In the second Toy Story movie there is a wonderful illustration of how we are indelibly marked by God. When the boy Andy received Woody the toy cowboy, he marked Woody as his own – writing on the bottom of one of his boots: "Andy." Woody is proud of his marking and because of it knows who he belongs to – he has identity. Then, as the second installment of the movie begins, Woody is "accidentally" sold in a garage sale and bought by an unscrupulous toy dealer. The toy deal cleans Woody up – refurbishing his clothing, repainting him, and in the process covering up Andy's name written on the bottom of his boot. Does that mean that Woody's identity is gone? Certainly not – even though in the course of the movie he forgets for a bit that naming and claiming, Woody still belongs to Andy, even when that marking is not visible from underneath his paint job. And in the end, the paint job is removed, revealing clearly Woody's identity.

Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people, once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Much is made these days of the crime known as identity theft. It is an awful crime, with research showing that the effects are akin to being the victim of violent crime. The implications on one's life are far reaching. Having only experienced a minor form of the crime, I can only imagine how complicated a major form of identity theft might be. Yet, there is one place no one can touch – and that is our identity as God's people. No thief can take that away. We are, as I Peter proclaims: "God's people!" This morning we are reminded once again by the visible action of baptism that we are God's people … that in the waters of baptism we are marked indelibly as God's own – there is nothing that can take that marking away from us. It is easy to remember that as these two little girls are brought forward and publicly marked – they are clearly God's children, their identity as such is as clear as Andy's name on the bottom of Woody's foot was when he was a new received toy. Other than keeping their parents awake a few nights here and there, there is nothing Caitlyn and Hailey have done to mar how clearly they are children of God. It gets a bit tougher as life goes on, doesn't it? We conspire against ourselves, the world conspires against us … and the marking gets a bit obscured now and again … but still, under all the things that try to obliterate our marking as a child of God in the waters of baptism, we are still and always God's people. That is what we remember each Easter in our re-affirmation of baptism, it is what we remember each time we celebrate a baptism in our midst. Each time is our call to "clean the paint off the bottom of our feet" and remember the identity that nothing, no one can take away.

The church community for which I Peter was written knew all too well the powers that would conspire against them. Presumably this was a community of resident aliens and slaves living in Asia Minor. Their circumstances were often demeaning, they lived in a culture that constantly attempted to "re-name" them in less than complimentary terms. They were surrounded by foreign worship. And so the author of I Peter reminds them in these very powerful words, that they are God's people, always have been and always will be … no matter how hard they or anyone else try to cover that reality up.

In the waters of baptism we put on Christ … we take on his identity in the world. It means as God's people we are the face of God to the world. In that, what do we want to look like? We want others to see in us the reflections of God's love. We, the church become not simply the building where people gather to worship and celebrate God's love, but we become the space where others find there own identity as a child of God. We become the space where the reality of the gospel promise we hear today comes into being: "Let not your hearts be troubled, do not let them be afraid."

To be the space where people find God means we behave in the example of Jesus Christ who became the face of God in the world. We become the ones who extend the table, find ourselves with "the less than desirables" of the world … the kind of people that Jesus was found to be with almost all of the time. Hint – whenever you are searching for God, God is more likely to be with the marginalized than any where else. As the people of God, knowing our name and place, we are sent out to remind people of their identity, indelibly marked on their being, no matter how many layers of dirt have conspired to cover it up.

Jesus gives the disciples these words: "Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid." They are words of great comfort, given in a time when the disciples were confused, and ready to grieve his loss. But I see in them a great challenge as well. They are the challenge of becoming co-conspirators with God in bringing about God's kingdom where such a day is possible – no trouble, no fear. In remembering who's we can stop the clamoring and striving – everyone wins, so truly we usher in the vision capture by the year of Jubilee – when all debts were erased, and all was well. Again, it is what starts to happen when we so take on the identity of Christ and remember we are named and claimed by God.

Once you were no people, now you are God's people. If nothing else remember that truth on this day. There is nothing that can take away your identity as a child of God. No matter how many layers of dirt and dust and grime, no matter how the powers of the world might conspire to take away your identity … there is nothing that can stand up to the power and love of God who first named you and claimed you as God's own. With that power and authority go forth to love the world so that all might know and remember God's naming them. And there will come the day when no hearts are troubled and all fears are gone.

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