WHO DO YOU SAY I AM? All down church history one crucial question has been Christological. It concerns the identity of Jesus. In seeking to discover this thing, we should beware both of public opinion (Who do people say I am) & of idiosyncratic church leaders (who like Peter are impertinent enough to contradict Jesus). Instead we should listen to him in his own self-testimony. After the disciples made the confession that Jesus is the Messiah (meaning Anointed One or Christ) in Mark 8, Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him but to remain silent & keep his identity a secret (Bible scholars call this Messianic secret). The reason is that the public had false political notions of the Messiah. Jesus was afraid that the people would cast him as a political savior. But He had come rather to die, & through death to secure a spiritual liberation for his people. The Son of Man must suffer & be killed. Jesus adopted the title Son of Man from Daniel 7 but changed his role. According to Daniel, all nations will serve him. According to Jesus, he would not be served, but serve. Thus Jesus fused 2 Old Testament images - the Servant who would suffer (Isaiah 53) & the Son of Man who would reign (Daniel 7). After speaking of his coming death, Jesus called the crowd to him & said: If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself & take up his cross & follow me (Mark 8:34). That is, Jesus moved from his cross to ours, & portrayed Christian discipleship in terms of self-denial & even death. Christian discipleship is much more radical than an amalgam of beliefs, good works & religious practices. (John Stott, The Incomparable Christ, pp. 28-31).
Posted on: Sun, 09 Mar 2014 02:08:52 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015