What Really Defines You?

No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.

Revelation 22:3-4

When high school students decide which college to attend, one of the first things they do is to purchase a shirt or sweatshirt with the name of the institution emblazoned on the front. They wear this brand proudly, proclaiming to the world: “I’m a student at USC” or “I belong to UCLA.” They are glad to be associated with their college and want the whole world to know.

Do I really think of myself as God’s servant, child, ambassador, and saint? Or am I defined more by some of the other labels I wear? What really defines me?

In Revelation 22:4, we find a similar phenomenon. Except, in this case, the brand doesn’t go on a t-shirt, but rather on people’s foreheads. And the identification is not with a college, but rather with God. As John puts it, “They will see [God’s] face, and his name will be on their foreheads” (22:4). This means that those who serve God and see his face belong to him. They are God’s servants, God’s chosen people, and God’s beloved children. Their relationship with God defines them more than anything else.

As I reflect on this passage from Revelation, I think about all the different “brands” I “wear” in life. I belong to my wife (and wear a ring she gave me). I’m glad to be associated with my children, as well as my family of origin and extended family. I am identified by what I do, by my work with the De Pree Center at Fuller Seminary. I’m part of a church, an ordained Presbyterian pastor, an alumnus of a college, a resident of Pasadena, a citizen of California and the United States. All of these associations and so many more define me to some extent, and this is not necessarily wrong. But, I wonder how much I am defined by my relationship with God.

When I think of who I am, do I see myself, first and foremost as belonging to the Lord? Do I “wear” God’s name on my forehead? Do I really think of myself as God’s servant, child, ambassador, and saint? Or am I defined more by some of the other labels I wear? What really defines me?

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

What really defines you? If you were to wear a word or phrase on your forehead that most clearly identifies you, what would it be?

What difference might it make in your life if you “wore” God’s name on your “forehead”? I’m not thinking right now of how others might see you so much as how you might see yourself. If you got up this morning and said, “I belong to God most of all,” how might this shape your day?

PRAYER:

Gracious God, how glad I am to belong to you. Thank you for accepting me as your own, not because of my works, but because of your grace in Christ.

Help me, Lord, to see myself as belonging to you. May my relationship with you define who I am. May it put into right perspective all the other identities by which I am known.

As I go through this day, as I do the work that is before me, as I relate to my colleagues, friends, and family members, may I do so as one who belongs to you. Amen.