Concepts of Christ Luke 9:18-22

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1 Concepts of Christ Luke 9:18-22 The Savior was not about to be knocked off course. He knew His disciples needed rest. So first He sailed across the Sea of Galilee to the deserted dells and desolate hills near Bethsaida. But the people followed Him. So He both ministered to them and fed them. Finally, when the sun was setting, He sent them all away. He did not return to the lake, though. Instead, He led His disciples down the dusty road fifty miles north to Caesarea Philippi. And as they walked, Christ continued talking with His disciples about their first missionary journey. On the way, the Savior also stopped to pray. Yet still they talked. The Gospel writers did not bother to summarize that continuing conversation. Instead, they merely recorded an excerpt from what the Master and His men talked about. And it happened that while He was praying alone, the disciples were with Him, and He questioned them, saying, Who do the people say that I am? Verse 18 While you were talking with people in towns and villages, the Lord asked, just who did people say I am? The disciples did not have to sift through their memories. They all heard the same things. They answered and said, John the Baptist, and others say Elijah; but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again. Verse 19 The Pharisees would be furious at the very suggestion. But somehow they picked up a bit of paganism. Like many idol worshipers, they believed in the transmigration of souls. Human souls and spirits, they thought, could and did move across both time and space from one person to another. And the common people agreed with them. That is why some people said Jesus was John the Baptist. They believed John s soul had migrated and now rested upon Jesus of Nazareth. Other people, believed the spirit of Elijah or some long dead prophet now resided within the Redeemer. That myth explained much of what they saw the Master do. Of course, both the Pharisees and people chatting at village marketplaces were wrong. Still, in one sense they were also correct. Jesus did not possess the spirit of John or Elijah. But He did do the same kind of works they did. But that was not all He did. The Jews were smug and sure they knew who Jesus was. But their understanding of His character was incomplete and out of balance. But they are hardly unique. Many people today see the Savior in the same lopsided way they did. And that is not good enough if we are to be eternally delivered from damnation and engrafted into His kingdom of light and love. Preacher John attracted great crowds. People braved the desert dust and searing sun to walk the twisted mountain road from Jerusalem past Jericho to the Jordan River just to listen to the Baptist preach. They did not come merely because he raged away at their sins, either. The desert preacher people listened to beside the green waters of the Jordan also taught them God s truths. The Baptist spoke as they had never heard any man speak. He not only told them God was displeased with them. He also told them why, specifically defining the sins that condemned

2 them. He went on to tell them they needed to repent of their sinful actions and attitudes. Then he led them into the river to be immersed in the warm waters as a sign of that repentance and the new life they intended to live. But even that is not all John taught the Jews. He also took the time to give newly baptized believers some practical instruction how God would have them to live. He told Jewish leaders that repentance alone was not enough. They needed to change their way of living. He told people they needed to show love and share what they had with people in need. He commanded tax collectors to stop fattening their wallets with graft and collect no more than they were supposed to. And he taught soldiers to be content with their wages and stop extorting money from people at the point of a sword. Quite simply, John was a preacher. But then, so was Jesus. In fact, Christ s commandments are vastly more numerous than the Baptist s were. Our Lord taught us about the attitudes God expects of us. He taught us turn away from hatred and lust. And He commanded husbands and wives to live in love and faithfulness to one another. The list of our Lord s commandments is almost endless. And if we are to know Christ, we must accept Him as our Preacher and Teacher. But we must do more than merely believe what Jesus taught is true. We must also obey His commandments and live by His teachings. That, He insisted, is what loving Him is all about. If you love Me, you will keep My commandments...he who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; John 14:15,21 We cannot come to Christ and profess to have saving faith in Him yet refuse to live by His directives and demands. If we do, our profession of faith is little more than a lie. The one who says, I have come to know Him, and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. 1 John 2:4-5 However, we must see the Savior as much more than our Preacher or Teacher. We must go beyond merely honoring our Lord s teachings and obeying His commands. Knowing Jesus demands more than mere obedience. Prophet At Jerusalem, the Savior saw a man with eyes like cloudy, gray marbles. That man had been blind since his birth more than four decades earlier. But in a moment, Jesus healed Him. There was one small problem, though. It was the Sabbath day. And that enraged the Pharisees. They defined healing as work. And the Law prohibited laboring on the Sabbath. So they stood the man up before their council and interrogated him....they said to the blind man again, What do you say about Him, since He opened your eyes? And he said, He is a prophet. John 9:17 A Samaritan woman Jesus met beside a village well at Sychar reached the same conclusion. The woman said to Him, Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. John 4:19 Many people agreed with them. After all, had not the prophet Malachi prophesied that God would send Elijah to them?

3 Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. Malachi 3:5 And more than any other prophet, Elijah exhibited God s power. For one thing, he miraculously fed a starving widow, just as Jesus fed the multitudes with bread and fish. And when that widow s son died, Elijah prayed and the boy was brought back to life, just as Jesus raised up a widow s son at outside the city gate at Nain. Absolutely no one doubted the Master s power to work wonders. Ancient scrolls written by hostile Jews still survive. And while they heap venom upon the very idea that Jesus is the Messiah, none of them ever disputed any of His miracles. In those early years, too many people were still alive who had seen the Savior touch and heal. So doubting Jesus power to change lives would have been foolish. However, today it is a different story. Now learned professors call Christ s miracles a myth. President Thomas Jefferson emphatically agreed. That is why he sat down with a pair of scissors and snipped the account of every miracle out of his copy of the New Testament. But such proud denials of Jesus divine ability to work wonders should not come as a surprise to us. In his last letter, Paul warned us that, in the last days, even professing Christians would deny Christ s power. But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come. for men will be lovers of themselves...having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! 2 Timothy 3:1-2,5 (NKJV) The matter goes beyond refusing to believe that Jesus can heal today. Much worse is rejecting His power to change our lives. That is living a lie. It is spawns the myth that we can have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ yet be absolutely unchanged. At Antioch, slaves and soldiers, farmers and housewives were first to be called Christians: little Christs. Unbelievers spat that name out with a sneer. But there was a shining pearl of truth in it. Those former pagans no longer exhibited the attitudes that once marked their lives. While they used to be full of hatred and hostility, they overflowed with love. And although they once were driven by depression and tormented by tension, they were filled with peace and joy. They had been wonderfully changed. Our God is not a God who is far off. He is a God nearby. He is not only a promise making God. He is also a promise keeping God. His power is as unlimited as His love. So we can safely trust in His promises, knowing that heaven and earth will pass away. But both His Word and His faithfulness to it will endure forever. Yes, Jesus was the great Teacher and Lawgiver. But He is also a God who can be both present and powerful in our lives right now. But even that is not all He is. Priest The Savior and His disciples discussed what people were saying about Him. But then and now, that is not the real question. And He said to them, But who do you say that I am? And Peter answered and said, The Christ of God. Verse 20 The word you in that Christ s question was emphatic. What about you? Who do you say that I am?

4 Of course, Christ knew full well how His disciples would answer that question. From the very beginning they were all completely convinced He was the Messiah, the Holy One of God. In fact, that was the essence of Andrew s invitation to Peter the day both fishermen first met the Master. He found first his own brother Simon and said to him, We have found the Messiah (which translated means Christ). John 1:41 And those two fishermen were not alone. The rest of the disciples agreed with them. Later, Peter spoke for all of them. We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God. John 6:69 However, in one sense the disciples concept of Christ was still warped. Right up to Gethsemane when Jesus was led away in chains, the Master s men all believed the Messiah would come as a conquering King. That is why they argued in the upper room. They all wanted to be the most important in Christ s kingdom. So it was not enough for the disciples to simply see the Savior as the Son of God and the promised Messiah. And it is not enough for us, either. That is why Jesus began speaking to His disciples about what would soon come to pass at Jerusalem. But He warned them and instructed them not to tell this to anyone, saying, The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised up on the third day. Verses Paul traveled around the Mediterranean from Israel to Italy. And everywhere he went, his message was always the same. One thing, he insisted, was and is more important than anything else. I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 Men have written libraries full of books about Jesus. Some spend a large part of their lives studying our Lord s life. But many of them have little more than head knowledge about Jesus. They do not know Him as a faithful Friend, a compassionate Counselor, and a powerful Presence in their lives. And the reason is always the same. They have never looked upon our Lord as more than a preacher and a prophet. In spite of all their learning, they have missed the most important role our Redeemer played on earth. Professing themselves to be wise, they have become fools. And if we duplicate their mistake, we are too. First and foremost, we must understand why God s Son came earth in the first place....the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many. Matthew 20:28 Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, 1 Timothy 1:15 The disciples needed to radically change their concept of Christ. They needed to see Him not as One who would conquer enemy armies, but as a Savior who would forever conquer sin. At the temple, priests worked from dawn to dusk sacrificing sheep and presenting animal blood to cover the sins of men and women. And our Savior came to be both priest and sacrifice. On a rough Roman cross, God s sinless Son poured out His blood as the full and final sacrifice for our sins. He died that we might be free from sin and live forever as children of God. Then in the hallowed halls of Heaven, Jesus presented His own blood on God s altar as our great, eternal High Priest....not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. Hebrews 13:12

5 It makes no difference how old we are. It does not matter where we are from, what language we speak, where we live, or what trials and troubles we face. More than anything else, we need Jesus. But we must accept and embrace Him in His fullness. He is indeed a preacher and a teacher whose wisdom is past finding out. His instructions can enable us to be serene and satisfied. And we must both believe and live by what He taught us. Yes, our Redeemer is also a prophet like Elijah. His power knows no limit. He can heal broken bodies and restore twisted minds. And best of all, He can also heal broken hearts and wonderfully change our attitudes and aspirations in life. But none of that is possible if we do not first come to Christ as the Savior of the Cross. We must receive Jesus as the One who laid down His life for our sins. And that demands that we both confess our sins and turn away from our sinfulness. If we stop short of that, we might think we know Jesus and are assured of Heaven. But we are wrong. Tragically and eternally wrong.