OPEN: A young boy was being punished, and one of the punishments wasthat he was forbidden to go swimming. One day he came home with his hair wet and his mother demanded an explanation. “I fell in the lake,” he said. “Really? (she said). Then why AREN’T your clothes wet?” He grinned and said: “Well… I had a feeling I was going to fall in. So I took them off.”
I’m pretty sure he did more than just fall in. In fact, I think he planned to fall in, and as long as he was going to fall in anyway - he figured he may as well enjoy it.
His explanation though… was interesting. “I had a feeling I was going to fall in.” (Translation: I couldn’t help myself). We live in a world where that type of rationale is used all the time: I can’t help myself. I just know I’m going to fall in! And that’s just the way it is.
The sermon series we’re preaching this month is focused on “Lies People Believe” and the lie we’re looking at today is “I Am What I Am.” Other ways of saying that like “Popeye’s phrase: “I Yam What I Yam An' Dats All I Yam” OR - I was born this way OR - God created me this way.
I CAN’T HELP MYSELF. I AM WHAT I AM!!!
The phrase simply means – I have no choice - that’s just the way it is. I can’t help being who I am, and I can’t help doing what I do! I’m going to fall in anyway… so I may as well accept it.
ILLUS: Marilyn Manson was a musician and artist who was famous in the 1990s. The magazine “Rolling Stone” did an article on him that they titled: “Marilyn Manson: The Monster Hiding in Plain Sight” In other words: basically, he wasn’t a nice guy.
In an interview with “Beliefnet.com” he said, “Initially I was drawn into the darker side of life. But it’s really just human nature. I started to learn that everything that’s considered a sin is what makes you a human being. All the seven deadly sins are man’s true nature. To be greedy. To be hateful. To have lust.”
What he was saying was this: Sin is what makes you human. It’s unavoidable.
I AM WHAT I AM!
Now, we’ve seen a lot of this kind of thinking coming out of the LGBTQ+ crowd. For years, a number of studies have tried to find a “Gay Gene.” The thinking was – homosexuals can’t help themselves therefore there MUST be something in their DNA that makes them desire to be what they are. They’re trapped in their lifestyle.
The only problem is… they have yet to find ANY GENE that forces gays to be gay.
ILLUS: According to an article in the magazine Popular Science “Genetics can't predict whether a person will engage in same-sex sexual behavior, according to new research published in the journal Science. The study, which tested nearly half a million people, found that while there may be some genes that contribute to sexual behavior, they each only play a tiny role—social and environmental factors make up the rest. (https://www.popsci.com/genes-cannot-predict-same-sex-sexual-behavior/?utm_source=internal&utm_medium=email)
In essence – there’s no Gay Gene that hardwires homosexuals to be gay.
But that doesn’t stop folks from the LGBTQ crowd from continually protesting: “I can’t help myself”, “I can’t change who I am.” “It’s not my fault!!!!”
ILLUS: And they’re not alone. It seems that everybody who engages in behavior God calls sinful tends to say exactly the same thing. A woman caught in adultery will say “I couldn’t help myself. We just fell in love. We were destined to be together.” The man discovered with child pornography on his computer will say “I couldn’t help myself. That’s just the way I’m wired.” And the homosexual will say “I can’t help myself, I was just born that way.”
People who struggle with sin often repeat the same mantra over & over again: It’s just who I am. I am what I am and I can’t change. Or they’ll say “I am what God made me, and I’ll never be anything else.”
But God says that’s not true. God anticipated people saying they were born “that way” centuries ago. To people who engaged in sin who said “I was born that way” Jesus said “You must be born again.”
Paul wrote to the Christians at Corinth and said this: “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And SUCH WERE SOME OF YOU. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” I Corinthians 6:9-11
They HAD BEEN sexually immoral, adulterers, homosexuals, greedy, drunkards etc., but they were BORN AGAIN.
II Corinthians 5:17 puts it this way: “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Once you rise from the waters of baptism… you are born again. You’re a new creation. You have been changed by the power of God.
Now there’s 2 sides to this coin (of “I am what I am”). One side of the coin is a group of people who look at folks caught in sin and say: That’s all you are and that’s all you’ll ever be. You were a sinner yesterday. You’re a sinner today. And you’ll be a sinner tomorrow. You’re never going to change!
That’s what ticked Jesus off so much about the Pharisees. “While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew 9:10-13
You see, to the Pharisees, sinners were always sinners. That’s all they’ve ever been… and that’s all they’d ever be. They’ll never change because that’s who they are. They are who they are. And because sinners were always going to be sinners, the Pharisees would never think of associating with such people.
BUT Jesus did. Jesus hung out with drunkards, prostitutes and outcasts. And by the time Jesus was finished with these people, they weren’t drunkards, prostitutes or outcasts anymore. Jesus came to transform people… to remake them. He came to change sinners into saints. (a variation on a quote by Kaeley Triller Harms)
Christianity is based on the belief that EVERYONE can be MADE NEW again. The blood of Jesus can take the worst sinner and make them pure. Titus 3:3-5 says “For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit”
SO the one side of the coin of “I am what I am” and I can’t change is the belief - by the “self-righteous” – that sinners will always be sinners… so why bother with them?
The other side of the coin is the belief (by those caught in sin) I am who I am! I can’t help being what I am. And part of the reason this declaration appeals to so many people is - it gives them an EXCUSE.
ILLUS: Last Thursday our church had their monthly "Free Lunch" and the people who set things up were surprised to find a man sleeping on the front yard as they drove up. He was kind of an old "hippie" kind of guy and they took pity on him and let him in (so he could use the bathroom). When I came I saw hm sitting on the padded bench in the fellowship area and asked if he'd like to stay for the meal, but he didn't seem interested. A little later I went into the bathroom ... and it smelled like 20 people had been smoking in there. I was pretty sure that there'd only been one smoker - and he was sitting on that padded bench. So I went out to him and gently asked if he'd been smoking in the bathroom. His reponse: "Yes, I did... but I didn't mean to." Now I didn't say it, but I got to thinking "You didn't mean to? Did the cigarette just jump out of your pocket into your mouth and light itself?" Do you know what that man was saying? He was saying "Yes I smoked... but it wasn't my fault."L
They know what they’re doing is wrong… but they don’t want it to be their fault! “I was born this way”, “It’s just the way I’m wired”, “I can’t help myself!!!”
If you know you’re going to “fall in the water”… why beat yourself about it? Just be like that little boy we talked about in the beginning of the sermon and make allowances for what you know you’re gonna do. That way you don’t have to change. You can just… live with it!
Now the problem is this: the people who buy into that mindset often face hopelessness and despair. The drunkard and the drug abuser is destined to always be addicted. The thief will always be a thief. The sexually immoral will always sleep around. The prostitute and the homosexual will die as they have lived.
THERE’S NO HOPE… THERE’S NO FUTURE… THERE’S NO CHANGE!
And if they’re honest with you they’ll tell you that they’re haunted by a kind of contempt and self-hatred that drags them down into despair (at least once in a while).
ILLUS: I’m reminded of the true story of a woman who arrested for prostitution. And while she was being booked she cried out “This isn’t WHO I am!” Somewhere deep inside of her was a little girl saying: “I don’t like who I’ve become. I know I’m better than this.”
In her heart of hearts, she realized she was made in the image of God. But her life had gone terribly wrong… and she didn’t like it! She WANTED to change, but if she’s always going to be a prostitute… why bother trying.
That’s the deception of “I am what I am” – it buys into the idea that “I’m trapped. I’m destined to be who I am. And because of that, I’ll never get out of this hole I’m in.”
ILLUS: Jordan Peterson told of a woman who was talking with a psychiatrist. She told the psychiatrist that she hoped her suffering is all her OWN FAULT. Taken aback, the psychiatrist asks “Why?” And she responded: if it’s her fault she could do something about it. But, if it’s in her nature to be what she was, she was doomed. She may not be able change everything else, but she wanted to change herself. She felt trapped and afraid that she was destined to be what she was.
And to that type of person God says: No… you’re not trapped. If you want to change… I’ll help you! But you have to want to change.
That’s why there’s a repeated drumbeat of the cry “REPENT” in Scripture. Repent means “I want to change.” John the Baptist’s message was “Repent.” Jesus’ message was “Repent.” Peter message was “Repent and be baptized.” And Paul said “I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.”
The first step to being healed of your sin. Recognize that you’ve messed up and WANT to change – REPENT!!!! If a person doesn’t WANT to change… they’re not going to. People will always find an excuse to do what they WANT to do and will always find a way to avoid doing what they don’t want to do.
But if the sinner wants to change… God will help them. Listen again to the words from Titus: “(Jesus) saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit”
You can’t change yourself… God does that. God does that by washing you clean of your sins. By renewing you by the power of His Holy Spirit.
That’s why the promise in Acts 2:38 is powerful: “REPENT and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
When we repent (decide we want to change), and are baptized (allow ourselves to belong to Christ), God’s Spirit comes inside us to change us, to fix us, to renew us.
ILLUS: I’ve heard numerous people tell me that they’ve struggled with smoking or drinking, and finally, they turned the problem over to God, and either gradually or immediately, they lost the desire to do that stuff, or they got sick and couldn’t do it anymore. God DID SOMETHING that cut them off from their sin. WHY? Because God’s Spirit dwells inside them to change them
CLOSE: But here’s the deal. The Christian is never trapped by their past. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
The story is told of a very capable evangelist in Britain. But he lost his interest in spiritual things and drifted into a life of sin. Some of his sin was done in secret but ultimately, it became public knowledge and made headlines. At first, all he could think of was that he had been ruined for life, but, finally, he realized what a fool he had been, and he came back to God like the prodigal from the pigpen. He found exactly the same thing the prodigal did. He discovered God’s forgiveness and healing. And after a few years… he even went back to preaching. It seemed his scandal had been forgotten. But one night, when he was about to preach a revival, he was given a sealed letter. It was unsigned… but it described a shameful things he had done. His stomach churned as he read it. The letter ended: “If you have the gall to preach tonight, I’ll stand and expose you.” He took that letter and went to his knees… and a few minutes later, he was in the pulpit. He began his message by reading the letter, from start to finish. Then he said, “I want to make it clear that this letter is perfectly true. I’m ashamed of what I’ve read, and what I’ve done. I come tonight, not as one who is perfect, but as one who is forgiven.” That night, people responded in great numbers and the letter became a magnet that drew crowds to hear him. (“Hearts of Iron, Feet of Clay”, By Gary Inrig)
