Who am I? Have you ever asked yourself that question? I am not a great fan of horror flicks but when I was a youth, I saw a few of them at friend's houses. One that I have thought of often is Friday the 13th. Jason was a serial killer that wore a hockey mask. I remember scenes where you were looking through the mask. Now, usually those scenes didn't end very well for someone but that is not where I want to go. Instead, I want to think about living life through a mask. We put lots of them on in the course of a day. Often when we are depressed, we put on a happy face. When we are with our kids, we have to put on our parent mask. When we are at wo
rk, we put on our employee mask. When we go out with friends, we put on sociable mask. When we go to church, we put on a religious mask. It seems like the list is endless. We have to be so many different people in the course of a day.
When I start thinking about who I am, sometimes my head spins. I am a husband, father, son, uncle, cousin, friend, pastor, counselor, student, leader, preacher, teacher, and if I put some thought into it, I could probably find another twenty things that I am. And at times, being one of those things seems to require me to put a mask on. There are days that I don't want to be a father and would rather be the kid's friend. There are times that the kids force me to be a disciplinarian and I hate it when I have to put on that mask; that is not who I am. If you look close enough, you probably have lots of masks in your closet. Some of you have had to become caregivers of family members because of their health and had to put on a new mask. Some of you are working in jobs you hate and have adopted a mask to survive financially. Some of you have lost loved ones and the mask of sorrow covers you like rain. What mask are you wearing today?
Paul gives us a little advice in Galatians 2:20 that just may help, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the son of God, who loves me and gave himself for me." When I read this passage, it says to me, "Aaron, it is not about you, it is about Christ. When I accepted Jesus as my savior I was suppose to die. When I walked through the waters of baptism, I was not suppose to live through it. Aaron's life was suppose to end and Chris's life in me was to begin. When I spend time with my family, I am suppose to be Christ. When I am being a husband, I am suppose to be Christ. When I am pastor, I am suppose to be Christ. When I am being a friend, I am suppose to be Christ. When I am counseling, I am suppose to be Christ. From the moment I arise in the morning to the moment I lay to rest at night, I need to remember it is not about me but about Jesus living through me. I died when I was eight years old and Christ took over my life. Now he gets to live His life through me.
If we take this passage in Galatians seriously, then we all need to get rid of our masks. The only person that I need to be is Jesus; and the only person that you need to be is Jesus. And if you think about it, do we really have anything better to give than Him anyway. So lets have a mask burning party today and decide to live our lives for Christ, being Christ to those around us. Be Christ as you go to work. Be Christ as you care for the hurting. Be Christ as you spend time with your kids. Be Christ as you love your spouse. Be Christ in your coming and be Christ in your going. Paul's identity was found in Christ and no one else. Sounds to me like being Christ is a lot easier than trying to figure out which mask to put on next.
Pastor Aaron
rk, we put on our employee mask. When we go out with friends, we put on sociable mask. When we go to church, we put on a religious mask. It seems like the list is endless. We have to be so many different people in the course of a day.When I start thinking about who I am, sometimes my head spins. I am a husband, father, son, uncle, cousin, friend, pastor, counselor, student, leader, preacher, teacher, and if I put some thought into it, I could probably find another twenty things that I am. And at times, being one of those things seems to require me to put a mask on. There are days that I don't want to be a father and would rather be the kid's friend. There are times that the kids force me to be a disciplinarian and I hate it when I have to put on that mask; that is not who I am. If you look close enough, you probably have lots of masks in your closet. Some of you have had to become caregivers of family members because of their health and had to put on a new mask. Some of you are working in jobs you hate and have adopted a mask to survive financially. Some of you have lost loved ones and the mask of sorrow covers you like rain. What mask are you wearing today?
Paul gives us a little advice in Galatians 2:20 that just may help, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the son of God, who loves me and gave himself for me." When I read this passage, it says to me, "Aaron, it is not about you, it is about Christ. When I accepted Jesus as my savior I was suppose to die. When I walked through the waters of baptism, I was not suppose to live through it. Aaron's life was suppose to end and Chris's life in me was to begin. When I spend time with my family, I am suppose to be Christ. When I am being a husband, I am suppose to be Christ. When I am pastor, I am suppose to be Christ. When I am being a friend, I am suppose to be Christ. When I am counseling, I am suppose to be Christ. From the moment I arise in the morning to the moment I lay to rest at night, I need to remember it is not about me but about Jesus living through me. I died when I was eight years old and Christ took over my life. Now he gets to live His life through me.
If we take this passage in Galatians seriously, then we all need to get rid of our masks. The only person that I need to be is Jesus; and the only person that you need to be is Jesus. And if you think about it, do we really have anything better to give than Him anyway. So lets have a mask burning party today and decide to live our lives for Christ, being Christ to those around us. Be Christ as you go to work. Be Christ as you care for the hurting. Be Christ as you spend time with your kids. Be Christ as you love your spouse. Be Christ in your coming and be Christ in your going. Paul's identity was found in Christ and no one else. Sounds to me like being Christ is a lot easier than trying to figure out which mask to put on next.
Pastor Aaron
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