The Way DAY 41 - Who is Jesus, Pt 2

DAY 41 - Who is Jesus, Pt 2

Acts 17:16-20, 29-32

Jesus asked his Twelve Apostles, “Who do the crowds say I am?” Yesterday we looked at two possible answers to that question. Today we look at the other two.

A third answer to the question, “Who is Jesus?” is to not answer it. Just ignore the question. That's the strategy of many intellectuals and powerful people living comfortably. In Acts 17, the apostle Paul shares the gospel with philosophers of Athens. Most of them scoff the moment they hear about the resurrection. Life after death in a body didn’t fit their worldview so they ignored Jesus.

Some modern scholars study Jesus and the first century. They can tell you more about the Bible than most churchgoers. They analyze Jesus from different angles, but if you press them about whether or not Christianity is true, they deflect that question. “Well, that's a theological question and I'm not a theologian.” In other words, they ignore the question.

By the way, no decision is another way of ignoring the question. No decision is also a decision. You can’t stare at a restaurant menu forever. Eventually, the meal is over and the restaurant closes.

Deny, appropriate, and ignore. But there’s a fourth answer, given by Peter when he professes faith in Jesus as Messiah. Jesus makes the question personal: “Who do YOU say that I am?” “You’re the Messiah. You’re sent from God to save us!”

Like it or not, everyone has to answer that question. You can deny, appropriate, or ignore the question, or you can accept that Jesus is our savior chosen by God, accept what he’s done for you, and pledge allegiance to him as Lord. Either way, you have to make a decision. No one can trust Jesus for you. Christian parents can claim faith for their children, but at some point, kids have to say “Yes” to Jesus for themselves. Have you?

REFLECT
Which response do you think is most common today, and why? (Four responses: deny, ignore, appropriate, profess faith)

PRAY
Lord, don’t let me dodge tough decisions as I follow you. Give me wisdom, courage, and grace to decide and act. Amen.