Who Do You Say That I Am?

Who Do You Say That I Am?

In Matthew 6:13-20 we read about the time when Jesus first asked His disciples who people say He is. The answer was varied, he said in verse 14, “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.” But, Jesus didn’t stop there. The next thing He asked in verse 15 was, “Then he asked them, ‘But who do you say I am?’” So, after they told Him who everybody else thinks He is, He turns it on them, and of course Peter, being who he jumps up and says in verse16, “Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’” Peter never beats around the bush, does he?

But, I love Jesus’ reply to him. He says in verse 17, “Jesus replied, ‘You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being.’” You see, none of us has learned that Jesus is the Christ of anyone else. Oh, we may have heard it in Sunday school or church, or read it in the Bible, or heard it from an evangelist or a friend, but we learned it from God. Only God can reveal this to us.

So, who has God revealed this to? Psalm 98:2 tells us, “The Lord has announced his victory and has revealed his righteousness to every nation!” In Isaiah 40:1-5 we read about the coming of the Messiah, and it says, “¹Comfort, comfort my people,” says your God. ² “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem. Tell her that her sad days are gone, and her sins are pardoned. Yes, the Lord has punished her twice over for all her sins.” ³ Listen! It’s the voice of someone shouting, “Clear the way through the wilderness for the Lord! Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God! ⁴ Fill in the valleys, and level the mountains and hills. Straighten the curves, and smooth out the rough places. ⁵ Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. The Lord has spoken!” So, who does it say He will reveal Himself to in verse 5? All People!

We see that He has been revealed to all people, so why aren’t all people going to heaven? You see, God has revealed Jesus as the Chris to all of us, but the onus is still on us to accept and believe. The reason God revealed Jesus as the Christ to all of us is that He doesn’t want to see any of us miss out on His blessings. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.” So, we must believe, we must trust, and we must follow Him.

So, just who is this Jesus? Revelation 1:8 tells us that He is the beginning and the end and the He is the Almighty One, “I am the Alpha and the Omega—the beginning and the end,” says the Lord God. “I am the one who is, who always was, and who is still to come—the Almighty One.” According to Exodus 3:14, He is the Great I Am, “God replied to Moses, “I am who I am. Say this to the people of Israel: I am has sent me to you.” According to Revelation 22:16 He is the bright morning star, “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this message for the churches. I am both the source of David and the heir to his throne. I am the bright morning star.” And Revelation 19:16 says that He is the King of kings and Lord of lords, “On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.”

So, who is Jesus? HE IS GOD! Colossians 2:9, “For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.” Do you believe this? God has revealed it to you, but do you accept it? Because, here’s the thing, I could give you a lot of facts about why the Bible has to be the word of God. For instance, the fact that it is comprised of sixty-six books, written by forty-eight different people over a period of four thousand years, and never contradicts itself. This fact alone should make people believe, but the reality is that it’s not about facts, it’s about faith. You see, the Bible tells us that without faith, it is impossible to please God, Hebrews 11:6. And, it goes on to tell us that this faith must be a life-changing faith as we see in James 2:19, “You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror.” Because, faith without works is dead, James 2:26.

So, the question I must ask myself, the question we all must ask ourselves is, who do I say He is? What we believe doesn’t change who He is, it changes us.