Not a Laughing Matter

I’ve seen and heard them, and I’m sure you have too.  I’m referring to all of the Bruce Jenner jokes.  It’s sad to me that the same world that promotes gay and transgender rights laughs at those who struggle with such issues.  What’s far more grievous to me though is that I’ve seen some of my brothers and sisters in Christ laugh at and tell these jokes.  I will not attempt to paint myself as totally innocent here, for I too have been tempted to snicker at some of the things I’ve seen on Facebook.  The real question though is does God think this matter is funny?  I somehow can’t see the Lord standing in heaven looking down at Bruce Jenner and rolling in laughter as He calls Gabriel over saying, “Hey, Gabe, would you look at this.  What a freak!” What is happening here is the enemy is duping our society.  We are made in the image of God, male and female.  So if the enemy can get us confused about the genders, he can get us confused about Who God is.  That’s his plan of attack in this hour: Distort the created image of God to mankind, and God Himself will be distorted to mankind.  I’d say he has been pretty successful in his efforts, wouldn’t you?  Just as the creation’s identity has become a blur, so has the Creator’s.

​Although all of this deeply troubles me, there is something that weighs on my heart much heavier.  As a whole, the church finds it easier to judge the identity crisis going on outside of its walls than the one going on inside of its walls.  “What identity crisis?” you may be asking.  Well, just the fact that we are mocking others who are deeply broken in itself points to us not understanding who we are.  Our gossip, low self-esteem, addictions, anxieties, depression, people pleasing, self-righteousness, self-reliance, denial, sexual sins, prayerlessness, and a host of other things all point to our own identity crisis.   And, if you’re saying “Well, I’m glad I don’t suffer from not knowing exactly who I am in Christ” I’d like to congratulate you ~ you get first prize for being confused.  In claiming that we know exactly who we are in Him, we are proclaiming our ignorance.  Learning who we are in Him is a process we will be going through until the day the Lord takes us home.  Who are we exactly?  We are His beloved sons and daughters.  What does that mean exactly?  I’m not fully sure, but I’ve found out somewhat as I’ve pondered His Word and spent time in His presence.  By God’s grace I plan to spend the rest of my journey on earth finding out exactly who I am to Him and in Him.  The real way the Church can be the Church is by fighting the identity crisis within, not mocking the one without.  Let’s make every attempt to ask God to help us understand who we are in Him.  The more we walk in our true identity, the more we will be able to help others walk in theirs.