Colossians 3:8-9 (NKJV) But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds.
The Apostle Paul was encouraging the believers in the church of Colossae to put off the “old man” and identify themselves in the “new man”. Paul depicts the “old man” as wild, blasphemous, ill-tempered, deceitful, unscrupulous, untruthful and vulgar, living a licentious lifestyle, prejudiced, void of genuine love, immoral, without ethics and values, and a slave to sin. The “old man” sees themselves as self-made, master of their own destiny until they are humbled by the hard knocks of life.
Galatians 2:20 (NKJV) I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
To a born-again Christian, their “old man” is considered dead the moment they accept Christ into our lives. Baptism is an outward expression of an inward conviction. Before being baptised, we already have the inward conviction that our old self is dead and crucified with Christ. During baptism, we consider ourselves symbolically dead and buried with Christ when we enter into the water, and we arise as a “new creation”.
Our “old man”’s identity is based on our sense of self-worth, which in turn is based on things like our family background, physical appearance, academic or career achievements and the size of our bank accounts. Our self-worth can subtly become a god in our eyes without us even realising till everything that we have crumbles. While there is nothing inherently wrong with these things, but because they are temporal, they are the wrong foundations for our identity. They are the “sinking sand” that the Bible refers to, and will not hold us up when the storm of life hits us.
Our old identity thrives on the praises and approval of men based on our achievements, including the number of our “likes” on social media. Unfortunately, everything that can be achieved by our own strength can also be overtaken anytime. Because the world operates on Phileo love, which is a conditional love, praises, affirmations, kindness, and respect that our old identity feeds on will one day disappear when we are down and out in life, or lose our position of significance.
To avoid feeling worthless, insecure, and rejected when that happens, we need to shift from identifying ourselves in the “old man” to the “new man” and focus from “doing” to being in Christ. The redemptive work of Jesus Christ has caused us to be accepted in the Beloved. Because we are hidden in Christ, God will always accept and welcome us. This positional truth doesn’t depend on what do, but purely on the grace of God and His love towards us.
Sermon Series: He Came to Give You a New Identity
蜕去旧我
歌罗西书3:8-9 但现在你们要弃绝这一切的事，以及恼恨、忿怒、恶毒、毁谤，并口中污秽的言语。 不要彼此说谎；因你们已经脱去旧人和旧人的行为。
使徒保罗鼓励歌罗西教会的信徒们脱去”旧我”，在”新造的人”找到自己的身份。保罗所描绘的“旧我”是狂野、亵渎神明、暴躁、狡诈、肆无忌惮、不诚实、污言秽语的人，过着放荡的生活，充满偏见，缺失真爱、道德败坏，没有道德观和价值观，是罪的奴仆。这个”旧我”认定自己白手起家，俨然是自己命运的主人，直到有一天因遭受了生活的暴击而谦卑下来。
加拉太书2:20 我已经与基督同钉十字架，现在活着的不再是我，乃是基督在我里面活着；并且我如今在肉身活着，是因信神的儿子而活；他是爱我，为我舍己。
对于一个重生的基督徒来说，”旧我”在我们接受基督进入我们生命的那一刻就被认为是死的。洗礼是内在信念的外在表达。在受洗之前，我们已经有了内在的信念，即我们的旧我已经死了，与基督同钉十字架。在洗礼期间，当我们进入水中时，我们认为自己象征性地死了并与基督同埋，当我们从水中复出时就成了”新造的人”。
我们的”旧我”的身份认同是基于我们的自我价值感，而自我价值感又是基于我们的家庭背景、外形颜值、学术或职业成就、或我们银行账户的大小。不知不觉中我们的自我价值可能已经摇身一变成为我们眼中的神，直到某天我们所拥有的一切都土崩瓦解。虽然这些东西本身并没有什么错，但因为它们是暂时的，所以用它们作为我们身份认同的基础是错误的。它们是圣经所指的”导致倒塌的沙土”，当生命的风暴袭击我们时，它们无法支撑我们。
旧的身份认同因人的赞美和认可而兴盛，这些赞美和认可是基于我们的成就，包括我们在社交媒体上收获的”点赞”数量。不幸的是，一切我们凭借一己之力所能达成的成就也能随时被超越。因为这个世界是以Phileo友爱来开动的，这是一种有条件的爱，在将来的某一天, 当我们落魄潦倒或不再位高权重时, 我们旧的身份认同所依赖的赞美、肯定、善意和尊重也将不复存在。
为了避免在发生这种情况时感到自己一文不值、惶惶不安又格格不入，我们需要将我们的身份认同从“旧我”转向“新造的人”，定睛于基督里的身份而非“作为”。耶稣基督的救赎工作使我们在爱子里被接纳。我们隐藏在基督里，神会永远接纳和欢迎我们。这个位份的真理不取决于我们的行为，而是全然依赖神的恩典以及祂对我们的爱。
讲章系列：祂来给你一个新身份
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