century Ephesus is a lot like the 21st century West and the world that we find ourselves contending with.
Now, an interesting note about this first verse in Ephesians that we've already read. Some of the earliest manuscripts that we have found, the oldest copies that we have of this letter, do not include the word Ephesus. It is generally agreed that this is a letter written to the church at Ephesus, but some would say it's a letter written to a wider audience and was distributed to many different groups of Christians throughout the region. Now, I'm no scholar, and I will never know why some manuscripts include Ephesus and some don't. In truth, it does not matter to my faith either way, but I do notice that something interesting happens when we remove the city's name from the verse.
the address becomes simply to the saints who are faithful in Christ Jesus. When I read it this way, it is like the letter was addressed to a group of people that includes me. It ties all Christians everywhere together by one distinction. They are faithful in Christ Jesus. I want to zero in on that distinction that brings together all that we've talked about so far. If we look at the concepts of our true identity based on who we are and not just things about ourselves or the things that we attach ourselves to, if we look at God's calling,
what it is to be a saint, they all coalesce in this one phrase, the faithful in Christ Jesus. Faithful in Christ Jesus is who we are meant to be, who we're made to be, who God has called us to be. Those who put their faith and keep their faith in the truth of Jesus Christ and his gospel of salvation. I want to take our last few minutes today and look at the gospel and what it is that we actually believe about Jesus and what he has done for us. In the following verses, although there are many that I could choose from, I think the message of hope that is the gospel and the answer to the questions that we've looked at today, most notably who we are, These questions are answered. As we continue through this series, we will elaborate in all that we are in Christ. But I want to end today with sharing where we were without him and how we got to be in Christ in the first place. So consider the following verses. Pause the video, write them down, and read them repeatedly to yourself. And you'll see the glory and the love of God play out for you and for each of his saints throughout the last 2,000 years. We begin at Romans 3.23. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. This puts us all in the same boat. We're all sinners before a perfect God.
Romans 6.23 says, Romans 5.8 goes further, Romans 10.13, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. John 1.12. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. This is a story for all of us. This is the framework of the gospel. To the lost, hopeless sinner who is grasping all around themselves, desperately trying to attach themselves to something in order to establish an identity.
Trying to find meaning in the things that will one day crumble is an exercise in futility. Putting your faith in something that must one day fall will lead to disappointment and dejection. You'll be starting over from scratch trying to figure out who you are. Do not base your understanding of who you are on that which is temporary, but rather allow the foundation of your identity to be set on the solid rock of Jesus and the gospel. In doing so, your faith is in the one who will never fail you. In doing so, you are a saint. You are faithful in Christ Jesus.
And you can read the book of Ephesians knowing that although it was not written to you, it was written for you.