Ask Peter the question of who is Jesus?

Today, January 18th, marks in the church calendar the commemoration of the Confession of St. Peter. From the gospel of Mark, we read, “And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that I am?’ And they told him, ‘John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.’ And he asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered him, ‘You are the Christ.’ (Mk. 827-35, ESV)”
Of all the questions that need answering in this life, there is none more important than the one that Jesus asked his disciples. And just like back then, the answers that people give to that question are many and varied. Some say Jesus was a prophet, but nothing more, a holy man that God used to lead and guide people, who ranks among others like John the Baptist, Elijah, or as some claim today Muhammed. Others claim that Jesus was simply a good moral teacher, someone we can learn right and wrong from, a nice example, but nothing more. Others still might reject even these things about Jesus and say that he was a crazy man or just an invention of the early church, a figment of people’s imagination.
The problem of course is that all of these answers fall short of the truth. Yes, Jesus was a great prophet, a great teacher, a great miracle worker, and a great example. And yes, Jesus actually lived and breathed and walked on this earth. But even more so than this, Jesus is the Christ. Peter’s answer got to the heart of the matter because Peter’s answer is what God the Father says about him, and what Jesus says about himself (Mt. 16:17). This is how Jesus first desires to be confessed because it is the ultimate purpose and reason for why he came. Our Lord took on human flesh and was born of Mary, not simply to be our example or to teach us a few things about loving others. Jesus came to die for our trespasses.

The word “Christ” is a title. It means “the anointed one”, the one who is “set apart”. As the scriptures teach, Jesus was anointed and set apart to be the Lamb of God that takes away our sins. He came to this earth chiefly to be our Savior, to be our sacrificial substitute and so redeem us from sin, death, and the grave. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me (Jn. 14:6, ESV).” St. Peter said, “salvation [is] in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12, ESV).”
To answer the question of “Who is Jesus?” rightly, we must first join Peter in saying that he is the Christ, that he is the Savior, and that in him, and only in him, we shall enter enteral life. Now it is true that everyone must answer this question for themselves. That is to say, no one can believe for another. Jesus said, “Who do you say that I am?” But so likewise it is true that we don’t have to come up with an answer on our own. In His Holy Word God has given us all that we need to know about Christ (Jn 5:39). The Confession of St. Peter is recorded for us so that we too could join him in the truth. It gives us the words to say, so that we can speak back to God what He has said about himself. So, who is Jesus? He is Christ. May God grant us all faith like Peter to say it with our mouths and believe it in our hearts.
Rev. Joseph Schlie is the Associate Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Perryville.