It's all about Definition

No, I'm not talking about the newest TV or even killer abs. I'm talking about what defines you as a person.‌‌

We are always looking for definition and we tend to look for it in the things we possess and in what we do.  Definition can sound like this...

• Study hard so you can be defined as a hard worker.
• Get a good career and nice car so you can be defined as successful and cool.
• Workout so you can be defined as good looking.
• Update your social media status/posts often so you can be defined as interesting and popular.

But sometimes 'definition' can swing the opposite way...‌‌

• Your academic struggles define you as stupid.
• Your dead-end job and beat car defines you as worthless.
• Your height and body defines you as inadequate.
• Your singleness defines you as unlovable.
• Your lack of social media 'Likes' defines you as unwanted and rejected

That's the sad thing about worldly definition, it can start out good, defining you in all the ways you want, then in an instance it can switch to bad.

The Definition We Don't Want‌‌

Definition from the world is always changing.  It never gives you what you truly want. What was good one week is never enough the second week or is just not cool anymore. (Is last year's iPhone good enough now?)

As we look to be defined by this endless cycle, we can tend to look pretty similar to a drug addict, always looking for ~ the next high ~ the next definition ~ where we feel comfortable and better about ourselves for a brief time.

The Bible talks about this. As we lust after all the worldly things, the Lord calls us "a wild donkey used to the wilderness, in her heat sniffing the wind! Who can restrain her lust?" - Jeremiah 2:24

We look for definition in everything and everywhere except the Lord. Romans 3:11‌ The Bible would define this as idolatry and gives us our first unwavering definition: sinner, child of wrath, deserving judgment. Ephesians 2:3

You and I both wanted definition and we got it.  It doesn't look too appealing now.‌‌ Because of our idolatry, lust, and sin - we deserve condemnation, pain, suffering, and death. That's our true definition: sinner.

But the Lord doesn't just leave us with that, there's hope...‌‌

The Re-Defining Cross‌‌

Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - 1 Timothy 1:15. That's right! Jesus is the hope we need, the person who can fix our definition problem. He did this by dying on the cross for our sins.

I have a friend who could not understand why someone would want to be involved with Jesus because of all the "cross stuff".  The cross to him represented blood and suffering and that's it. Why would anyone want to be defined by that?!‌‌

He's right, the cross is bloody and may not seem appealing at all.  But my friend missed the point of the cross.‌‌ The book Not a Fan by Kyle Idleman helps us understand more about how the cross defines and represents followers of Jesus:

• The cross that represented defeat – for a follower it is an image of victory.
• The cross that represented guilt – for a follower it is an image of grace.
• The cross that represented condemnation – for a follower it is an image of freedom.
• The cross that represented pain and suffering – for a follower it is an image of healing and hope.
• The cross that represented death – for a follower it is an image of life.
• The cross may not be attractive, but for a follower it is beautiful.

Jesus gave his life on the cross for me and you, and through that we are no longer condemned and defined as a sinner Romans 8:1-2. He did that to redefine us, to give us a new, perfect, and lasting definition. You and I are now defined by much better words: Forgiven, Freed, Righteous, Son or Daughter of the Most High, and Loved.

It's all about definition and what better definition to rest upon than that of the cross.