What Defines You

"And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him."

Mark 15:20 (NIV)

The gospel of Mark conveys the sobering account of Jesus being mocked before His crucifixion. Mark tells us, “The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called together the whole company of soldiers. They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. And they began to call out to him, ‘Hail, king of the Jews!’ Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him. Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him. And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.”

You and I both know, don’t we, that Jesus wasn’t the purple robe that those soldiers put on Him. Nor was He defined by His own clothes. We know that He is so much more than either. What Jesus wore did not define who He is.

Jesus Christ has been given a name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee must bow and every tongue must confess that He is Lord. So it didn’t matter, on that fateful day, if they had put that purple robe on Him to spit on Him and hit Him. He was still the Christ. And it didn’t matter if they disrobed Him and put His own clothes back on Him to be crucified. When He died and was raised from the dead, He was still our savior and redeemer.

And last I checked, not only is He still savior and redeemer, but He’s also prophet, priest, and king. He’s also provider, sustainer, and friend—a friend that sticks closer than a brother.

Just as you are not defined by what you wear physically, you are also so much more than the attitude and the disposition and the personality faults and the mistakes and the sin and the flaws and the failures that you carry around. You’re so much more than your doubts and your fears and your idiosyncrasies. You’re so much more than your job and your status and your title. You are so much more than your material possessions and your money and your car and your house. All of these are like garments that can be taken off and put on. They do not define you.

So if you can’t be defined by any of those things, then who are you?

I will tell you who you are: you are a child of the Almighty God.