Knowing who Jesus is

Knowing who Jesus is

Jesus…asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?' They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets'. ‘But what about you?' he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?' Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' Matthew 16:13-15, NIV We live in a world that's in rebellion against Jesus Christ. It's hard to credit how people can reject so fervently the One with such love for us that He gave His life so that we, as sinners, could be reconciled to God and escape eternal damnation. Sometimes the rebellion is open and confrontational, such as the ban on Christian prayers and teaching in many state schools around the world. Sometimes, however, the rebellion takes on a more subtle character. It can be a seductive attempt to sidetrack people from the true Jesus to ‘another Jesus' (2 Corinthians 11:14). There are many religious organisations that use Jesus' name but they aren't worshipping the person of Jesus Christ revealed by Scripture as the Son of the living God. They try to give credibility to their beliefs and also to hoodwink immature Christians into believing that it's alright to worship anyone who goes by the name of Jesus. The ‘other Jesus' is sometimes presented as a good man who was a teacher, messenger, prophet or leader. But Jesus Christ stated emphatically that He was God when He said, I and the Father are one (John 10:30). When we're face to face with Jesus Christ and He asks us who we say He is, we need to be able to say with conviction ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' So how do we identify a counterfeit Jesus? When we know the true Jesus well we'll be able to identify a fraud. We need to have a close enough relationship with Jesus to know deep in our spirits that: • He is the eternal God in human form • He became incarnate through the miraculous conception of the virgin Mary • He lived a sinless life • He atoned for our sins when He died on the cross • He rose from the dead and ascended to sit at the right hand of God the Father • He will come back to judge the world We may need to spend time searching the Scriptures to find the verses that back up these truths. It's good to have them at hand when challenged. Prayer: Lord Jesus I want to know You so well that when I come face to face with You, I will have no doubt who You are. Please help me to develop a close and abiding relationship with You so that I won't be duped by any fraud. In Jesus' Name, Amen.