Born This Way

A lot of talk in our culture of how people are born a certain way.  Some people say they are born to be inclined with a certain attraction or born a certain sex but a different gender.  The list can do on and on about what people feel they are born to be.  They were born that way.  The scientific jury is still out on the different ways people feel is their genetically predisposition but it is clear from scripture that we are in fact born a certain way.  We are born prone to desire sin and selfishness.


What Parents Don't Teach Their Children

If you are a parent, you get to witness this first hand.  Infants throwing fits because you take away a toy from them. Children throwing temper tantrums simply because they are tired.  Babies and children covet, get greedy, lash out in anger, and have a natural predisposition to selfishness for things that are not essential to their survival.  These are also behavioral responses that were not learned.  Parents tend not to teach babies initially how to have temper tantrums but they may support the behavior later.  From the earliest age, we can witness the nature of sin inside the innocent babies (Prov 22:15).  Ps 51:5 explicitly hits the nail on the head when the author openly reveals that he was sinful at birth.  Ps 58:3 states that from the moment we are brought into the world, we begin down the path of sin. 

As we grow up and learn more of the moral laws in us and the laws in our society, this nature, also grows (Romans 5:20).  We find more creative ways to be greedy, to covet, get revenge, and be selfish to satisfy newly found desires within us (2 Tim 3:13).  Our sinful nature that we are born into is why we are spiritual children of wrath (Eph 2:3).  (Also read The Joy of TRUTH) 

The Nature We Are Born With

This sinful nature has infected all people (Romans 5:12) and everyone will fall because of this (Romans 3:23; Ecclesiastes 7:20; 1 John 1:10; Romans 3:10).  It is not an infection of bad habits or behaviors but an infection of the heart that causes the bad habits and behavior (Jer 17:9; Gen 8:21; 6:5).  Mankind is born into the world that way (Also read Follow Your Heart?).

So when people say that they are "born this way"; I tend to agree, but in a more spiritual sense that also manifests on the physical level.  When people say they are born to lust and have certain sexual desires, I agree.  When people say they are born this way and find their identity in things of the world, whether it is material or physical, I agree.  We are all born that way.   The question is what are you willing to do about it? (Also read If Your Not Fighting Sin, Your Living It.)

What Defines You:  Your True Identity

The World will teach you to justify it and embrace how you are born.  To let what it is about you, define you.  God teaches us to forsake it, deny ourselves, and allow him to change us into a whole new person (2 Cor 5:17).  He makes us born again, a new creation, dead to our old self.  He defines us and He alone becomes our identity and not something of the world.  We were children of wrath but become born again and adopted; we become a child of God through our rebirth in Jesus Christ (Also read "The World" According To God, How "Love is Love" is Unloving. and Have you been decieved by The World?).

Does something of this world, like your flesh, your material things, your status, define you?  Are they your identity or has God redefined you and given you the new identity in Him?  Are you still how you were when you were born or are you born again? (John 3:3-12).