WHO AM I?
Mark 8:27-30
By Bro. Teody Galit
Let us take a look on the events that happened in the previous chapter of the book of Mark before the text in our topic today.
1. Jesus healed a man with leprosy. (1:40-41)
2. Jesus healed a paralytic man. (2:1-5)
3. Jesus healed many people, even the evil spirit fell down before Him and confess that He is the Son of God. (3:7-12)
4. Jesus calms the storm. (4:35-41)
5. Jesus healed a demon possessed man. (5:1-13)
6. Jesus healed a woman who was bleeding for 12 years. (5:25-32)
7. Jesus raised the dead daughter of Darius the Synagogue ruler. (5:35-43)
8. Jesus feed the 5,000 men. (6:30-44)
9. Jesus walks on water. (6:54-52)
10. Jesus healed even those who just touch His cloak. (6:53-56)
11. Jesus healed the daughter of Syro-phoenician woman. (7:24-29)
12. Jesus healed the deaf and mute man. (7:31-35)
13. Jesus feed the 4,000 men. (8:1-9)
14. Jesus healed a blind man. (8:22-25)
The previous eight chapters of Mark recorded enough evidence to make Peter’s confession reasonable. Further evidence in the Gospel reveals that Peter was saying more than he knew about Jesus. Matthew’s parallel account of this incident includes Jesus’ statement that Peter had made this declaration with the Holy Spirit’s help. The final eight chapters of Mark’s Gospel point to Jesus’ death.
From this point on, the journey leads to Jerusalem, and to Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. The full impact of Peter’s declaration would not be understooduntil Jesus’ resurrection. After that event, the main focus of history came to rest on the true identity of Jesus Christ.
Now, after knowing some of the events that Jesus accomplished before our text today, let us put ourselves in the position of the disciples and all the people who witnessed these events; after seeing what He has done; can we not have an idea who Jesus is? Can those things that He accomplished not lead us to know Him deeper and put our faith on Him?
We can think that to be with Jesus personally is not a guarantee to know who He really is, considering that those people during His time saw Him, walked with Him, ate with Him and almost in His company at all times, witnessed and tasted the miracles that He performed, but still they had different views of His true identity. Even His disciples whom He chose personally still not fully understood who He was and what His mission on coming to earth was. How about us present day believers, whose basis of knowledge of Jesus’ identity is only through our faith on Him through the Bible?
“Who do you think Am I”, that is the most important question that any human being will ever answer; who is Jesus Christ? Everybody in this world is accountable to God eternally for the answer to that question. Wrong answer means hell, right answer means heaven. Common people, philosophers, scholars, theologians, the M’s, the Jews, atheist, humanist and the entire religious sect have their own answers. However their answers to this question will be the basis of their eternal destiny.
Now, I have one question for all of us today: Supposed Jesus asks every one of us this question, “Who do you think Am I”? What will be our answers?
Point # I: Jesus His asked His disciples if the people knew His identity. V.27
27 Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, “Who do men say that I am?”
Caesarea Philippi was a city about 25 miles north of Bethsaida. The city was in the territory ruled by Philip Herod Antipas’ brother, mentioned in 6:17, nearMount Hermon. It was different from the Caesarea located on the Mediterranean cost about 6 miles north west of Jerusalem. The city was primarily non-Jewish, known for its worship of Greek gods and its temples devoted to the ancient god Pan, Pan was a half-man, half goat that played a flute. When Philip became ruler, he rebuilt and renamed the city after Caesar Tiberius and himself.
As Jesus and the disciples walked toward Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked His disciples what they had heard from the people regarding His identity. Often Jesus’ questions were springboards for new teaching. Example is in 9:33-34 when the disciples were discussing about which of them will be the greatest.
Today, as we are being identified as believers of Jesus; if He will ask us now “Who do men say that I am?” Our answer will determine how deep our relationship with Him. Because if we have an intimate relationship with Jesus, sharing to others who He is will come naturally to us; to our family, friends, co-workers and the people that will come in contact with us. In my own idea on this verse, Jesus not only want to know if the people knows Him, but he also want to know if His disciples were sharing who He really is to the people around them.
As believers of Jesus we all have the duty to share the real identity of Jesus to the people around us, people’s ignorance about the true identity of Jesus means we also failed to do our duty as His followers.
Point # II: The different views of people about Jesus. V.28
28 So they answered, "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."
People have different view about Jesus, they answered with the common view that Jesus was one of the great prophets that come back to life. Their views about Jesus may be based from Deuteronomy 18:18, “'I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him”. God said He would raise up a prophet from among the people. That’s why their reply was He was John the Baptist, Elijah or one of the prophets.
Their inaccurate responses indicated that Jesus’ identity and mission remained unknown to the people and it also showed their ignorance of who Jesus was. People around us will also have different views about Jesus once we forget to do our duty of sharing who He is to them.
Point # III: The disciples view about Jesus. V.29
29 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ."
But who do you say that I am? After the disciples reported the different views of people about who Jesus was, Jesus asked His disciples about their own evaluation of who He was. This question was directly and personally asked by Jesus to His disciples. Peter, in his capacity as leader and spokesman of the twelve, declared openly, “You are the Christ, the Messiah, God’s Anointed One”.
Their open confession of Him at this point was necessary because people in general were failing to discern His true identity; the religious leaders were strongly opposed to Him. For all people who must know His true identity they should be His disciples and us today’s believers.
One more thing, Jesus was about to give His disciples additional revelation about Himself that He was about to suffer and be crucified, this revelation had costly implications for them and their faith, so it was necessary that the question about His identity be firmly settled. This affirmation of faith in Jesus was the foundation of their discipleship despite their temporary failures and defections.
Jesus had just recently asked the disciples, “Don’t you understand even yet?” in 8:21, when Jesus tells His disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod, His disciples thought about forgetting to bring bread, Jesus had just fed the 5,000 and 4,000 men. By this time they had their opportunity to show their understanding of Jesus, apart from what the crowds and religious leaders thought about Him.
From this point on (8:31), Jesus spoke plainly and directly to His disciples about His death and resurrection. He began to prepare them for what was going to happen to Him by telling them three times that He would soon suffer and die and then be raised back to life.
“You are the Christ”, Peter answered in behalf of the 12 disciples. It clearly affirmed that he believed Jesus to be the Messiah. In his declaration, Peter revealed his belief in Jesus as the promised King and Deliverer. His problem now was to help other disciples to understand the kind of King Jesus would be. Peter, and all Israel, expected the Messiah to be a conqueror-liberator who would free the nation from Rome. Jesus would be a totally different kind of conqueror-liberator who would conquer sin and free people from its bondage.
There are actually two things that have been revealed to Peter and to other disciples on that time; first Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, the Anointed one which was good news to them, because the Messiah that they were waiting for has finally come; second, the Messiah would but suffer and be crucified and die which was bad news to them.
Today the answer of every person to this question “But who do you say that I am?” will determine his or her eternal destiny. The disciples had to come to a personal understanding, acknowledgment, and acceptance of Jesus, so each person must do the same. Our confession of who Jesus is must come from within our heart and not by our mouth only; this is where our faith on Him shall be measure. We should not only know the true identity of Jesus but we should also know His purpose of being the Messiah.
Point # IV: Jesus warned them to keep His identity secrete. V.30
30 Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him
Tell no one about Him: Jesus told his disciples don’t tell anyone that He was the Messiah because He knew that they still didn’t fully understand the significance of Peter’s confession—nor would anyone else.
Everyone still expected the coming Messiah was to be a conquering king. Contrary to what they were expecting, though Jesus was the Messiah, He still had to suffer, be rejected by the leaders, be killed, and rise from the dead.
That cannot be accepted by the Jews even by His disciples because they were expecting a Messiah to be a mighty king. People had thought about many false ideas about the concept of the “Messiah.” The promised Davidic Messiah (Jer. 23:5) was commonly thought to be a political, nationalistic figure destined to free the Jews from Roman domination. But Jesus’ messianic mission was broader in scope and far different in nature. (Mark 11:9-10).
Only when the disciples saw all what Jesus said would happen to Him, they would understand who really Jesus was and what the Messiah had come to do. Only then would they be equipped to share the gospel around the world. Jesus’ Messianic mission cannot be understood until it was fulfilled on the cross, which the disciples still not yet fully understood at that time.
For them to proclaim that Jesus was the Christ according to their inaccurate view on that particular time would only create further misunderstanding. Because the Jews on that time were expecting a political-military Messiah that will save and deliver them from the oppression of Roman rule contrary to the mission of Jesus to free and save them and us from the bondage of sin. Jesus is a spiritual Messiah not a political one.
Conclusion:
Even before He died almost all of His disciples deserted Him. Only John stayed and witnessed all what had happened to Him. But even John did not have the courage to claim Jesus’ body after His death. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, secret disciples of Jesus, were the ones who asked Pilate for His body. Peter even denied Him 3 times. He went back to fishing after the death of Jesus. Thomas doubted that He had risen. Their faith on Jesus was only revived after He was raised from the dead, after the resurrection.
I believe the reason for denying Christ is not that we are unfaithful, but we have an inaccurate, if not false, view of who He is. If God would reveal Jesus for who Jesus really is, I believe that we will be willing to die for Him. If we have a humanistic view of Christ, as like just an enlightened historical figure, a good man, just a prophet, just a man, even like an imaginary person like Santa Claus, etc., we would quickly abandon Him when times get tough. If we see Him as the Suffering Servant, the Messiah who would lay down His life for us, the Christ, the Son of the Living God, we will follow Him even to His cross, to His death and even to His resurrection!
May the Father of Heaven reveal Jesus to you as your Messiah who died and rose again to save you! Happy Easter season to all!
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