When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
The Jesus prayer begins with first making Peter's confession of faith that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. This confession of faith is what sets Christians apart from the world. Just as Christ asked his disciples "Who do men say that I am?", we are still faced with this same question 2,000 years later. There are many "Jesus's" that the world proclaims. Some that He was a prophet, but nothing more. Some say that He was just a good rabbi and wise teacher. Some say He traveled to India and studied Buddhism for a number of years before beginning His ministry. Some claim that he was just another Jewish zealot who lead a revolt against the Romans. Some even say that He might have been an alien. Others question His very existence as a real person.
Christians don't say any of the above, or even accept the possibility. Just as Christ asked His disciples "who do you say that I am?", this confession of faith is essential being one of Christ's disciples. What do we confess? That Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. He is the Messiah that came in fulfillment of the entire Old Testament prophecied to the Jews who were chosen as God's people to bring His Son into the world. Christ's Father is God, and with God as His Father, he is of the same divinity of his Father and Lord over all of creation. As Christians, we acknowledge Christ's Lordship and worship and glorify Him accordingly. We are to dedicate our lives and very existence to living in accordance under His authority.
The contrast between this confession and any other is made clear. Jesus asked "who do men say that I am?", implying that any other confession is of men and not of God. These answers have their origin in human imagination. When Jesus asked "who do you say that I am?", He was identifying the answer to what one must believe in order to be His disciple. The question was asked to all of His disciples, and when Peter spoke, he gave the one answer that was on everyone's mind. Giving this answer to this question is part of what identifies one as being a disciple of Christ. One can not give any other answer or deny this statement of faith in proclaiming who Jesus is and still remotely claim to be a Christian.
Christ also told Peter that this was not revealed by flesh and blood, that is that it does not originate in the mind of man, but is revealed by His Father and has it's origin in the revelation of God. This contrast between the doctrines of men and of God is found in the apostolic preaching in the New Testament. Paul expressed the divine nature of the message of the Gospel and proclamation of faith in his first letter to the Thessalonians when he said "For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe." in reference to the message as recorded in Acts "that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ."
May God help me to better confess Jesus as the Christ Who is the Son of the Living God so that I may grow in Him and become a better disciple of Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment