1 Valley View Chapel April 10, 2016 The Story Part 25 Jesus, the Son of God Mark 8:27-30 Popular Opinions about Jesus One day Jesus asked his disciples: Who do people say I am? (p. 353) They replied: Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets. Nobody in Jesus day had the foggiest idea who Jesus really was even though they had enshrined him on the Mount Rushmore of spiritual greatness. Maybe Jesus should have been flattered. After all, people likened him to the godliest and most compelling personalities in the history of religion. I ll tell you what: I d feel pretty good about myself if I asked you who people think I am and you said: Some people think you re Ravi Zacharias. Other people think you re David Jeremiah. Other people think you re Andy Stanley. Down through the centuries Jesus continued to be misinterpreted and misunderstood. The Medieval Jesus was a benevolent King. The Jesus of the Puritans was a stern, black-robed Judge. The Jesus of the 1960 s was a long-haired dropout determined to overthrow the establishment. The Jesus of 2016 America is a non-judgmental nice guy who accepts everybody and judges nobody. People everywhere and in every era have a knack for making Jesus into whoever or whatever they d like him to be. New Testament Professor Scot McKnight of North Park College gives a test every year to his incoming group of students. The test consists of questions about what the students think Jesus is like. Is he moody? Does he get nervous? Is he the life of the party or an introvert? The twenty-four questions are then followed by a second set with slightly altered language in which the students answer questions about their own personalities. The results are remarkably consistent. Everyone thinks Jesus is just like them. McKnight added, "The test results also suggest that, even though we like to think we are becoming more like Jesus, the reverse is probably more the case: we try to make Jesus like ourselves."
2 A lot of people want Jesus to be who they think he ought to be which is in reality what they aspire to be. Let me share two examples. John Crossan, an ex-priest and Professor Emeritus at DePaul University: Jesus was a revolutionary peasant who resisted economic and social tyranny in Roman-occupied Palestine. He was a Jewish cynic who wandered from town to town, teaching unconventional wisdom and subverting oppressive social customs. Jesus was a healer and man of great wisdom and courage who taught a message of inclusiveness, tolerance, and liberation. I m going to take a wild guess. His description of Jesus just might be a description of who Mr. Crossan wants to be. Best-selling author and motivational speaker Laurie Beth Jones declared: I was struck by the fact that Jesus had only three years to train 12 people none of whom were divine to go out and change the world; and that he trained them so effectively that they went on to do the work after he left. I asked, What did he do with these people to turn them into such lean, clean marketing machines? What skills did he possess that we could duplicate or learn from? When I started my business I began to reflect on how he ran his business in terms of team management, customer relations, strategic planning, etc., and then it simply occurred to me Jesus was a CEO. I m going to take a wild guess. Laurie Beth Jones description of Jesus just might be a description of who she wants to be. Up Close and Personal Jesus raised the stakes considerably in verse 29, But what about you? Who do you say I am? The English translation fails to capture the urgency of the question. The original question was: But you, who do you say I am? Jesus demands an answer. We cannot be neutral concerning Jesus Christ. Failing to have a definite answer is not an option. I have discovered that many people are content to talk about Jesus in the third person to talk about him in an abstract or theoretical way. They will freely comment on the possibility of his deity; the believability of his miracles; the meaning of his death; and the credibility of his resurrection. But you will raise almost everyone s discomfort level if you dare to ask: Who is Jesus Christ to you personally? There are only three possible answers to that question. He was a LIAR. He was a LUNATIC. Or he was the LORD. Author and speaker Josh McDowell presented this compelling line of logic in his book More Than a Carpenter. Listen to his reasoning. Was he a liar? That view of Jesus doesn t jive with what we know of Jesus or the results of his life and teachings. Whenever Jesus has been proclaimed, lives have been changed. Nations have repented. Thieves have gone straight. Alcoholics have tossed their bottles. Hateful individuals have become channels of love. Someone whose life had results like that couldn t have been a phony.
3 Was he a lunatic? If someone told you he was God, you would believe him about as much as if he said he was Santa Claus. You would call him deluded and self-deceived. Yet Jesus didn t display the abnormalities and imbalance that usually go hand in hand with being crazy. Jesus was a guy who spoke some of the most profound words ever recorded-words that have set free many individuals, even some in mental bondage. Jesus Christ was no lunatic. Was he Lord? If Christ isn t a liar or a lunatic, you only have one option: He is who he claimed to be-the Son of God. Bono, lead singer of the rock group U2, was asked if the claim of Jesus' divinity is farfetched. No, it's not farfetched to me. Look, the secular response to the Christ story always goes like this: he was a great prophet, obviously a very interesting guy, had a lot to say along the lines of other great prophets, be they Elijah, Muhammad, Buddha, or Confucius. But actually Christ doesn't allow you that. He doesn't let you off that hook. Christ says: No. I'm not saying I'm a teacher. Don't call me teacher. I'm not saying I'm a prophet. I'm saying: I'm the Messiah. I'm saying: I am God incarnate. So what you're left with is: either Christ was who he said he was the Messiah or a complete nutcase. The idea that the entire course of civilization for over half of the globe could have its fate changed and turned upside-down by a nutcase, for me, that's farfetched. But you, who do you say I am? Peter s Answer In his customary impulsive, take-charge manner Peter answered for the rest of the disciples: You are the Christ. Was Peter s answer the right answer? Yes, and no. Peter was right because he knew that Jesus was greater than John the Baptist, Elijah and all of the Old Testament prophets. Peter was right because he identified Jesus as the Christ. Christ is a title, not a name. Christ means anointed one and goes back to the ancient practice of anointing. Anointing signified that one had been chosen and empowered for a significant task or assignment. In the Old Testament three kinds of people were anointed with oil kings, priests, and prophets. Jesus is the King of kings. The absolute and sovereign authority over all creation. He is the Great High Priest, the only mediator between God and humanity. He is the ultimate prophet whose word is absolutely true, transformingly powerful and eternally relevant. So Peter was right in saying that Jesus was God s anointed one chosen and empowered to be the Messiah. But Peter was wrong because he misunderstood the Messiah s mission.
4 The big fisherman subscribed to the popular conception of Israel s Messiah. Pastor and author Kent Hughes described the Messiah s mission as Peter understood it: a superhuman leader who would overthrow Israel s enemies, regather God s earthly people from the four corners of the world, and make Jerusalem and Palestine the center of the world, establishing the perfect reign of God. When Peter said You are the Christ, this is the version of the Christ he had in mind. But it s not what Jesus had in mind. The time had come for Jesus to declare plainly to his disciples what he had come to do. Mark 8:31 (p. 353), He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. (NIV) This sent Peter for a loop! It smashed every preconception of the Messiah that he had adopted. Wasn t the Christ supposed to be a superhuman leader who would overthrow Israel s enemies, regather God s earthly people from the four corners of the world, and make Jerusalem and Palestine the center of the world, establishing the perfect reign of God? Professor David Garland noted: Nothing in [Peter s] religious background prepared him to foresee anything that Jesus predicts. Peter believed that Jesus was the Christ but he was the Christ on Peter s terms. Some people believe that Jesus is the Christ but on their terms. They want a Christ who is one of many ways to God; a Christ who doesn t ask for total commitment and absolute surrender; a Christ who is an indulgent uncle who winks at our misbehavior; a Christ who is a glorified vending machine dispensing blessings on demand; a Christ who is happy to occupy second, third, or fourth place in our list of priorities. Peter wanted a Christ that fit his expectations, hopes, and dreams. But Jesus will not tailor his mission to accommodate our selfish desires. So, who do you say Jesus is? Conclusion Jesus will not settle for nice titles and inoffensive tributes. In his book Why I Am a Christian John Stott warned: We cannot dress Jesus up as a nice, harmless little teacher of ethical platitudes. There was once a Doctor of Theology named Nicodemus who had a high and noble opinion of Jesus. During one night time visit he paid Jesus the ultimate compliment: You are a teacher come from God. I might have thought that Jesus would have said, Thank you very much! Coming from you, a Doctor of Theology, I m flattered!
5 Instead, Jesus replied: Nick, you must be born again! Peter was right. Jesus is the Christ. But he is neither the way to nationalistic glory nor the achievement of our selfish ambitions. He is the only way to forgiveness, purpose, and eternal life. Only through faith in his death on the cross in our place can we be restored to a right relationship with our Creator and adopted into his forever family. He came for no other purpose.