John 8:53 “Are
you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who
do you think you are?”
Of
all of the questions that are asked in the Bible, this is the most crucial.
When the religious clerics ask Jesus, “Who do you think you are?” they are confronting
what they believe to be is His effrontery and impertinence before God. We tend
to ask the same type of question of a misbehaving child or an ‘uppity’ person.
The
question is seriously important because of the answer that Jesus gives. He
claims to be the Son of God and that His Father glorifies Him. This was
blasphemy to the Jewish authorities, which is why they seek to stone Jesus at
the end of this encounter. However, His answer is very important to our
salvation. If Jesus is telling the truth, then He is the One to whom our
beliefs, worship, and lives belong. If He is telling a lie, then our faith is
false and our hopes of forgiveness with everlasting life are unfulfilled,
unsubstantiated, and unreal.
That’s
why Christian evangelists are right when they challenge us to accept Christ
completely. It is all or nothing. There is no compromise, or no middle
ground. Jesus is either all that He says He is or, as CS Lewis once stated, He
is a delusional madman. There is no in-between.
As
we enter this New Year, we need to have our thinking and faith challenged.
Being a committed Christian is one of the hardest things to achieve in life.
It’s unpopular and anti-cultural. It is crazy to the world and cumbersome to
the real believer. It’s not something that can be lightly adhered to, or
casually carried in our hearts and minds. Jesus is either the Holy Son of God,
glorified by His Father and truly worshipped by His people, or He is not. The
choice, as always, is ours to freely choose or cast away.
Questions for personal reflection
Who does Jesus
think He is? Do I think the same of Him?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, You constantly challenge
us to live our lives as committed Christians, who witness to Your Sovereignty
and Power in the world today. Strengthen our resolve and build up our faith, so
that we may solely rely upon Your Words and Spirit to guide our hearts and
minds. In Your Holy and exclusive Name, we pray. Amen.
John
Stuart is currently the pastor at Erin
Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment
on today’s message, please send him an email to traqair@aol.com.
Today’s
image is one John’s latest Epiphany drawings called “Visitation.” If you’d like
to view a larger version, please click on the following link: http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8351/8331526125_acf804947a_b.jpg
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