Who Are You?

On April 28th, 2019 I preached at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Florida.  Here is the transcript of my sermon below.

Who Are You?
Genesis 1:26 – 31 & 2:4 – 7, Ephesians 2: 1- 10
 
“Who am I?”  “Why am I here?”  “Am I important?”  “What is my purpose in life?”  These are questions you may have asked, you may be contemplating or struggling with them today.  These are good questions.  These are important questions.  These are questions I am hoping to answer today. 
 
 Do you believe there is a God who created everything?  Do you believe there is a God in heaven who cares about you and about the world we live in?  Do you know that you are a unique creation of God?  We are not here by accident.
 
Today we will look at 3 observations about God’s relation to humanity in regards to our purpose in life.  These observations are foundational to the understanding of your uniqueness and purpose.

1. You were created by God.in His image
2. You were given life by God
3. You were created with a purpose.

And once I have established these truths biblically we will look more specifically at your purpose as creation of God’s. 

1. You were created by GodGenesis 1:26
   Vs. 26: Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” The sixth day is the climax of the creation account.  It is here that we find humanities origins, purpose and call.  You and I are created by God.  He formed us.  We are crafted by the hand of God and He has taken great care in creating us.  Humanity is more than a lump of clay or a pile of dust.  He is a creature that was crafted by the hand of God with great.  If you note in God’s act of creation he merely speaks and things come into existence; yet with man we are told that he created or crafted man from the dust or clay and made the dust and clay into something new, something living.  Something in His likeness.
   
   
2. You were given life by GodGenesis 2:7: Genesis 2:7 says, “and the man became a living creature.”  The word creature has been translated as a “being” or “soul”.   I have established that we are created by God.  The author of Genesis begins in chapter 2 with God forming man from the dust of the earth and breathing life into him.  Through this traditional image Genesis implies that people are by nature more than material (we are more than an empty vessel); we have a spiritual, God-breathed, element too.[1]  This is what sets us apart from all the other creation.  This is what separates us from the animal kingdom.  This is what separates us from nature.  We are created in the image of God.  This means we can think, we can reason, we can solve problems.  We have a spirit, we have a soul.  We are relational beings.  We can give love and we can receive love.  We have morals.  We have a conscience.  We know the difference between right and wrong.  We are the image of God.  We are not God nor are we little gods we are only created in his likeness.  This means we bear his image and we are his representatives.
   
   
3. You are created with a purposeVs. 2:18, 19: In verses 18 and 19 of chapter 2 we see for the first time God does not find pleasure in his creation.  It is not because he is unsatisfied with creation; he notices that man was not finding the companionship that he craved.  He notices that man is alone.  There is no suitable or compatible helper to assist him.  God did not want Adam to be alone.  God in his tender care, grace and love creates woman for the man from the man.
   
   God causes a deep sleep to fall over Adam and he takes a rib from his side to form and fashion woman.  It is interesting to read Martin Luther’s take on this, God might have taken a bone from a toe and thus signified that Adam was to rule over her; or He might have taken a bone from his head to indicate her rule over him. But by taking a bone from his side, God implied equality and mutual respect.”[2]  The end result, woman, was pleasing to Adam.  He declares, “Finally!  I have someone like me, and someone who is compatible with me and can be my companion!”

 
In this we have seen that we are his reflection.  We are created in His image we have dignity.  We have worth. My friends we are truly God’s beloved creation and we have purpose.
 
Your Purpose
So what is your purpose? 

1. You were created to worship God and find joy in Him.  I believe the writers of the 1646 beloved reformed document “The Westminster Confession” sums up our purpose quite accurately, Q: “What is the chief end of man?”  (Why am I here and what’s the point?).  A: Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.”  No matter what age you are, you have purpose.  Purpose is not something that you aspire to have or something you once had or accomplished.  It is something you have now.  Your purpose goes beyond happiness, comfort, emotional and economical stability.  Your purpose is greater than that.  Your purpose is greater than living your life carefully so you arrive safely at death.  You were created in God’s pleasure so you must seek pleasure and enjoyment from him so that you can fully know and show Him to others. 
   How do you enjoy God practically?  For me I like to just spend time with God.  Reflecting on His grace and goodness.  I like to sit in the outdoors and look at creation around me and give God thanks for the beauty of his creation.  I praise Him for the continual blessings in my life like family, friends, work and even the simple things in life.  I challenge you today to find ways to worship and enjoy God.  It’s pretty easy to do here on the Gulf Coast.    
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2. You are created in Jesus Christ for good works (Ephesians 2:1 -10).  I trust you all know the importance of good works.  I also trust you know salvation is not attained by good works.  Good works are the result of salvation.  Ephesians tells us that we are created in Jesus Christ for good works.  What are good works?  Is it helping the little lady across the street?  Is it feeding the hungry?  Is it helping widows and orphans?  Well, yes.  However the good works we do need to spotlight God and His Kingdom and not your own.  This is where the Pharisees got it wrong.  They wanted people to see their good works so they would be glorified.  A true follower of Christ does works to glorify God, not themselves.  How can you do this practically?  In everything you do, make sure your heart is pure and that you are doing it because you are responding to God’s call and doing it for His glory, not your own.
   
   
3. You are created to promote and proclaim Jesus (Matthew 28:16).  Jesus gave us a command or a commission before he ascended to heaven.  He told his followers to go out and spread the Good News of hope, redemption and restoration.  The Good news of life both now and for all eternity.  Since we are God’s image bearers we must reflect Him to the world around us.  All that we do and say should be a testimony of our allegiance to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  We need to be vocal about sharing the Gospel, we need to be living the Gospel and we must be preaching the Gospel to ourselves every day.  We have opportunities daily to promote Jesus, so be faithful and sensitive to his leading in how you can do this.  We have hope and if you haven’t noticed, there are many people in this world who are hopeless for whatever reason.  Their reasons may be political, relational, or economical hopelessness.  But we have the Good News that Jesus came to bring life, hope and redemption today and for all eternity.  His purpose is for us to focus on the Big Picture, the Kingdom of God, and offering hope through Jesus Christ to all who have no hope at all.

 
Conclusion
So to go back to the questions I asked at the beginning of this message…“Why am I here?”  “How did I get here?”  “Is there a point to my life?”  “Do I have a higher calling in life that just existing?”  “Am I important?”  “What’s the purpose of life?”  I would hope that you can see the answers to these questions are yes.  You have purpose and your purpose is to worship God and to enjoy him forever.  It is to do good works in the name of Jesus Christ, and it is to offer hope by promoting Jesus Christ and His Kingdom. 
If you take anything with you today, please know you are a unique creation of God.  You have purpose and that purpose is established in your understanding and relationship to God, who loves you and has a plan for you.


[1] New Bible commentary: 21st century edition. 1994 (D. A. Carson, R. T. France, J. A. Motyer & G. J. Wenham, Ed.) (4th ed.) (Ge 2:4–7). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press.

[2] Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. (1999). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible commentary (Ge 2:21). Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers.