Who Is Jesus? • 05.17.26
Who Is Jesus?
Considering different responses to Jesus’ identity
Luke 9:7-22
- A perplexed skeptic hears of the Prophet
- The disciples and the crowd witness the Provider
- A blessed disciple confesses the Christ
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As you get your Bibles, please turn to the gospel of Luke for our study of God’s word this morning. We will continue in Luke chapter 9. If you are using one of the black Bibles handed out, that is page ________.
Before we begin reading God’s word, I want to draw your attention to the title of today’s sermon. Who is Jesus?
It’s a simple enough question, right? Who is He?
Is Jesus a great teacher of morals? Is He a miracle worker? Is He a fraud? Is He a raving lunatic? Who is this that we still study and talk about Him 2,000 years later?
But that doesn’t even scratch the surface, actually, does it? Christians don’t just talk about Jesus; we worship Him. We fall down on our knees before Him and cry out to Him as our Lord and our God!
How can that be? Who is this Jesus?
Hopefully, you’ve wrestled with this question before. Maybe you’re even wrestling with it right now. Or, maybe, if you’re honest, you haven’t given it much thought at all. If that’s you, I want to thank God for bringing you here today, and I want to ask you to carefully listen and consider the amazing realities we’re going to study today.
Because the reality is that there is no question more important than this one, no other question that will so clearly expose every aspect of your worldview and even determine your eternity. This is the essential question which every single person must answer: Who is Jesus?
We’ve learned quite a bit about Jesus so far in our study of the Gospel of Luke, and everything we have heard so far has demonstrated Jesus’ identity. And it’s fascinating to look at, because if you break it down, you can see just how much each of the categories of existence understands Jesus’ identity.
For example, in chapters 1-2, Luke shows us that the angels certainly understand who Jesus is: Jesus is announced by the angel Gabriel as the Son of the Most High and the promised Davidic king. And then even though He is born in humility, He is proclaimed by the multitude of angels as the Savior, and as Christ the Lord!
Then again, in chapters 1-3, we get these beautiful Spirit-inspired, prophetic utterances from Elizabeth, Mary, Zechariah, Simeon, Anna, and John the Baptist about Jesus being the Savior. Clearly, the prophets, while speaking on behalf of God, understand who Jesus is.
In chapter 3, the testimony increases to the highest level as God the Holy Spirit anoints Jesus for ministry, and God the Father Himself announces, “You are my beloved Son!” Obviously, within the Trinity, God understands who Jesus is.
Then, starting in chapter 4, we even get to see what the enemy thinks- even Satan and the demons confess that He is the Son of God, the Holy One of God, and the Christ.
It’s remarkable, almost every type of existence understands who Jesus is.
Almost.
Notice that from the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, just one category of creation doesn’t get it: humanity.
We are the ones who consistently fail to understand who He is, even though we see His authority on full display. We’ve seen that Jesus is the one who forgives sins, He commands the winds and the waves, He casts out demons, He heals the sick, and He even raises the dead.
And yet, rather than just clearly recognizing His identity, the same question arises again and again: Who then is this?
The question is asked by the Pharisees in chapters 5 and 7,
Luke 5:21 ESV
21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
Luke 7:49 ESV
49 Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?”
And the disciples ask the same type of question in Luke 8:25
Luke 8:25 ESV
25 He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and they marveled, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him?”
And we will see this same question discussed three times in today’s passage: Who is Jesus?
So, as we come to read Luke 9 in just a moment, we are going to be “considering different responses to Jesus’ identity.” [Repeat]
And we’re going to find our first one in verses 7-9: Luke 9:7-9
Luke 9:7–9 ESV
7 Now Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead, 8 by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the prophets of old had risen. 9 Herod said, “John I beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And he sought to see him.
Here we find our first response to Jesus’ identity:
1. A perplexed skeptic hears of the Prophet
We haven’t heard directly about Herod for a while now in the gospel of Luke, and unfortunately, his story continues to be an unflattering one. The last we directly heard of him was in Luke 3:19-20:
Luke 3:19–20 ESV
19 But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him[John the Baptist] for Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, 20 added this to them all, that he locked up John in prison.
So the last we heard, Herod was stuck in his wicked ways, actively pursuing even greater evil with his brother’s wife, and outright abusing his authority against anyone who dared to speak God’s truth to him.
And here in chapter 9, we hear from his own confession that he has gone so far as to behead John the Baptist. If you’re curious about that, please go study Matthew 14 sometime this week if you’d like more details on John’s execution, but essentially, Herod executed John gruesomely, foolishly, and to appease the instigations of his sinful companions.
But now, Jesus has been making waves in His district.
[Return to ‘Who is Jesus?’ slide]
“What do you mean there’s someone else preaching repentance and the coming of the Kingdom of God?! And you’re telling me he’s even more active and powerful? I personally saw to John’s death! How could he be back??”
I know Herod’s concerns may be a bit far-fetched, but let me turn the scenario to you here today:
How do you respond to hearing about Jesus after you have silenced someone for speaking God’s truth to you?
Herod tried to silence the voice of God by killing the prophet who confronted him.
And while we may recoil at such an extreme rejection of God’s truth, how often do we functionally do the same thing in more socially acceptable ways?
Obviously, we’re not going around beheading anyone. But do we dismiss God’s warnings when they actually convict us? Do we avoid going to small group, or ghost our accountability partner when they lovingly confront us in our sin?
When the Word of God exposes us, our natural response is often one of avoidance or suppression.
And when people persist in suppressing the truth instead of submitting to it, confusion about Jesus is always the result.
We can see this here in our text: Herod didn’t know how to respond. He was confused. And maybe Herod didn’t fully buy into the possibility of this being John raised from the dead, or about this being Elijah – but it certainly led him to wonder about this prophet roaming his district of Galilee. More specifically, it led him to ask the right question: “Who is this about whom I hear such things?” But, tragically, he asks it with a heart that is not willing to receive the right answer.
Are you asking this question? Do you know who Jesus is? Is your heart willing to receive the true answer? Or will your question devolve into mockery just like Herod’s does later on at Jesus’ mock trial in Luke 23?
But, at this time in Luke 9, Herod had heard enough about Jesus to know He was at least a prophet. Herod, and all those spreading the rumors, were grasping at theories like John, Elijah, or “one of the prophets,” but they are actually circling around a reality far greater.
What Herod ultimately failed to recognize, and what Luke wants you to see, is that Jesus was not just ANOTHER prophet, but Jesus is THE prophet! He is THE one who speaks the words of God.
What do I mean? I mean that Jesus is the prophet who God promised to Moses and the Israelites in Deut 18:18-19:
Deuteronomy 18:18–19 ESV
18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. 19 And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.
Jesus is THE prophet!
Well, what does this matter? What is the importance of Jesus being THE prophet?
The importance of this part of Jesus’ identity presses on us in two very different directions:
Assurance of truth for the believer, and stern warning for the unbeliever.
In the first place, for all of us, but especially the Christians in the room, we depend upon Jesus as our prophet because He alone can perfectly show us the nature of God and His plan for redemption. As the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith reminds us, it is…
“in respect of our ignorance, we stand in need of His prophetical office;” – 1689 8:10
We would still only know God through types and shadows if He had not spoken to us finally through His Son. Just as we read in John 1:18 and Hebrews 1:1-3
John 1:18 ESV
18 No one has ever seen God; God the only Son, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.
Hebrews 1:1–3 ESV
1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
So for us Christians, the application is to cry out, “Thank you, Jesus, for being my great prophet and perfectly addressing my ignorance of God through your proclamation of truth!”
None of us in this room would accurately know the true living God if not for Jesus’ prophetic ministry, so praise the Lord for it!
But the second application of Jesus being THE prophet is actually for the unbeliever. Read again the warning of Deuteronomy 18:19
Deuteronomy 18:19 ESV
19 And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.
or how Peter puts it in his Acts 3 sermon,
Acts 3:23 ESV
23 And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.’
My dear, unbelieving neighbor, this is a call not to trifle with God’s justice. He is warning you ahead of time, turn away from your own musings about who Jesus is, and instead, listen to His own revelation of His identity.
Don’t follow the negative example of Herod the perplexed skeptic. Sure, ask the same question as Herod, but don’t stop there. You must not only ask, “Who is Jesus?” You must listen to Him when He answers! Because God has spoken finally and fully in His Son, and to reject His voice is to face His judgment.
So, as we’re “considering different responses to Jesus’ identity,” learn from Herod’s errors, but then keep reading onward in Luke 9 in search of a better response. Let’s read verses 10-17:
Luke 9:10–17 ESV
10 On their return the apostles told him all that they had done. And he took them and withdrew apart to a town called Bethsaida. 11 When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing. 12 Now the day began to wear away, and the twelve came and said to him, “Send the crowd away to go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging and get provisions, for we are here in a desolate place.” 13 But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” They said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.” 14 For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 And they did so, and had them all sit down. 16 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing over them. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 17 And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
What an amazing miracle! Here we find our second response to Jesus’ identity:
2. The disciples and the crowd witness the Provider
There are so many pieces of this part of the text to unpack! As I studied the passage this week, there were seven things that stood out to me – seven things which Jesus provides for His disciples and/or the crowds.
Before we get to the crowds, let’s talk about Jesus and the disciples.
If you recall from last week’s sermon, the apostles are returning from being sent out throughout Galilee. Jesus had given them power to cast out demons and cure diseases as they went around, town-to-town, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God.
And at this point, they had returned from their long journeys, and they were basically giving a missionary report to Jesus about how everything went. But we know from Mark’s account of this story in Mark 6 that so many people kept coming up to them that they couldn’t get any rest, let alone a break to talk and eat with one another.
So the first thing we actually see Jesus provide in this section is that:
- Jesus provides rest
Look again at verse 10,
Luke 9:10 ESV
10 On their return the apostles told him all that they had done. And he took them and withdrew apart to a town called Bethsaida.
Now, they actually made this trip via a little boat ride across the Sea of Galilee. I can’t think of a better way to get some rest than to hop on a boat with Jesus! How cool would that privilege have been?! And even though it was a short trip, probably only an hour or two on the boat, this shows us that Jesus recognizes the need and provides the rest.
Specifically, I don’t just mean physical rest, although that’s important sometimes too, but I mean the kind of rest where a person finds refreshment simply from getting to spend quality time with Christ. As one Bible Dictionary describes it:
“It is not a rest from toil but in toil (Jn 5:17), not the rest of inactivity but of the harmonious working of all faculties and affections—of will, heart, imagination, conscience—because each has found in God the ideal sphere for its satisfaction and development.”
A Dictionary of the Bible: Dealing with Its Language, Literature, and Contents Including the Biblical Theology, Volumes I–V Rest
Have you come to the provider of this kind of rest? Do you regularly withdraw apart from the noise of the world to spend quality time with Jesus? He delights to provide for this need! Jesus can always provide rest for you.
But then, as we already read in verse 11, as soon as they get to shore, they are swamped again by the crowds.
As a side thought, do you guys ever feel like this in life? You’ve only just started to rest, and the demands are already flooding in from work, or ministry, or parenting, or whatever it is for you. How do you usually react when that happens? Do you turn to selfishness, or anger, or self-pity? I know those are the ways I am prone to react when outside needs feel overwhelming.
But here’s how Jesus reacted:
Luke 9:11 ESV
11 When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing.
Wow. How could Jesus react like this? Again, the Mark 6 passage is helpful, it says:
Mark 6:34 ESV
34 When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things.
Jesus can react like this because he is the great provider. He is happy to provide nourishment for even the most difficult or lost sheep.
Do you know what wandering sheep do if left on their own? They get lost, they can struggle to even find sustenance, they easily fall prey to injury from falling into pits or getting attacked by wolves, and sooner or later they will perish – because they are alone without a shepherd who will faithfully provide for their needs.
That’s how Jesus saw this crowd.
And, like any compassionate provider, he goes into triage mode and addresses the most urgent issues first, before caring for the less urgent issues. So let’s walk through His priority of care:
Notice what He starts with: the message of the kingdom of God!
- Jesus provides gospel remedies for spiritual ailments
After assessing the situation, Jesus determines, there is nothing more urgent than telling them the good news of the kingdom of God!
The same is true for us today, we have no greater need than to repent of our sins and believe in Christ for forgiveness, and salvation, and adoption into the family of God.
And if you take nothing else away from this sermon today, I too want you to know that Jesus is the only one who can revive your soul from spiritual death, through His substitutionary atonement on the cross. And even now, He calls you to repent, believe, and enter the kingdom!
Even for us Christians in the room, who have already trusted in Christ, we still have no greater need than to turn to Him regularly and have our spiritual needs provided for. Whether you are struggling with remaining sin, depression, despair, loneliness, anxiety, or groaning with longings you can’t even put to words, He Himself will welcome you, and He will lovingly provide for you with His perfect Gospel remedies.
So let us come to Him regularly, with every single one of our needs.
Returning to verse 11, we see Jesus’ next level of provision:
- Jesus provides physical healing
It’s amazing that this detail is just barely mentioned. Perhaps it is because Luke has dedicated so much time already in previous chapters recounting Jesus’ ability to heal and even to raise the dead. Whatever the case, we see here again that Jesus can heal – and we know that He even still today heals physically when He chooses to.
We can’t spend too much time on this topic, because the text doesn’t, but let us remember that Christ not only provides physical healing in our day, but he has promised a future healing for all of His beloved sheep. A day when…
Revelation 21:4 ESV
4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
What a blessed hope to look forward to! Amen?
So at this point, Jesus has provided rest for His disciples, He’s provided for everyone’s spiritual needs, He’s healed the sick, but then the disciples bring another need to His attention:
“Hey Jesus, everyone is getting hungry!”
And the disciples suggest their solution to the problem, “Let’s send everyone out of here to go buy their own dinner! There’s no possible way we can feed them all!”
Some of you might be wondering, “5,000 people can’t be THAT difficult to feed, right?”
Well first, we learn from Matthew’s account of this miracle, in Matthew 14, that the number 5,000 is not even counting the women and children who were there. On the extremely conservative end, it’s probably closer to 10,000 people. And on the high end, if everyone brought the whole family out to see Jesus, we could be talking about upwards of 20-25,000 people. That’s possibly more people than the entire city of Grimes, just think about that.
Then secondly, for whoever does the cooking in your household, let me ask you a question: How many unexpected guests for a meal would it take to overwhelm your plans? Let’s say that everyone here in this church building looked at you after service, and said, “Hey, what are you going to make us for lunch?” That’d be a crazy question, wouldn’t it? And we probably have only ___ people sitting here, and you would be at a loss for what to do.
So, let’s give some grace to the disciples – alright? They’re looking out at this ginormous crowd, 10-25,000 people, and there’s just no imaginable way to them that this problem can be solved.
And I love Jesus’ response in verse 13:
Luke 9:13 ESV
13 But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.”
Here we find yet another thing that Jesus provides:
- Jesus provides opportunities to trust Him
Now, unfortunately, the disciples don’t immediately listen to the command, and yes, this was a command.
Instead of trusting Him, they try to dodge the command by explaining to Jesus their reasons for why they can’t obey.
But, Jesus wasn’t being sarcastic with this statement. Neither was He being cruel with an impossible expectation.
By faith, the disciples ought to have trusted that when Jesus commands His people, He Himself is able to provide what is needed for obedience.
He was providing them with an opportunity to trust Him. If their faith had been fully mature, they might have responded similarly to Ezekiel in the Valley of Dry Bones, and said: “Oh Lord, you know if this is possible.” In other words, they might have said: “I don’t see how this could possibly happen, but if You command it, then I trust You are able to accomplish it.”
If we apply this to ourselves, the question is, will we trust and obey? Even if it’s a hard command to follow, or like the disciples, you can’t imagine any possible way forward in the situation – Will you trust Jesus and do what He says?
If we would just see that even these types of commands, the hard ones – that even those are a gracious gift of His provision. They’re God-given opportunities to trust Him. If we would see that, I think we would find far greater joy and readiness in obeying our Lord.
But, as we already read in verse 13, the disciples aren’t ready for that, at least not yet. So, in verses 14-17, Jesus actually provides three more things at the exact same time. Let’s go ahead and read those verses once again,
Luke 9:14–17 ESV
14 For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 And they did so, and had them all sit down. 16 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing over them. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 17 And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
Jesus provides three things here:
- Jesus provides the path to obedience
- Jesus provides physical nourishment
- Jesus provides evidence of His deity
Let’s start with the path to obedience.
The disciples had failed to follow His earlier command to give the crowd something to eat, but notice, that doesn’t lead Jesus to kick the disciples out of the picture. He doesn’t say, “Why don’t you just go wait in the boat while I take care of this.” No, just like a mother who is teaching her child how to cook, Jesus is patient. He gently leads His disciples through the process, and He provides the pathway to their obedience.
While Jesus is multiplying the food, do you notice what the disciples are doing? Verse 16 says:
Luke 9:16 ESV
16 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing over them. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.
What did He command them to do again? He said, “You give them something to eat.” And what did he still allow them to do? Give the crowds something to eat!
Jesus provided both the command and the path for them to obey the command. This reminds me of that famous prayer from the Confessions of St. Augustine:
“Command what You will, give what You command” – Augustine of Hippo
God may and does command us to do all kinds of good works – but we can’t ever do them autonomously! By faith, we must depend on the one who provides everything we need to follow. And Jesus is happy to provide for and work in us, so that we may glorify the Father!
[Return to 7 things Jesus provides slide]
And while Jesus was providing the path of obedience for His disciples, He was simultaneously providing abundant physical nourishment for the crowd itself. Yes, Jesus had started with the more urgent needs of gospel remedies and physical healing, but He does know that they are hungry.
And even though most of this crowd turns out to be unbelievers who fit the descriptions of soils #2 & #3 from chapter 8, Jesus is still happy to provide for their needs. Just like God the Father, who “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matt 5:45). This is God’s common grace on full display – He is kind even to those who only seek him for their own selfish gain and who ultimately reject Him.
Now, in terms of the miracle of feeding this great crowd, I do want to mention that, sadly, some modern liberal interpreters try to explain this miracle away as merely a lesson in sharing. Their theory is that most of the people had some hidden food, and when they saw Jesus’ generosity, they were so inspired that they began to share with one another until everyone was taken care of – but that completely misses the theme of the entire passage!
This massive miracle is not to show people how to be friendly; it is an object lesson on Jesus’ identity!
Yes, Jesus really did multiply the five loaves and two fish into thousands of meals. Full meals. With leftovers. In verse 17, it says, “17 And they all ate and were satisfied [or gorged]; and the broken pieces which they had left over were picked up, twelve baskets full.”
John’s gospel words it this way:
John 6:11 ESV
11 Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted.
Not only did the people get more than enough to eat, they caught a glimpse of the true identity of Jesus. Who, but God alone, could do such a thing? Who, in the entire history of the world, has the power and ability to create and provide like this?
With every breaking of the bread and every distribution of the fish, Jesus was demonstrating authority over creation itself. This is divine power on full display. God, and God alone, can do this.
One of the commentaries I read put it this way:
Luke, Volumes 1 & 2 The Meanings of the Miracle
Just as God had provided daily manna in the days of Moses, so now once again God was providing bread in the wilderness, in the person of his Son. Incidentally, this provides a clear answer to Herod’s earlier question (Luke 9:9): Who is this Jesus? The answer is that he is God the Great Provider. This is something to remember, and not to forget: Jesus is one and the same as the God of the Old Testament, who cares and provides for his people.
So “Who is this Jesus?”
He is Jehovah Jireh – “God the Great Provider!” In this miracle, He is revealing to the entire crowd, “I am God!”
[Return to 7 things Jesus provides slide]
What do you do with this evidence? How do you account for Jesus’ supernatural ability to do all these things? I pray your response is better than most of the crowd.
Tragically, although they witnessed Jesus’ provision firsthand, many of the people in this crowd rejected Him.
In John 6, when Jesus calls them to go beyond seeking more physical bread and instead to feast on Jesus Himself, as the bread of life, it says that they “grumbled about Him,” they “disputed among themselves” about Him, they said “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?”, and it says that, “After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.”
As we are “considering different responses to Jesus’ identity” this morning, are you willingly going to imitate the response of these people? If Jesus doesn’t fit into the box of your own expectations, will you reject Him? Will you reject the obvious truth while He is on full display right in front of you? Again, I pray you would respond better than they.
And if you’re wondering, “What should that better response be?”, let’s turn again to the text and pick up at verse 18 to find out.
Luke 9:18–22 ESV
18 Now it happened that as he was praying alone, the disciples were with him. And he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” 19 And they answered, “John the Baptist. But others say, Elijah, and others, that one of the prophets of old has risen.” 20 Then he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered, “The Christ of God.” 21 And he strictly charged and commanded them to tell this to no one, 22 saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”
Here we find our third and final response to Jesus’ identity:
3. A blessed disciple confesses the Christ
We find ourselves confronted by the same root question: Who is Jesus? Again, this is the essential question everyone needs to answer: Who then is this?
Knowing how important this question is, Jesus asks His disciples, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” (v.18) and it turns out that they give all the same responses we read in verses 7-8. John the Baptist, Elijah, or maybe some other prophet.
And we can understand these guesses to a certain degree – John preached many of the same things, many of the Old Testament prophets were gifted to perform miracles, and Elijah particularly has some similarities listed in 1 Kings 17, where God worked through Elijah’s prayers to 1) provide endless bread and 2) to resurrect a widow’s son.
That sounds awfully familiar to what Jesus has done across the past few chapters of Luke, doesn’t it? Jesus resurrected a widow’s son in Luke 7, and we just heard about Him providing endless bread at the feeding of the 5,000.
So the crowds were buying into these theories, not because they were completely ignorant of the scriptures, or because they were stupid, or anything like that.
They were buying into these theories, because it sounded plausible to them. You can almost hear them whispering to each other, “Maybe this is him, guys! Maybe Elijah has finally come back!”
But we can learn from this that just because someone’s theory about Jesus’ identity sounds plausible, that doesn’t mean it’s the right answer.
Again, think of today. How many people still buy into the theories that Jesus was just a great teacher, or an attempt at a political movement, or a miracle worker with some mystical Eastern influence giving Him special powers? Or even the entire religion of Islam even calls Jesus a prophet, and says “peace be upon Him,” but they say He was just a prophet.
These theories are still everywhere, but they all fail to see that none of those answers actually match Jesus’ identity. God is the one who reveals Jesus’ true identity – and He’s done it for you right here in the Bible! And when the Holy Spirit illuminates a passage like this to you, you will see Jesus as God intends you to see Him.
And notice, I’m intentionally emphasizing the word “you.”
No matter how plausible a theory may sound to everyone else, Jesus will still require the correct answer of you. Notice in verse 20, Jesus cuts right past what the crowds are saying, and He asks, “But who do you say that I am?” Because that’s the real question, isn’t it?
The word “you” in this question is emphatic. “Some people say one thing, and others say something else, but you, what do you say?” Jesus was bringing his disciples to a point of personal commitment. What mattered was not what other people were saying, but what they believed for themselves. Jesus was asking his disciples, but as we read the Gospel, he is also asking us. Who do you say that Jesus is?
–Luke, Volumes 1 & 2 What Do You Believe?
Jesus is well aware of what your friends or your parents may have told you about Him. They may have even told you the right answer! But he’s no longer asking what you’ve heard about Him from others, now Jesus is directly asking, “who do you say that I am?”
And by faith, Peter is blessed with the privilege of finally confessing the right answer: “The Christ of God.” [Return to slide for point #3]
That’s who Jesus is! Jesus is the anointed one, the chosen one, the coming king and the long-awaited Messiah who we’ve been waiting for since Genesis 3:15! That’s who we worship! He is Christ the Lord!
And when Peter says “of God” – he even hints at Jesus’ heavenly origin! He is “of God,” meaning that He came from God – from the Father’s right hand. Ever since before time even began, He has been sitting on His throne as king of the universe. But now He has come down, He is from God.
This actually shows both His deity and His sonship to the Father, as was perfectly prophesied in Proverbs 30:4
Proverbs 30:4 ESV
4 Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in his fists? Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son’s name? Surely you know!
It is Jesus! Surely you know this!
He is “of God,” He has come down from His glory to come and accomplish His mission.
And what is His mission? What did Jesus come to do? Verse 22:
Luke 9:22 ESV
22 saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”
Now this mission was still to be kept a secret at this point, but it is the same mission which Jesus told Nicodemus about in John 3, when He said:
John 3:13–15 ESV
13 No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.
-Did you hear that? “Son of Man.” This is the Christ, we’re talking about Jesus here-
John 3:13–15 ESV
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
This is the mission of the Christ of God – the Son of Man!
And notice that both of these passages use one critical word, “must.”
It means “it is necessary.” Once God had determined to redeem mankind, there was no other way to make it happen. If there had been any other way to save sinners, the cross would never have happened. But, because of God’s redeeming love, it was necessary for Jesus to come and suffer the death that you and I deserved – or else we never could have been saved!
Thank you, Lord, for choosing this! Thank you for graciously saving sinners like us! Thank you for counting the cost and still coming to do the work! You’re so good to us, Lord. Thank you, Jesus!
And if you’re here, and you’ve never come to Christ in faith, then the call for you is to join Peter, today, in making the good confession! See for yourself that Jesus is the Christ of God!
Romans 10:9 ESV
9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
He has come so that you may believe in Him and have eternal salvation! And He calls you to repent of your former ignorance and believe in Him as the Christ. He loves you, and He desires for you to come to Him! So He asks you, “But who do you say that I am?”
The weight of that critical question rests upon your shoulders now.
We’ve considered a few different responses to Jesus’ identity this morning.
[Return to slide with all 3 main points]
Which one will you most closely resemble?
Jesus is not merely another prophet to be speculated about.
He is not merely a provider of temporary bread or useful life lessons to witness.
Jesus is the Christ of God – the suffering and risen Son of Man who came into the world to save sinners just like you and me.
So come to Him. Trust Him. Confess who He is. And join us in worshipping Him!
Let’s pray.