Discovering Our Identity

The Oracle
"I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Being The One is just like being in love. No one can tell you you’re in love, you just know it. Through and through. Balls to bones. Well, I better have a look at you. Open your mouth, say Ahhh."

Matrix

Once we discover God’s plan for us and his desire to establish a personal relationship with us and decide to submit ourselves to his guidance, we begin to discover our true identity. An identity that is founded in Christ and God's design for our lives. We start to view ourselves as the chosen ones. We are unplugged.

There is something in us that strongly testifies and confirms that we belong to Him. As we meditate on the truth of his Word, his promises and principles we begin to discover more about who we are and what we are called to do.

The Apostle Paul reminds those who have chosen to follow Christ, "you recieved the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba Father.' The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children" (Romans 8:15b-16).

Having been unplugged from the world’s system, we find freedom to be what we were intended to be in Christ. We begin to realize that we are citizens of heaven, chosen by God, a child of God, born of God, a stranger and alien in this world, forgiven for our sins, loved by God, a minister of reconciliation, a new creation, God’s workmanship and a joint heir with Christ.

The more we identify with what is true of us in Christ the more we will exemplify him in our lives. But if we don’t believe the truth about who we are in Christ, we will not reflect Him in our lives and not fulfill our heavenly calling and purpose. We are products of what we identify with. Finding our identity in the wrong places leads to disappointment and dissatisfaction. Identifying with what is true of us in Christ leads to inner peace, everlasting joy, hope, and freedom.

"Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." – Colossians 3:2-3 (NIV)

Know Thyself

The Oracle
"You know what that means? (The Oracle points to a plaque hanging above the door) It's Latin.Means 'know thyself.'"

The Matrix

There is no doubt that society, family and our environment plays a big part in constructing our initial self-image. Every human being has the potential to blossom a personality and self-image that is filled with grace and beauty but many times something goes awry.

Sometimes when love is withheld from a parent or emotional support is deprived a child's self-image and personality are affected in a profound way. Traumatic experiences where abuse is present or where there is abandonment or rejection can deeply affect a child's self-image as well.

For instance if a parent tells their child that he (or she) is a nobody, or incompetent the child will many times project this image as reality and embrace it. This image can affect the child's social skills, grades, and emotional temperament. Another example of a situation that can affect a child's self-image is if a parent is not present in the child's life. The child may interpret this absence by stating to himself, "I am not worthy to be loved" or "I am not lovable."

Other factors that can affect self-image negatively are traumatic experiences with peers or romantic partners or people in authority. What typically happens is that we see ourselves through the eyes of others. Many of us use these images others have of us to define our own self-image. Other people's thoughts about us act like a mirror for us but the mirror many times is distorted. So how do we clean the mirror?

We must dismiss and get rid of the self-images that have been built around untruth. Only by examining our self-image (the messages that we believe about ourselves) can we begin to see what uplifts us and what brings us down. There are pages and pages of messages that we have told ourselves to this date. Some of them are true and some are not. It is wise to write them all down whether positive or negative.

Ruth Myers in her book Christ Life writes that it is wise do an inner identity album and to put labels on the negative messages such as "Unrealistic" and "Do Not Use" and on the positive messages to use the headings "Realistic" and "Use Often." By doing this process we can come to know our true self (without any distorted truth).

These positive images can make up what we would call a "Life Raft." When we are questioning our self-worth or doubting ourselves we can go to these positive messages in our Life Raft and allow them to pull us through the waves of deception and distorted thinking that wants to regain control of our mind.

The Lost Identity

Cypher
“I don't want to remember nothing. Nothing. You understand? And I want to be rich. You know, someone important. Like an actor.”

Agent Smith
“Whatever you want, Mr. Reagan.”

The Matrix

Our society paints certain things (money, sex, power, etc.) as important and encourages us to pursue after them. Some of us find ourselves pursuing these things and doing so with a hope to fit in and look good before others.

In doing this, we may end up focusing more on what others think and in the process lose sight of what matters most and brings true joy. Things like our relationship with God, developing meaningful relationships with people, quality time with our family, acts of charity, etc.

Frederick Buechner describes the result of this tragic process of trying to please others and live up to the ideals of society: “Our original shimmering self gets buried so deep we hardly live out of it at all… rather, we learn to live out of all the other selves which we are constantly putting on and taking off like coats and hats against the world’s weather.”1

Because our peers, family, and society lure us to be a certain way we may find ourselves putting on masks to please different types of people. The danger is that we may begin to identify with what others think of us and forget who we really are and what we really want. The result is that many times our soul is left desiring more; and further away from the One who can restore us and make us whole.

We must break away from the desire to please others and discover what we really want; a connection with a God who helps us find our identity in him. Once we know this truth we do well to move closer to making
it a reality. By identifying our deep need and what can satisfy us we allow ourselves to move toward our purpose; which provides the motivation to live out the truth we have come to know.

“On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.’” – John 7:37-38 (NIV)

Excerpt taken from Matrix Reflections: Choosing between reality and illusion.

Socialization and The Matrix

Neo

"... I have these memories from my life. None of them happened. What does that mean?"

Trinity

"That the Matrix cannot tell you who you are."

Matrix

There are so many unhealthy messages that our society disseminates through the media and other mediums. This information may trickle down to us through the avenue of our culture, our upbringing, and our peers. And when we buy into and follow these errant messages we find ourselves lost in an ocean of illusion; many times becoming a mirror image of our society.

A society is a group of people. It could be thousands of people or just a few people who we associate with. There are also secret societies. Regardless of how many people and how secretive, the impact is the same--powerful. Very often we become like those whom we associate with or identify with. This process is often called socialization. Our identity is formed by the people who we surround ourselves with and the messages that we hear and observe.

As Neo realizes that all his memories and events that occurred in his life were not real he is left with confusion because it influenced and helped construct who he used to be. Now he looks back and says, "What does this mean?"

Trinity gives him a very insightful response. She says that the Matrix cannot tell him who he is and define him. The same is true for us. No one can tell us who we are, not even our society. We become who we choose to become. Unfortunately many blindly follow the messages given to them and like puppets mirror their society.

The goal of the Christian life is to die to these past affiliations that constructed our old identity and no longer find our identity in them.

For instance, many of us found our identity in success, money, material things, careers, relationships, power, an addiction, a certain lifestyle, violence and fame. Because we believed we could find our identity in those things we found ourselves desperately striving to attain them. And even though we now realize that these things, when they become the focus, can lead us away from the truth we find ourselves still battling with our desire to give in to our past affiliations.

Like an anchor they weigh us down and keep us from emerging into the light. They maintain us in the darkness that we have lived in so long—the place where we have found comfort and false security in the past. We hear the voices say, "Ignorance is bliss." "Party hard." "I need this person to make me happy." "Being popular is what is most important." "I need money to be happy." "You are stupid." "Nobody loves you." "I need to drink alcohol." "You can’t succeed." "I need to get revenge." "I need to fit in."

All these voices come in search for us when we try to change our lives. They will not let us identify with the truth and leave them behind. They must regain our loyalty and identification before it is too late. If they win they will take us down the same path that Cypher chose; the path of ignorance and compromise. They will lead us back to the illusion.

We must die to these voices and lose our old identification with them in order to find our true identity. In the stillness of prayer and meditation we will begin to hear the other voice that calls us to truth and love. We must stay focused on this voice and trust it. It will lead us to the place where we can find God and our true identity in him.

"If you are guided by the Spirit, you won’t obey your selfish desires. The Spirit and your desires are enemies of each other. They are always fighting with each other and keeping you from doing what you feel you should." – Galatians 5:16-17 (CEV)

Discovering Our Purpose

The Keymaker

"I know because I must know. It’s my purpose. It’s the reason I’m here. Same reason we are all here."

Matrix Reloaded

Once we find the truth of Jesus Christ and identify with him, we begin to discover our purpose. Colossians 1:17 tells us that "by him all things were created" and that "in him all things hold together."

It makes sense, then, to look toward our Creator for the reason that he made us. It does not make sense to look for the meaning of life and our purpose in any other place or ourselves. Only the inventor of a gadget knows why he designed the gadget the way he did. He may even provide a manual for operation. God also gives us the manual through his Scripture. There we find his plan to save the world through his Son. We begin to realize that we are part of something bigger than we could have ever imagined, a cosmic plan of God to redeem the fallen world.

C.S. Lewis writes in his last page of the Chronicles of Narnia: "For us this is the end of all the stories … But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world … had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story, which no one on earth has read, which goes on forever and in which every chapter is better than the one before."

Lewis reminds us that we are invited to be a part of something that is beyond this world, a kingdom prepared for us from the beginning of time. A place where we find eternal rest for our souls; a place we often refer to as heaven. And before our time on earth ends we have a chance to be a part of God’s plan to save people and give them an opportunity to go to that place with us.

Our purpose becomes clear. We must play our part in the cosmic plan of God. Just as Neo knew that he had to unplug as many as he could and bring an end to the Matrix dream world. We must in a similar way unplug people from the system of the world and bring them to the truth. This becomes our mission.

The keymaker knows his purpose in life is to carry the key to the white door. This is the reason that he is here. This was his part to play in the cosmic plan to free mankind from the Matrix.

What is your part to play?

"Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!)

"It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone." – Ephesians 1:4-5;11-12 (MSG)

Excerpt taken from Matrix Reflections: Choosing between reality and illusion.

We Are Not An Accident

Morpheus

"All of our lives we have fought this war. Tonight I believe we can end it. Tonight is not an accident. There are no accidents. We have not come here by chance. I do not believe in chance when I see three objectives, three captains, three ships. I do not see coincidence, I see providence, I see purpose. I believe it is our fate to be here. It is our destiny. I believe this night holds for each and every one of us the very meaning of our lives."

Matrix Reloaded

Understanding that we have a purpose reminds us that we are not an accident. The fact that we are alive and breathing today is not a product of mere chance, luck or coincidence. Before the world was created we were already on God’s mind and precious to him. He was already thinking about how he could have a personal relationship with each one of us and lavish his love toward us.

Rick Warren writes in his book The Purpose Driven Life: "God left no detail to chance. He planned it all for his purpose … God never does anything accidentally, and he never makes mistakes. He has a reason for everything he creates. Every plant and every animal was planned by God, and every person was designed with a purpose in mind. God’s motive for creating you was his love."

When we see life through this perspective we can begin to understand that everything that happens in our lives, good or bad, happens for a reason. There are no coincidences.

Just as Morpheus claims in Matrix Reloaded that the night before Neo goes to the Source is not an accident and that they are not there by chance, we will likewise encounter nights like these in our lives. Nights and days where we will know that our circumstances are not just a coincidence but the act of providence.

Knowing that there is a divine influence that brings purpose to every circumstance of our lives is reassuring. No matter what happens in our lives we can know that God is working through the situation for some greater purpose.

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!" – Psalm 139:13-17 (NIV)

Excerpt taken from Matrix Reflections: Choosing between reality and illusion.

The Red Pill

Neo

"Why do my eyes hurt?"

Morpheus

"You've never used them before. Rest, Neo. The answers are coming."

Matrix

We all demonstrate faith in our lives. Every day we are given circumstances where we must demonstrate faith in some way. For instance, when we sit down on a chair we do so because we have faith that it will support our weight. The main question we have to answer is not whether we have faith, but what we have faith in?

Neo had to trust Morpheus. He had to trust that he was telling him the truth and could provide the answers to his questions. Had he not taken a step of faith in trusting Morpheus he would never have learned the truth and experienced "the real." Because of the faith he demonstrated his life changed completely. The impossible became possible and the unthinkable became thinkable.

In regard to our spiritual pursuit, when a person puts his faith in God he opens the door to possibility and providence. If we can for a moment believe there is more to this world and place our faith in a God who saves we open up our hearts to receive the greatest of gifts.

Hellen Keller writes of her hunger to learn after having discovered the gift of language: "I left the well-house eager to learn. Everything had a name, and each name gave birth to a new thought. As we returned to the house every object which I touched seemed to quiver with life. That was because I saw everything with the strange, new sight that had come to me."

But before we can have this new sight given to us we must take the red pill. Remember Morpheus words, "… no one can be told what the Matrix is. You have to see it for yourself."

We have to make a choice, similar to the one that Morpheus gave Neo when he shows him two pills and tells him: "You can take the blue pill … the story ends and you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to. You take the red pill and find out how deep this rabbit hole goes."

When we choose the red pill we have to be willing to let go of our old life. We must risk all to see reality. When we can empty ourselves of all that stands in the way of faith we can boldly go to where the truth is found.

Soon after Neo takes the red pill he is baptized into reality. He is born again. This time having been unplugged from the Matrix. The answers are soon to follow.

For us the journey to the source (God) costs the same price. We are also given two choices. One leads to ignorance and the other to truth. The red pill and the blue pill that is offered to us in our spiritual voyage is the choice to believe and trust in the One or to reject the truth and pretend that He does not exist.

We cannot see reality until we take the red pill. For us the red pill equates to believing in Jesus and what he did on the cross and trusting him with our life (welcoming him in our inner man). We can do this by saying to Him, "I believe you have forgiven me of all my sins (wrongs) ... I trust you with my life ... reveal yourself to me."

Neo literally means "new." When we take the plunge and say this prayer or statement we begin the journey to truth and we see things in a new way. Everything becomes new because the One who makes all things new has touched us. The eyes of our soul and spirit are opened wide to take in what had been hidden. Yet, it may be a lot of information to take in and it may take time for this new found sight to adjust to the light of reality.

"You cannot take a hold of this gift – the Son of God – with your hand. The Son of God cannot be contained in a jar. He is only grasped with the heart and by faith. When this gift comes into your heart, when you believe in Christ with your whole heart, then you won’t be the same person. Even if you once were a thief, an adulterer, or a murderer, you will become a new person, for you have the Light in your heart." – Martin Luther

The Awakening

Discovering truth can lead us into an awakening experience. When we allow ourselves to go beyond this world’s borders and experience an awakening, it leads to a new way of viewing our world and ourselves that can change the way we live forever.

From the moment we awaken from our illusion(s) we begin to experience reality. Our consciousness is awakened to something more … something real. It is as if we see everything with fresh eyes and a new profound perspective. We have a new birth, a spiritual awakening. A birth into reality and truth.

Helen Keller, who was blind and deaf, at one time only understood words as symbols for objects. She did not understand language and that the use of words could be used as an instrument for conceptual thought and communication. Then one day something happened to Keller that would change her life completely. She writes about her awakening experience:

"Someone was drawing water, and my teacher placed my hand under the spout. As the cool stream gushed over my hand, she spelled into the other the word water, first slowly, then rapidly. I stood still, my whole attention fixed upon the motions of her fingers. Suddenly I felt a misty consciousness as of something forgotten – a thrill of returning thought; and somehow the mystery of language was revealed to me. I knew then that ‘w-a-t-e-r’ meant the wonderful cool something that was flowing over my hand. That living word awakened my soul, gave it light, hope, joy, set it free! There were barriers still, it is true but barriers that could in time be swept away.

"I left the well-house eager to learn. Everything had a name, and each name gave birth to a new thought. As we returned to the house every object which I touched seemed to quiver with life. That was because I saw everything with the strange, new sight that had come to me."1

Keller, despite being deaf and blind, knew not only that there was something to be seen and heard by a sense within her, but also that there was a way of communicating with words and thoughts by a sense innate in her. In a similar way we, too, by a sense within us, can understand that even though we cannot see or hear God directly, we can know that he exists and that he has a way of communicating with us.

When we can let go of our illusions and the distorted thoughts that attach us to them, we can begin to see reality. The road to receiving this new sight that lets us see reality is dependent upon humility. The journey to awakening to truth can be described in many ways. It could be described as being in a slumber and needing to awake or being in bondage and needing to be set free. Some have even described it as being blind and needing to see. Jesus says that we need to be "born again" spiritually to experience reality.

He also tells us we must be humble and open. He states, "Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:3-4, NIV).

It is by being humble that we can come to see what has been hidden and is hard to see. When we allow skepticism to take root we lessen our chance of discovering the gift of truth. Neo, in The Matrix films, allowed himself some room in his heart and mind to explore the truth and by doing so found it. The result is the freedom to live out his purpose and to live in the truth.

Keller says that the living word awakened her soul, "gave it light, hope, joy, set it free!" When a person finds God and finds union with him this is also how that individual will inevitably feel. Keller talks about discovering the mystery of language and how it was revealed to her. In a similar way, when the eyes and ears of our soul are opened we can see the revelation of God, because we were made for this very purpose; we have the innate potential for this specific end.

"We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we speak of God’s secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him’ – but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit." – 1 Corinthians 2:6-10 (NIV)

1. Hellen Keller, Political Questions: Political Philosophy from Plato to Rawls, Second Edition, Illinois, Waveland Press, Inc., 1993.