What About You?
I remember going fishing years ago with a friend who took his three year old grandson. We didn’t have children yet, so I wasn’t personally experienced with the tenacity of a three year old bombarding an adult with “Why?” questions. In four hours of traveling and fishing, this little guy had to ask “Why?” at least 200 times! (I promise, this is no exaggeration.) We would give an age appropriate answer, then the little guy would respond with, “Why?”
About two thirds of the way through the afternoon, I began to say, “Because God created the world round.” I know this is not a great theological insight, nor is it a great parental out, but it worked for awhile. It kept the follow up questions at bay. Until we got in the truck to go home. I gave my little answer and then he responded quizzically, “But Phil, why did God make the world round?”
Good question! And some questions are better than others. But the most important question of all is the one Jesus asks His closest followers in Luke 9, our reading for today:
//Inspiration: Luke 9:20
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say that I am?”
Peter answered, “God’s Messiah.”
//Incarnation:
Who do I say Jesus is? This question is much more than a verbal question that I need to answer; this is a must question that I have to answer with the living of my daily life. Jesus stresses all the way through this chapter the importance of following Him for the sake of the Kingdom. So the question is about who I let rule my life and who do I trust with the meaning, significance, and ultimate destination of my life. So who is Jesus? He is God’s Messiah. He is the Promised One proclaimed by the prophets and feared by the demons. He is the misunderstood Son of Man and He is the one who notices the marginalized. He is the One who made the world!
So how does my life reflect his identity? How am I living up to the confession that fills my heart and flows from my mouth?
//Invitaiton:
O God, Father and Almighty, I thank you for revealing yourself in Jesus. I praise you for having a plan to redeem and bless all peoples in your Messiah, Jesus Christ. Now I ask that you help me demonstrate Jesus in my own life. And I pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, the Messiah and my Lord. Aemn.