“Who am I?” That was the predominant cry of the 1960’s generation. Young people of that time turned to and tuned into anything they could think of, such as drugs, sex and communal lifestyles to attempt to answer that question. They found themselves participating in all kinds of religious activities to find “the answer of life” and seldom found what they were really searching for. Why were they asking the question in the first place? They did not know WHO they were.
A.W. Tozer shares a story about a time when he was waiting for a friend at City Hall and suddenly a well-dressed man sat next to him with a puzzled look. Tozer asked the man, “Do we know each other?”
“No, I don’t think so,” the man replied. After a quiet pause the man shared with Tozer that he could not remember anything except waking up and finding he had been robbed. Moments later another well-dressed man approached the first man and with an excited tone called him by name. Come to find out the confused man was the First Violinist of the Philharmonic giving performances in Toronto that week. Even after the second man explained all this, the first man still did not remember who he was.
The amnesiac had received a bump to the head and was robbed. Tozer made a correlation with this story and the fall of man; Adam and Eve had a fall and received a terrible bump. They realized they no longer knew who they were or what their purpose for living was. Ever since that time man has asked the question, “Who am I?”
Tozer went on to share that when “Adam and Eve decided that early morning that they had a right to put their own wills above the will of their Creator God, they lost their God-given identity. They tried to shake the fog out of their minds but as they looked at each other, they realized they no longer knew the purpose of their existence; they no longer held that divine sense of what they were created to be and to do.”
Some of the 1960’s generation did find the answer to their search for who they were, and out of that revelation came the “Jesus People” movement. People became believers and went hard after God, making Him their priority and sharing His love to all those around them. Many people became believers due to this revival.
What about today? Yes, people are still asking the question. We try to put our own wills above the will of our Creator God when we strive for riches, security and social position. We are still trying to tell others who we are. If only we could grasp the divine sense of what we were created to be and to do. I guess it comes down to this simple revelation; if you want to know who you are, ask your Creator!
Genesis 1:26 - We were created in His image
Isaiah 43:7 - We were created for His glory
Revelation 4:11 - We were created for His pleasure
Ephesians 4:24
And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude], and put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God's image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness.
