Scripture: Romans 7: 15-25
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Congratulations!
You are a part of the most photographed generation in history. With every store
you waltz into, every ATM you access and every family party you attend with
Aunt Barbara and her new camera slung around her neck, more and more pics of
you are being snapped, saved and uploaded to some off-shore server than ever!
But
truth be told, the greatest culprit in our photo-obsessed society isn't Aunt
Barbara. It's us. If you're like most people, then the "selfie" has
become a regular part of your everyday existence. You know what a
"selfie" is, right? It's a self-portrait photograph taken by a
handheld digital camera or a smartphone, usually for the purpose of sharing on
social media. And we do it all the time.
Does
anyone want to fess up to taking a selfie? Okay, now who in here HASN’T taken
one?
Even
President Obama was even caught snapping a selfie with Denmark's Prime Minister
at Nelson Mandela's memorial service.
In
today's text, what we have from Paul is nothing less than a "selfie".
It's a snapshot in writing, of how the apostle sees himself. And he's not
showing off a new haircut with pride or posing with friends at a party. Paul
instead has given us a snapshot of himself that is raw, unfiltered and -- at
least according to Paul--deeply unflattering.
It's
as if Paul is looking at himself and saying, "Dude. I'm a mess."
Paul's
snapshot reveals a man who feels tossed back and forth between what he sees as
two forces at work within his heart and mind. Paul knows that he is "in
Christ," and as such, a new creation, no longer defined by that which is
corrupt in him. But, as seen by God, he is dressed up in the goodness and
rightness of Jesus Christ. And yet, deeply rooted within him, remains the power
of sin. It remains in his flesh and bones, rearing its ugly head.
Keep
in mind that Paul is no newbie to the Christian faith. According to most
estimates, he's been following Jesus for some 25 years. Paul's selfie reveals
that he is, despite the grey hair on his head and lines of wisdom on his face,
still simultaneously a saint and sinner. He is righteous in the eyes of God
because of Christ, yet broken to the core because of his sin.
The
honesty of Paul's self-portrait is jarring, isn't it? Especially when held in
contrast to the selfies in which we so often indulge. If we're honest, we have
to admit that when we snap a picture of ourselves, we do so in the most
flattering light possible. And we may even take and retake photos to get just
the perfect shot, showing off our best features.
For
most of us, our cameras are with us wherever we go. They allow an infinite
number of do-overs and they come with a plethora of editing options like
cropping and filters, all in the palm of our hands. This has empowered us not
only to shift the focus to ourselves, but to pose and present a particular self
to the rest of the world.
If
we want to be seen as the girl with pouty "duck-lips" or the buff guy
who's always flexing at the gym or the fun friend who's always doing something
adventurous and having lots of fun, then we can. By a simple photo, we can be
anyone we want to be. We can pick and choose the faucets of our life that we
want others to see. And no one will ever see anything else -- at least not on
social media.
But
Paul knew that there's power in the unfiltered assessment of life. There's
power for the follower of Jesus, in the no-makeup, harshly-lit selfie that
shows every wrinkle. The power, of course, is that the more honestly we assess
ourselves, admitting our deep, continuing brokenness, then the more heroic, the
more grace-filled and generous Jesus begins to look. One cannot understand the
true heights of God's love until we come to grasp the radical depths of our sin.
Despite
what our social media feed shows, we are more than that perfectly lit, posed
“selfie” that the world sees. We are more than the 5x7 or 8x10 photo in the
picture frame hanging on your wall. We are more than what a single picture can
encapsulate.
You
see, when a picture is taken, it only captures exactly what everything looks
like inside the rectangular frame at that exact second the button is pushed. It
never captures the before, the after, the thoughts, the emotions, or anything
beyond that rectangle.
A
single picture on a specific day doesn't adequately capture us as a person.
Similarly, one day or one step in our faith journey doesn't adequately describe
us as a Christian.
We
are all broken people living in a broken world. We've all messed up. Sometimes
those mess-ups seem too big or too bad for us to be loved. We label ourselves
as unlovable or unworthy. We give up hope that we can ever be loved or
forgiven. Our mistakes begin to define us, change us, and keep us from
God.
The
thing is, God's grace is soooo much bigger than any failure of ours. One of my
favorite songs, How He Loves by David Crowder has a verse that says, "If
His grace is an ocean, we're all sinking" No matter the depth of our
mistakes, God's grace is deeper. Because when God looks at us, He doesn't see
that one mistake or that one failure. He sees US. He
sees a broken and beautiful individual.
Our
past is only one chapter in our life, not the whole book.
It’s
only when we truly examine ourselves that we can accurately see the beauty and
fullness of God’s grace.
I
have a friend, Bethany Haley, that grew up in Murray and is now a psychologist
living in Nashville. She traveled to the Congo in 2008, encountered a darkness
she had never seen before. She later founded a nonprofit organization, Exile
International, and she spends most of her year in Africa, helping former child
soldiers. What happens is soldiers come and capture children from their homes
and turn them into soldiers, being forced to murder innocent people. These 7,
8, and 9 year old children that escape, return home scared and broken. They
feel unlovable. Bethany works to transition them back into a somewhat normal
life and help them see that God still loves them, they are more than those
awful things they were made to do. One of the ways she works with them is through
art therapy. One of the art forms, she has the children get scraps of paper,
and magazine and rip them in strips. They then roll up the strips to make
beads, then use the beads to make bracelets and necklaces to sell. I had the
honor of selling some of those beautiful creations a few years back. She tells
the children that they are like those creations. They were once ripped and
broken, but they became beautiful. That they too can be beautiful, that God can
take our broken, tattered pieces and make something beautiful.
Thanks
to grace we are not defined by our shortcomings. We
must learn to have grace on ourselves, and understand that we are so much more
than our darkest, deepest regrets and failures. We have so much more worth and
value than our mistakes suggest. Likewise, we must learn to have grace on
others. They too should not be defined by a past mistake, but be forgiven and
loved.
Well-known
author Bob Goff tweeted, "Grace means our failures don't define who we are
anymore; they just shape who we are becoming."
In
2013, the Oxford Dictionary announced that "selfie" was its
"word of the year." The act and the idea are here to stay. And if you
don't quite buy it yet, or are one of the six remaining people yet to take one,
just wait. It won't be long before someone throws their arm around your
shoulder, dangles a smartphone in front of your face and says,
"Cheese!" And when it happens, congratulate yourself. You will have
just become one of the countless masses who've taken a selfie.
It's time to forget about where you've been, what you've done, and who you used to be. God doesn't care about your failures, mistakes, or even your mishaps. God is focused on where you're going, what you're going to do, and who you're becoming through Him.
