Part of being human is discovering your identity. “Who am I?” is a question we pose to ourselves at every turning point in life. The reality is, however, that we can’t answer that question in splendid isolation. Who are we? might be the natural follow-up to the original question. The problem comes when we define ourselves all to often we do so by noting what differentiates us from others. My identity includes my race, nationality, sex, education, family, heritage, and so much more. We all to easily define those who don’t share those characteristics with us as “other,” and soon build walls and barriers to separate my “tribe” from others. The Bible gives us a different option for the one identity that we all share — because of Jesus everyone of us is a child of God. When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son … so that we might receive adoption as sons. The task we have as believers is to live out our identity as part of one family, the family of God, with all of the love, forgiveness and generosity that entails.
