Who Do You Say Jesus Is?

 "And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him." (Mark 8:27-30 , ESV)

Do you think Jesus was just a great teacher, one of the prophets or man of great morals? Who really was Jesus?  Apostle Peter was convinced that Jesus was the Christ. The word Christ in Greek is Christos meaning 'Anointed One' equivalent to the Hebrew word, Messiah that means 'One who is Anointed'. Let us take some time to examine His claims and some facts about Him:

1. "Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me?" (John 8:46). A sinner could never ask such a question. Jesus basically told the Pharisees that He was without sin challenging them to refute what He was saying. Jesus was sinless. He never committed any sin. Only God is without sin. Earlier on, He had rebuked the Pharisees saying, "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it." (John 8:44).
2. Jesus died for our sins. The Bible says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." (John 3:16-17); Jesus predicted His own death as prophesied by the prophets "And He strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one, saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.” (Luke 9:21-22). In the Old Testament, prophet Isaiah spoke by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, "Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53:4-5). Jesus was crucified on the cross of Calvary so that mankind would be redeemed. He is the only Saviour.
3. On the cross of Calvary, Jesus told the condemned thief,  “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise." (Luke 23:43). He knew where He was going after His death on the cross and He reassured the thief that he would be with Him later that day in Paradise. The confidence exuded by that statement really makes one wonder about Jesus. He was no ordinary person.
4. On the cross of Calvary, after His death a centurion was convinced that Jesus was the Son of God. The Bible says, "So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!"  (Matthew 27:54). The centurion was so amazed by what he saw and experienced that the only conclusion he could come to was that Jesus was the Son of God. Not a son but the only begotten Son. Incredible! Remember Roman soldiers were tough individuals.
5. Jesus rose from the dead. "For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.." (I Corinthians 15:3-8)
6. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." Jesus made a bold statement about Himself. He basically stated that He is the only way to God. Jesus did not say that He was one of the ways to God, He said He is the Way. Without receiving Jesus, no one can go to God the Father.
7. Jesus accepted worship because He is God the Son.  In John 20, we read, "And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:26-29)
   
8. Jesus' birth was prophesied centuries before He was born. "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14). Immanuel means God with us.
9. Jesus is God. The Bible says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made." (John 1:1-3). All things were created by Him and for His pleasure as read in Colossians 1 - "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence." (Colossians 1:15-18)
10. Jesus is coming back again. "Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven." (Acts 1:9-11)

The above facts and Scriptural passages are snippets that point to the truth about Jesus. No one who ever had an encounter with Jesus remained the same. Even today, He is still changing lives. He called out to the weary and heavy laden saying, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

You must make up your mind about Jesus. He is Lord and Saviour. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He is God the Son, the Creator of the whole universe. He is coming back again, this time not as Saviour but as righteous Judge. Will you be on the right side of Jesus or on the wrong side? He has all power and at the Name of Jesus, every knee shall bow.

"Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:5-11)

There is power in the Name of Jesus; there is salvation and deliverance in the Name of Jesus; there is healing in the Name of Jesus. Come to Jesus today and He will set you free from addictions, besetting sin, bondages and self-destructive tendencies. He will give you peace and will guide by the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is not an ordinary person. He is more than a swear word. He is LORD of lords and KING of kings. 

Today Jesus will make an eternal difference in your life if you call upon Him. "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:..." (John 1:12) 

"that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." (Romans 10:9-10)

I pray that you will be encouraged in your walk of faith today. If you are not a Christian and are still wondering who Jesus really is, may the Word of God saturate your mind so that you will bow before Him, surrendering your whole life to Him. JESUS IS LORD. Have a blessed day.