FROM THE PASTOR
Who Am I?
Finding our True Identity Through Service to Others
“Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that I am?’…… Peter answered him, ‘You are the Messiah.'” Mark 8:29
When our children were young and still living at home – I would often joke with folks who would compliment our children for their behavior and manners. I would say that we actually have six children – the three that people see in public and the three that live in our house that we saw on a daily basis.
Of course – that is not limited to children. Truth be known – many of us have a public persona and a private persona. The public persona that we want everyone to believe about us, and the more private one that only those closest to us actually see and know.
As much as we would like to be consistent in the way we live – and have an authenticity to who we are in both private and public situations – it is not always possible to be that fully integrated person.
Paul understood those tendencies himself as well – “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. But in fact it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it.19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.” Romans 7:15ff
And so, did the Lutheran martyr, Pastor Diedrich Bonhoeffer, who wrote this powerful poem during his imprisonment before his execution by the Nazis –
Who am I? They often tell me
I stepped from my cell’s confinement
Calmly, cheerfully, firmly,
Like a Squire from his country house.
Who am I? They often tell me
I used to speak to my warders
freely and friendly and clearly,
as through it were mine to command.
Who am I? They also tell me
I bore the days of misfortune
equably, smilingly, proudly,
like one accustomed to win.
Am I then really that which other men tell of?
Or am I only what I myself know of myself?
Restless and longing and sick, like a bird in a cage,
Struggling for breath, as though hands were compressing
My throat, yearning for colors, for flowers, for the voices of birds.
thirsting for words of kindness, for neighborliness,
tossing in expectation of great events,
powerlessly trembling for friends at an infinite distance,
weary and empty at praying, at thinking, at making,
faint, and ready to say farewell to it all.
Who am I? This or the Other?
Am I one person to-day and to-morrow another?
Am I both at once? A hypocrite before others,
And before myself a contemptible woebegone weakling?
Or is something within me like a beaten army
Fleeing in disorder from victory already achieved?
Who am I? They mock me, these lonely question of mine,
Whoever I am, Thou Knowest, O God, I am thine.”
In our Gospel reading this week we learn that there was some confusion about who Jesus really was as well…… however not with himself – but rather – how others were perceiving him….. People were asking, “Is he John the Baptist or Elijah back from the dead? Is he a prophet?”
Peter is the only one to gets it right. Peter declares, “You are the Messiah.”
However, Jesus goes on to teach them what Peter’s declaration means: The Messiah is not a conqueror, but a servant. Jesus will experience everything about being human, not just the good parts. Jesus will suffer, be rejected, and he will even be killed – but in the end he will rise again. Death does not have the final say.
And Jesus has a message to all when he says to the disciples, the crowd, and to us, miles apart and centuries away: “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”
Jesus shows us that we return to our true identities not in trying to be victorious in all things in life; instead, we gain awareness of our true identities by being of service to others.
Today is God’s Work. Our Hands. Day throughout the church. It coincides with the 20th Anniversary of 9/11 – when so many demonstrated life-giving service others in their attempt to care for others. This day is a reminder to all of us that we are at our best when we offer ourselves to others in empathy and kindness.
Really hope to see you in church this Fall!
Pastor Johnson
