Easter is quickly approaching. The question at worship this week was “Who is Jesus?” The scripture from Mark 8: 27 Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?” 28 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” 29 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.”
The assumption is that for Christians this is an easy question to answer, but for some reason it’s not. It can actually be a difficult question. Many years ago,we don’t need to go into how many, but I was going into my freshman year of college when Dad made a comment that made me stammer. I was standing at the top of the stairs in my parent’s house and my dad was sitting in his chair when he made this comment, “What if I said Jesus was just a nice guy who lived long ago?” I was stunned by the question and not sure how to respond. My dad was very quiet about his faith. I wasn’t sure why he threw this question at me. Partly, I wasn’t sure what he exactly believed. So in confusion, I threw a question back at him.
It was suddenly apparent to me that I couldn’t easily tell him who Jesus was to me. I knew in my head that he was my Savior, but articulating what I believed to my dad was uncomfortable. I found myself scrambling for the right words to defend what I believed. Dad loved to do this with me. When he wanted to teach me a lesson, he would make me think. We were deep into this discussion before I realized what he was doing. He was challenging me to defend what I believed and not because he didn’t believe in Jesus, but because he did. In the midst of the conversation, he revealed that he has read the Bible cover to cover and the New Testament twice while in a fox hole during WWII. I never knew this about Dad. It was the one time he gave me a glimpse at the depth of his faith.
By the time the conversation was over, I had a new confidence in articulating “who Jesus is” to me. Can you answer the question, “Who is Jesus to me?” Have you ever tried to share your faith to someone else? Why are we so intimidated to tell others what we believe? For me it has been wrapped in a concern of what others are going to think of me. What if I don’t really know what I’m talking about? What if they think I’m a Jesus freak? This mini debate with Dad helped me step out of my fears and build confidence. Jesus asks us, “Who do you say that I am?” As Christians we need to be able to tell others about this gift we have in Christ.
This Easter season, what are you going to do today to step out in faith? Ask someone in your life to hold you accountable and help you build confidence. You can begin sharing your faith right here. This is a great place to practice with support. Leave a comment-share your faith.