More than 80% of abortion vulnerable women choose life after seeing ultrasound at a PreBorn network clinic
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Dr. Jessica Peck is prescribing Hope for Healthy families on American family radio
preborn.com/AFR hello and welcome to the
: Dr. Nurse Mama show prescribing Hope for healthy families here on family radio. Here's your host, professor, pediatric nurse practitioner and mom of four, Dr. Jessica Peck.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, hey there friends and m. Welcome to my favorite time of day getting to spend time with you prescribing Hope for Healthy families. And we've got such an encouraging message for you today. We are living in a culture that is constantly asking our children especially, but also us, as the adults in their lives, who are you? There are all these questions of identity and increasingly the answer that we are encouraged to give and the answer we often give is built around what we do. All of us can relate to going to an event. Maybe it's a church service, maybe it's a work party, maybe it's just a school function and you meet somebody you don't know, another parent, and the question is usually, what, what do you do? And you start talking about your job or being a homemaker, whatever it is, what you've accomplished, who, what you just what you're doing in life. And we hear it in the way that we talk about our children. She's a dancer, he's an athlete, she's really smart, he's a leader. And we hear it even adulthood, we even give ourselves labels like, I'm a wife, I'm a mom, I'm a husband, I'm a dad. 3.
One of the things that concerns me about younger generations is image crafting
Those are great identities to have, but especially in the age of social media, one of the things that concerns me about younger generations is something I've talked about before. It's something called image crafting. Now this has become almost a daily assignment for children and teens. And really what they're pressured to do is to craft the image of who they are to project to the world. And then it's judged by everyone around them. They get immediate feedback and they get it through likes and comments and views and followers and engagement. They're not living, they're really almost watching themselves live and managing not their own life, but the image of their life that they're presenting to an audience. We see filters, we see carefully chosen photos, curated highlights of our life that go on social media or accomplishments or trends or captions or opinions. These things are all our personal brand. And that pressure is really exhausting because social media makes comparison and continuous and very, very competitive. There's always going to be someone more successful, more popular, more fulfilled, more attractive or whatever that more is that you're looking for. And image crafting really turns identity into a performance that is to be delivered. This is what kids feel and why I think a lot of kids are feeling so anxious because they're constantly on a stage and it's never ending. But the gospel offers a radically different starting point. Our kids do not have to manufacture an image worthy of love or belonging because they were created in God's image before they ever had the ability to even create an image of themselves. And this biblical story, the biblical narrative, a biblical worldview, offers profound freedom to families today because it we don't have to craft our image because God has already crafted it, crafted it for us. He has crafted us in his image before we achieved anything, before you had a resume or reputation or even a birth certificate. God knew you and created you with a purpose. And our identity isn't something that we have to manufacture. It's something that you receive from God. Now, of course, God gifts us with many skills and talents. There are some remarkable students and athletes, and there are remarkable life journeys that we have and roles that we have as, as parents, as spouses, as famil members, as public servants. And God has given us those beautiful gifts and callings. But here's the question that we're going to wrestle today, really. What if the deepest our role isn't just the only answer, the deepest answer to the question of who you are? What would it mean if you really believed and lived like you believed you're an image bearer of God? Genesis 1 tells us that humanity was, we were created male and female in the image of God. And that means our identity doesn't become, begin with our accomplishments and with culture, begins with our Creator. And that's what we're going to talk about today. Because really, God, we can't do any better than God has already done. And that's who we're talking to today.
Julia B. Higgins is an associate professor of Christian ministry at Samford University
I'm joined by Julia B. Higgins. She's an associate professor of Christian ministry at Samford University. She's passionate about equipping students to teach the Bible and make disciples and serve the local church. And she is the author of a book called Christ and His How Men and Women Tell the Story of the Gospel. And this book explores what Genesis teaches about the shared calling of men and women and how that ultimately points us towards Christ and his bride. Julia thank you so much for stopping by today. We're so glad to have you here.
Julia B. Higgins: Thank you so much for having me. I'm, just grateful to be here with you today to discuss these things.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, these are really important things. And I think as families often we're really tempted to just discuss the issues of the day. We want to discuss the headlines and the problems and those things, things that honestly I think we feel more equipped to manage or to solve. But these are the things that we need to be talking about now. Just being made in the image of God because our culture tells us to look inward to construct our identity. And that's a lot of pressure for kids today. But you have, you, you have given us, some good reminders about how God created us.
Introduce yourself to our listeners and tell them about your own faith journey
So let's start at the beginning with you. Introduce yourself to our listeners and tell them a little bit about your own faith journey, how you came to know the Lord and how he's given you this message. Of for us today.
Julia B. Higgins: Oh, yeah. Thank you. I am originally from Florence, Alabama, born and raised in Florence, and then lived across the river in Tuscumbia. So North Alabama, girl. I currently reside with my husband in Birmingham, Alabama, as you mentioned, serving here at Sanford University. I. I went to seminary a long time ago with a desire to teach, just teach the Bible. I loved the Scriptures and I loved teaching the Scriptures. And so I gradu with a bachelor's in English and went off to seminary in Memphis, Tennessee and got a master's degree in Christian Education. later I got a PhD in leadership from Southern Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. And since then, the Lord has opened many opportunities for me to teach God's Word, in the local church as well as inside seminary classrooms, as well as in the undergraduate program here at Stanford University.
You asked how I came to know Jesus Christ
you also asked how I came to know the Lord. When I am asked this question, I typically say, you know, it's kind of like in the Book of Acts, where a man believed and then his whole household believed. And so my testimony really begins with my father's testimony. My father, and both my father, father and mother were not believers in Christ. And yet my dad had some friends who were sharing the Gospel with him at work, inviting him to church. he went to, a revival service. And the Lord used that to call him to faith in Christ. And because of that, he was changed man. And he began to share the Gospel with me and with my mother. And he spent time teaching the Word of God to me. And as a young kid, around seven or eight years old, I recognized that I was a sinner in need of a Savior and knelt by my bedside one evening by myself and just prayed to the Lord Jesus that He would come into my heart and save me. as I got into college, I looked back on that moment and I thought, did I really understand the gospel? Did I know what I was doing in that moment, moment? And the Lord was gracious to give me assurance of my salvation in showing me that it wasn't really about what I had done, but it was all about what Jesus had done for me on the cross. And so my faith in Christ has just grown and grown and grown in my love for him and His Word. And, that's kind of how he has brought me to this point in my life, to be able to take the things that I've learned in the Word of God and put them on paper to seek to share a little bit of what I've learned with others.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, Julia praise God, for those friends who loved your father enough, to step into his life and to share the gospel with him. And what you said, the words that stood out in my mind from what you just said, was because of that, he was a changed man. And there are so many stories of radical transformation that we see when people encounter Jesus Christ and their lives are changed for the better. And you can see the evidence of that and, and clearly his faith was wrong and, and impacted yours. And now you're here today and continuing the work that has been done. And that, that's really exciting to me.
So often we define ourselves as what we do
And when you talk about, you know, we're talking about identity today, and I said in the introduction, so often we define ourselves as what we do. I even did that in your introduction. I talk about your professor and though that's how we identify each other in modern culture. But why do you think that especially we as Christians do that rather than beginning with the image of God? Where do we get it wrong?
Julia B. Higgins: Yeah, I think we, it's just human nature, right, to always go back to what am I doing? rather than who am I first? And for Christians, we need to, you know, stop trying to first of all focus on what we're doing and like you mentioned in the intro, begin to think about what am I receiving first from God, who has he created me to be? and who is he making me to be as a Christian, who is he, conforming me to? Ultimately that's into the image of Christ. So you talked about image making, where we're all about, or image crafting, where we're seeking to craft our own image and what the Scriptures call us to. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament is to first of all see that God is the one who has assigned, an identity to us. Now maybe in the Scriptures, when they were reading an Old Testament, receiving the book of Genesis later on through their history and even in the New Testament times, they might not have been using those words that we use today, identity. And yet in Genesis chapter one, the very first chapter of the Scriptures, we see that God is creating a grand world. Six days and he is bringing order out of chaos. And on the, the day before he rests, we know that he creates the, the highest thing of all creation, and that is man and woman. And when we the Scriptures, we need to have these anchor points for us where we go to those various scriptures and we know this is one text where I will really want to latch on to this text and make sure that I teach it to others in discipling or raising children. And Genesis 1:26, 28 is one of those anchor passages, you've already mentioned it, where God says, let us make man in our image according to our likeness. And so we have those words, therefore image and likeness. And if we think about this, for if we just stop and ponder what God has just said, let us make man in our image, we are created to reflect and image, and picture the triune God of the universe. And that's a fascinating concept that every man, every woman, every boy, every girl that we meet, no matter their status, wherever they are in the world, God has created them in his image. And that's something we should take and ponder and not just skip over when we're entering into the first few pages of the scriptures. And so, yes, we do these roles and responsibilities that we do as Christians do for the, the good of others. But what if we lose that role or responsibility? What if we say, well, I'm a teacher or I'm a doctor or a nurse, or I'm a lawyer, this or that, fill in the blank. even I'm a wife or a husband, or I'm a mother or a father. What if we lose that role? Then we might begin to have a sense of identity loss. But if we understand this identity has been given to me, that I am an image bearer that can't be taken away from me.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Julia I, I'm all caught up in what you're saying because I'm just thinking of so many families I have encountered and even issues in my own family where it is sometimes you do even have a God given gift that you are pursuing and you do start to see yourself through the lens of that. Of course with kids I see this a lot through athletic gifts, through scholarship gifts. But I also seen many kids who are severely limited in their ability to succeed in the standards that the world sets before us. And yet God created them in his image as well and that he loves them just as much as those who are high achievers or not. But when we see those kids who are high achievers feel the pressure to keep that up and then they feel like when that gifting comes, is taken away, the opportunity is not given to them, they have an injury or whatever it happens. It just seems like the world comes crashing down around them. I've heard testimony after testimony about that. And I think we could call families to do what you're talking about and really emphasize that we are made in the image of God and that is first and foremost and to set that priority. Right. I think it would change the ways that we parent the way that we, our families, function. And we have a lot more to say. When we come back, we'll talk about some practical applications. How do we communicate to kids that they are made in the image of God? And what does that really mean? We'll talk more when we come back with Julia B. Higgins.
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Nobody But Jesus by Maverick City Music and Song House: Before I ever knew his name I was there to walk in my way Stuck in all my sins in shame I was destined for the grave if you've been searching and if you've been hur Then call out his name Nobody but Jesus Outside of the names nothing was the same the only one I claim is Jesus Saved by His grace he died in my place there's no other name but Jesus he's still healing mine.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Welcome back, friends. That is Nobody But Jesus by Maverick City Music and Song House.
Children growing up today are asking the question of who am I
And today, that's what we're talking about, about nobody but Jesus. We can't get our identity from anywhere else. We were made in the image of God. I'm talking today to Julia B. Higgins about her book, Christ and His Bride, how men and women tell the story of the Gospel. And we're right in the middle of talking about this difficult issue of identity. And as Julia pointed out before, probably in the Old Testament, they didn't use that word in the culture at the time about identity, the way that we use it now. But the issue at heart is still the same. Who am I? And children growing up today are asking that question, and adults are trying to help them find the answer. And in this world of cultural chaos, there is no shortage of voices who are shouting in their ear, telling them what they need to do to craft an image that is pleasing for cultural consumption. And the alternative here is pretty radical. We're talking about having freedom and your identity in Christ, being who he created you to be, be using the gifts and talents that he's given you to serve his kingdom. And this is an issue that I see causing a lot of anxiety for young people because they may see a social media trend and somebody puts the video out online and gets thousands of likes and Follows and adulation. And they put that same trend out. And nobody likes me. Who am I? And I see so many kids, even, who see themselves through the identity of who they are and finding a gift.
Let's say you have a kid who feels unsure about their identity
And, Julia that's where I want to start. Let's make this really practical, because let's say that you have a kid who just feels like they haven't found their thing, you know, the. You have that kid. I think most parents can relate to that. Just feeling like, what is my giftedness? What am I good at? Who am I? I'm nobody. I'm, nothing. How would you advise parents to step into that with hopeful messages about their identity being made in the image of God coming first and foremost?
Julia B. Higgins: I think this is a great question, and there are.
So I want to explain what theologians think about what it means to be made in God's image
So I want to explain a little bit of what theologians think about what it means to be made in God's image and hopefully put it into words that is helpful for parents to apply to those situations that they're faced with. So when you look at Genesis 1:26 and 27, and I note this in the book, in the early chapters, theologians are thinking through what are the ways? What does it really mean to bear God's image? And so they've come up with four, at least four different categories. Some would say, oh, well, it means something substantive about a human being. And so that is something that is a trait or characteristic that is unique to human beings. Our rationality, our agency, our moral accountability. so you might help parents think through what is it that a child is maybe struggling with, that they can identify in that child of, you know, I see this character characteristic uniquely in you, the way that God has shaped and fashioned you different from your friends. so parents just stepping back and identifying ways that kids are gifted by the Lord in particular things. The, other thing is the relational aspect. So some theologians say, no, it's. It's more that we're created to be in relationship with one another, drawn out of the fact that it says there in Genesis 1:26, let us. The plural, let us make man in our image, male and female. He created them. So human beings are created after the image of a triune God, Father, Son and Spirit, that are one, unified in oneness, and yet they are three distinct persons, Father, Son, and Spirit. And so we mirror that in our relationships with one another. And so maybe seeking to help kids understand in that moment of. Instead of comparison to other people, maybe. I'm, a young girl. I'm looking at Instagram. I'm struggling with someone I think is so beautiful. And I'm thinking, I could never be like her. Helping kids to orient their minds through. I'm created to shower love upon this young girl who's projecting an image, who's creating an image. And so it's difficult, maybe, to step back and say, I don't want to think about myself so much, but the orientation of my heart should be first Godward, to love God, and then to love my fellow human beings, my friends that God has placed me in school with or at church with, that maybe I'm jealous of. Instead transition away from a sinful inclination towards loving the other person. And then another way that theologians talk about it, third is functional, is that human beings have been created to function as, those who go out and carry out a mandate given by God. And they draw this directly from the context where God says, be fruitful and multiply. Go out and create a God honoring society. And so we have certain roles to play and responsibilities in the world. As his regents, kind of like ambassadors. We are sent out in God's stead to serve the world world. Because he has in Christ, he has ascended to the right hand of the Father. He's given this the Great Commission. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples. And so we have all of these ways as image bearers to bring to bear on the world God's kingdom.
: That.
Dr. Jessica Peck: That's.
Having parents look at the ways their children are gifted can help boost confidence
And you said there was a fourth. Is there a fourth?
Julia B. Higgins: Oh, the fourth. Yes, thank you. The fourth.
Dr. Jessica Peck: we're paying attention. I want to be a good student in class today, Julia
Julia B. Higgins: This is the most important one. So I'm glad you pointed out there is a fourth one. It's Christological, that Christ himself is the image of God. Colossians 1 tells us that. That though we are in, we are made in the image. Christ is the image of God par excellence, meaning he is the most perfect human being who has ever lived, the God man. And so all of us, us, whether we're created in God's image, we still fall into some subcategories. We are either fallen image bearers in need of a savior, or we are redeemed image bearers. And both of those subcategories mean that either I need Jesus to save me and conform me to his image, or I am currently in Jesus and I am being conformed into his image.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, Julia those are really great ways to translate into the practical for the parent who is trying to navigate that. Who. I see a lot of kids, too, who are Gifted uniquely by God. But maybe the gift is not very appreciated in that season of life, you know what I mean? Like they're gifted with gifts that when they become adults will be so appreciated. But you know, for 10 year olds they're like, oh, you have you know, the a gift of leadership. Well, we don't want you to really be a leader right now. We want to follow and go another way. And so sometimes it can be hard for kids to step into that. But having parents, you know, really look at the ways that their children are gifted, that is an evidence based way to build confidence, resilience in your child. By being confident in who they are and feeling competent in the ways that God has gifted them or through relationship or those functional ways or christological ways like you talked about. That is almost an easier position to be in. in my opinion, when you have a kid who is struggling with identity, you can give them hope. And many times I see kids latch onto this, I see adult latch onto this and say, okay, yes, that's a good reminder that I am made in the image of God. I do not have to live up to this pressure. Let's talk about the other end of the spectrum. As somebody who does have a strong identity, you have an extraordinarily gifted athlete, musician, artist, whatever it is. And that really tends to eclipse the biblical truth of being made in the image of God. They're like, yeah, yeah, yeah, I, I, I know that. But this, and then even as parents we hold on to that. I'm a community leader. I'm, you know, I'm a homeschool mom, I'm whatever it is. And some of those, so those things that we're really proud of, I'm proud of being a nurse and that is a big part of my identity. But how do we make sure those things stay in their rightful place? What, what advice do you have for us, Trillia?
Julia B. Higgins: Yeah, you know, when I think about Ephesians 2, it talks about in Ephesians 2, 1 through 10, of who we were before we were in Christ, who we are because of the love of God in Christ. And then at the end of those verses, towards verses 9 and 10, it talks about how we have been given, works to do, that he prepared beforehand that he gave for us to do. and so yes, we have things that we have been uniquely called to do and yet we might want to elevate those things like you're saying, to the primary importance. And, and that's what this book is seeking to do, is to help us kind of step back and see the entirety of the biblical narrative. because the scriptures, Genesis to Revelation are telling one cohesive story. It took me a long time to figure that out. I often read the Old Testament is very distinctly different from what the story of the New Testament was. But the book that I'm writing is kind of giving you the 30,000 thousand foot view of this whole of the storyline of the scriptures. And what we see by the time we get to the end of it is that it's all about Christ and his kingdom. That's really easy to just sit here and say, but if we go to the scriptures constantly and as parents, if we are telling the story kind of like the, the Shema, right, that, that it's given to the parents to sit with them, to talk with them about these things along the way at the dinner table, Abel constantly reiterating over and over, this is the whole of the story of the scriptures, that there is an end game. And the end game is not my little kingdom come, but it is God's kingdom and his kingdom come and one day Jesus will return and he will set up his kingdom here on this earth. And so we cast our eyes towards Jesus and look towards the kingdom to come and hopefully that will then orient our minds in, in a biblical way where we have a worldview that is not so much about my kingdom and the, the things that I'm maybe obsessed with, but again we're pointing those towards Jesus and his kingdom.
Dr. Jessica Peck: these are such important truths and often they just get lost in the business of life. I, I, I don't think that you would talk to a Christian family who would say like, oh yeah, we, we really don't care about a biblical worldview. We, we could care less if our kids have that or not. We all want it, but so distracted. I think by living at the speed of a smartphone.
Even now with the advent of artificial intelligence, kids are engaging with AI to ask spiritual questions
And the things that are distracting us are three things that you talk about in the book, Julia You talk about power, authority and influence. And I think those are so upside down and backwards in our rule right now. All power right now is really coming through social media that is just wielding such a, an insane amount of power. Honestly. Even now with the advent of artificial intelligence, we see kids are engaging with AI to ask spiritual questions. They're not going to their parents for that as much. They know that they have AI there, not their teachers, not their pastors, not their, the spiritual leaders or the mentors that God has put in their life. They're going to AI, that's who holds the power, the authority, and tremendous influence. But what does that. How should we think about that differently? Because of the example of Jesus? And how does this relate, relate to our identity in Christ?
Julia B. Higgins: Oh, that's a huge question. I think that we are just upon the precipice of beginning to understand how not just children, but adults as well are going to AI, to ask all types of questions. Should I do this? even counseling type of questions. and, you know, I've. I've asked AI questions here or there, and immediately in my spirit, it's almost like the spirit of God reminds me, no, you have the opportunity to come to me in prayer. And so I see this as a, a huge, thing that we're going to be dealing with is people basically going to AI when they should be going to the Lord for the answers. And we have the spirit of God indwelling within, in us. And we have the Word of God. You know, Paul tells Timothy there at the end of his ministry that the word of God, all of it is inspired by God, and it's profitable for teaching and correcting and reproving and training in righteousness. So we have to make sure that we are consistently ourselves as, as husbands and wives and mothers and fathers, that we are students of God's Word so that it can become central in the home. Home in the life of our home, where we know. Hey, I could ask AI a question here or there. But ultimately God, through his spirit, has inspired a book. And that book is sufficient for me to go to. It may not have the direct answer I'm looking for, but we need to be conversant in the scriptures so that we can continue to go to God's Word over and over again and seek his help there.
Dr. Jessica Peck: I think this is a message that, that children need, teenagers need and adults need. Because when we have the shifting sands of culture, things that change, I, say it all the time. What's celebrated today is canceled tomorrow. And it confuses kids because they think, oh, this is the thing. This is the standard today. Let me put my life around that. And they do. And then the next day, you know, the next week, because we see culture moving faster and faster. It causes a lot of anxiety and they can say one thing and be canceled. And I think to really help our kids understand who they are in Christ and to withstand those shifting sands of culture and the things that, yes, that we, that you built your life on the foundation of the rock. That is Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ is the Same yesterday, today and forever. And even though we don't know what tomorrow holds, we know who holds tomorrow. We know the ultimate holder of all power in the universe, all, authority and influence. And it reminds me, as I always remind myself, that God has not given me a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind. We can talk about these things as we walk along the road, as we put our kids to bed. And so I challenge you to think. Are you, you thinking and, talking about identity in your family intentionally? About who did God make you to be? And as parents, we can hold up that mirror for our children to help them to see their reflection is made in the image of God. We've got much more coming up with Dr. Julia B. Higgins, Christ and his bride, when we come back.
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See Me Through It by Brandon Heath : things are getting real. Jesus, take the wheel. Only way I'm getting to the other side. Days are getting dark, Life's a little hard, blinded, but I'm trying not to lose sight. I don't got this. I know you got this. Yeah. And I'll believe it before I see it. Yeah, I know you're going to see me through it. If anybody can, you can do it. God, I know in the tr. In the fire, in the rain, you're going to see me through it. You're going to see me through it. If anybody can, you can do it. And whenever my heart burns away, you save the day.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Welcome back, friends. That is See Me through it by Brandon Heath. And whatever you're going through today, God is going to see you through it. He can and he will. And we are praying for you and whatever you may be facing.
Christian families need to talk about identity issues
And one thing that families are facing Today is identity issues. And we really as Christian families, need to be talking about what it means to be made, made in the image of God. And I'm talking today to Dr. Julia B. Higgins, author of Christ and His How Men and Women Tell the Story of the Gospel. So if you're thinking, yeah, you know, we really haven't talked a lot about this, this would be a great resource for you as you lead and disciple your family. One of the most important things that you will ever do. Before the break, Julie and I were talking about power, authority and influence. And I see, see parents losing those things so greatly, at a far greater rate than I've ever known in my lifetime. And we talk a lot about losing our rights, our, parental rights. We talk about those in the public square. And that is a conversation that needs to be had. But the irony is I see us giving away that power, authority and influence at home and letting media fill the empty spaces in our homes and let media, social media, other online places, platforms and influencers be the primary influencers in our children's lives. I've been talking a lot about the influence of AI and how parents need to be especially vigilant because AI chatbots are not human. They do not have your child's best good at heart. They are programmed to learn their preferences and to please them, to tell them what they want to hear, not what is good for them. And that can be a really tough competition for parents. But this is a message. Instead of all of the do's and the don'ts and the rules and the, getting down into the nitty gritty of all of the debates about issues that we have, let's raise our conversation to a higher one. That's what I'm calling you to do.
What can we learn from biblical worldview about power, authority and influence
To also be talking about what it means to be made in the image of God. And Julia we really see that Jesus perhaps give us, gives us the clearest picture of servant leadership in the, in this and, and what to do with authority. He had all authority and he laid it down. He had all power, but he, he positioned himself as a servant and he was worthy of all honor and glory. And yet he sacrificed himself. And so when we're teaching our children about leadership, we're not teaching them how to get people to follow them. We're teaching them how to be an image bearer of God, how to be Christ like. And that can be really difficult. So what can we learn, from a biblical worldview about power, authority and influence that can help us to equip our families to Face the challenge, challenges that the world is throwing at us every day.
Julia B. Higgins: Yeah, I'm always going to go back to this scripture. So I want to give you an example from the Old Testament and then kind of overlay that with what we see in Jesus. If you remember, if you're familiar with the Old Testament, there's a point at which in Deuteronomy 17, Moses prophesies and he tells the people of Israel, hey, when you get into the promised land, you're going to ask for a king. So hundreds of years before this takes place, he prophesies that that is going to happen in Deuteronomy 17. By the time you fast forward and you get to First Samuel, chapter eight, you have another prophet, Samuel, who begins to engage with the people of Israel as they are in that moment, demanding for a king like all the other nations. And what does Samuel do? He begins to go through an exhaustive list of what a king can do. And he says over and over again, he can take, he can take, he can take. And so we see that worldly authority in that instance is going to be someone who's lifted up and lifted high and they're going to take and take and take from the people of God. Fast forward to the NewSong Testament. We see Jesus, who is the rightful king. He is the God man. He is born of a virgin. He lives the life that we should have lived. He dies the death we deserved. He's raised up, up and he has ascended on high and he is the rightful king. And yet he is a servant hearted king. Instead of being like the one who is taking and taking and taking, though he is worthy of taking from us, fundamentally his kingship is in done in a way that is giving of himself to the point of dying for people. He gives up his life. He bleeds out on a cruel Roman cross and gives of himself. And so he humbles himself as a servant. He takes the form of a bond servant. He doesn't count equality with God as something to be clung to or grasped or held on to. Why do I go through all of that? Well, if we're being conformed into the image of Christ, whether fathers or mothers, husbands or wives, we're called to be those in authority over the ones that we are given to steward, namely children or maybe people that we're serving and leading at work in our work lives, we're not called to take from them. We're called to expend our life for their good, for their flourishing. And so the parent who is dealing with authority, what does it look like for me to be the authority of this child? Well, yes, that's a God given calling, responsibility, ability, a role played as an image bearer. But it is done in a certain way, in a Christlike way, in a giving of self for the good of the child. That doesn't mean the child always gets what they want. Right. We know that sometimes the good of the child is the opposite of what they desire. And that's going to be difficult in the exercise of that authority and leadership. But yet the foremost thought of the mind of a parent or even husbands towards wives should be, how can I best serve? How can I lead and serve for the good of this person entrusted to my care under my leadership?
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, one of the things that we have to do in just answering that is navigating some of the conversation that's going around about all of this cultural chaos that comes into our homes. Julia I know you probably felt it. I've definitely felt it. And it's hard to lead in that way that you're describing when we live in a culture that makes, that glorifies concepts like rage bait. This is something I've been thinking about, rage bait ever since I learned about it. It's basically, if you're thinking, what is that? I've never heard it. It's basically intentionally making someone mad, provoking someone. And I, I just like you say something that you know is going to cause a conflict. And I saw a Christian commentator publish a piece today talking, really calling out the addiction that we can feel to that rage bait, to that feeling of out, you know, saying something we, we're really good sometimes about, you know, standing on our biblical, biblical conviction. how do we hold firm to that while also holding truth and grace in the same way? And how do we lead with that? Because, Julia I think a lot of times our, our instinct is to lead with lecturing in our home and to tell them this is what's right and this is what's wrong. And you're in my house and you're going to obey my rules. How, how do we tell, take this, this issue of identity, who we are in Christ and hold true, hold true and firm and not compromise biblical conviction, conviction, but also be a servant leader and lead with grace. How do we do that? I know this is, if you can answer this will, you'll probably get nominated for the Nobel Prize, I'm sure for peace, because it's such a hard thing to tackle, but where do we even begin?
Julia B. Higgins: Yeah, it's a great question and one we wrestle with always is like, how do I live up to the ideal of being a Christian that I'm supposed to.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Right.
Julia B. Higgins: And the answer is, we cannot do it. So to rest in the fact that I and myself as a human, yes, as a human being, I am incapable of being the godly wife or mother or parent or whatever, or co worker that I am called to be in and of myself. But if we think about Ephesians 5, where Paul talks about being led by the Spirit, a person who's a good leader is first led. They are led by the Holy Spirit. And so he uses lots of different ways of talking about what it means to be led by the Spirit. And I love to ask my students here at Sanford, like, if you're discipling someone and they ask you, what does this really mean? Like, how do I walk by the Spirit? I love to give this illustration because Paul says, you're walking by the Spirit, you're living by the Spirit, you're led by the Spirit, you're keeping in step with the Spirit. And so the illustration I give them is like, I'm, a dog walker. Sometimes I take my little shizu out into our neighborhood. He has a really long leash. So I'm one of those probably offensive dog walkers that lets my dog run all over the place. Right? Right. He's chasing squirrels and whatever else and just having the best time of his life. If I was a good dog walker, though, I would keep him healed right beside me. Right. I would keep him right next to my leg. He would be led by me. He would keep in step with me, and that would prevent him from harm. And so that is like us with the Spirit. We, we, we walk daily, hour by hour, moment by moment, seeking to put in practice, submitting to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. And then he will affect his fruit in us, the fruit of the Spirit. And that's when we will be able to lead in a way that is loving and kind and patient and gracious and merciful and courageous and standing up for difficult things and truth, all of that paired together. But we can't do it in ourselves. And that's the good news of the Gospel.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Gospel.
Julia B. Higgins: That Jesus came and did it for us in our place, and then he gives us his Spirit to accomplish us. That in us.
Dr. Jessica Peck: That is the best news ever. It really is the best news ever.
Parents should encourage children to be confident in their Christian identities
And I think as we're preparing our children to be confident in their identity in Christ, there's so much research about family dynamics and one of the. The consensus of, family Dynamics research is that even if families are really, really unique, if their family is not like any other family and they do things that are different, if they' doing those things together, children are generally going to feel more confident in their identity. And so walking in identity together, having, you know, having, parents who are Christ followers and doing those things to go into church together and pursuing discipleship together, those things are going to be helpful. But how? It can be hard though, Julia to go out into the world and to feel like the identity that I have is so different from what the world tells me I need to be. How can we encourage our kids and encourage our, ourselves to stand firm in that and to stand firm and to be confident in our identity, even when it seems so countercultural?
Julia B. Higgins: Yes. Because the culture is offering all different types of answers to what identity is. Basically, you can speak your truth into existence. Right. You can define who you are. And so to stand up as a Christian and to say, hey, this is against God's word and against how God has created us, that's a difficult thing to do. To be brave to do that, and to also be courageous in that. I was, I was reading a news article recently about the, the WNBA and how they are looking at defining what a woman is because there are two, biological males who are wanting to play in the wnba. And I saw an article on ESPN recently with Sophie Cunningham, and she's seeking to stand up for, for women, to protect young women in that league. And she said, you know, I feel like I can love people basically, but also speak truth. So love, the loving thing to do is to speak the truth and to care for others. And so we always have to think through, maybe this is difficult for me to speak to a culture that is going to, like you were mentioning earlier, rage, bait, rage against me for the things that I am speaking. And yet, it's bringing as image bearers again, again, order out of chaos. So sin and devastation is chaotic. But God provides the way to a flourishing life. And so as Christians, we're called to help the culture see that as we bear his image in the world and, he'll give us the grace to do it.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Those are very helpful, hopeful and encouraging words. And, and again, I encourage families. As you're thinking about the conversation that may be happening in your car rides, around your dinner table, the conversation you're having with spouse, with your adult parents, with your extended family, instead of just debating the issues, this was actually, I was just at a, pastor's home in the uk actually. And we were talking about all of the issues facing us. And he said at that table, Julia he said, we're spending so much time spinning our wheels, talking about things that are going wrong. What is God at work doing in the world? How have you seen his hope, his redemption in your life? And we completely changed, changed the nature of the conversation. And of course, we need to talk about those issues, but we also need to talk about the truth of God's word and who we are in Christ. Because ultimately, it's not about our mission as parents, is not to help our kids craft the perfect identity that is going to be most marketable to the world. It's about helping them understand the identity that God has already given them. And it. It's not about teaching our sons and daughters to chase past power. It's teaching them, what does Christian leadership look like, not just what not to do, but what to do, how to step forward with confidence and grace. It's not about creating another generation obsessed with finding themselves. It's about raising a generation who understands who they are, whose they are, why they were created, and how their lives fit into God's bigger story. And so I, thank you so much. Thank you so much, Julia for sharing the encouragement.
What is my family learning about me from where their identity comes from?
And I'm going to ask my listeners to really think, what is my family learning about me from where their identity comes from? What is my family learning? What am I teaching them about where their identity comes from? The world has plenty of answers. The scripture offers something so much better. You recommend created in the image of God, you bear his image. You were made for his purpose. And I pray, as I always do, the Lord will bless you and keep you. I'll see you tomorrow.
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Dr. Jessica Peck is prescribing Hope for Healthy families on American family radio
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: Dr. Nurse Mama show prescribing Hope for healthy families here on family radio. Here's your host, professor, pediatric nurse practitioner and mom of four, Dr. Jessica Peck.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, hey there friends and m. Welcome to my favorite time of day getting to spend time with you prescribing Hope for Healthy families. And we've got such an encouraging message for you today. We are living in a culture that is constantly asking our children especially, but also us, as the adults in their lives, who are you? There are all these questions of identity and increasingly the answer that we are encouraged to give and the answer we often give is built around what we do. All of us can relate to going to an event. Maybe it's a church service, maybe it's a work party, maybe it's just a school function and you meet somebody you don't know, another parent, and the question is usually, what, what do you do? And you start talking about your job or being a homemaker, whatever it is, what you've accomplished, who, what you just what you're doing in life. And we hear it in the way that we talk about our children. She's a dancer, he's an athlete, she's really smart, he's a leader. And we hear it even adulthood, we even give ourselves labels like, I'm a wife, I'm a mom, I'm a husband, I'm a dad. 3.
One of the things that concerns me about younger generations is image crafting
Those are great identities to have, but especially in the age of social media, one of the things that concerns me about younger generations is something I've talked about before. It's something called image crafting. Now this has become almost a daily assignment for children and teens. And really what they're pressured to do is to craft the image of who they are to project to the world. And then it's judged by everyone around them. They get immediate feedback and they get it through likes and comments and views and followers and engagement. They're not living, they're really almost watching themselves live and managing not their own life, but the image of their life that they're presenting to an audience. We see filters, we see carefully chosen photos, curated highlights of our life that go on social media or accomplishments or trends or captions or opinions. These things are all our personal brand. And that pressure is really exhausting because social media makes comparison and continuous and very, very competitive. There's always going to be someone more successful, more popular, more fulfilled, more attractive or whatever that more is that you're looking for. And image crafting really turns identity into a performance that is to be delivered. This is what kids feel and why I think a lot of kids are feeling so anxious because they're constantly on a stage and it's never ending. But the gospel offers a radically different starting point. Our kids do not have to manufacture an image worthy of love or belonging because they were created in God's image before they ever had the ability to even create an image of themselves. And this biblical story, the biblical narrative, a biblical worldview, offers profound freedom to families today because it we don't have to craft our image because God has already crafted it, crafted it for us. He has crafted us in his image before we achieved anything, before you had a resume or reputation or even a birth certificate. God knew you and created you with a purpose. And our identity isn't something that we have to manufacture. It's something that you receive from God. Now, of course, God gifts us with many skills and talents. There are some remarkable students and athletes, and there are remarkable life journeys that we have and roles that we have as, as parents, as spouses, as famil members, as public servants. And God has given us those beautiful gifts and callings. But here's the question that we're going to wrestle today, really. What if the deepest our role isn't just the only answer, the deepest answer to the question of who you are? What would it mean if you really believed and lived like you believed you're an image bearer of God? Genesis 1 tells us that humanity was, we were created male and female in the image of God. And that means our identity doesn't become, begin with our accomplishments and with culture, begins with our Creator. And that's what we're going to talk about today. Because really, God, we can't do any better than God has already done. And that's who we're talking to today.
Julia B. Higgins is an associate professor of Christian ministry at Samford University
I'm joined by Julia B. Higgins. She's an associate professor of Christian ministry at Samford University. She's passionate about equipping students to teach the Bible and make disciples and serve the local church. And she is the author of a book called Christ and His How Men and Women Tell the Story of the Gospel. And this book explores what Genesis teaches about the shared calling of men and women and how that ultimately points us towards Christ and his bride. Julia thank you so much for stopping by today. We're so glad to have you here.
Julia B. Higgins: Thank you so much for having me. I'm, just grateful to be here with you today to discuss these things.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, these are really important things. And I think as families often we're really tempted to just discuss the issues of the day. We want to discuss the headlines and the problems and those things, things that honestly I think we feel more equipped to manage or to solve. But these are the things that we need to be talking about now. Just being made in the image of God because our culture tells us to look inward to construct our identity. And that's a lot of pressure for kids today. But you have, you, you have given us, some good reminders about how God created us.
Introduce yourself to our listeners and tell them about your own faith journey
So let's start at the beginning with you. Introduce yourself to our listeners and tell them a little bit about your own faith journey, how you came to know the Lord and how he's given you this message. Of for us today.
Julia B. Higgins: Oh, yeah. Thank you. I am originally from Florence, Alabama, born and raised in Florence, and then lived across the river in Tuscumbia. So North Alabama, girl. I currently reside with my husband in Birmingham, Alabama, as you mentioned, serving here at Sanford University. I. I went to seminary a long time ago with a desire to teach, just teach the Bible. I loved the Scriptures and I loved teaching the Scriptures. And so I gradu with a bachelor's in English and went off to seminary in Memphis, Tennessee and got a master's degree in Christian Education. later I got a PhD in leadership from Southern Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. And since then, the Lord has opened many opportunities for me to teach God's Word, in the local church as well as inside seminary classrooms, as well as in the undergraduate program here at Stanford University.
You asked how I came to know Jesus Christ
you also asked how I came to know the Lord. When I am asked this question, I typically say, you know, it's kind of like in the Book of Acts, where a man believed and then his whole household believed. And so my testimony really begins with my father's testimony. My father, and both my father, father and mother were not believers in Christ. And yet my dad had some friends who were sharing the Gospel with him at work, inviting him to church. he went to, a revival service. And the Lord used that to call him to faith in Christ. And because of that, he was changed man. And he began to share the Gospel with me and with my mother. And he spent time teaching the Word of God to me. And as a young kid, around seven or eight years old, I recognized that I was a sinner in need of a Savior and knelt by my bedside one evening by myself and just prayed to the Lord Jesus that He would come into my heart and save me. as I got into college, I looked back on that moment and I thought, did I really understand the gospel? Did I know what I was doing in that moment, moment? And the Lord was gracious to give me assurance of my salvation in showing me that it wasn't really about what I had done, but it was all about what Jesus had done for me on the cross. And so my faith in Christ has just grown and grown and grown in my love for him and His Word. And, that's kind of how he has brought me to this point in my life, to be able to take the things that I've learned in the Word of God and put them on paper to seek to share a little bit of what I've learned with others.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, Julia praise God, for those friends who loved your father enough, to step into his life and to share the gospel with him. And what you said, the words that stood out in my mind from what you just said, was because of that, he was a changed man. And there are so many stories of radical transformation that we see when people encounter Jesus Christ and their lives are changed for the better. And you can see the evidence of that and, and clearly his faith was wrong and, and impacted yours. And now you're here today and continuing the work that has been done. And that, that's really exciting to me.
So often we define ourselves as what we do
And when you talk about, you know, we're talking about identity today, and I said in the introduction, so often we define ourselves as what we do. I even did that in your introduction. I talk about your professor and though that's how we identify each other in modern culture. But why do you think that especially we as Christians do that rather than beginning with the image of God? Where do we get it wrong?
Julia B. Higgins: Yeah, I think we, it's just human nature, right, to always go back to what am I doing? rather than who am I first? And for Christians, we need to, you know, stop trying to first of all focus on what we're doing and like you mentioned in the intro, begin to think about what am I receiving first from God, who has he created me to be? and who is he making me to be as a Christian, who is he, conforming me to? Ultimately that's into the image of Christ. So you talked about image making, where we're all about, or image crafting, where we're seeking to craft our own image and what the Scriptures call us to. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament is to first of all see that God is the one who has assigned, an identity to us. Now maybe in the Scriptures, when they were reading an Old Testament, receiving the book of Genesis later on through their history and even in the New Testament times, they might not have been using those words that we use today, identity. And yet in Genesis chapter one, the very first chapter of the Scriptures, we see that God is creating a grand world. Six days and he is bringing order out of chaos. And on the, the day before he rests, we know that he creates the, the highest thing of all creation, and that is man and woman. And when we the Scriptures, we need to have these anchor points for us where we go to those various scriptures and we know this is one text where I will really want to latch on to this text and make sure that I teach it to others in discipling or raising children. And Genesis 1:26, 28 is one of those anchor passages, you've already mentioned it, where God says, let us make man in our image according to our likeness. And so we have those words, therefore image and likeness. And if we think about this, for if we just stop and ponder what God has just said, let us make man in our image, we are created to reflect and image, and picture the triune God of the universe. And that's a fascinating concept that every man, every woman, every boy, every girl that we meet, no matter their status, wherever they are in the world, God has created them in his image. And that's something we should take and ponder and not just skip over when we're entering into the first few pages of the scriptures. And so, yes, we do these roles and responsibilities that we do as Christians do for the, the good of others. But what if we lose that role or responsibility? What if we say, well, I'm a teacher or I'm a doctor or a nurse, or I'm a lawyer, this or that, fill in the blank. even I'm a wife or a husband, or I'm a mother or a father. What if we lose that role? Then we might begin to have a sense of identity loss. But if we understand this identity has been given to me, that I am an image bearer that can't be taken away from me.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Julia I, I'm all caught up in what you're saying because I'm just thinking of so many families I have encountered and even issues in my own family where it is sometimes you do even have a God given gift that you are pursuing and you do start to see yourself through the lens of that. Of course with kids I see this a lot through athletic gifts, through scholarship gifts. But I also seen many kids who are severely limited in their ability to succeed in the standards that the world sets before us. And yet God created them in his image as well and that he loves them just as much as those who are high achievers or not. But when we see those kids who are high achievers feel the pressure to keep that up and then they feel like when that gifting comes, is taken away, the opportunity is not given to them, they have an injury or whatever it happens. It just seems like the world comes crashing down around them. I've heard testimony after testimony about that. And I think we could call families to do what you're talking about and really emphasize that we are made in the image of God and that is first and foremost and to set that priority. Right. I think it would change the ways that we parent the way that we, our families, function. And we have a lot more to say. When we come back, we'll talk about some practical applications. How do we communicate to kids that they are made in the image of God? And what does that really mean? We'll talk more when we come back with Julia B. Higgins.
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Nobody But Jesus by Maverick City Music and Song House: Before I ever knew his name I was there to walk in my way Stuck in all my sins in shame I was destined for the grave if you've been searching and if you've been hur Then call out his name Nobody but Jesus Outside of the names nothing was the same the only one I claim is Jesus Saved by His grace he died in my place there's no other name but Jesus he's still healing mine.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Welcome back, friends. That is Nobody But Jesus by Maverick City Music and Song House.
Children growing up today are asking the question of who am I
And today, that's what we're talking about, about nobody but Jesus. We can't get our identity from anywhere else. We were made in the image of God. I'm talking today to Julia B. Higgins about her book, Christ and His Bride, how men and women tell the story of the Gospel. And we're right in the middle of talking about this difficult issue of identity. And as Julia pointed out before, probably in the Old Testament, they didn't use that word in the culture at the time about identity, the way that we use it now. But the issue at heart is still the same. Who am I? And children growing up today are asking that question, and adults are trying to help them find the answer. And in this world of cultural chaos, there is no shortage of voices who are shouting in their ear, telling them what they need to do to craft an image that is pleasing for cultural consumption. And the alternative here is pretty radical. We're talking about having freedom and your identity in Christ, being who he created you to be, be using the gifts and talents that he's given you to serve his kingdom. And this is an issue that I see causing a lot of anxiety for young people because they may see a social media trend and somebody puts the video out online and gets thousands of likes and Follows and adulation. And they put that same trend out. And nobody likes me. Who am I? And I see so many kids, even, who see themselves through the identity of who they are and finding a gift.
Let's say you have a kid who feels unsure about their identity
And, Julia that's where I want to start. Let's make this really practical, because let's say that you have a kid who just feels like they haven't found their thing, you know, the. You have that kid. I think most parents can relate to that. Just feeling like, what is my giftedness? What am I good at? Who am I? I'm nobody. I'm, nothing. How would you advise parents to step into that with hopeful messages about their identity being made in the image of God coming first and foremost?
Julia B. Higgins: I think this is a great question, and there are.
So I want to explain what theologians think about what it means to be made in God's image
So I want to explain a little bit of what theologians think about what it means to be made in God's image and hopefully put it into words that is helpful for parents to apply to those situations that they're faced with. So when you look at Genesis 1:26 and 27, and I note this in the book, in the early chapters, theologians are thinking through what are the ways? What does it really mean to bear God's image? And so they've come up with four, at least four different categories. Some would say, oh, well, it means something substantive about a human being. And so that is something that is a trait or characteristic that is unique to human beings. Our rationality, our agency, our moral accountability. so you might help parents think through what is it that a child is maybe struggling with, that they can identify in that child of, you know, I see this character characteristic uniquely in you, the way that God has shaped and fashioned you different from your friends. so parents just stepping back and identifying ways that kids are gifted by the Lord in particular things. The, other thing is the relational aspect. So some theologians say, no, it's. It's more that we're created to be in relationship with one another, drawn out of the fact that it says there in Genesis 1:26, let us. The plural, let us make man in our image, male and female. He created them. So human beings are created after the image of a triune God, Father, Son and Spirit, that are one, unified in oneness, and yet they are three distinct persons, Father, Son, and Spirit. And so we mirror that in our relationships with one another. And so maybe seeking to help kids understand in that moment of. Instead of comparison to other people, maybe. I'm, a young girl. I'm looking at Instagram. I'm struggling with someone I think is so beautiful. And I'm thinking, I could never be like her. Helping kids to orient their minds through. I'm created to shower love upon this young girl who's projecting an image, who's creating an image. And so it's difficult, maybe, to step back and say, I don't want to think about myself so much, but the orientation of my heart should be first Godward, to love God, and then to love my fellow human beings, my friends that God has placed me in school with or at church with, that maybe I'm jealous of. Instead transition away from a sinful inclination towards loving the other person. And then another way that theologians talk about it, third is functional, is that human beings have been created to function as, those who go out and carry out a mandate given by God. And they draw this directly from the context where God says, be fruitful and multiply. Go out and create a God honoring society. And so we have certain roles to play and responsibilities in the world. As his regents, kind of like ambassadors. We are sent out in God's stead to serve the world world. Because he has in Christ, he has ascended to the right hand of the Father. He's given this the Great Commission. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples. And so we have all of these ways as image bearers to bring to bear on the world God's kingdom.
: That.
Dr. Jessica Peck: That's.
Having parents look at the ways their children are gifted can help boost confidence
And you said there was a fourth. Is there a fourth?
Julia B. Higgins: Oh, the fourth. Yes, thank you. The fourth.
Dr. Jessica Peck: we're paying attention. I want to be a good student in class today, Julia
Julia B. Higgins: This is the most important one. So I'm glad you pointed out there is a fourth one. It's Christological, that Christ himself is the image of God. Colossians 1 tells us that. That though we are in, we are made in the image. Christ is the image of God par excellence, meaning he is the most perfect human being who has ever lived, the God man. And so all of us, us, whether we're created in God's image, we still fall into some subcategories. We are either fallen image bearers in need of a savior, or we are redeemed image bearers. And both of those subcategories mean that either I need Jesus to save me and conform me to his image, or I am currently in Jesus and I am being conformed into his image.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, Julia those are really great ways to translate into the practical for the parent who is trying to navigate that. Who. I see a lot of kids, too, who are Gifted uniquely by God. But maybe the gift is not very appreciated in that season of life, you know what I mean? Like they're gifted with gifts that when they become adults will be so appreciated. But you know, for 10 year olds they're like, oh, you have you know, the a gift of leadership. Well, we don't want you to really be a leader right now. We want to follow and go another way. And so sometimes it can be hard for kids to step into that. But having parents, you know, really look at the ways that their children are gifted, that is an evidence based way to build confidence, resilience in your child. By being confident in who they are and feeling competent in the ways that God has gifted them or through relationship or those functional ways or christological ways like you talked about. That is almost an easier position to be in. in my opinion, when you have a kid who is struggling with identity, you can give them hope. And many times I see kids latch onto this, I see adult latch onto this and say, okay, yes, that's a good reminder that I am made in the image of God. I do not have to live up to this pressure. Let's talk about the other end of the spectrum. As somebody who does have a strong identity, you have an extraordinarily gifted athlete, musician, artist, whatever it is. And that really tends to eclipse the biblical truth of being made in the image of God. They're like, yeah, yeah, yeah, I, I, I know that. But this, and then even as parents we hold on to that. I'm a community leader. I'm, you know, I'm a homeschool mom, I'm whatever it is. And some of those, so those things that we're really proud of, I'm proud of being a nurse and that is a big part of my identity. But how do we make sure those things stay in their rightful place? What, what advice do you have for us, Trillia?
Julia B. Higgins: Yeah, you know, when I think about Ephesians 2, it talks about in Ephesians 2, 1 through 10, of who we were before we were in Christ, who we are because of the love of God in Christ. And then at the end of those verses, towards verses 9 and 10, it talks about how we have been given, works to do, that he prepared beforehand that he gave for us to do. and so yes, we have things that we have been uniquely called to do and yet we might want to elevate those things like you're saying, to the primary importance. And, and that's what this book is seeking to do, is to help us kind of step back and see the entirety of the biblical narrative. because the scriptures, Genesis to Revelation are telling one cohesive story. It took me a long time to figure that out. I often read the Old Testament is very distinctly different from what the story of the New Testament was. But the book that I'm writing is kind of giving you the 30,000 thousand foot view of this whole of the storyline of the scriptures. And what we see by the time we get to the end of it is that it's all about Christ and his kingdom. That's really easy to just sit here and say, but if we go to the scriptures constantly and as parents, if we are telling the story kind of like the, the Shema, right, that, that it's given to the parents to sit with them, to talk with them about these things along the way at the dinner table, Abel constantly reiterating over and over, this is the whole of the story of the scriptures, that there is an end game. And the end game is not my little kingdom come, but it is God's kingdom and his kingdom come and one day Jesus will return and he will set up his kingdom here on this earth. And so we cast our eyes towards Jesus and look towards the kingdom to come and hopefully that will then orient our minds in, in a biblical way where we have a worldview that is not so much about my kingdom and the, the things that I'm maybe obsessed with, but again we're pointing those towards Jesus and his kingdom.
Dr. Jessica Peck: these are such important truths and often they just get lost in the business of life. I, I, I don't think that you would talk to a Christian family who would say like, oh yeah, we, we really don't care about a biblical worldview. We, we could care less if our kids have that or not. We all want it, but so distracted. I think by living at the speed of a smartphone.
Even now with the advent of artificial intelligence, kids are engaging with AI to ask spiritual questions
And the things that are distracting us are three things that you talk about in the book, Julia You talk about power, authority and influence. And I think those are so upside down and backwards in our rule right now. All power right now is really coming through social media that is just wielding such a, an insane amount of power. Honestly. Even now with the advent of artificial intelligence, we see kids are engaging with AI to ask spiritual questions. They're not going to their parents for that as much. They know that they have AI there, not their teachers, not their pastors, not their, the spiritual leaders or the mentors that God has put in their life. They're going to AI, that's who holds the power, the authority, and tremendous influence. But what does that. How should we think about that differently? Because of the example of Jesus? And how does this relate, relate to our identity in Christ?
Julia B. Higgins: Oh, that's a huge question. I think that we are just upon the precipice of beginning to understand how not just children, but adults as well are going to AI, to ask all types of questions. Should I do this? even counseling type of questions. and, you know, I've. I've asked AI questions here or there, and immediately in my spirit, it's almost like the spirit of God reminds me, no, you have the opportunity to come to me in prayer. And so I see this as a, a huge, thing that we're going to be dealing with is people basically going to AI when they should be going to the Lord for the answers. And we have the spirit of God indwelling within, in us. And we have the Word of God. You know, Paul tells Timothy there at the end of his ministry that the word of God, all of it is inspired by God, and it's profitable for teaching and correcting and reproving and training in righteousness. So we have to make sure that we are consistently ourselves as, as husbands and wives and mothers and fathers, that we are students of God's Word so that it can become central in the home. Home in the life of our home, where we know. Hey, I could ask AI a question here or there. But ultimately God, through his spirit, has inspired a book. And that book is sufficient for me to go to. It may not have the direct answer I'm looking for, but we need to be conversant in the scriptures so that we can continue to go to God's Word over and over again and seek his help there.
Dr. Jessica Peck: I think this is a message that, that children need, teenagers need and adults need. Because when we have the shifting sands of culture, things that change, I, say it all the time. What's celebrated today is canceled tomorrow. And it confuses kids because they think, oh, this is the thing. This is the standard today. Let me put my life around that. And they do. And then the next day, you know, the next week, because we see culture moving faster and faster. It causes a lot of anxiety and they can say one thing and be canceled. And I think to really help our kids understand who they are in Christ and to withstand those shifting sands of culture and the things that, yes, that we, that you built your life on the foundation of the rock. That is Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ is the Same yesterday, today and forever. And even though we don't know what tomorrow holds, we know who holds tomorrow. We know the ultimate holder of all power in the universe, all, authority and influence. And it reminds me, as I always remind myself, that God has not given me a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind. We can talk about these things as we walk along the road, as we put our kids to bed. And so I challenge you to think. Are you, you thinking and, talking about identity in your family intentionally? About who did God make you to be? And as parents, we can hold up that mirror for our children to help them to see their reflection is made in the image of God. We've got much more coming up with Dr. Julia B. Higgins, Christ and his bride, when we come back.
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Christian families need to talk about identity issues
And one thing that families are facing Today is identity issues. And we really as Christian families, need to be talking about what it means to be made, made in the image of God. And I'm talking today to Dr. Julia B. Higgins, author of Christ and His How Men and Women Tell the Story of the Gospel. So if you're thinking, yeah, you know, we really haven't talked a lot about this, this would be a great resource for you as you lead and disciple your family. One of the most important things that you will ever do. Before the break, Julie and I were talking about power, authority and influence. And I see, see parents losing those things so greatly, at a far greater rate than I've ever known in my lifetime. And we talk a lot about losing our rights, our, parental rights. We talk about those in the public square. And that is a conversation that needs to be had. But the irony is I see us giving away that power, authority and influence at home and letting media fill the empty spaces in our homes and let media, social media, other online places, platforms and influencers be the primary influencers in our children's lives. I've been talking a lot about the influence of AI and how parents need to be especially vigilant because AI chatbots are not human. They do not have your child's best good at heart. They are programmed to learn their preferences and to please them, to tell them what they want to hear, not what is good for them. And that can be a really tough competition for parents. But this is a message. Instead of all of the do's and the don'ts and the rules and the, getting down into the nitty gritty of all of the debates about issues that we have, let's raise our conversation to a higher one. That's what I'm calling you to do.
What can we learn from biblical worldview about power, authority and influence
To also be talking about what it means to be made in the image of God. And Julia we really see that Jesus perhaps give us, gives us the clearest picture of servant leadership in the, in this and, and what to do with authority. He had all authority and he laid it down. He had all power, but he, he positioned himself as a servant and he was worthy of all honor and glory. And yet he sacrificed himself. And so when we're teaching our children about leadership, we're not teaching them how to get people to follow them. We're teaching them how to be an image bearer of God, how to be Christ like. And that can be really difficult. So what can we learn, from a biblical worldview about power, authority and influence that can help us to equip our families to Face the challenge, challenges that the world is throwing at us every day.
Julia B. Higgins: Yeah, I'm always going to go back to this scripture. So I want to give you an example from the Old Testament and then kind of overlay that with what we see in Jesus. If you remember, if you're familiar with the Old Testament, there's a point at which in Deuteronomy 17, Moses prophesies and he tells the people of Israel, hey, when you get into the promised land, you're going to ask for a king. So hundreds of years before this takes place, he prophesies that that is going to happen in Deuteronomy 17. By the time you fast forward and you get to First Samuel, chapter eight, you have another prophet, Samuel, who begins to engage with the people of Israel as they are in that moment, demanding for a king like all the other nations. And what does Samuel do? He begins to go through an exhaustive list of what a king can do. And he says over and over again, he can take, he can take, he can take. And so we see that worldly authority in that instance is going to be someone who's lifted up and lifted high and they're going to take and take and take from the people of God. Fast forward to the NewSong Testament. We see Jesus, who is the rightful king. He is the God man. He is born of a virgin. He lives the life that we should have lived. He dies the death we deserved. He's raised up, up and he has ascended on high and he is the rightful king. And yet he is a servant hearted king. Instead of being like the one who is taking and taking and taking, though he is worthy of taking from us, fundamentally his kingship is in done in a way that is giving of himself to the point of dying for people. He gives up his life. He bleeds out on a cruel Roman cross and gives of himself. And so he humbles himself as a servant. He takes the form of a bond servant. He doesn't count equality with God as something to be clung to or grasped or held on to. Why do I go through all of that? Well, if we're being conformed into the image of Christ, whether fathers or mothers, husbands or wives, we're called to be those in authority over the ones that we are given to steward, namely children or maybe people that we're serving and leading at work in our work lives, we're not called to take from them. We're called to expend our life for their good, for their flourishing. And so the parent who is dealing with authority, what does it look like for me to be the authority of this child? Well, yes, that's a God given calling, responsibility, ability, a role played as an image bearer. But it is done in a certain way, in a Christlike way, in a giving of self for the good of the child. That doesn't mean the child always gets what they want. Right. We know that sometimes the good of the child is the opposite of what they desire. And that's going to be difficult in the exercise of that authority and leadership. But yet the foremost thought of the mind of a parent or even husbands towards wives should be, how can I best serve? How can I lead and serve for the good of this person entrusted to my care under my leadership?
Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, one of the things that we have to do in just answering that is navigating some of the conversation that's going around about all of this cultural chaos that comes into our homes. Julia I know you probably felt it. I've definitely felt it. And it's hard to lead in that way that you're describing when we live in a culture that makes, that glorifies concepts like rage bait. This is something I've been thinking about, rage bait ever since I learned about it. It's basically, if you're thinking, what is that? I've never heard it. It's basically intentionally making someone mad, provoking someone. And I, I just like you say something that you know is going to cause a conflict. And I saw a Christian commentator publish a piece today talking, really calling out the addiction that we can feel to that rage bait, to that feeling of out, you know, saying something we, we're really good sometimes about, you know, standing on our biblical, biblical conviction. how do we hold firm to that while also holding truth and grace in the same way? And how do we lead with that? Because, Julia I think a lot of times our, our instinct is to lead with lecturing in our home and to tell them this is what's right and this is what's wrong. And you're in my house and you're going to obey my rules. How, how do we tell, take this, this issue of identity, who we are in Christ and hold true, hold true and firm and not compromise biblical conviction, conviction, but also be a servant leader and lead with grace. How do we do that? I know this is, if you can answer this will, you'll probably get nominated for the Nobel Prize, I'm sure for peace, because it's such a hard thing to tackle, but where do we even begin?
Julia B. Higgins: Yeah, it's a great question and one we wrestle with always is like, how do I live up to the ideal of being a Christian that I'm supposed to.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Right.
Julia B. Higgins: And the answer is, we cannot do it. So to rest in the fact that I and myself as a human, yes, as a human being, I am incapable of being the godly wife or mother or parent or whatever, or co worker that I am called to be in and of myself. But if we think about Ephesians 5, where Paul talks about being led by the Spirit, a person who's a good leader is first led. They are led by the Holy Spirit. And so he uses lots of different ways of talking about what it means to be led by the Spirit. And I love to ask my students here at Sanford, like, if you're discipling someone and they ask you, what does this really mean? Like, how do I walk by the Spirit? I love to give this illustration because Paul says, you're walking by the Spirit, you're living by the Spirit, you're led by the Spirit, you're keeping in step with the Spirit. And so the illustration I give them is like, I'm, a dog walker. Sometimes I take my little shizu out into our neighborhood. He has a really long leash. So I'm one of those probably offensive dog walkers that lets my dog run all over the place. Right? Right. He's chasing squirrels and whatever else and just having the best time of his life. If I was a good dog walker, though, I would keep him healed right beside me. Right. I would keep him right next to my leg. He would be led by me. He would keep in step with me, and that would prevent him from harm. And so that is like us with the Spirit. We, we, we walk daily, hour by hour, moment by moment, seeking to put in practice, submitting to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. And then he will affect his fruit in us, the fruit of the Spirit. And that's when we will be able to lead in a way that is loving and kind and patient and gracious and merciful and courageous and standing up for difficult things and truth, all of that paired together. But we can't do it in ourselves. And that's the good news of the Gospel.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Gospel.
Julia B. Higgins: That Jesus came and did it for us in our place, and then he gives us his Spirit to accomplish us. That in us.
Dr. Jessica Peck: That is the best news ever. It really is the best news ever.
Parents should encourage children to be confident in their Christian identities
And I think as we're preparing our children to be confident in their identity in Christ, there's so much research about family dynamics and one of the. The consensus of, family Dynamics research is that even if families are really, really unique, if their family is not like any other family and they do things that are different, if they' doing those things together, children are generally going to feel more confident in their identity. And so walking in identity together, having, you know, having, parents who are Christ followers and doing those things to go into church together and pursuing discipleship together, those things are going to be helpful. But how? It can be hard though, Julia to go out into the world and to feel like the identity that I have is so different from what the world tells me I need to be. How can we encourage our kids and encourage our, ourselves to stand firm in that and to stand firm and to be confident in our identity, even when it seems so countercultural?
Julia B. Higgins: Yes. Because the culture is offering all different types of answers to what identity is. Basically, you can speak your truth into existence. Right. You can define who you are. And so to stand up as a Christian and to say, hey, this is against God's word and against how God has created us, that's a difficult thing to do. To be brave to do that, and to also be courageous in that. I was, I was reading a news article recently about the, the WNBA and how they are looking at defining what a woman is because there are two, biological males who are wanting to play in the wnba. And I saw an article on ESPN recently with Sophie Cunningham, and she's seeking to stand up for, for women, to protect young women in that league. And she said, you know, I feel like I can love people basically, but also speak truth. So love, the loving thing to do is to speak the truth and to care for others. And so we always have to think through, maybe this is difficult for me to speak to a culture that is going to, like you were mentioning earlier, rage, bait, rage against me for the things that I am speaking. And yet, it's bringing as image bearers again, again, order out of chaos. So sin and devastation is chaotic. But God provides the way to a flourishing life. And so as Christians, we're called to help the culture see that as we bear his image in the world and, he'll give us the grace to do it.
Dr. Jessica Peck: Those are very helpful, hopeful and encouraging words. And, and again, I encourage families. As you're thinking about the conversation that may be happening in your car rides, around your dinner table, the conversation you're having with spouse, with your adult parents, with your extended family, instead of just debating the issues, this was actually, I was just at a, pastor's home in the uk actually. And we were talking about all of the issues facing us. And he said at that table, Julia he said, we're spending so much time spinning our wheels, talking about things that are going wrong. What is God at work doing in the world? How have you seen his hope, his redemption in your life? And we completely changed, changed the nature of the conversation. And of course, we need to talk about those issues, but we also need to talk about the truth of God's word and who we are in Christ. Because ultimately, it's not about our mission as parents, is not to help our kids craft the perfect identity that is going to be most marketable to the world. It's about helping them understand the identity that God has already given them. And it. It's not about teaching our sons and daughters to chase past power. It's teaching them, what does Christian leadership look like, not just what not to do, but what to do, how to step forward with confidence and grace. It's not about creating another generation obsessed with finding themselves. It's about raising a generation who understands who they are, whose they are, why they were created, and how their lives fit into God's bigger story. And so I, thank you so much. Thank you so much, Julia for sharing the encouragement.
What is my family learning about me from where their identity comes from?
And I'm going to ask my listeners to really think, what is my family learning about me from where their identity comes from? What is my family learning? What am I teaching them about where their identity comes from? The world has plenty of answers. The scripture offers something so much better. You recommend created in the image of God, you bear his image. You were made for his purpose. And I pray, as I always do, the Lord will bless you and keep you. I'll see you tomorrow.
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Jeff Chamblee: The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.
Author, Professor, and Bible Teacher Julia B. Higgins joins Jessica to talk about being the image-bearers of Christ and how we can lead our families to see power, authority, and influence through a biblical lens.
https://www.juliabhiggins.com/
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Chapters:
(00:00) More than 80% of abortion vulnerable women choose life after seeing ultrasound at a PreBorn network clinic
(01:47) Dr. Jessica Peck is prescribing Hope for Healthy families on American family radio
(03:15) One of the things that concerns me about younger generations is image crafting
(06:34) Julia B. Higgins is an associate professor of Christian ministry at Samford University
(07:45) Introduce yourself to our listeners and tell them about your own faith journey
(08:56) You asked how I came to know Jesus Christ
(11:13) So often we define ourselves as what we do
(16:48) Without people like you, this podcast would not exist
(18:18) Children growing up today are asking the question of who am I
(19:55) Let's say you have a kid who feels unsure about their identity
(20:29) So I want to explain what theologians think about what it means to be made in God's image
(24:09) Having parents look at the ways their children are gifted can help boost confidence
(29:41) Even now with the advent of artificial intelligence, kids are engaging with AI to ask spiritual questions
(36:09) Christian families need to talk about identity issues
(38:04) What can we learn from biblical worldview about power, authority and influence
(46:28) Parents should encourage children to be confident in their Christian identities
(50:47) What is my family learning about me from where their identity comes from?
(51:19) Preborn has rescued over 400,000 babies from abortion
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