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Retro Christian: Be Yourself

Matt Ahearn

One of the most popular messages of culture is “be yourself.” These two words are everywhere. A search on Google yields around four million responses. Among the responses are restaurants (Roadhouse Grill), children’s TV shows (Mr. Rogers), and even Christian dating tips. Today, as we continue the “Retro-Christian” series, we will examine this truth in a detailed and challenging way. While “be yourself” may not be an ancient truth, it is extremely popular, and, when examined biblically, it is an area where we may need to go “retro.”

Due to the popularity of this message in culture, it is probably something that most readers already know. So, instead of going through this topic in a typical fashion, let’s jump into Ephesians and take a slightly different perspective on “be yourself.”

Dead Man

Paul, continuing his letter to the Ephesians, writes in Ephesians 2:1-3:

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. (NKJV)

Paul, of course, wrote this epistle to the Ephesian church, a loving group saved by the grace of God. In these first three verses, Paul covers their identity before they knew Jesus Christ. They, like everyone, were at one time spiritually dead in trespasses and sins. It was in these sins that the Ephesians lived while they walked in a worldly manner and followed the “kingdom of the air.” That phrase sounds like something from Star Wars, but it probably refers to Satan. The apostle then briefly turns to what it looks like to be “dead in trespasses.” He orates how each Christian once walked to gratify sinful nature, willingly following its desires and thoughts. And, of course, the result of this was God’s wrath.

Paul correctly paints a bleak picture of what the Ephesians used to be. It becomes even bleaker when we think about how terrible physical death appears. If you have ever had some creature die in your house or if you have come across a dead animal in the wild, then you know exactly how terrible and disgusting death is. While Paul is certainly not referring to physical death, the deadness we experienced apart from Christ was, in a way, equally as terrible. We were in this condition due to our sin and this sin made us so filthy that we could not be in God’s presence (Romans 3:23). Even our righteousness was like filthy rags to the Lord (Isaiah 64:4-9). As we followed and pursued sin, we clearly had the stench of it everywhere. We were dead. Filthy. Impure.

Yes, very bleak. And, it is where every person in this world is and where every Christian was. When it comes to Christians, though, we speak of this in the past tense. The story does not end with death. It does not end with where we used to be, but where we are now.

Man Alive!

Paul, later on in chapter two, verses four and five, says:

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)…. (NKJV)

Suddenly, things change! God loved us despite our terrible, dead condition and made us alive in Christ. No longer were we dead in sin. No longer were we impure or unholy. While we still do sin, God has changed us and now views us as His holy children. And, Paul continues by saying that we have been raised up to sit “in the heavenly places” in Christ (Ephesians 2:6). What a change! To go from a filthy, impure place of deadness in sin and to then be saved by Christ, the Savior, and made alive is a glorious change!

Through these few verses, Paul illustrates what those “in Christ” used to be and what they are now. Each Christian had an identity apart from God as those who were gratifying sinful desires. However, as I pointed out above, God has stepped in and made a glorious change for each person “in Christ Jesus.”

A New Creation

Paul’s discussion of man before and after Christ is reminiscent of his statement in 2 Corinthians 5:17, which reads: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (NKJV).

This is one of the most popular passages in Scripture. Because we are “in Christ,” we are now new creations because the old things, the dead and sinful things, have passed. Christ has now made us alive in Him as new creations. Thus, from Ephesians and 1 Corinthians, we have a very clear understanding of a Christian’s identity in Christ. We are new and alive!

With this knowledge in hand, let us now proceed and see what it truly means to “be our self.” Let’s go retro.

Alive Person … Acting Dead?

Typically, “be yourself” simply means that we are not to emulate someone in our circle of friends or in the culture. Many may often be tempted to try being “someone else” in order to find acceptance or make friends and, as Christians, it is important to be who God made us. For example, when I write, I pray that God speaks through these words, but, in the end, I want him to use me and my “style” for His glory rather than trying to emulate Shakespeare or Wadsworth when I write (which would be scary). This is a solid lesson that many reading this have probably already heard. However, in the introduction, I stated that we would take a slightly different perspective on this. Instead of simply saying, “be yourself,” let us dig a little deeper in light of the Scripture we have previously examined.

I will start with a question: Today, if you are a Christian, how do you live your life? Do your actions and attitudes look like an “alive” person in Christ? Or does your life, though alive, look more like that of someone dead in sin? Christ has made us all “alive in Him.” That is who we are. It is our identity. Are we then, being our self? Do we even want to be our self as alive people in Christ Jesus?

These are challenging questions. God has made each of us His children and we are alive in Him. And, Ephesians 2:10 tells us that God has prepared good works for each alive person to accomplish. As alive people “in Christ,” we are to move around. Physically, live people, with the exception of little kids playing cowboys and Indians, do not typically act dead. I have never walked into Wal-Mart and found everyone on the ground, holding their breath, trying to look dead. Live people move around, they do things, read things, feel things, and talk about everything. As spiritually alive people do we constantly strive to “be ourselves” and live alive lives for Jesus Christ?

Christ made an amazing sacrifice so that we could be spiritually alive. He knew how impure and dead we were. Yet, He still chose to live among us, die on the cross, and He predestined us to every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm (Ephesians 1:3). Through Him we were chosen, adopted, redeemed, and given the Holy Spirit of promise (Ephesians 1:1-15). What a sacrifice! Simply living an “alive” life seems like such a tiny offering compared to Christ’s work at Calvary. But, will we make that offering? Will we go retro and “be our self”?

In Conclusion

As I stated earlier, God has created good works for each person “in Christ” to accomplish. Opportunities to “be ourselves” and follow in these works are everywhere. They are in the home, community, and the church. The question is: Are we “being ourselves” in Christ? Are we living like we are alive, following in Christ’s footsteps as we serve Him? Or, are we alive creations emulating dead people?

“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called….” (Ephesians 4:1, NKJV)