The Immense Pressure of “Being Yourself"

[Garland-Green]

From gender-neutral bathrooms to changing conceptions of marriage, the issue of identity underlies some of our most contentious cultural battles. The changes are happening so rapidly that it’s difficult to grasp just how far we’ve moved from ancient understandings of what it means to be a person. We’ll consider these vexing issues in the next 3 podcasts. This episode examines our current understanding of identity, and considers some of its long-term repercussions.

Identity in the 21st Century: The Immense Pressure of “Being Yourself”
(Duration: 17:02)  

[cristobela]

Never thought of it, but it really is an issue of "self-construction" vs. "self-discovery". idea  

[Garland-Green]

Heraclitus once stated that a man’s character is his fate. On first glance, such thinking appears utterly foreign in contemporary culture. But have we really abandoned the ancient understanding of identity entirely? From the Verve’s “Bittersweet Symphony” to Better Call Saul, it quickly becomes apparent that the ancient conception of identity is alive and well.

Identity in the 21st Century: The Inescapable Self
(Duration: 19:28.)

Resources
How should we live our lives in light of our identity in Christ?  

[Garland-Green]

If Christianity is true, it offers the most comprehensive vision of identity. In essence, scripture posits that the only way to answer the question, Who am I? is to first answer the question, Who is Jesus? Join me for the final installment of this podcast series exploring the issue of identity in the 21st century.

Identity in the 21st Century: “Hidden with Christ in God”
(Duration: 32.44)

Resources
What does the Bible mean by 'dying to self'?
Save Me from myself [Sermon. Duration: 46:26]


Verses to consider
Galatians 2:20
"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Ephesians 4:17-24
Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, fin the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

Luke 9:23
And He was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.