Jesus Changes Our Identity
As we explore the implications of the good news, we have to wrestle with how Jesus Changes Our Identity. If Jesus (the crucified and risen) is our Lord, then we have to think differently about who we are. Jesus gives us a new family. So our obligation to fellow believers trumps even our obligations to our family. For modern readers, this means we have a very large family since we can connect to other Christians all over the world.
Jesus also gives us a new story. Our life’s story is Adam’s story: we’re humans, trying to be our own gods. But Jesus is God, surrendering his power to make himself human. When we follow Jesus, he transforms us to be like him, rather than Adam. We are now exalted children of God who express our exultation by humbly serving others in love.
Finally, Jesus give us a new way of valuing ourselves and others. Jesus is a peasant and a carpenter. If he’s Lord, then external things like this don’t determine our value. Knowing this, frees us up to serve others in love without making ourselves less valuable.
God will make creation new. And making a people who embody this new creation is phase one. God graciously includes us in this plan. And that is good news.
Other sermons in this series