Mark 8:29 – “And he asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered him, ‘You are the Christ.’”
Who is Jesus?
This is a question that bears to be repeated and considered often. It is the most fundamental question of our faith. How we answer reveals our standing before Christ, and in turn, shows us our final destiny of either eternal life in Christ or eternal death in Adam.
Christ asked Peter, and us, who we say He is. Peter’s answer to Christ’s question is equally as simple but packed with a profundity that requires us to reflect and consider who this Christ is whom we worship.
When we say Jesus is the Christ, we are saying He is the Messiah, the fulfillment of numerous prophecies in the Old Testament about the one who would save Israel from slavery and bondage. But, as we read in the Gospel accounts, the leaders of Israel interpreted the Scriptures wrongly, taking Christ to merely be a mirror of David to save them from Rome. But Jesus came as so much more; He came as the Christ, who would save His people from their sins.
They knew Jesus as a human, but they rejected Him as Savior and Lord, the only begotten Son of God.
Jesus is the second member of the Trinity, without beginning or end, fully equal to God the Father and God the Son, who willingly took on flesh, being found in human form, died for our sins on the cross and rose again on the third day, saving us from the just wrath our sins deserved, who now is sitting at the right hand of God, and at whose name every knee will bow.
I plan to place this fourfold answer to who Jesus is into four separate answers in the coming weeks. Four answers that I plan to Lord willing answer in the next four articles.
- Who is Jesus? Jesus is the divine Son of God, without beginning and end, fully equal in the Trinity with the Spirit and the Father (John 1:1-3).
- Who is Jesus? Jesus is the Word that became flesh, born of the Virgin Mary (John 1:14).
- Who is Jesus? Jesus is our Savior who saved us from our sins, and the just wrath we deserved (2 Corinthians 5:21).
- Who is Jesus? Jesus is our Lord, worthy of our worship and obedience, the name at which every knee will one day bow (Philippians 2:10-11).
These four answers, I think, help keep us from falling into false understandings of who Christ is. Some who claim Christ know only of Him in one aspect, and in turn, derive debilitating doctrines and heresies based on an incomplete view of who Christ is. Unfortunately, an incomplete picture of Christ is preached from many pulpits, as is reflected in the latest State of Theology survey conducted in 2018.
A basic lack of understanding of who Jesus is and why we worship Him is present not only in our society but also sadly present in churches and preached in pulpits across America. We need to return to a proper understanding of who Jesus is as the second member of the Trinity, what it meant when He took on flesh, who He is as our Savior, and who He is as our Lord.
There is much at stake in answer to the question of who Jesus is. As Jesus Himself said to the Pharisees, “You know neither Me nor My Father. If you knew Me, you would know My Father, also.” (John 8:19b). The answer to who is Jesus is of utmost importance.
Who Christ is demands our attention and our reflection, and I pray these four following articles would encourage those who read them to stop and reflect and consider who this Jesus we worship is.
My name is Joseph Hamrick and I serve as a deacon at a small Reformed Baptist Church in Commerce, Texas. If you’re ever in the area, look up Commerce Community Church (C3). I enjoy reading, spending time with friends and family, and I enjoy putting pen to paper when inspiration strikes.
