13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. Matthew 16:13-17
One of my favorite games as a child was the game “Guess Who!” It is a game where each player has about 20 different looking people, and you are to take turns asking questions to figure out who they have. In a sense, that is what Jesus does with His disciples. He plays a game of “Guess Who” with Himself as the person they are trying to guess. He asks the disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
People guessed at Jesus’ real identity. They thought and believed that a prophet of old had returned. They thought that Jesus looked like and sounded like one of the prophets of old. In their minds, that was clear. The question, though, was “Who?” “Which one is Jesus?” Some guessed John the Baptist. Others thought that Jesus was Jeremiah. Others conjectured that He was at least one of the prophets.
As the disciples let others have a turn with their guesses, Jesus then gives them one. He says, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter then gives his famous answer: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” When Peter gets things in the Gospel, he gets it! Peter gets it right!
If Jesus were to ask that question today, what kind of answers would He receive? It would not be farfetched to hear people say that Jesus was a miracle worker or great teacher. Others would say He was a good man but not God. A segment of people might say He never existed. There certainly would be a wide range of answers.
If Jesus were to ask YOU that question, what would you say? It is a deeply important question that we all must answer one day. How would you answer that question?
How about with Peter’s answer? “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Jesus is without a doubt the long-promised Messiah Who would save His people. Jesus is truly the Son of God and is one with the Father. He is truly and fully divine! Peter’s answer simply states Who Jesus is and what He has done: He is the Son of God Who saves us from our sins.
As we live in a world that questions and wonders about Jesus, Who He is, and what He has done, we have an answer that we can stand firm on and build our hope on: Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.
In Christ,
Pastor Nick Kooi
(Originally published in Emmaus Footprints, Vol. XXII, Number 2, September 2020)