"Who's Are You?"

We have been talking about an identify crisis lately.  Here is a riddle for you!

When is a car not a car anymore?  The answer is at the bottom of the sermon today.  

Jesus asks this proactive question “who do you say I am”  it is a personal question, do I have any takers?   

Reading today:    Matthew 16: 13-20  

To get the full meaning of these passages from Matthew 16: verses 13-20 we need to hear what was happening just before Jesus asks this provocative question, ” who do you say I am”  

Again Jesus is quite pointed when it comes to the teachings of the Pharisees and the Sadducee and their obsession with maintaining the 613 man-made religious laws.  He warns his disciples not to be misled by their doctrine and not to follow in their ways.  Now wonder they hated Him and ended up crucifying him.  May I suggest His warning was because they were more concerned for man-made religious Laws than following the great commandment, the love commandment set out by “Moses” in Hebrew Scriptures?   This may be a problem the modern day church has to deal with folks.    I think it might be a good time to have a short History lesson here folks.

The law of love, which Jesus quotes, is the most important commandment of all and it was being ignored by the Jewish leaders?  Often people have assumed that this great commandment came from the New Testament and was coined by Jesus himself, not so.  This commandment did not come from the Gospels, it came from the Hebrew Scriptures, or our modern term, the Old Testament.  The major problem with its new modern name, “the Old Testament” insinuates that the text is now somehow out dated, it’s old stuff, and therefore is irrelevant to a new Christian.  Again not so, the Hebrew Scriptures tell the stories and struggles of the original followers of the one and only God, Yahweh.  The chosen people as they are often referred to were not chosen because they were Jewish.  They were chosen because Yahweh needed a people to bring the one God concept to the world. We need to understand these stories in order to get the complete picture of the whole Bible.  They are very relevant even unto today.

In most cases the Pharisees and the Sadducees completely left out Moses teaching on unconditional love, found in Leviticus 19:18 “Do not take revenge on others or continue to hate them but love you neighbors as you love yourself.”

 And again in Deuteronomy 6: 5.  “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.” When Jesus said this He was actually quoting the prophet Moses, This love commandment came from God through Moses not Jesus.    

Talk about an Identity Crisis, from the Chief Priests and the teachers of the law to the Emperor of Rome all having different opinions as to who Jesus really was.  Even His disciples were not in total agreement.  Jesus himself never completely discloses openly to anyone who He was.   Right from the start of today’s reading though, we here Jesus once again stirs up the hornets’ nest as He asks this provocative question:  “Who do you say I am.”  Did you note Jesus did not say, who do “they” say I am.  I think the point of the question here is that Jesus wants a personal response from his disciples and from us.   There is no right answer here folks because it is your perspective that is being ask for, not a right answer.  Jesus is looking for you to boldly say who you think He is.  Who is Jesus for you?     

The way we often hear the question is:  “Who do THEY say I am.”   Letting others answer for me gets me off the hook, because the question has already been answered.  May I suggest that the real point here might be this folks?   Who they say Jesus is, is meaningless to you if you cannot identify yourself and have not known Him within your own personal experience.  How can you identify a stranger? Jesus doesn’t have a problem with this because He already knows who He is and He knows who’s we are, which points to your real parent.  There are many times in scripture where Jesus reaffirms for us that you do not belong to your family, your human parents, country, nation or your religion.  No, He knows we all belong to God, because God created us and is our true parent.   Many believe that we were created by our earthly mom and dad, not so, God created you!   We were created in God’s likeness and we all began in a womb as, “Children of the Light.”   Oh, we can make the claim that there is no God and you think you can go your own way, but let me reassure you folks, you do not have the power to change the will of God.  Gods will, will be done because unconditional love always wins, it never loses.

Jesus is the one who knows everything and if you begin to trust Him, His teaching, and follow Him doing as He does, what others may say or think about Him or you, becomes irrelevant and meaningless to.  For you will discover who’s you are.   A precious creation, a child of the living God.
 Jesus knows that all of us are truly the offspring of the living God.  Peter’s reference to the Living God in this passage suggests that God is not dead, nor has God ever been dead but alive, living within us all. Folks!  If that were not true then you nor any before or after you, would have been born.   We are all God’s children and because we are of God we all have the God gene or factor within us and we are loved unconditionally.   

God’s not dead He is alive, God’s not dead He is alive, God’s not dead He is alive I feel Him all over me.

Who Jesus is for you is the only relevant answer to His question.  It is not important who others think Jesus is.  The answer to this riddle is never going to be of one mind, because who Jesus is for you keeps on changing if you are a growing Christian.  Now if you’re not growing in your faith, Jesus is still just a portrait on the wall of your home or church.  It makes no difference to your faith how others see Jesus.  I believe this question in the scripture today was meant for Peter.   It was meant so Peter could take another step forward towards the establishment of the church.  Many at that time saw Jesus as an imposter, others a prophet, Rabbi, Peter said He was the Messiah the Son of the living God.  Paul, in his writings claims Jesus to be the resurrected Christ.  That would suggest that Christ was not Jesus’ last name.  Oh! Now there is a revelation for some seekers.  Then, who or what is The Christ?  Come to the bible study and you might just discover something new.    {If you are just reading this sermon on the net, may I suggest you find a bible study and begin to grow?}   

May I suggest that Jesus isn’t really that interested in who you say He was or is.  His real interest is in getting you to grow and to following in His footsteps.  Amen   Let us pray.

When is a car not a car?         When it “turns into a parking lot”
                                     "You Are A Child Of God"