Remembering Who We Are

The story is told of a certain king. He was a good king, and his kingdom prospered under his reign. It came about that the king and his queen had a child--a son--who was to become the heir to the throne. This child would one day rule the kingdom. The child grew, and all was well until one fateful day: everything changed. The king’s brother, who was the heir to the throne until the new prince was born, conspired with the king’s enemies to kill the king and the prince. Then he could claim the throne.

Their plan was a success . . . except for one little flaw. They succeeded in killing the king, but not the young prince. Instead, the enemies of the king drove the prince from the kingdom into the wilderness, assuming he would not survive.

But the child of the king did survive. He made it through the wilderness alive. It was there, on the other side of the wilderness, that the young prince met a meerkat named Timon and a warthog named Pumbaa. It was here--outside his father’s kingdom--that the young prince learned to forget his troubles, enjoy the carefree life, and live by the phrase, Hakuna Matata, which means “no worries.” It was here that Simba, the child of the king, forgot who he was.

Simba was a child of the king, yet he lived as a wanderer, eating bugs. While he was living life with “no worries,” the kingdom of his father was being run into the ground by his uncle, who, needless to say, was not quite the ruler his brother had been. Hunger, oppression, and injustice spread throughout the land while the child of the king lived the carefree life--forgetting who he was. The kingdom could have been restored, had Simba lived as the child of the King.

Things continued this way--you know the story--until Simba runs into a baboon named Rafiki. What’s special about Rafiki? He knows who Simba really is. Simba is the son of the king, and the rightful ruler of Pride Rock. The conversation between Simba and Rafiki ends with Rafiki looking Simba in the eye and asking him one simple question: “Who are you?” Simba responds, “I don’t know. I used to think I knew, but now I’m not so sure.” Who are we, really, as Christians? The question Rafiki puts to Simba in that silly film is a question that I think is relevant to us today: Who are you, really? What does it mean to really be and live as a Christian? I must admit, we live in a world where disappointments, temptations, failures, stress, spiritual attacks, lack of faith, and bad decisions can eat at us every day. Sometimes they can even cause us to forget who we are as children of God. And so our question is relevant tonight. Who are we, really, as Christians, and how are we to live?

Hear the Word of the Lord from Romans 6. [Read Romans 6:1b-14]

Paul makes some pretty definitive statements in this passage about what being a Christian really means. In grammatical terms, we call them indicatives. Fear not, it is not my intent to present a grammar lesson today. I just want to point out that an indicative is a word that indicates something--a statement of fact. Hear what Paul states as fact about being a Christian:

• Verse 3-4: death, newness of life

• Verse 7: free from sin

• Verse 10: Christ died, “to sin,” once and for all, and He now lives “to God”

Paul uses words like “dead to sin,” “freed from sin,” “newness of life,” and “live with him” to describe what really happens when someone is in right-relationship with God through His son Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. The reality of what happens at the cross of Jesus Christ is that sin and death have been put to death! Sin no longer has dominion over Christ. If we are in Him, it doesn’t have to have dominion over us, either.

Sometimes we act as if the Cross never happened. We doubt. We worry. We continue to struggle with the same sin that has plagued us for years. Paul states that sin and death do not have to have that kind of dominion and power over us.

How should we live, then? Paul’s challenge to us, believe it or not, is essentially the same as Rafiki’s challenge to Simba: Remember who you are! Paul’s answer comes in the form of some imperatives--commands, really (see verses 12-14). As Christians, we are called to live every day in that newness of life. “Present your members to God as instruments of righteousness” (v. 13, NRSV). Remember who you are. Remember what Christ did. Remember what His resurrection means. I’ve good, Good News, my friends: The God who saves us from our sins is the God who brings us to newness of life in Christ Jesus.

Simba finally remembered who he was.

• His role was to go back to Pride Rock, claim the throne, and restore his father’s kingdom.

As we remember who we are today,(read Galatians 4:4-7):

• Our role is to participate in our Father’s kingdom through love.

• God calls us to let people know, that in Jesus, they can be forgiven, healed, and made new. God calls us to serve people as Jesus would serve, caring for the bodies and souls of our neighbors.

And so remember who you are this week . . .

• . . . as you face that temptation you’ve been struggling with for months or years. God calls you, through His love and grace, to be free from all that.

• . . . as you are tempted to worry over finances and job situations.

• . . . when you see someone at work or school you know is hurting. May we share this newness of life with someone who needs it this week.

• . . . in your marriage and family relationships this week.

• . . . in everything you do.

And remember who you are, when we gather together again for worship next Sunday, having lived this coming week as children of the King.