Freedom — As a Son – Wednesday
TODAY’S VERSE
Mark 1:11
And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” (ESV)
Last Monday, a friend shared a podcast with me from prominent comedian Theo Von. At the end of the episode, Theo responds to a question from a caller about “How to break out of the worldly cycle?” While I’m not endorsing his work, Theo did an incredible job articulating the problem many of us struggle with when it comes to our identity. One can tell he is legitimately in a place of brokenness and trying to figure out who God is. There were several poignant, emotional statements Theo made about himself, such as, “The only way I could get my worth was from someone else,” and “I only knew who I was if you reacted to me well.” He also admitted, “I’m asking God for a new story.”
But the line that got me was when he said, “I just want to look in somebody’s eyes and them be pleased with me.”
As he spoke through the tears, I felt myself getting emotional as well because I’ve had that same thought many times before. I, too, have struggled with the identity of being a people-pleaser and finding my worth in what others say, think, or feel about me.
A little over a decade ago I was wrestling with my faith, and there were times where I didn’t know if Christian was still an identity I could claim. I remember confessing to a friend that I wasn’t sure I had done life “with Jesus” in the past six months, maybe longer. After praying with me and encouraging me, he said to me what I thought was a strange passage for what I was going through: Mark 1:9-11. The story of when Jesus gets baptized. The story culminates with the Father speaking over Jesus “You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased.” After hours of study and focus on this passage, it finally made sense why my friend sent me to this passage, and I broke down crying in my room.
Paul states in Galatians 4:7 that those who believe in Jesus are both a son and an heir of the Father. Because we are fellow heirs with Jesus we get to share in all that is His and do you know what that includes? This blessing from God the Father: You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased.
I’m praying God continues to call Theo Von to Him and that one day Theo will place his faith fully in Jesus and get baptized. And if he does, he will get to hear the blessing he longs for, not from a mere human, but the creator God saying “You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased.”
APPLICATION
Take some time to slowly read through Mark 1:9-11. Reflect on your own baptism and allow God to speak that same blessing to you. If you’ve not been baptized and are still wrestling with putting your faith in Jesus, visit southland.church/baptism to learn more about taking that next step!
PRAYER
Pray for Theo or someone else you know who is wrestling with following Jesus. Ask God to put people in their lives to speak grace and truth to them. Ask God for the miracle of new life for them!