Who should I be?
In today’s world there is so much emphasis placed on who we are and what we are becoming. It seems that most individuals in our society today are task oriented and trying to better themselves; whether it be by financial gain, success, fame, or becoming a better person in general there seems to be a movement toward self fulfillment. This may explain why there are so many “self help” books available today. People seem to have a desire for something more; it seems that everyone is searching for a way to become something else than what they currently are. They are seeking new opportunities and new ways to become what they desire to be. But with all this emphasis placed on who we are becoming, how do we know who we should be? Who do we turn to to be our guide?
Answering the question of who we should be seems to be a somewhat easy task at first, but as we ponder who we should be it appears that it is not a simple task after all. The fact is that many different people have differing opinions as far as who or what dictates our purpose in life and in return shapes who we are and who we are becoming.
Although it is clear that as Christians we should look to Christ to be our guide and example of who we should be, there are some many differing views in our world today. In today’s society we are constantly being told who we should be, what we should look like, how we should act, and what we need to become in order to make it in this world. Just turn on the television for a few minutes and it is clear to see that the media plays a huge part in telling us how we need to act, what we need to look like and essentially who we should be if we are to be anything in this world. We are also constantly told by our peers and the people that influence our lives who we should be. Besides all of this pressure to conform to the ways of the world, the Bible even goes to great lengths to tell us who we should be and who we are to become. With all of these opposing views it may sometimes be difficult to really develop an unshakeable assessment of who we are really suppose to be in light of God’s view of us and who he wants us to be and become.
I can have confidence and assurance of who I should be by relying on God’s word to provide me with purpose and direction in life and shape me into the person He has called me to be; however, this is not the case for all people. Many people in today’s society have ruled out God as an authority figure and someone to look to to tell them who they should be. Many people let society or peers shape who they are. In our world today there are many differing views concerning this very topic. Many people believe that you should simply be who you want to be. The view that says “whatever makes you happy and leads to a fulfilling life for you is what you should be doing”, is upheld by many in our world today, but this view is not consistent. In fact it is contradictory. If I choose to do what I want I might not necessarily be doing the best for everyone involved. In doing things out of selfish motives and desires we often harm others in our way and by doing so we often go against guidelines set before us by the law. For example, if I simply lived by the notion that I should be who I want to be, and therefore do only that which pleases myself, I might decide that I would love to have my friends brand new Mustang convertible. If I am a person that only looks out for myself and does only that which pleases myself then there is nothing that is going to hold me back from stealing my friend’s new car and claiming it as my own. In doing so I have become greedy, selfish, and a thief; but if I uphold the belief that I should be whoever I want to be and do whatever makes me happy, then this should be fine. As we can see we cannot live like this. We can attempt to live like this, but if we were to implement a society in which everyone simply looked out for themselves and no one else and only did what made themselves happy we would soon find that other people’s decisions would infringe on our own freedom, thus disregarding our own happiness. The truth is I can be whoever I want to be, but sometimes with unrestricted freedom comes greater consequences.
Truett Anderson brings up this interesting point when he states that “identity should be fluid and flexible, in order to adjust to the kaleidoscope features of a postmodern culture. There is no final truth of how humans ought to be.” Although this is an interesting point, I believe his statement to be false. I believe there is a standard to which we need to live by and a code of conduct for us that instructs us in who we should be. The fact is, whether we choose to believe the Bible to be truth or not, the fact is it still is the dictator of who we should be. We can hold to our relative point of view and believe that you can be whoever you choose to be; however, our beliefs would be wrong. As pointed out previously we cannot simply be whoever we chose to be without facing the implications of those decisions. There has to be guidelines that are somewhat set.
The Bible is very clear on who we are instructed to be. There are various verses that give us instructions regarding our actions that dictate who we are. Ephesians 4:2, 1 Peter 3:8, and Ephesians 4:32 speak about being humble and compassionate (Holy Bible). In Romans 12:2 we are instructed to be transformed and to be separate from the world (Holy Bible). While reading the Bible we gain insight into the person we are to be and the person God desires for us to become. As Christians we need to be set apart. We are told that we are to be in the world and not of it. Also we are told to be “salt of the earth” in Matthew 5:13 (Holy Bible). Therefore it is clear that we must live differently than the majority who uphold relativistic views. The fact is whether we choose to believe it or not, we do not answer only to ourselves in regards to who we are and who we become, but we answer to God as well.
So in conclusion, who I want to be and who I should be can be two very different things. I want to be successful and acquire wealth. I want to be irresponsible at times and ditch class. I want to be a kid again. These things are all things I want to be; however, they are not necessarily who I should be. If I was to act on every impulsive desire and actually be the person I sometimes desired to be, there would be severe consequences. Also my desires of who I want to be contradict each other. If I acted on the impulsive of being irresponsible and ditched my classes, eventually I would miss so many classes I would be doing poorly in school and the likelihood of passing and getting my degree are slim. If I do not get my degree, the likelihood of me fulfilling my desire to be successful and acquire wealth becomes less likely. As we can see there are many things we might want to be, but when it comes own to it we should be who God wants us to be. Although this may seem like an easy cop-out or a “christianese” answer, it is not as seemingly easy to identify as we may thing. In order for us to understand who God desires for us to be, we need to become familiar with His word and be active in our relationship with Him and seek an understanding of His purpose for our life. Only then can we fully know who we should be.
NIV Study Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1985.
In today’s world there is so much emphasis placed on who we are and what we are becoming. It seems that most individuals in our society today are task oriented and trying to better themselves; whether it be by financial gain, success, fame, or becoming a better person in general there seems to be a movement toward self fulfillment. This may explain why there are so many “self help” books available today. People seem to have a desire for something more; it seems that everyone is searching for a way to become something else than what they currently are. They are seeking new opportunities and new ways to become what they desire to be. But with all this emphasis placed on who we are becoming, how do we know who we should be? Who do we turn to to be our guide?
Answering the question of who we should be seems to be a somewhat easy task at first, but as we ponder who we should be it appears that it is not a simple task after all. The fact is that many different people have differing opinions as far as who or what dictates our purpose in life and in return shapes who we are and who we are becoming.
Although it is clear that as Christians we should look to Christ to be our guide and example of who we should be, there are some many differing views in our world today. In today’s society we are constantly being told who we should be, what we should look like, how we should act, and what we need to become in order to make it in this world. Just turn on the television for a few minutes and it is clear to see that the media plays a huge part in telling us how we need to act, what we need to look like and essentially who we should be if we are to be anything in this world. We are also constantly told by our peers and the people that influence our lives who we should be. Besides all of this pressure to conform to the ways of the world, the Bible even goes to great lengths to tell us who we should be and who we are to become. With all of these opposing views it may sometimes be difficult to really develop an unshakeable assessment of who we are really suppose to be in light of God’s view of us and who he wants us to be and become.
I can have confidence and assurance of who I should be by relying on God’s word to provide me with purpose and direction in life and shape me into the person He has called me to be; however, this is not the case for all people. Many people in today’s society have ruled out God as an authority figure and someone to look to to tell them who they should be. Many people let society or peers shape who they are. In our world today there are many differing views concerning this very topic. Many people believe that you should simply be who you want to be. The view that says “whatever makes you happy and leads to a fulfilling life for you is what you should be doing”, is upheld by many in our world today, but this view is not consistent. In fact it is contradictory. If I choose to do what I want I might not necessarily be doing the best for everyone involved. In doing things out of selfish motives and desires we often harm others in our way and by doing so we often go against guidelines set before us by the law. For example, if I simply lived by the notion that I should be who I want to be, and therefore do only that which pleases myself, I might decide that I would love to have my friends brand new Mustang convertible. If I am a person that only looks out for myself and does only that which pleases myself then there is nothing that is going to hold me back from stealing my friend’s new car and claiming it as my own. In doing so I have become greedy, selfish, and a thief; but if I uphold the belief that I should be whoever I want to be and do whatever makes me happy, then this should be fine. As we can see we cannot live like this. We can attempt to live like this, but if we were to implement a society in which everyone simply looked out for themselves and no one else and only did what made themselves happy we would soon find that other people’s decisions would infringe on our own freedom, thus disregarding our own happiness. The truth is I can be whoever I want to be, but sometimes with unrestricted freedom comes greater consequences.
Truett Anderson brings up this interesting point when he states that “identity should be fluid and flexible, in order to adjust to the kaleidoscope features of a postmodern culture. There is no final truth of how humans ought to be.” Although this is an interesting point, I believe his statement to be false. I believe there is a standard to which we need to live by and a code of conduct for us that instructs us in who we should be. The fact is, whether we choose to believe the Bible to be truth or not, the fact is it still is the dictator of who we should be. We can hold to our relative point of view and believe that you can be whoever you choose to be; however, our beliefs would be wrong. As pointed out previously we cannot simply be whoever we chose to be without facing the implications of those decisions. There has to be guidelines that are somewhat set.
The Bible is very clear on who we are instructed to be. There are various verses that give us instructions regarding our actions that dictate who we are. Ephesians 4:2, 1 Peter 3:8, and Ephesians 4:32 speak about being humble and compassionate (Holy Bible). In Romans 12:2 we are instructed to be transformed and to be separate from the world (Holy Bible). While reading the Bible we gain insight into the person we are to be and the person God desires for us to become. As Christians we need to be set apart. We are told that we are to be in the world and not of it. Also we are told to be “salt of the earth” in Matthew 5:13 (Holy Bible). Therefore it is clear that we must live differently than the majority who uphold relativistic views. The fact is whether we choose to believe it or not, we do not answer only to ourselves in regards to who we are and who we become, but we answer to God as well.
So in conclusion, who I want to be and who I should be can be two very different things. I want to be successful and acquire wealth. I want to be irresponsible at times and ditch class. I want to be a kid again. These things are all things I want to be; however, they are not necessarily who I should be. If I was to act on every impulsive desire and actually be the person I sometimes desired to be, there would be severe consequences. Also my desires of who I want to be contradict each other. If I acted on the impulsive of being irresponsible and ditched my classes, eventually I would miss so many classes I would be doing poorly in school and the likelihood of passing and getting my degree are slim. If I do not get my degree, the likelihood of me fulfilling my desire to be successful and acquire wealth becomes less likely. As we can see there are many things we might want to be, but when it comes own to it we should be who God wants us to be. Although this may seem like an easy cop-out or a “christianese” answer, it is not as seemingly easy to identify as we may thing. In order for us to understand who God desires for us to be, we need to become familiar with His word and be active in our relationship with Him and seek an understanding of His purpose for our life. Only then can we fully know who we should be.
NIV Study Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1985.
posted by Meg at 1:02 PM
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