“Who do you say I am?” Jesus asks this
question in the area of Caesarea Philippi, where the Cave of Pan, the place of
the pagan Gate of Hades was found. It was in this area that Jeroboam, the first
king of Israel, led the northern kingdom of Israel into idolatry. This was also
the same place where the Greeks and Romans received revelations from the god
Pan who was mentioned in classical writings as a "seer" and a
giver of revelations. In 19 BC Herod built the Augusteum, a magnificent
white marble temple dedicated to Augustus Caesar in front of the Cave of Pan. This
was a place of gods, a place where Caesar was declared lord and saviour and god.
Before Jesus asks the disciples who they say he is,
he asks them, “Who do the crowds say I am?” There’s
a variety of answers, “Some say John the Baptist;
others say Elijah, who was one of the most powerful prophets from their
past, and still others, that one of the prophets of
long ago has come back to life.” The prophets were never really embraced
by the people. Prophets were fascinating to the people, seen as different;
always calling the people back to God’s way of doing life and leaving status
quo behind, but they were also blunt and gave the people no room for excuses
for how they were living. The disciples recognise that Jesus is different
though, that he’s talking God’s words in a different way, that Jesus is not
just repeating God’s words, but giving us God’s words directly as God.
Today if we would ask the crowd who Jesus is, I
wonder what their answer would be; likely some would say he’s a fairy tale
figure, or a wise Jewish teacher like a Buddha or Confucius, or perhaps a
fraud, a Jewish charismatic teacher who fooled a whole lot of people for a long
time now. Many will say that Jesus is a good person who says a lot of good
things about morals and ethics, though he goes too far in what he expects from
us. A lot of the people I’ve introduced to Jesus like what he says, but don’t
want to give him full power over their lives as the Son of God.
Jesus then asks the
disciples, “Who do you say I am?” It’s
interesting that this question comes after Jesus first asks who the crowds say
who he is. The underlying question is are you being swayed by what the crowd
believes. Jesus asks us the same question, “Who do you
say I am?” Think about this question for a moment, “Who do you say Jesus is?” Jesus asks us this question
with respect, he wants to hear us identify him and choose him; he wants to know
who we really think he is and puts us on the spot by asking straight out. We
need to spend time with this question.
Peter speaks up, “The Christ of God.” Peter has seen what Jesus can do.
Jesus sent them out with power to heal and cast out demons as they preached the
kingdom of heaven. Peter saw Jesus take the bread and feed a hungry crowd of
thousands. He has no doubt who Jesus is, though he doesn’t necessarily
understand what being the messiah or Christ means. He knows the promises of
Isaiah 11 of a root coming from the stump of Jesse who will bring righteousness
and justice, he knows of Daniel 7 and the coming of the anointed Son of Man
coming to rule on the throne of Israel. Yet Peter’s probably not thinking of a
suffering messiah like in Isaiah 53, which is why Jesus warns them of the
suffering in his future and that they’ll share in his suffering if they
continue to be his disciples. Do you understand what confessing Jesus as
Messiah means?
Jesus goes counter-cultural now. He makes us think
twice about confessing him as Messiah when he tells us what it means, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take
up their cross daily and follow me.” Confessing Jesus as Messiah and
following him is about giving up our lives. Today people look to politicians,
sports stars, entertainment stars to save us from our sometimes-dreary boring
lives, to save our jobs, our dreams, to give us what we feel we need to enjoy
life the way we’re told we’re supposed to. 4 years ago, the people looked to
Trudeau as their saviour, a few months ago we looked to Jason Kenny as our new
saviour, some turn to the Kardashians to save them from their lives, others
turn to Taylor Swift, whiles other turn to the latest phone, gaming computer or
whatever to save them from their lives.
When
the disciples hear the call to carry their cross daily, they hear
the call to give up everything and follow Jesus, to turn away from all the saviours
and heroes of the day, from the things that others hold as valuable and
important and follow Jesus and his way of self sacrifice. Jesus went to the
cross to make us right with God, to take away our fear, our doubt, our hurts
and brokenness so that we can face the future with strength and hope, knowing
that we are loved, accepted and gifted in order to be change makers.
Carrying our cross means we give up the
things that we’re trusting in and follow Jesus’ way; becoming the people Jesus
is calling us to be. When a person was condemned to be crucified, he had to
carry the cross beam of his own cross to the place where he was going to be
crucified. Everything they owned was taken away from them, they were denied
burial, showing that they’re nothing. Jesus calls us to a new identity; an
identity based on following Jesus as children of God; dead to the values of the
world that opposes God. Carrying our cross is about self-sacrifice and identifying
with the poor and the hurting, with the broken and the sinners and speaking out
on their behalf, about holding onto our possessions lightly and being quick to
give to others when there’s need. It’s about embracing the kingdom of heaven
and working at making it real here and now.
It’s not enough to confess Jesus as Messiah. Even
the demons confess that Jesus is the Messiah. Luke tells us of a man possessed
by an evil spirit. When the spirit sees Jesus it cries out, “Ha! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you
come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” We can say
the words, “You’re God’s Messiah,” believe it
and still not follow Jesus. This is harsh, but truth. Jesus doesn’t promise
changed circumstances in our lives as a reward for confessing him as Messiah
and following him, instead Jesus asks, “Who do you say
I am,” and then warns us that following him is going to be costly and
even painful; it means accepting a cross and losing your life; it means being
transformed by Jesus.
Think
about what you really believe when you’re asked “Who do you say Jesus is.” Look into your heart and be
honest about who you really believe Jesus is; is he your Messiah, Saviour, God,
or is he more of a guide or respected teacher you can ignore when it suits you?
How are you allowing Jesus’ Spirit to change you, transform who you are in
response to who you say Jesus is?
Jesus warns us that the cost of following him
is high, not because God wants us to suffer, but because, through the presence
of the Holy Spirit, we begin living counter-culturally, our values, morals and
priorities change and come into line with Jesus’. Through the Holy Spirit we
become less self-centred and more other-centred, we open our eyes to what is
going on around us and work to shape it into more to look like the kingdom of
heaven, we take seriously what Jesus teaches and don’t apologize for believing
differently than what our culture tells us is proper, and we share respectfully
with others who Jesus is, what he expects, and why.
Make a list of the things that are
important to you and be honest with yourself, don’t spiritualize it. Ask
yourself how your faith in Jesus actually affects the things on your list. Read
the Bible, starting with Matthew 5-8 And Galatians 5 and ask if your life is
shaped by the Sermon on the Mount or the fruit of the Spirit. Read 1
Corinthians 13 to see if your love for others really looks like that. Think
about the sacrifice it will take when you confess him as Messiah and follow Jesus
as God. Be honest to yourself about your faith and church membership; is it
about you and what you get out of it, about how the church serves you, or is it
about becoming the person God created you to be as part of his family?
Who do you say Jesus is and how does your answer change your life? An
important question to live with.
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