I am sure that some of the same feelings were felt among the early believers and followers of the Way! Jesus was so not normal in His message and teachings that everyone felt threatened by His truth. That is everyone but a few. Do you recall reading about that in His Word? Remember Matthew 16 when Jesus was sharing with his disciples about yeast being the in the bread and to watch out for that. His words were strong words of warning about the religious teachers and leaders of the day. His words were very unusual and different concerning the ones most people were listening to for truth. He then follows this discussion with a very important question.
Jesus asked those closest to Him, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" This question drew out many responses and some of them were significant. Yet, Jesus took it all one step further to make it deeply personal. Jesus asked, "But what about you? Who do you say I am?" This is the most important question we all must answer!
Who is this Jesus that you claim to follow? Each one of us must determine who it is that we are following. We must decide are we following the One who laid down His life as the perfect sacrifice for the forgiveness of sin. We must decide are we following the One who said to lay down your life and take up His cross. We must decide are we following the Jesus of the Bible, who said He is I AM and will provide all we need and all we could hope for if we will sacrificially follow Him in His Way.
You and I must also decide who do we SAY He is! You see it is not enough for me to sit in my bedroom and read the Bible and talk to God about what amazing things I read. It is not enough to stand in a room full of like-minded people and sing together in one accord the words of a good song and feel the emotions of the crowd stir us. It is not enough to talk about how good God is and how much He has done for us and bask in the blessings of this life "He has granted" all the while working our fingers off to build our kingdom and control our future with the security of the things of this world!
No, the question is who do you SAY Jesus is to the world? What are you saying to the people who live with you about Jesus? What are you saying to those who walk in and out of your life on a daily basis about the One who died for the sin of the world? What are you actively doing to communicate the truths of His Word to those who desperately need to hear real hard truth about a Savior who died for them and a Lord who can exchange their worldly zip code for eternal zip code! You see, every single one of us who claim to follow Christ, no matter what our position or platform, have been instructed to declare the truth of who He is to the world!
When you and I declare with boldness, out of obedience, the whole truth of His Word about who He is to this world, then it is upon that truth that the church grows and expands and reaches the world. It is such an amazing reality that the confession that Peter, the rock, made about Jesus is the same confession you and I are called to make. And when you and I declare, just as Peter did, the whole truth about Jesus outwardly...Then the ROCK of our salvation is revealed in the midst of struggle and strife and the gates of Hell cannot overcome it! It is such a wonderful reality that the truth of the Gospel is that truth that sets us all free to be bold and be vocal and be obedient! Jesus said He would build His church upon the ROCK of truth, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God!" It is this truth that you and I stand in when we declare to the world who Jesus is.
So who do you say Jesus is? Are you clear on the facts and the reality of who this Messiah is? Are you in Him and He in you so much that everything about your life speaks of His greatness and His power? Are you telling the world about His truth, He is the Messiah, the Savior, the One, the King, the Lord? Who do you say that Jesus is?
I challenge you today to tell someone who Jesus is! If you and I will take seriously the command of our Lord to make disciples in every phase of life in which we find ourselves walking, then we will see the Glory of God revealed in His church as it grows and reaches the world with truth and teaches His Word to all who seek Him! Will you join me in going to those who don't know the truth and sharing with them the truth about Jesus and the glorious riches of His grace? Will you reach your world and teach His Word?
In His Grip,
JT
