The basis of our total truth, which we are taking to the whole church in the whole world, is that the human self has no nature of its own. It is the expresser of a deity nature, whether the nature of the false deity, the spirit of error, or the true deity, the Spirit of truth {1 John 4:6}. Because we have all become accustomed to speaking of ourselves as having "human nature," it may make it clearer if we speak of the self as never being an independent self. it has never been a self-operating self, and thus has never operated by expressing a nature of its own.
No Independent Self, Norman Grubb
I was reminded this once again this week of the centralized thinking that permeates much of Christianity. As I struggled with a few interpersonal interactions, a friend suggested that I simply...just be myself. Of course, to the casual observer this might seem like sound advice. Don't be a poser, don't try to be someone you're not. Yet each and every day, believers wade into the weeds of a false theology. For we have been told time and again that we are a being of our own, with an existence totally separate from our creator and Lord. It seems that the only time God comes to the forefront of our lives is when we're having struggles in this life we view as ours and ours alone. And so, we call upon God to straighten out this mess we've once again created. Never once realizing that perhaps, as the creator of all the universe, this mess was not a creation of ours but God allowing circumstances in our lives. So, when we feel like the walls of life are closing in, we call upon the Lord to help us through that situation He Himself created. Does anyone see the error in this line of thinking? By telling someone to "Just be yourself," we're actually expecting them to be someone they have never been. To understand this, we need to understand who it is that we truly are, who we've always been. I was first introduced to my one true identity through the words of the apostle Paul. It is Paul who, in Galatians, explains that the man I thought I was...is dead. Nailed to the cross with Christ Jesus. What now remains is not simply an empty flesh shell, but a vessel inhabited by Christ Jesus Himself. In the words of Paul, I no longer live, but "Christ lives in me" {Galatians 2:20}. This isn't just a one and done prophesy from Paul, as he once again expresses Christ living in us in Romans. If we have died with Christ Jesus, then we believe that we also live WITH Him {Romans 6:8}. So, Jesus is who we are first and foremost. I am not Scott the independent self, but Christ in his flesh.
There is no independent, self-operating self in the universe, except the One who calls Himself the I AM {Exodus 3:14} and says, "I am the Lord and there is none else, there is no God beside Me {Isa 45:5}.
No Independent Self, Norman Grubb
The author Norman Grubb, a writer at the forefront of the Christ in us reality, claimed that he was taking the "total truth" of Christ Jesus to the whole world. The trouble is most of mainstream Christianity continues to be oblivious to the words and teaching of Mr. Grubb. It is much easier to maintain the broken-down separation theology which has been spewed out by the mainstream church for thousands of years. My thought has always been that we who believe in our one true identity have been running up against these many years of church theology for some time. To understand this is to understand how we come to the knowing of our true identity in Jesus. Paul spoke that he did not know of his one true identity until "It pleased God" {Galatians 1:15}. Indeed, God could have revealed Himself to the man Saul earlier, but He chose not to. My own revealing of my life in Christ did not come about until a bit later in my Christian life. Don't get me wrong, I knew God, but I also gave in to the narrative that He and I were separate beings. It was God who, in His own timing, revealed His Son in me as He had with Paul. So, what does it mean when someone tells you to "Just be yourself?" For the casual believer, it might mean to be that person whom they've always been told that they are, living separate from the Lord. For those to whom God has revealed His Son, being ourselves means nothing more than simply being Jesus.
With Christ have I been crucified, yet I am living no longer I, but living in me is Christ. Now that which I am now living in the flesh, I am living in faith that is of the Son of God, who loves me and gives Himself up for me.
Galatians 2: 20, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
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