Split Identity

by Robert Jacobs

In his book Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do, Professor Claude M. Steele explores a concept he terms identity threat, “the threat that [one’s performance on a task] could confirm or be seen to confirm a bad stereotype” associated with a particular group identity held by the individual. For instance, Professor Steele includes data from an experiment conducted at Princeton University in which African American students were asked to complete a short round of putt putt golf. When the African American students were told that their performance would reveal information about their intelligence and academic ability—an area where the African American community held a negative stereotype—the men performed poorly; however, when the African American men were told that their performance would indicate their level of athletic acuity, their performance significantly improved. 

While the Princeton University experiment represents just one example of this theory in action, Professor Steele develops and expands this idea over the course of the book, ultimately discussing how we can mitigate the effects of identity threat. He finds that even if a person holds an identity with a negative stereotype in a particular area, they can override the effects of stereotype threat by instead focusing on an alternate identity where either no such negative stereotype exists, or (even more effective) an identity with a positive stereotype.

For example, in a study conducted at Harvard University, a large group of Asian women were split into two groups and given an identical math exam. One group, however, was given a questionnaire regarding their gender, putting their feminine identity (a group stereotyped as bad at math) at the forefront of their mind. The other group was given a questionnaire regarding their Asian heritage, an identity that holds a positive stereotype about math. The study found that the women who focused on their female identity did significantly worse on the same math exam when compared to the group who focused on their Asian identity.

So, what does any of this have to do with following Jesus? Professor Steele’ research sheds light on what it means to be a child of God who still resides in the flesh, a soul—to quote countless theologians and a 1984 Amy Grant song—caught between the now and the not yet. While there are countless identities in this world (Black, White, Hispanic, man, woman, genderless, transgender, gay, bisexual, heterosexual, etc.), the two identities that Jesus repeatedly invokes are son of man and son of God.

Jesus was the son of God, taking on the identity of son of man when he came to this world. Conversely, we hold the identity son of man from our conception and then gain the identity son of God at our salvation. Though Jesus did not start as son of man, He did not possess a diminished form of humanity when he came to this world. In the same way, though we did not start out as daughters and sons of God, our status as God’s child is in no way subordinate to our humanity.

The key, then, is to focus on our identity as children of God, not our fleshly identity. When we focus on our propensity for sin, we will get sin. When we keep our identity as daughters and sons of God in center focus, we will find life. To quote Paul, “to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace” (Romans 8:6) 

Never forget who you are. You are beloved by God (1 Thessalonians 1:4). You are His legitimate child, “and if [a child], then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ” (Romans 8:17). You have been set free, free indeed (John 8:36). “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (1 Peter 1:3).

Your fleshly identity may be crying out that you are a slave to sin, that you can choose nothing but that which is contrary to God. Yet, you must take that lie captive and bring it before Christ, declaring all the while your identity as God’s child.

Take heart! The same spirit that raised Jesus form the grave resides in you. Live in light of that identity this week.

Choose This Day Whom You Will Serve

by Robert Jacobs

In an article about willpower and dieting, Associate Director of the Motivation Science Center and Columbia Business School Dr. Heidi Grant Halvorson compares self-control to the muscular system. Dr. Grant Halvorson notes, “Your capacity for self-control is not unlike the muscles in your body…Just as well-developed biceps sometimes get tired and jelly-like after a strenuous workout, so too does your willpower ‘muscle’… When you tax it too much at once, or for too long, the well of self-control strength runs dry.”[1]

While this particular article addresses willpower in relationship to dieting—explaining why we seem to have more self-control when we are well rested versus at the end of a stressful day when the Blue Bell somehow magically ends up in our bowl—it has far-reaching implications beyond our waist line. Because our self-control is a finite resource that can weaken over periods of stress and exertion, we must not rely solely on our willpower to keep us from sin.

Now, what do I mean that we have to use something other than our will to combat sin? The fact of the matter is that you and I are prone to make bad choices when we are hungry, angry, lonely, tired, or sick (a concept many in the psychology and counseling community call HALTS). As Dr. Grant Halvorson points out, our willpower is weak in these moments due to strains placed on our minds and bodies. That is why it is so important that we decide what our reaction will be to temptation BEFORE we are tempted, putting boundaries in place—if possible—to try and eliminate even the possibility of temptation.

This is precisely what we see the Old Testament heroes Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego do. When Nebuchadnezzar commanded that all his officials had to worship his golden idol, he metaphorically put a gun to these three men’s head and told them they had to commit adultery, to cheat on god with a false deity (see other OT passages, such as the book of Hosea, on the linking of idolatry and adultery).

While the passage in Daniel does not precisely say so, I believe that these three men made the decision to stay faithful to God long before the whole golden idol incident came to pass. This would explain the indignant response they offered to the king: “We do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up” (Daniel 3:16-18).

These three men took the sin of idolatry so seriously that before they were even tempted to worship another god, they decided that such an action was a “non-option,” reasoning that it would be better to die than to cheat on “I AM” with another god.  We must ask, do we have the same conviction about sin?

I have to be honest. Before earnestly dealing with my own SSA, I didn’t really take my sexual sin too seriously. Though I dealt with other, more socially acceptable sins through my accountability partners, my sexual addiction was off the table for serious consideration. Although I knew that adultery was wrong, I never actually made a plan for what to do if I was placed in a situation where it would be a possibility. I never took precautions to ensure that I did not place myself into a situation where the possibility of a sexual encounter with another man would be likely. And consequently, I cheated on my wife.

If we are serious about sin, if we understand how our sin effects the heart of God and the ones we love, if we truly want to “be holy as [he] is holy,” then we need to decide now what we will do when we are confronted with temptation. There are some practical steps we can all take to begin making these choices.

• Don’t wait until you are in the arms of another person to decide if you are going to stay pure. During your morning prayer time, commit your mind and body to God for that whole day, determining that you will keep your thought life and physical interactions pure.
• Don’t place yourself in situations where you know you will be tempted. I am always stunned when people tell me they were shocked when they woke up in bed with a stranger, but then tell me they decided to go clubbing the night before. There are places that, given our past, we do not need to be. In fact, there are whole parts of the city I have personally decided to never enter or even pass through, often causing me to take the long way around.
• Do stay in constant communication with God. Read your Bible every day, even if it is only a verse or two. Pray throughout the day, offering thanks for his blessings in the same moment they are bestowed. Attend that Bible study or church service that you feel to “tired” to attend (I almost never hear people say they were sad they communed with the saints).

While temptation may be forced on us no matter how much we try to avoid it—as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego’s certainly was—we can enter these situations with a resolute determination. In doing so, we answer the call of Joshua: “choose this day whom you will serve” (Joshua 24:14).

---

[1] Heidi Grant Halvorson, “You Won’t Stick To Your Diet Unless You Know These 3 Facts About Willpower,” Psychology Today, 25 March 2011, https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-success/201103/you-won-t-stick-your-diet-unless-you-know-these-3-facts-about

A Good Father?

by Robert Jacobs

We are surrounded by a Christian subculture that often tells us that God wants us to be happy. At first glance, it can be difficult to see what is wrong with this line of thinking. After all, we know that God is a good father who gives good gifts (Matthew 7:11). Why would he not want us to be happy?

The problem with this “happiness logic” is that it distorts the divine image of the Father.  It reduces the idea of virtuous fatherhood to the giving of gifts that bring instantaneous pleasure. God loves us so much more than that. In fact, He is more concerned about our holiness than our happiness. Sure, He gives gifts that can make us happy, but He ultimately wants to give us gifts that do more than provide temporary pleasure. He wants to give us gifts that conform us to the image of His son (Romans 8:29) so that we may “be holy as [He is] holy” (1 Peter 1:16).

Christ provides an example of this reality through his interaction with His disciples. In His gospel, Matthew records the narrative of Jesus walking on the water and calling Peter out onto that same storm tossed sea:

Immediately [Jesus] made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds…When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea…Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”

And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” (Matthew 14:22-33)

So how does this story illustrate God’s desire for our holiness rather than just our happiness? First, Matthew notes that Jesus “made” his disciples get into a boat that He knew would be caught up in a massive storm. The word Matthew uses for “made” (ἀναγκάζω) is also used by Euripides, Aristotle, and Philostratus to indicate someone who “carries through by force.” In other words, Jesus forces His disciples to do something they don’t want to do, but in a way that ensures they will make it through.

Look specifically at the way Jesus calls Peter out onto the waves. This was a terrifying situation, not necessarily the kind of experience that would produce untold happiness. Jesus took Peter from the calm sea shore, put him on a boat headed for a storm, and then called him out of the little safety and security that he did have.

So, why would Jesus want to force His friends and followers to do something that would not provide them with immediate happiness? Why would He put them in a situation that, on the surface, even looked dangerous (though He clearly demonstrates His own mastery over the circumstance)?

He did it because He cared about Peter’s holiness more than his happiness. He did it because of what came out of the experience. After going through all of the terror, the discomfort, the distress, Peter was able to declare, “Truly you are the Son of God,” a revelation that impacted his own ministry and countless others through his letters.

How do you view God the Father? Is He a beneficent sky daddy completely focused on making you temporarily happy, or is He a father who is more concerned with your eternal self? Is He going to let you stay in the ostensible safety of the shoreline, or is He the kind of God who is willing to call you out onto the waves so you can discover and embrace truth?

More poignantly for those of us who struggle with SSA, is He the kind of God who will give you everything you are screaming for rather than what you need, or is He willing to not give you what you demand to give you what will make you holy? Look to the example of Peter and embrace the truth that God gives us what we actually need, even if He does not give us what we think we want in the moment.