Jesus has always been misunderstood. If people in His own day were unsure about whom He was (some thought he was Elijah or Jeremiah or John the Baptist come back from the dead), what does that suggest about a generation two thousand years removed? Were Jesus to ask us, “who do people say that I am?” we would probably respond with a wide range of answers.
But how would you respond to His question, “but who do you say that I am?” Be careful how you answer. Peter was quick to say, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16).But his behavior didn’t fit with his endorsement. When Jesus later told them about His coming death, Peter took the Lord aside and rebuked Him, basically saying, “you don’t know what you’re talking about.” Hardly a way you would treat someone you really believed was the Son of God.
Who do you say Jesus is?How is your thinking different from everyone else in the world? And does your conduct reflect your conclusions you’ve reached about Him?
“Thou art the Son of Man.” Jesus is referred by that title over 80 times in the New Testament. He put on flesh. He was born of a woman. He worked at a job. He experienced pain. He felt sorrow. According to the writer of Hebrews, He was “tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin”(Heb. 4:15).
