True Confessions

Who do people say that Jesus is? Who do YOU say that Jesus is? Jesus confronts us with these 2 questions in Matthew 16: 13-20. If pressed to speak other people's understandings of Jesus, do you think they might see Jesus akin to modern prophets such as Martin Luther King or Gandhi? More importantly, if you have to confess who Jesus is, would you speak from your perspective as man/woman; teacher/student; father/mother/grandparent/child; employer/employee/retiree; person of faith/person of little faith?

In our Matthew scripture, Peter moves beyond rational, intellectual, academic understandings to confess Jesus as Messiah, Son of the living God. Jesus blesses Peter as having received this revelation from God. Peter confesses who Jesus is out of his love for Jesus and his experience as a disciple walking alongside or behind Jesus.

As summer rhythms give way to fall routines, we too are challenged to answer this question as the touchstone for our faith - whether it's a strong faith or a faltering faith. When we are able to speak about Jesus and who he is in our lives, we speak genuinely and uniquely out of our experience. How we think about Jesus shapes who we are and how we make daily and more life important decisions. Rather than let others speak for us, we are invited to take responsibility for what we believe and what we value.

So...who do YOU say Jesus is?