So Who Do You Say Jesus Is?
Good Morning Friends,
If we are honest, every one of us has questions about our faith and how to live. We ask ourselves things like: ‘Is the Bible true?’ ‘Why does God allow suffering?’ ‘Am I truly forgiven?’ ‘Will I really go to heaven when I die?’ There are at least a hundred questions Jesus asked. They are not hard to understand just hard to live by. Still one of them stands out. Ultimately it is not a “what if” question or a “why” question that is the most important. It is a “who” question. So Who Do You Say Jesus Is?
Scripture: Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Matthew 16:13-16 (NRSV)
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
John 11.25-26 (NRSV)
14God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’* He said further, ‘Thus you shall say to the Israelites, “I am has sent me to you.” ‘
Exodus 3:14 (NRSV)
12Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.’
John 8:12 (NRSV)
Message: If you want vision, courage, strength and power to exceed your expectations? And who wouldn’t? And yet, they are all available only to those who are able to answer His ultimate question correctly. Christ first asked life’s ultimate question on the road to Caesarea Philippi. I have walked there in the ruins of a Roman city on the Mediterranean coast of Israel. Few places could have provided a more significant setting for this question to be asked. When Jesus was there the city was in its Roman glory. Here Herod the Great built a translucent temple of white marble. And there was an open air theatre large enough to seat several thousand people. Around it were magnificent villas and palaces added by Herod’s son Philip, who had renamed the city from its original name of Balinas which honored the pagan fertility god to a name that honored Caesar. The power of Rome was in the air, but so were the sins of orgies as worship of the pagan god, Baal. Framing the view and overshadowing the region was Mount Hermon, a metaphor of Israel’s quest for God. It was here in this region of symbols of humankind’s lust for military might and the religious quest for meaning, that Jesus stopped, turned, and confronted His disciples with a two part question. The first was “Who do men say that I am?” The answers were really very complimentary. They told Jesus that the fears of Herod Antipas, who murdered John the Baptist, had promoted the theory that He was John raised from the dead. Others believed He fulfilled the prophecy of Malachi that He was Elijah come to prepare the way for the Messiah. Still others surmised that the vision given to Judas Maccabaeus was being realized: He was Jeremiah who had come with a golden sword to wage war for the deliverance of Israel. Others simply said Jesus was one of the prophets. It was at this significant moment that Jesus pressed home life’s ultimate question. Surrounded by geographical and topographical evidences of humankind’s longing for an answer to the riddle of life, and in the emotional context of the varied, but false opinions about His real identity, Jesus asked the disciples, “But who do you say that I am? Only one could find his voice to answer. Simon’s response motivated by a gift of faith from the Father. His voice must have been alive with excitement and insight as he answered: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Clearly Simon acknowledged Jesus not as forerunner of the Messianic age, but as the Messiah Himself. Here this ultimate question is hard because it forces us to be absolutely honest in how we answer. When Jesus asks us, “Who am I to you…really?”, that cuts like a laser into the core of our being and forces us to evaluate our priorities, values and attitudes. There is no middle of the road here. How we answer Christ’s ultimate question determines what we will receive from Him. Friends, if you are not able to adore Jesus, something is missing from your religion. Know that Jesus is the light of the world…Jesus is the door and good shepherd….Jesus is the way, the vine, the water of life and the resurrection.
Pray that we realize that the
most urgent needs of our lives are met through Christ. Pray we realize that our answer to the ultimate question will determine how much we know and experience of God our Father and the Holy Spirit, our source of power. Pray we realize that how we answer Christ’s ultimate question determines our ability to live the abundant life He promised. Pray we realize how we answer Christ’s ultimate question determines our ability to receive and give forgiveness. Pray we realize that to become Christ like is the only thing in the world worth achieving. Pray we realize the authentic Jesus of the Bible tenderly cares for us when we hurt, but He tenaciously exposes anything that keeps us from being all He intends for us to be. Pray we realize that how we answer the question determines our courage to face death. Pray we are freed of all anxieties for we belong to Christ. Pray we are motivated to committing our lives to Christ, and ready to receive the mysterious, but transforming dynamic of Christ’s cross and our own. Pray we realize that Christ must be at the center of our lives. Pray we overcome the temptation to be Christians without Jesus.
Blessings,
John Lawson
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