Who Am I Really?

I’m sure we’ve all been in social situations when someone asked us, “What do you do?” I believe it’s like stallions nipping and pawing each other to determine pecking order—maybe subconsciously—but doing it anyway. The better question to discover more about the person would be, “Who are you? What makes you tick?”

How we answer this question discloses much about our self-image rather than our artificially assigned place in society. Society gauges us on pedigree; Where did we go to school? What organizations do we belong to? What title do we carry at work?

But what does that really tell

others about our character, our heart, our humility, our patience, and other personal attributes? Nothing. If we’re serious about getting to know another person and not just playing the social game, we should want to know about their character more than their accomplishments. To “test the water” of someone who has asked you the “what” instead of the “who” question, you might still answer the ”who.”

For example, as a believer in Jesus Christ, what is the most important thing you could tell someone who asks about you? I’m not going to answer for you, but it’s something to think about. The Bible is filled with affirmations (promises) about who we are. We just need to appropriate them for ourselves. Just to list a few: I am a child of the King (Luke 18:16), I am chosen by God (Col. 3:12; 2 Thess. 2:13), I am forgiven (Eph. 1:7; Col. 2:13), I am considered righteous (2 Cor. 5:21); I’ve got my reservation in Heaven (John 3:16), and many, many others.

In addition, because we are filled with the Holy Spirit,

we also have the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal. 5:22,23). When these attributes are observable in our lives we earn the right to tell others about Jesus and His salvation for any who come to Him in humility and repentance. This is why “who” is better than “what.” Thanks for reading.