Who defines you?

John 5

Do you want to be healed? What a crazy question to ask. In effect, that is the question Jesus was asking the man by the pool at Bethesda. 38 years he had been had some kind of infirmity that hindered him from walking. Jesus asked, “Do you want to be healed?” What was Jesus really saying to this guy?

What really makes up whom you are? Where we were born affects who we are. There are different viewpoints about life based on the culture and locality of our birth. A child born in the bush of Africa will have a different outlook on life than one born in New York City. A child born into a home of violence and turmoil will have a different view of life than one born into a home filled with love and acceptance. What our parents and friends say to us verbally and non-verbally determine who we become as well. All of these influences are called our “frame of reference”. Our frame of reference creates our ownership of certain things. If we are called “stupid” through out our lives them we will gradually own the title “stupid”. If we are know as the responsible one, or the clumsy one, or the clown, or the sickly one we gradually take ownership of that title. We identify with the view of others for our lives.

Here is the challenge! We are called to be whom God has called us. Jesus came to make sure that we understood, we are Children of God. Our value is not in the way that others have defined us but in who God says that we are. The God who created everything sacrificed the life of His Son for us. Jesus sacrifice makes us very valuable in God’s eyes and we needn’t settle for anything less.

What does all of this mean, in light of Jesus question, to the man who could not walk? The question was more like “Does this infirmity own you or are you willing to believe who I say that you are?” Jesus saw him as a child of God, a child of the King whom God loved. He saw himself as a cripple who could never make it to the pool to be healed. Jesus didn’t negotiate with him. He simply gave him a command. The command was see yourself the way I see you, as whole healthy and free.

God is still giving that command today. He wants us to see ourselves, not as defined by what others have said or what others see in us but instead by how He sees us. God sees you as beautiful, amazing, wonderful, and full of potential. God has created you with great gifts and he has a call on your life. You are His beloved child and that is the way we are defined!

Whatever is tying you down or holding you back from being who God has called you to be. Whatever is stopping your success, know that Jesus is saying to you, “Rise up and walk!”

Tomorrow John 6