One of the things that men in particular are often guilty of is, as it’s cleverly formulated, being “human doings” rather than “human beings”. Men all too often define themselves by what they do rather than who they are. It’s easy to fall into that, since society conditions us to. Often, when first meeting someone, once names are exchanged the next question is “So, what do you do?” And the answer is nearly always the person’s job.
When the steel mills in and around Pittsburgh were closing and moving elsewhere 40 or so years ago, a large number of (mainly) men lost their identity, since working at the steel mill was no longer their job. The same dynamic has been happening over the last couple of decades in West Virginia with coal miners. Without the job to define who they are, significant identity crises can result—and in many cases, did result.
Of course, what we do ought to be an expression of who we are. A painter, a sculptor, DO painting and sculpting, but what is produced comes from who they are. Pablo Picasso and Claude Monet both painted, but their creations were unmistakably different from each other. They were creating out of the essence of who they were—their God-given identities, abilities, vision, and creative “juices”. Although both painted, Picasso was not Monet, and Monet was not Picasso. And one doesn’t have to be an art expert to tell the difference.
Not everyone has the luxury of doing the work that they are uniquely called to do. Some folk live in circumstances beyond their control, where they have to do what they have to do and don’t have the opportunity to pursue a “dream job”—a “vocation”. But what Easter does, as the love and grace of God and the life, teachings, example, and passion of Jesus make possible, is to give us the opportunity to see ourselves with new eyes—God’s eyes. God cares what we “do”—as we are to love God and love neighbor as foundational life choices and behaviors—but who we are in God’s eyes is not defined by what we do. God doesn’t see us as manifestations of our jobs; God sees us as those created uniquely by God and called to live out that uniqueness in community, with one another. So God isn’t looking to change us, but rather for us to live into God’s vision of who we are—to see ourselves as God sees us.
This Sunday is Ascension Sunday, and one of the things that Jesus tells his followers in Acts 1 as he departs from his earthly existence is that the Holy Spirit will give them power to be witnesses for him. He tells Nicodemus in the familiar passage from John 3 that being born of the Spirit is part of how one sees the Kingdom of God. It seems that part of living out who we are, in the way that God (who created us, and knows us better than we know ourselves) sees us and calls on us to live it out, is being empowered and led by the Holy Spirit. That’s not changing who we are and what we do as much as it is embodying and fulfilling who we are and what we do, as God desires us to live and be. And we can do that whether we’re in our dream job or not!
GOSPEL John 3:1-7
1 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, ‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.’ 3 Jesus answered him, ‘Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.’ 4 Nicodemus said to him, ‘How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?’ 5Jesus answered, ‘Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7Do not be astonished that I said to you, “You must be born from above.”
NEW TESTAMENT Acts 1:6-14
6 So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ 7 He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ 9 When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. 11They said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’
12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. 13 When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of* James. 14 All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.