Name Above All Names: "Son Of God & Son Of Man" Series

It’s a question we’ll all have to answer!

Maybe you’ve already answered it and it was years ago; maybe you have yet to answer it; but rest assured

we will ALL answer it at some point!

Whether you grew up in church in a Christian family, or maybe you came to be exposed to Jesus much

later in life... we’re all asked that same basic question in life as the disciples, “Who do YOU say that I am?”

The story in the text read a moment ago is a remarkable one. Turn to Matthew 16:13-ff if you’re not

already there. I picture myself there among the disciples. I had grown being told the stories of the Bible;

how God had created the Heavens & the Earth; how he had sent a great flood to destroy the wickedness,

but delivered Noah & his family; how God had done mighty deeds through Moses and prophets who would

follow him... I had been told about Jesus. I could still see the flannel-graph pictures of the baby Jesus lying

in the manger; or him teaching in the synagogue. I had been brought to tears with images of a dying

Jesus hanging on the cross; laboring for just another breath! My parents had made sure that I was in Bible

class; that I behaved in worship; that I participated in youth activities... I knew the answer to most of the

Bible-bowl questions... “Who do others say that I am?” “Well, Jesus, some think you’re really John the

Baptist. Others think you’re Elijah come back.” And there were those who thought him to be Jeremiah or

another one of the prophets. I could tell you what everybody else SAID about Jesus. But then, Jesus

himself, looks me in the eye and says, “But who do YOU say that I am?” What would you say?

Can’t you just imagine the tension in the room at that point? I wonder if there was an awkward silence? I

imagine that there was as the question hung in the air. Nathanael cautiously clears his throat. Andrew

embarrassingly ducks his eyes. John nervously chews on a fingernail. Judas continues picking his teeth.

Who will be the one to answer? Of course, Peter will! And what’s remarkable- this time he gets it right!

“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” It was a bold confession; filled with more meaning than

Peter perhaps realized or intended. But a powerful statement.

We are continuing our series: Jesus, Name Above All Names this morning... We’ve been taking a look at

various names given to Jesus throughout Scripture and seeing our each one gives us a richer and more

full picture of who Jesus is! The very name “Jesus” means “God is salvation.” His name is a promise to

save us! He is “Messiah” or “Christ”; our King & we are his subjects. He is “Immanuel” or “God with us”;

God in the flesh! He is our “Righteous Advocate” who intercedes to the Father on our behalf, pleading our

case before him. And this morning I want us to look at the two titles mentioned of Jesus in this text: “Son

of God” and “Son of Man.”

They seem almost contradictory, don’t they? How can Jesus be BOTH “Son of God” & “Son of Man”?

What do those terms imply? It is obvious from this text in Matthew that BOTH terms are used to describe

Jesus. It is Jesus who asks, “Who do others say the Son of Man is?” referring to himself. The other

gospels make this abundantly clear as they record him saying, “Who do others say that I am?” Then you

have Peter’s dynamic confession that he is the “Son of God!” So what does it mean then to say of Jesus

that he is not only the Son of God, but also the Son of Man? I would say to you this morning: THAT is THE

most profound mystery of the gospel! But it is also the essence of the gospel!

Let’s begin by taking a look at the “Son-ship” of Jesus

In our culture we typically use the term “son of...” to talk about somebody’s origin... where they came from.

“Who’s your daddy?” Its used that way in Scripture to be sure... ex. vs. 17 Jesus blesses Peter for his

great confession and says to him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man,

but by my Father in Heaven.” Simon Peter’s daddy was named Jonah. But its also common in Eastern &

Semitic cultures to use the expression to describe a person’s nature. That is why we also get expression

like “sons of light” or “Son of Encouragement” in our Bibles. It is a way to describe what a person is like.