CLEOEJACKSONIII.COM
  • My Home Page
  • My Life and Ministry
  • My Ongoing Thoughts
  • My Favorite Bible Verses
  • My Favorite Stories
  • My Favorite Jokes
  • My Favorite Quotations
  • My Favorite Web Links
  • My Contact Info
"Helping Others Communicate"

ESTABLISHING OUR IDENTITY

9/2/2019

 
My wife and I recently went to see the movie, Overcomer, directed by Alex Kendrick of Kendrick Brothers Productions.  While I will not give away the plot, suffice it to say that the picture is about a man who reluctantly coaches the only young lady to try out for cross country at a Christian High School, and the process of transformation that unfolds in each of their lives in the process.

In one particularly poignant scene, the character known as Coach Harrison is challenged by another man to answer the fundamental question of who he really is.  He replies that he is basketball coach.  The man presses him further.  He then responds that he is a history teacher in a Christian School.  Pressed still further, he states that he is a husband and father.

Finally, having been reminded that all these things could be taken from him and he would still be someone, he grasps what the man is driving at and states that he is a follower of Jesus Christ.  The point is that he eventually realizes that there are many ways in which he can define his identity.  But there is only one thing that can never be taken from him; and that is his identity in Jesus Christ.

I share this on Labor Day weekend as a reminder that our own ultimate identity as Christians is to be found in Jesus Christ.  The things by which we so often define ourselves – things such as our job, our profession, our career – these can easily be taken from us.  Therefore, our identity should not be attached to what we do by way of profession (as in butcher, baker, or candle-stick maker), but rather to Whom we attach ourselves.

In chapter 1, verses 7-9 of the Old Testament Book of Jonah, we read:

7Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. 8So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”

9He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”


The context here, of course, is that Jonah is being a rebellious prophet and running from his assignment to deliver God’s message to the people of Ninevah.  He has caught a ship headed for Tarshish; and God has sent a storm to interrupt his flight.

In their fear, the sailors confront Jonah and ask who he is and what kind of work he does for a living.  The words translated as “what kind of work” are from the Hebrew term ““mel-aw-kaw'”, meaning “work or occupation”.  Interestingly enough, this word itself comes from the root term: “mal-awk'”, which means “a messenger, or a representative”.

And thus, when Jonah, obviously realizing that he has been found out, decides to come clean, he states that he is a Hebrew who worships the Lord, the god of Heaven”.  In so doing, he owns up to the fact that his own true identity is not found in his profession, but rather in his relationship to God.

As you and I take time out from our busy occupations this Labor Day, let us do so fully cognizant of the fact that no matter how much we love our jobs, or how successful we are in them, our true identity is not to be found in our employment.  It is to be found in our relationship to God which we have through Jesus Christ.

FILM SOURCES:

https://www.overcomermovie.com/;
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8186318/;
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overcomer_(film).


SCRIPTURE SOURCES: 

https://biblehub.com/niv/jonah/1.htm;
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/4399.htm;
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/4397.htm
.

Comments are closed.

    Cleo E. Jackson, III

    Occasionally I will add
    a few thoughts to my blog. If you find them inspirational, I will be
    honored.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010

    Categories

    All