I’m talking episode 294 for December 3rd, 2023.

This is Joel from the I’m talking microcast where I share my thoughts on a topic that has piqued my interest this past week.

This week we’re talking label.

If you’re old like me, you remember the commercial that says, if it says Libby, Libby, Libby on the label, label, label, you will like it, like it, like it on the table, table, table.

And it just brings to mind the fact that a label means something, and yet many times we don’t like what the world does to us when they put a label on us.

In one hand, the world loves to use a label, and they want people to fit into categories, and they want to label this group of people as this, using some form of alphabet or some short term of words, whatever it may be.

I’m not going to put them in your head because I think you probably know what I’m talking about.

And then at the same time, groups of people who get a label often don’t like it unless they want to like it.

And so it’s a very tough area to navigate.

It’s hard to know when is a label okay, when is a label not okay.

And many use a label to close off others from their group or to offer the fact that people are closed minded because they label people as certain things.

And people want the ability or the right to say, this isn’t a label, this is just who I am.

And it’s kind of weird because they want it both ways.

And I think the saying goes, you can’t have your cake and eat it too.

And therein lies the challenge for those of us who call ourselves Christians.

If you publicly profess the name of Jesus Christ, then you are going to wear a label.

That is just the way the world sees the evangelical Christians.

They see you as closed minded, I should say us because I am in that group.

They see us as out of touch.

They see us as uncaring, as closed minded, as unthoughtful.

And it’s hard as a Christian to carry that label.

And yet, shouldn’t we be proud to be called followers of Jesus Christ?

Shouldn’t that label be something we want to pin to our shirt?

That we want to wear proudly?

That we want to surround with neon lights?

Because that is who we are.

Now what people think about that label is maybe not up to us except for how we act.

So what do we do?

Because we may not be able to change people’s thoughts about that label.

But as individuals, we can possibly change those who know us best.

And who hang around us and know that even though we call ourselves Christians, we are people of love.

I’ve been reading in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd John in my Bible reading these past days.

And that is always about they will know we are Christians by our love.

And so we have to be that people.

We have to realize that we too are sinners.

And we do not need to label others so that their sin stands out.

We do not need to label others so that we feel better about ourselves.

That’s a worldly thing to do.

We need to wear the label of followers of Jesus Christ proudly.

And then we need to love.

We need to show grace.

We need to let others who have been labeled by the world that they mean something to us.

We don’t have to agree with them.

But they are people that Jesus loves as well.

And if we demonstrate that love, who knows the work that the Holy Spirit might do.

Until next week, this is Joel from the I’m Talking Microcast.

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