Who am I? The search for self often results in little more than a
few clues that define us only in part. It's as if we are looking
in a series of mirrors, some better than others, that reflect
back glimpses of self but not the whole picture. The whole
picture requires relationship with the master designer Himself.
In His great love for us, Jesus lays claim to who we truly
are. He alone knows who the true self is; He alone can call forth
that self. As we respond to His loving initiative in our lives,
the most profound and authentic parts of our personhood come
forth. The light of powerful love awakens us, and calls us out of
the shadows of lesser selves. Through His reflection, we become
aware of who we truly are.
Jesus alone possesses the knowledge of that true self; we
see ourselves only in part. He sees us in full. Often our
“self-portrait” is composed of damaging brush strokes applied by
others or by our own distorted efforts to create a self. But in
truth only the Creator of the original work can define it. One
with the Father in the creation of each person, Jesus intends on
reclaiming the true image He created in us (Jn 1:3). He alone
envisioned that image; He alone can lovingly call that image
forth from out of the dark layers that have shrouded it.
Suppose a painter created a beautiful painting, one that
bore his distinctive design and style. His pride in the work
was matched only by his distress when vandals stole the
painting and mistreated it until the original design was barely
recognisable. Their fingerprints smudged it; layers of dust
and grime obscured the true form and colours intended by the
painter. He searched everywhere, going from gallery to loft to
attic until he found his work. Then gently, but with unerring
accuracy and skill, he restored the work, removing the layers of
damage and enabling his true design to emerge.
Jesus is that master painter. And He persists in love to
reclaim the true self in each of us. Jesus’ interaction with
the Samaritan woman in John 4 illustrates well His pursuit of
that self. That woman had lived her life apart from God. As a
Samaritan she was considered an outcast, and as an “unclean”
woman (married 5 times and now living with a man), she had
little to commend herself to Jesus. But He saw beyond her
disqualifications. He beheld in her one who was created for
unfailing love.
What did Jesus see? Deeper than her original sin, Jesus beheld
her as one destined for real relationship with God and with her
fellow humanity. At core, Jesus knew that she was a bearer of His
image and likeness. According to Genesis 1:26 and 27, God creates
humanity as male and female in His image. Humanity alone bears
that image, which means that we alone are called to represent
and somehow reveal God on the earth. We are like little mirrors,
intended to reflect to all the glory of the One who created us.
We can say that bearing the image of God is the most profound and
authentic part of our humanity. And that image shines forth as we
welcome Jesus into our lives. It is the true self that says “yes”
to Jesus. And it is only through responding to Jesus and His
loving initiative in our lives that we discover who and what that
self truly is. As C.S. Lewis said: “Your real, new self (which is
Christ’s and also yours, and yours just because it is His) will
not come as long as you are looking for it. It will come when you
are looking for Him." (Mere Christianity, Touchstone Publishing,
P. 191)
As we seek to know Him better, more and more of the true
self is reclaimed. Eternal, unfailing love reclaims our
hearts. Established in God, we begin to grasp the higher and
truer purposes of our humanity.
