As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
― Ephesians 4:1
Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.
― Philippians 1:27
For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God…
― Colossians 1:9-10
When Mohembo was 17 or 18 his family took in another boy, a year younger. His parents had moved to another country where an on-going civil war made life difficult and good schooling impossible. Bill settled in, it seemed, quite well, sharing a room with Mohembo
One Saturday afternoon when Mohembo came home he found Bill in tears in their room. The ensuing coversation went something like this:
“Hey man, what’s wrong?” asks Mohembo.
“I just don’t think I can take it any more!”
“Take what? What’s buggin’ you? Aren’t you happy here? Has someone upset you?”
“No, it’s just that I’m so frustrated! I can’t figure out your Dad!” Yes, Mohembo’s Dad was rather different than most people’s Dads.
“So what’s it about Dad that’s so hard to figure out?”
“Well, we go out most every weekend evening, right? And I want to know when I should be home again. If I asked my Dad, he would say something like ‘you gotta be home by 10 o’clock, and if you’re one minute late, you’ll be grounded for three weeks!’ You knew exactly where you stand with him. With your Dad he just says ‘Remember who you are!’ How on earth am I supposed to know what that means? What does it mean? It bugs me out of my head. I don’t want to cause problems and I don’t want to be grounded, so just exactly when is ‘remember who you are?’”
“Aaah… the famous ‘remember who you are’ thing! That’s my Dad alright!”
“So?”
“Well, it’s like this… Dad’s not into exact hour and minute curfews. ‘Remember who you are’ is his way of saying, think about other people when thinking about when you should leave a place, or when you should be home. For the coming home part, you need to know that Dad is a super light sleeper – maybe it’s connected to his snoring! - and if he wakes up in the night, he can never get back to sleep. So we should be considerate of him – and others here at home – and come in at a decent time, and be quiet when we come in – so we don’t unnecessarily disturb them. In other words, he wants you to think for yourself and to think of others.
But it’s a lot more than that. It’s about your personal behaviour whenever you’re out of the home. He is not your Dad. But you have a father and a mother, and everything you do represents them in some way. They are held responsible for how you were brought up. You are a reflection of them – in fact you are a reflection of your whole family. They are not here, and all Dad is trying to remind you of, is that even when they are not here, you reflect on them … so remember who you are! And behave in a way that will make them proud!”
Mohembo himself did not find this an easy thing to do either. In fact he and his brothers and sisters talked often about how this often felt like a burden. But with time Mohembo thinks the admonition becomes less a matter of protecting the reputation of parents and more of building up one’s own reputation. It’s about making a name for yourself. For a person who wishes to model his or her life on Jesus Christ, it is a recognition that when we wish to identify with Christ, we must also reflect his character – we need to aspire to living up to his name.
He has also thought about the difference between Bill’s Dad’s approach and his own Dad’s. Bill’s Dad was into giving exact regulations and threatening punishment if they weren’t kept. That is very Old Testament law. And we love this kind of thing – because we don’t have to assume any responsibility ourselves, nor think for ourselves. We only have to follow orders. That doesn’t lead to maturity or personal growth. Mohembo’s Dad’s approach made his kids think for themselves, think of others, and take responsibility for their behaviour within the context of relations with other people. This is essential for personal growth and maturity.
This is very much the new covenant approach of Jesus Christ. Two commandments instead of ten plus myriads of detailed regulations. Love God with everything you are and have, and love your heighbour as yourself. Exactly how you are to do this will come in many many different ways – and will differ from person to person, neighbour to neighbour as need requires. There is no prescription that fits all people and all situations. You must remember, in this case, not only who you are, but also who’s you are; you need to think, and you need to act responsibly, recalling the examples of Christ, emulating him, reflecting his character in your actions. Slowly slowly you will become like him… and be a credit to his name. If you continue to rely entirely on following rules and regulations you are not as likely to grow and mature as a person or as a Christian. You will not take the risks or accept the costs that love entails, and you will end up hiding behind the rule book, focusing on "not doing anything wrong" and eventually not doing anything at all. Not a recipe for becoming all you were born to be.
Remember who you are and who’s you are.
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.
― 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
― Ephesians 4:1
Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.
― Philippians 1:27
For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God…
― Colossians 1:9-10
When Mohembo was 17 or 18 his family took in another boy, a year younger. His parents had moved to another country where an on-going civil war made life difficult and good schooling impossible. Bill settled in, it seemed, quite well, sharing a room with Mohembo
One Saturday afternoon when Mohembo came home he found Bill in tears in their room. The ensuing coversation went something like this:
“Hey man, what’s wrong?” asks Mohembo.
“I just don’t think I can take it any more!”
“Take what? What’s buggin’ you? Aren’t you happy here? Has someone upset you?”
“No, it’s just that I’m so frustrated! I can’t figure out your Dad!” Yes, Mohembo’s Dad was rather different than most people’s Dads.
“So what’s it about Dad that’s so hard to figure out?”
“Well, we go out most every weekend evening, right? And I want to know when I should be home again. If I asked my Dad, he would say something like ‘you gotta be home by 10 o’clock, and if you’re one minute late, you’ll be grounded for three weeks!’ You knew exactly where you stand with him. With your Dad he just says ‘Remember who you are!’ How on earth am I supposed to know what that means? What does it mean? It bugs me out of my head. I don’t want to cause problems and I don’t want to be grounded, so just exactly when is ‘remember who you are?’”
“Aaah… the famous ‘remember who you are’ thing! That’s my Dad alright!”
“So?”
“Well, it’s like this… Dad’s not into exact hour and minute curfews. ‘Remember who you are’ is his way of saying, think about other people when thinking about when you should leave a place, or when you should be home. For the coming home part, you need to know that Dad is a super light sleeper – maybe it’s connected to his snoring! - and if he wakes up in the night, he can never get back to sleep. So we should be considerate of him – and others here at home – and come in at a decent time, and be quiet when we come in – so we don’t unnecessarily disturb them. In other words, he wants you to think for yourself and to think of others.
But it’s a lot more than that. It’s about your personal behaviour whenever you’re out of the home. He is not your Dad. But you have a father and a mother, and everything you do represents them in some way. They are held responsible for how you were brought up. You are a reflection of them – in fact you are a reflection of your whole family. They are not here, and all Dad is trying to remind you of, is that even when they are not here, you reflect on them … so remember who you are! And behave in a way that will make them proud!”
Mohembo himself did not find this an easy thing to do either. In fact he and his brothers and sisters talked often about how this often felt like a burden. But with time Mohembo thinks the admonition becomes less a matter of protecting the reputation of parents and more of building up one’s own reputation. It’s about making a name for yourself. For a person who wishes to model his or her life on Jesus Christ, it is a recognition that when we wish to identify with Christ, we must also reflect his character – we need to aspire to living up to his name.
He has also thought about the difference between Bill’s Dad’s approach and his own Dad’s. Bill’s Dad was into giving exact regulations and threatening punishment if they weren’t kept. That is very Old Testament law. And we love this kind of thing – because we don’t have to assume any responsibility ourselves, nor think for ourselves. We only have to follow orders. That doesn’t lead to maturity or personal growth. Mohembo’s Dad’s approach made his kids think for themselves, think of others, and take responsibility for their behaviour within the context of relations with other people. This is essential for personal growth and maturity.
This is very much the new covenant approach of Jesus Christ. Two commandments instead of ten plus myriads of detailed regulations. Love God with everything you are and have, and love your heighbour as yourself. Exactly how you are to do this will come in many many different ways – and will differ from person to person, neighbour to neighbour as need requires. There is no prescription that fits all people and all situations. You must remember, in this case, not only who you are, but also who’s you are; you need to think, and you need to act responsibly, recalling the examples of Christ, emulating him, reflecting his character in your actions. Slowly slowly you will become like him… and be a credit to his name. If you continue to rely entirely on following rules and regulations you are not as likely to grow and mature as a person or as a Christian. You will not take the risks or accept the costs that love entails, and you will end up hiding behind the rule book, focusing on "not doing anything wrong" and eventually not doing anything at all. Not a recipe for becoming all you were born to be.
Remember who you are and who’s you are.
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.
― 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
