Who Do You Say I Am

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Who do You Say Jesus Is?

I Introduction

Read Philippians 3:4b-12

Paul wanted to know Jesus. Above everything else – his possessions, trophies, accolades, heritage as a Jew and a Pharisee, even his righteousness under the law – were as nothing at all compared to knowing Christ, the power of his resurrection, and – amazingly - to share in his suffering and be like him in his death!

…in order that Paul might by any means possible attain the resurrection.

To Paul, “gain” began with and stemmed from knowing Christ.

Peter closed his second letter by encouraging the readers with these words:

…grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

Peter wanted the readers of his letter to not merely know about Christ, but to grow in knowledge of him.

II In the latter part of his ministry, Jesus came to a place called Magdala, a tiny village situated in north Galilee. It may have been at that time he met Mary Magdalene since it was her hometown. But we can’t say that for certain.

From there, Jesus took the disciples further north to Caesarea Philippi, a place well known at the time for its worship of many gods, represented by a single name, Pan.

He asked Peter, “who do people say I am?”

Peter answered, “John the Baptist, or Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.”

Jesus asked,

Who do you say I am?

Peter’s answer reverberates across the centuries:

You are the Christ, the son of the living God

Not “I think,” but “you are.”

Jesus said:

Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

The truth is the most fundamental of all truths, that Jesus is God’s son came from heaven to earth, and the reason for it.

Jesus continued:

Upon this rock (the truth Peter had just confessed) I will build my church.

That’s in Matthew 16:13-18

III Who Do You Say Jesus Is?

Let us imagine that Jesus looked directly into your eyes and said:

Who do you say I am?

What is your answer? Would it be the same as Peter’s, or some other descriptive term?

There are many titles and descriptions depicting who Jesus was and what he did in his earthly ministry - and in some cases still does.

We can understand multiple descriptions and titles – I am a son, a husband, a father, and a grandfather, and to 11 children, their “Great Pa.” I’m also an uncle and a nephew.

When I worked at the Bureau of Mines, I was that bureau’s Information Resource Management Coordinator, and also the Chief of the Division of Automatic Data Processing.

All of those capacities are harmonious. I can be an uncle at the same time I am a husband, a “Great Pa,” or a Division Chief.

In a much larger way, Jesus – in his short life, wore many titles and was descriptions.

Each description is a door that opens into some fresh aspect of who Jesus is, his key connections to everything that has happened from the fall in the garden until now.

Jesus stands at the center of history.

Nothing that happens, or ever has, escapes his notice.

There is no sin that does not participate in inflicting the stripes on his back and the nails in his hands.

IV Closer Examination of Four Titles

We cannot examine all of these in detail now, but I would like to dig deeper into four of them.

A. Man of Sorrows

Do you see Jesus as a man of sorrows? If so, how so?

Was Jesus like Al Capp’s cartoon character Joe Btfsplk, who appeared in the comic strip “Li’l Abner” about 75 years ago, always under a drippy cloud that stayed right above him.

Everyone ran from him because it was known that bad things happened wherever he went, to him and to anyone near him.

Did Jesus go around under a cloud?

Was he depressed like Elijah when he fled from Jezebel, queen of Israel?

Like Jonah when Nineveh repented and so avoided destruction?