Who is Jesus?

Who is Jesus? Mark 8:27-30

Caesarea Philippi: 25 mi. north of the sea of Galilee, once the center worship of Ba’al and eventually the Greek god Pan (Pantheism or Pantheist) and then of Caesar who was worshipped as a god.

Syrian gods were also worshiped in the surrounding village.

It is in this cross-section of ancient religions that Jesus asked his followers, “Who do the people say that I am?

Many different answers were given to Jesus by the disciples.

Some people thought Jesus was John the Baptist alive from the dead. Others thought Jesus was Elijah. Still others said Jesus was one of the great Old Testament prophets like Jeremiah, for example.

Jesus, then, asked the disciples directly, “Now, who do you say that I am?” Peter answered first, saying, “You are the Messiah, the Son of God.” The question reverberates through history about Jesus: “Who is this guy?"

Peter, at Jesus’ bidding, walked on water. Peter helped feed over 5000 people. He saw Jesus whip the animals out of the Temple and chase out the money-changers. “Who is this guy?”

Every thoughtful person has to raise and answer this question. Just as in Jesus’ day, there were various popular answers, so there are many answers in our own time.

In The Story, let’s consider some of the answers to the question about Jesus, “Who is this guy?"

Jesus is a real nice guy. (the soft, hippie Jesus)

Jesus was a good person who created “the golden rule,” showing he was a friend of the poor, dependable advocate for the down-trodden, said a lot of great things, everybody’s best friend.

Yet, Jesus kept asserting that he was God as he kept referring to himself as “the Son of Man.”

In the Gospels, there are 80 references to “the Son of Man,” a favorite name Jesus used for himself. Daniel 7:13-14, “the Son of Man” is a reference for a divine being.

This phrase combines in one person both human and divine traits. Other clues: “come on the clouds” “given dominion and glory and a kingdom”, “all nations should serve him”

So, Jesus is more than just a “nice guy.”

Jesus kept using “I AM” statements about himself, a title for God in the Old Testament. John 6:35 & 8:12. Jesus claimed to forgive sins, to be greater than Jonah, than Abraham, than Solomon and even greater than John the Baptist, greater than the Temple and the Sabbath.

Since Jesus made these claims, namely to be God, then you’ve got to do something with that…

Was Jesus just a little bit crazy?

Was Jesus was a megalomaniac of the likes of Adolf Hitler or Alexander the Great, speaking and acting crazy or mentally disturbed?

Did he have delusions of grandeur, power and wealth

Many people were deeply devoted to Jesus, not becoming murderers like Hitler or power-hungry like followers of Stalin.

The disciples gave their lives for Jesus.

Jesus won the admiration of men and women and people from all levels of the social structures. No one led and taught people like Jesus. Jesus did not make people into lunatics; he made them better, with common fisherman writing some of the most revered books in human history.

Some people think Jesus was a deceiving fraud.

Oh, he was just a trickster and a huckster, a pied-piper who led blind followers over the cliff to their destruction. Yet, the miracles that Jesus performed (over 36 different ones recorded in the Gospels) demonstrate that he was not a huckster. He never performed miracles to merely draw a crowd and make a name for himself or show off. He never made a profit or took a penny for his miraculous works. One of the greatest testimonies to the veracity of the truth of Jesus Christ is the historically documented explosion of the New Testament church.

So who is Jesus? Jesus Christ God, Son, Savior. (Christian fish)

Jesus did miraculous things with a wonderful heart, showing that he was a tender, compassionate person who befriended and truly helped people.

Peter said it correctly for all of us, “You are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

Jesus went to the cross on a hill named after a human skull, (Golgotha) showing what he thought of us: he loved us deeply and gave his life for us

Application:

Go to your own Caesarea Philippi—a place of many gods: materialism, atheism, secularism, Mormonism, Buddhism, etc. and answer Jesus’ question for yourself, “Who do you say that I am?” Your answer will define your destiny. I’ve said it many times over the years, “You want to cause trouble in a room full of people, mention Jesus.” You can usually mention God and people won’t freak out as much. It’s because of the claims that Jesus made, the things he said about himself. Either he was truly the Lord, or he’s lost his marble. He showed you what he thinks of you by dying on the cross for you and rising from the dead.