Who Do You Say Jesus Is?

In Luke chapter nine, Jesus twice predicts His coming death on the cross in Jerusalem. In Luke 9:22 He told His disciples, "The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day." And again in Luke 9:44 He told His disciples, "Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men." But His disciples "did not understand this saying" (v. 45).

Just prior to introducing this truth to His disciples, Jesus set their minds to thinking about His identity, because what He was about to reveal to them depended upon their understanding of who Jesus is. Only if they knew that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, could they begin to grasp what it meant for Him to die on the cross and rise again from the dead.

So to prepare them, when they came to Him while He was "alone praying" (Luke 9:18a), He asked, "Who do the crowds say that I am?" (v. 18b). The answer was telling. Everywhere Jesus went, large crowds gathered to hear Him and to be healed by Him. Even King Herod was perplexed by the stories he had heard, and he asked, "Who is this of whom I hear such things?" (v. 9a). "So he sought to see Him" (v. 9b). Of course, he only wanted to be entertained. He had no intention of believing on Jesus.

The disciples answered Jesus, "John the Baptist, but some say Elijah; and others say that one of the old prophets has risen again" (v. 19). In other words, nobody had a clue! The crowds that followed were constantly speculating about who Jesus is, but they didn't have a clue. But what about the disciples? Did they understand the truth?

Jesus reworded the question slightly, and asked, "But who do you say that I am?" (v. 20a). To that, "Peter answered and said, 'The Christ of God'" (v. 20b). Final answer? "The Christ of God" (v. 20b). Correct! Peter, and assuming he was speaking for all the disciples as he often did, they all were catching on! Well, at least they were beginning to. They still didn't quite grasp the truth of Jesus' death on the cross and His resurrection, both of which awaited Him in Jerusalem. But they soon would.

Do you understand who Jesus is and what He did for you? He is the Christ, the Savior. He died on the cross as an atonement for your sin; for your forgiveness. He rose again to give you eternal life, as He defeated even the final enemy—death. "Death is swallowed up in victory" (1 Cor. 15:54b). "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?" (v. 55).

Trust in the Lord Jesus by faith. Believe in His atoning death on the cross for your forgiveness and His resurrection, and you will be saved. Amen.