Who Do You Say I Am?
One day Jesus asked his disciples, “Who
do people say I am?” One of them said, “John the Baptist.” Another said,
“Elijah.” Another said, “One of the prophets.” “Who do you say I am?”
Jesus asked. Peter answered right away, “You are the Christ, the Messiah!”
Then, Jesus began to tell them openly that the Son of Man must suffer, be
killed, then rise again. Of course, the disciples were shocked and dismayed. Who
is this Son of Man? Why must he suffer and die?
Adam and Christ (Genesis 3)
In order to answer this question,
we need to go back to the beginning of the story. The story begins in the Garden
of Eden. In the beginning… everything was perfect. God gave Adam and Eve
everything they needed. There was only one rule given by God: “Don’t eat the fruit
on that tree. Because if you do, you’ll think you know everything. You’ll stop trusting
me. You’ll try to make yourself happy without me.”
But one day the serpent approached and said to Adam and Eve, “You don’t need God. Just one bite, that’s all, and you’ll be happier. You’ll become like God.” Adam and Eve were deceived by this terrible lie. After they ate the fruit, they felt ashamed, hiding themselves from God for the first time. They were no longer able to stay with God. They had to leave, wandering as aliens and always yearning for home and God. But before they left the garden, God made clothes for his children. Then, God told them and the serpent his rescue plan for the first time: “I am declaring war between you Serpent and the Woman, between your offspring and hers; He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” (v. 15, MSG) Here God was saying to his children, “I will come to rescue you! I’m going to do battle against the snake. I’ll get rid of the sin and the sadness you brought here. I’m coming back for you!” One day, God himself would come.
Abraham and Christ (Genesis 15)
The story continues. Now Abraham
was far away from home. He was an alien. He had neither land nor children. But
God made a covenant with him that he would have children as numerous as stars, and
large land as inheritance, and blessings.
In Abraham’s time people make a covenant with blood. They would kill a heifer, a ram, a goat, a dove, cut them in half (except birds), and lay the pieces in two rows leaving a path through the center. Then two parties would walk the path as a way of saying, “May this be done to me if I do not keep my oath.” When the evening came, God put Abraham into a deep sleep. God appeared in the form of a “smoking fire pot and flaming torch.” Then God alone passed between the pieces. Here God was saying, “I would give my life if my promises were broken… You are wandering as an alien now. But surely, I will come to rescue you and bring you home. One of your descendants, the One from your body will come and rescue you by his blood.” Yes, the Promised One is coming.
Moses and Christ (Exodus 17)
God delivered his people out of
Egypt with his mighty hand. Now the Israelites were in the wilderness. One day
they arrived at Rephidim, meaning “Oasis,” but there was no water.
“Give us water,” the people complained against Moses. God said to Moses, “Go on
ahead of the people, take your staff, and take with you some of the elders.”
God continued, “I will stand before you on the rock. Strike the rock,
and water will come out of it, so the people can drink.” One of God’s names in
the Old Testament is Rock – Rock of Ages, and Moses’ staff (rod) is a symbol of
judgment. So What’s happening here? The people deserved to be punished. But
instead, God took punishment, giving water (life) to his undeserved people.
Here God was saying, “Today I am taking my stand on the rock that will give you
life. One day I would stand in your place, taking your punishment so you can be
healed.” Yes he would. One day God’s Son would come and stand in our place so
that by his wounds we will be healed and forgiven.
The Cross of Christ (Matt 27, Mark
15, Luke 23, John 19)
Now we reach the climax of the
story. People were gathered at the place called Golgotha (“Place of a Skull”).
There the people nailed Jesus to the cross – the most shameful and painful death
for the worst criminals. On the cross Jesus said, “Father, forgive them. They don’t
understand what they’re doing.” The people said to Jesus, “You say you’ve come
to rescue us! but you can’t even rescue yourself! If you were really the Son of
God, come down right now. Then we will believe!” Of course, Jesus was able to
come down, but Jesus chose to stay. He must stay. He must suffer and die a
criminal’s death on the cross, because that’s God’s rescue plan. It was not the
nails that kept Jesus there. It was LOVE.
In our place, on the cross Jesus experienced the total separation from God, saying, “Abba, where are you? Why have you forsaken me?” The full force of God’s fierce anger at sin came down upon Jesus’ body, instead of ours. By this, God destroyed sin once for all. God destroyed the old temple, our old hearts filled with sin. Then, rebuilt it in three days. Jesus said, “It is finished!” And it was. He had done it. Jesus had rescued the whole world. That’s God’s rescue plan. Jesus is God’s method of salvation!
Follow Me!
Jesus, the Son of God, must suffer
and die, then rise again. How do we then receive God’s gift of new life? In
today’s scripture Jesus said to his people, “If any of you want to be my
follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow
me” (v. 34, NLT) Eugene Peterson’s Message Bible paraphrases this verse as follows:
"Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You're not in the
driver's seat; I am. Don't run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I'll
show you how.” (MSG)
So how can we receive God’s gift of new life? We can receive God’s gift by believing in this Jesus, who took on/ took away our sins, and who suffered and died in our place. We can receive God’s gift by embracing suffering humbly and following Jesus’ way. It’s a daily walk with Jesus instead of a one-time commitment. It’s a narrow path rather than a wide, comfortable road. I have to admit that recently I was distracted. I was envious of those taking a wide road and still prosperous. I was confused and discouraged for a couple of days, but when I did look to Jesus, particularly his cross, my heart was filled with new assurance, a new sense of direction and wholeness.
Come to Jesus. Come to the altar. Do you want to have a fresh start and be born into a whole new life? Come to Jesus. Do you want to discover your own true selves and the purpose of your life? Come to Jesus. Do you want to come back home and rededicate yourself to Christ? Come to the altar. Do you want to follow Jesus anew? Come to Jesus. Come to the altar now. The Bible says, “If anyone is in Christ, that person is a new creation; the old is gone, a new life has begun!” (2 Co 5:17) If you are ready and in agreement, please join me in the following prayer, “An invitation to Christ” (United Methodist Hymnal #466):
Come,
my Light, and illumine my darkness.
Come,
my Life, and revive me from death.
Come,
my Physician, and heal my wounds.
Come,
Flame of divine love, and burn up the thorns of my sins,
kindling
my heart with the flame of your love.
Come,
my King, sit upon the throne of my heart and reign there.
For
you alone are my King and my Lord. Amen.
[1]
Family Sunday Message. Part of the message was paraphrased from The Jesus
Storybook Bible written by Sally Lloyd-Jones (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zonderkiz,
2007).
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