WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?
27 Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?”
28 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”
29 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.”
30 Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him. Mark 8:27-30
This is the core and crux of Jesus’ entire ministry. “Who do you say that I am?” He was never out to recruit followers on the basis of the miracles He did. Miracles were only signs, pointers to His true identity as the Son of God. The essence of His mission was to reveal the Father and to restore all humanity to its original state as sons of God. His healing and deliverance miracles were evidence that who He was and what He did was the truth that authenticated His mission.
His query, “Who do the people say that I am?” was intended for His disciples, not for Him. He wanted them to realise that their association with Him had moved them beyond public opinion into a dimension of awareness and confidence in Him as God. Unless they were thoroughly convinced that this man, who walked the same earth and breathed the same air as they did, was actually from the other side, they would never stay with Him through the trials that lay ahead to demonstrate to the Jewish and pagan world that God had come to rescue them and reconcile them to Himself.
There has been a subtle shift in emphasis that has produced “believers” in what Jesus can do for people rather than people who are so convinced of His identity that they stick with Him, no matter what! By bowing the knee to Jesus as the Son of God, we give Him His rightful place as Lord. So many ministries today are based on “signs and wonders” and not on allegiance to Jesus as the Son of God.
The journey into faith for the disciples was long and progressive, culminating in Jesus’ death and the final, incontrovertible proof of His identity and mission – the resurrection. Without that, all the miracles in the world would have achieved nothing except prolong a few lives for a few more years. Unless we can respond to Jesus’ question with a resounding “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” and stake our entire life on that confession, our faith is futile and will not stand under fire.