Who am I?

Pastor Jonathan Hansen

Identity • Sermon • Submitted a year ago • Presented a year ago

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God is the maker and sustainer of mankind, and therefore has the divine right to say what man is, ought to be, and is for. God has defined these things in His Word, telling us the answer to what we are, ought to be, and are for.

Notes

Transcript

Introduction:

Welcome back and good morning!

Recap of Session One:

Last night we covered the idea of who God is. One of our central ides is that you cannot truly know who you are until you know who God is. You see, who you are and who God is are inseparably linked.

Who You Are and Who God Is Are Inseparably Linked.

Sure, you can know things about yourself without knowing God, but you will never have that fulness of knowledge unless you know who God is. And beyond this, what you think you know will be starting from a flawed foundation. If you miss who God is, you will be irrecoverably flawed in who you think you are. You will be starting from the wrong location and moving in the wrong direction. Sure you may come to some knowledge, but it will be broken and flawed. This is primarily because God is the maker and sustainer of all.

God is the maker and the sustainer of all.

This was our primary topic last night. God is the one who made all things. God brought reality into being. But did not just make all things. God also sustains all things. All things exist because of Him and all things continue existing because of Him. Because of this, I gave two phrases. God, as Maker and Sustainer of all, has the divine right of absolute definition giver. Because of this, God has the absolute right to say what everything or anything is, ought to be, is to do, and is for.

God, as Maker and Sustainer of all, has the divine right of absolute definition giver. Because of this, God has the absolute right to say what everything or anything is, ought to be, is to do, and is for.

This is the natural outflow of God as creator. God alone has the right to say what all things are. He made all. He is Lord and God over all. This is His right. God also cannot and should not be questioned. No created being has the right to disagree with God. Well, this morning we are going to bring it to the personal level. God’s divine right and authority extends over humanity as well.

God’s divine right and authority extends over humanity as well.

God has the right to define us. God has the right to define you. And beyond this, you and I have no right to disagree with God. He is Lord. He is God. We are His creation. He has all rights over us. Romans 9 uses the illustration of a potter and clay. What right does the clay have over the potter? The answer is obviously none. What matters is what God says.

Transition:

So let’s get back to what we opened with yesterday. Let’s get back to the questions of Identity. I gave five ultimate questions. Who is God? Who am I? What am I here for? Where did I come from? And where am I going when I die? These are the five philosophical hard hitters. But all of these five, the others are determined by the first two. Primary among them is the first. You have to wrestle through who God is because this defines who we are. Literally, God defines who we are. He is the one with the answer, because He is the one who made us. But the next most important question to understanding our identity and the identity crisis of our age is the question who am I?

Who am I?

This question answers the others. Who are you? If you get this down, you will know where you came from, what you are doing here, and where you are going when you die. But we must keep this in light of our answer to who God is. God is our maker. We cannot define ourselves outside of Him. Our identity is not found in personal study and self reflection. Our Identity is only found in what God says we are. So who are you? Who am I? Who are we? Well, you and I are humans.

You Are Human.

We are human beings. Scripture puts us into a completely separate category than the other animals and the other creation. We are humans or mankind. So the next question is what is a human?

What is a Human?

And here again we have to tie this to who God is and what God says. So here is the big idea. God as the maker and sustainer of mankind has the divine authority to say what man is, ought to be, is to do, and is for.

God as the maker and sustainer of mankind has the divine authority to say what man is, ought to be, is to do, and is for.

We are not autonomous. We are not free to be whatever we wish to me. That idea is fundamentally illogical and atheistic in nature. It defies all reason and rationality. Because God is maker, we have no right to self identification. It is one of the most idiotic ideas to think we can define ourselves. It is utterly irrational. The Maker is the definition giver. He is the one who defines what a human is. He is the one who defines what mankind is.

He is the one who answers the four categories. He is the one who says what man is. He is the one who says what man ought to be. He is the one who says what man is to do. He is the one who says what man is for.

Four Categories: IS, OUGHT TO BE, IS TO DO, AND IS FOR.

So let us take time this morning and walk through this with the hopes of understanding who we are.

Let us look at that first category. What humanity is.

1. What Humanity Is.

When we search Scripture, we find that it has much to say about what humanity is. However, if we look back at the beginning, I believe we find the clearest of definitions on specifically what humanity is. And this makes sense. If one wants to know what something is, it is helpful to look at it’s origin. So we will walk through much of what Genesis 1-3 has to say. To summarize what mankind is I would say this:

Humanity, being made male and female of both body and soul, is the pinnacle of God’s creation, made for dominion over all other creation; the only creation to be made in the image of God. The fall of mankind into sin corrupted the image of God without destroying it, plunging man into radical corruption and death with all the related consequences.

Perhaps in opening, we should look at the very first verses regarding mankind, and then we will walk through the definition.

Genesis 1:26-28, 26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness, so that they will have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”27 And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that creeps on the earth.”

So let’s get back to that definition. Humanity, being made male and female of both body and soul, is the pinnacle of God’s creation, made for dominion over all other creation; the only creation to be made in the image of God. The fall of mankind into sin corrupted the image of God without destroying it, plunging man into radical corruption and death with all the related consequences.

First, mankind is made male and female.

Male and Female:

Genesis 2:18-25, 18 Then Yahweh God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.”19 And out of the ground Yahweh God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and He brought each to the man to see what he would call it; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name.20 And the man gave names to all the cattle and to the birds of the sky and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him.21 So Yahweh God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place.22 And Yahweh God fashioned the rib, which He had taken from the man, into a woman, and He brought her to the man.23 Then the man said,

“This one finally is bone of my bones,

And flesh of my flesh;

This one shall be called Woman,

Because this one was taken out of Man.”

24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother, and cleave to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

Here we have the creation of man and woman. Mankind is of one kind, but of two genders or sexes. Mankind is male or is female. These are similar, yet distinct. Man was made first and chiefly in order. Woman was made second in the likeness of man. Man ought not be alone, but needs a helper, the woman. Both man and woman are human. Neither man nor woman is less than the other. However, they are different and made for different purposes. We also see the creation of marriage, however, we will tackle that in depth at a later time.

We also confess that mankind possesses both body and soul.

Body and Soul:

Mankind is physical but is not merely physical. Mankind is rational. Mankind is creative. Mankind is chief of creation. Mankind was tasked with ruling dominion and naming of all other creatures.

Mankind is spiritual but is not ethereal. Mankind is tangible and possesses physicality. Mankind is sexual and reproductive. Mankind is united in this duality.

Man and woman both are made of body and soul. The language in Scripture uses the terms soul and spirit interchangeably. But what is the soul or the spirit? The soul of man is the inner and true being of the man. It is created by God. It is eternal in the sense that it will never die. The body will return to the dust after death. But the soul of man will live forever either in heaven or in hell.

So what is the body? The body is the physical aspect of man. The body of man is a true part of man, corrupted by sin to die and decay, but is not evil inherently. Man will be resurrected in his same body on the last day to either face eternal life or eternal death. The body is the part of us that interacts with the world.

We cannot separate ourselves from the physical or spiritual nature of our being. We are not just our soul nor are we just our body. We are rational and corporeal by nature. This is good and right.

We are also made in the image of God.

The Image of God:

Man and woman are made in the image of God. But what does this mean? Perhaps it is easier to understand what it does not mean. We are not gods. God is not a man. So what does this mean? Well, what is an image? It is a picture. God has two sets of attributes. In theology we define these as communicable and incommunicable attributes. This means God has attributes which He shares with us by making us in His image. These are things like His rationality, morality, spirituality; His ability to communicate, express, even His being. His incommunicable attributes are those like His omnipresence. God is everywhere at once. We do not share this. We are locked into one place in time and space.

The image of God means that He made us to be like Him in many ways. It also means we possess inherent value. This is why it is horrifically evil to take a human life or to violate a human being. Human life has value because it is the image of the Almighty God.

But what of the fall into sin?

The Fall Into Sin:

We confess that the fall of mankind into sin corrupted the image of God without destroying it, plunging man into radical corruption and death with all the related consequences. Well, let’s read what happened at the fall.

Adam and Eve disobeyed God. Genesis 3:1-7, Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which Yahweh God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?”2 And the woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat;3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God said, ‘You shall not eat from it, and you shall not touch it, lest you die.’”4 And the serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die!5 For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”6 Then the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, so she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.7 And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.

God then comes to them. Genesis 3:8-13 Then they heard the sound of Yahweh God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Yahweh God in the midst of the trees of the garden.9 Yahweh God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”10 And he said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”11 And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”12 And the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave to me from the tree, and I ate.”13 Then Yahweh God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

Mankind was made perfect, without sin, but with the capability of falling into sin. Man did fall into sin through disobedience to God. Man rebelled against God and was plunged into radical corruption and death.

Radical Corruption and Death:

These are the first list of consequences of the fall.

Genesis 3:14-19, And Yahweh God said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,

Cursed are you more than any of the cattle,

And more than every beast of the field;

On your belly you will go,

And dust you will eat

All the days of your life;

And I will put enmity

Between you and the woman,

And between your seed and her seed;

He shall bruise you on the head,

And you shall bruise him on the heel.”

To the woman He said,

“I will greatly multiply

Your pain and conception,

In pain you will bear children;

Your desire will be for your husband,

And he will rule over you.”

Then to Adam He said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’;

Cursed is the ground because of you;

In pain you will eat of it

All the days of your life.

Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you;

And you will eat the plants of the field;

By the sweat of your face

You will eat bread,

Till you return to the ground,

Because from it you were taken;

For you are dust,

And to dust you shall return.”

This is the curse. There may be many curses, but this is THE curse. This is the curse that plunged all mankind into death and sin. Adam was our covenant head. Because of his sin as our representative and father, we all are now sinners and because of this, death came. All sickness, disease, and death is due to sin.

One would be tempted to say here that man must have completely lost the image of God. Certainly the fall did great damage to the image of God. We are now dead in our sins. But it did not destroy the image of God. God still says that man is made in His image.

Genesis 9:6, Whoever sheds man’s blood,

By man his blood shall be shed,

For in the image of God

He made man.

Transition:

This is what humanity is. We are male and female. We are body and soul. We are made for dominion, more on that later. We are the only creation made in the image of God. We are sinful and corrupt destined to face death and judgement.

This is who we are. But what ought we to be and what ought we to do?

2-3. What Humanity ought to be and is to do.

Here I want to put a pause. The way we know God’s will is to look at His Law. However, the Law of God is vastly misunderstood. So in order to move forward, I want to give a proper understanding of God’s Law.

A Proper Understanding of God’s Law.

God’s Law tells us what ought to be as well as telling us what to do. God’s Law is good and holy. It is the standard of righteousness. Theologically, the Law of God also distinguishes itself into several categories. We have the legal law. The legal law are the laws that dictate how governments ought to act. They are the laws dealing with punitive measures for criminals and the like. There is the moral law. The moral law is God’s standard of righteousness. There is the ceremonial law. The ceremonial law are laws that deal with purity, specific religious practices for Israel, or other things of the like.

All of God’s law is good. All of God’s law shows His perfect character. All of God’s law is the standard of righteous behavior. However, the Law cannot save anyone. The Law is a mirror to show us how sinful we are. When we look at the legal codes, we can learn what God commands of the state and of rulers. These are good things, and we ought to implement them if at all possible in our legal code. But they also show us the wickedness and failure of our earthly rulers. We see how far short they fall and this keeps us from worshipping them or idolizing them.

The moral Law is good and righteous. The moral law ought to be kept out of love for God. It cannot save us though. This is because we are incapable of keeping it. This does not make it evil, it merely shows us how evil we are. We are sinful. And the Law stands over us condemning us rightly.

However, when trying to understand what humanity ought to be, or is to do, we can look at God’s Law. God’s Law is just and righteous. It is the standard by which we are judged. It tells us what we ought to be.

2. What Humanity Ought to Be:

So let’s look at what humanity ought to be.

God sets forth His true and holy standard of what Humanity ought to be in His Law, Commandments, and teachings recorded in Sacred Scripture.

God Has the Right to pronounce “Oughts” of All His Creation. This is not statements on how things are, but how they ought to be. They are the standards. These are holy standards of law, life, charity, punishment, ext. And we must see that created creatures opinions do not matter in regards to God’s standards. Remember, God defines things. And in the Law of God we see Him defining how man ought to be. We do not have the right to disagree with God’s Law. What God condemns, is evil. What God commends, is righteous. What God forbids is to be forbidden. What God commands is to be obeyed.

Example: “Be Holy.”

Let’s look at some Scripture, shall we. An example of what I am saying is that God says mankind ought to be holy. Now, God is not under the delusion we are holy. No, God says we ought to be holy. He knows we are not. But we should be. Listen to some Scripture.

1 Peter 1:16 “16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.””

Leviticus 19:2 “2 “Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.”

Leviticus 20:7 “7 Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God.”

Leviticus 20:26 “26 You shall be holy to me, for I the Lord am holy and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine.”

Leviticus 21:8 “8 You shall sanctify him, for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be holy to you, for I, the Lord, who sanctify you, am holy.”

1 Thess 4:7 “7 For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness.”

Humanity ought to be Holy. We know however, that we all fall short of this standard, Romans 3:23 “23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” We are not holy, but we OUGHT TO BE holy. God enforces this standard and it is the standard we are measured against.

What about what we are to do?

3. What Humanity is to Do.

God defines what humanity is, ought to be, and is to do. This is different than what we ought to be. We ought to be holy, and we ought to do holy things. The “Ought to be” deals with our nature. The “Ought to do” deals with our actions. So what does God say we ought to do? Well, we see this again in Scripture. God gives many specific commands for many specific occasions. But let’s look at the pinnacle of the moral law. Let’s look at the ten commandments.

Exodus 20:1-17,

Then God spoke all these words, saying,

2 “I am Yahweh your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.

4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.

5 You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, Yahweh your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me,

6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

7 “You shall not take the name of Yahweh your God in vain, for Yahweh will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.

8 “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.

9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work,

10 but the seventh day is a sabbath of Yahweh your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female slave or your cattle or your sojourner who is within your gates.

11 For in six days Yahweh made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore Yahweh blessed the sabbath day and made it holy.

12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which Yahweh your God gives you.

13 “You shall not murder.

14 “You shall not commit adultery.

15 “You shall not steal.

16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife or his male slave or his female slave or his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

These commands are moral and good. They define what we are to do. They stand as God’s definition of what we are to do for all time. However, if we are honest, will admit that we do not do these. We fail and fall short. This does not change the fact that God commands obedience and that man is bound by God’s definition. Man is to do what is right according what God says is right.

But what is humanity for?

4. What Humanity is For:

What is our purpose? What is the reason we are here? God defines this as well.

God as the maker and sustainer of mankind has the absolute divine right to define what humanity is for ultimately and how that is to be lived out temporally.

God has spoken and made it clear what we are made for.

The Ultimate Purpose of mankind is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

The Westminster shorter catechism says this:

“1. What is the chief end of man?

Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.”

God created man to bring Himself glory. Isaiah 43:6-7 says, 6

I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’

And to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’

Bring My sons from afar

And My daughters from the ends of the earth,

7 Everyone who is called by My name,

And whom I have created for My glory,

Whom I have formed, even whom I have made.”

God made man to bring Himself glory. Now if we are very very foolish, we may say that is selfish or self centered of God. That may be the dumbest thing we could possibly say. Of course it is self centered of God. But that is a good thing! When you or I are self centered, that is bad. Why? Because we are wicked and evil. To focus on ourselves is to focus on what is less than perfect. However, God is all good and all glorious. Where else could He give glory? He must glorify Himself for to glorify something evil is sinful and to fail to glorify something perfect is also sinful. God’s perfection demands that He glorify Himself. He is the only one whom He could glorify. And He is the only one we ought to glorify. God alone is worthy of glory and honor and praise. So we must not be foolish and say God ought not be self centered. God ought only to be self centered. This is why it is wonderful He made us for His glory.

But how is God brought glory from us? Ultimately, in two ways.

God is brought glory ultimately from mankind in two ways:

First, by their loving submission to, worship of, and obedience to Him.

John Piper coined the phrase, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.” This is true! When we truly glorify God by loving Him, worshipping Him, obeying Him, submitting to Him, or the like, we find our true joy. This is obvious. Our praise and love of God glorifies Him. However, the second ultimate way mankind glorifies God is not so pleasant.

Secondly, through the punishment of their sin either eternally in hell, or through Christ’s vicarious death on the cross for sin.

God must punish sin. His righteousness demands it. In Exodus, there is a famous occasion where God passes before Moses. Moses sees the hind parts of God. And this is what that passage says. Exodus 34:6-7 Then Yahweh passed by in front of him and called out, “Yahweh, Yahweh God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth;7 who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression, and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.”

You see, we like the first part of that, don’t we? We like the passage that says God is compassionate. We like where it says God is kind. But what does that latter part mean? How can God forgive sins and yet not leave the guilty unpunished? These two things seem irreconcilable, don’t they? To forgive sins is to leave the guilty unpunished. They sinned! To sin is to deserve punishment. Likewise, to punish the wicked is to not forgive sins. Plan and simple. So how does this work?

Let me make it as clear as I can. You and I have sinned. We are not what God says we ought to be. We do not do what God says we are to do. This is sin. And beyond this, it is sin against God, the infinite good in the universe. And to sin against the infinite good and righteous one is deserving of an infinite punishment. And those sins will be punished. There is no option there. They will be punished. The question is, how? Who will pay for them? There are two options.

First option. You pay for them. This is sadly the option most people embrace willingly. And it is just. You sinned. You deserve the justified wrath of God. And when you die, God will demand payment of you. And that payment is eternity in the fires and torment of hell. Let me be clear, you and I fully deserve this. We in fact deserve more than this. God sends the deserving to hell to pay for their sins and satisfy the debt owed. And the bad news is that we are all deserving of hell.

You say, that’s the first option pastor, but please tell me the second! I must hear it because anything is better than that! Here is the good news. The second option is to surrender your life to Christ. You see, God Himself came and died the death you and I rightly deserve. And He payed the price the sinner deserves. And He says that if you will confess that you are a sinner and believe that Jesus died in your place and rose again, you will be saved.

Perhaps it seems like I’m skipping ahead, but I assure you that I am not. This is the fundamental question of where am I going when I die?

Where am I going when I die?

These are the only two options. You are either dead spiritually and will pay for your sins through eternity in hell, or you will find hope of life in Christ.

Hope of life in Christ.

Romans 3:21-26 “21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

You will either bow the knee to Christ or you will bear your own sins. And here is sad reality. So many hear this and say, “I cannot bear the idea of hell! Please, anything but hell!” And then when they hear that they must accept Christ as their Lord, they must submit to Him, they must admit they are not gods but are sinners and confess Christ, they say “better hell than that.” Make no mistake, rejecting Christ is embracing hell. Many many many people long to escape hell, but hate Christ more than they fear hell. To reject Christ is to run headlong into the fires of hell.

This is why Scripture says hell is filled with weeping and gnashing of teeth. That phrase gnashing of teeth is a picture of ultimate hatred and vitriolic anger. Who are they angry at? Who do they hate? They hate God. They hate Christ. The hate Him so much they gnash their teeth at Him even in hell. Make no mistake, the sad reality is that mankind in our natural state would rather embrace hell than embrace Christ.

Closing:

So I put it to you this morning. Do you hate Christ or do you love Him? Will you bear your sins through eternity in hell? Or will you bow to Christ? Who will pay for your sins? You, or Jesus? This is the chief issue at stake when asking who you are. Who are you? Are you redeemed? Or are you in your sins? Are you saved or are you gnashing your teeth and Christ? Are you a sheep or a goat? Are you a Christian or are you lost? Who are you?

Let’s pray.