Who Does The World Say That Jesus Is?
Associate pastor Ryan Crawford brought our Sunday morning message: “Who is Jesus to You?”
We stood for opening prayer and the reading of God’s word.
The scripture reading was taken from Matthew 16:13-20.
Who does the world say that Jesus is? A nice man? A good man? A community organizer? Who did the ancient world say Jesus was? They said He was Elias/Elisha, that He was Jeremias/Jeremiah or some other prophet from the past. They said that he was John the Baptist. But the bigger question is, “Who do you say Jesus is to you?”
Jesus and His disciples had traveled to Caesarea Philippi — a place of superstition, heresy, fallacy. It was a region that still worshiped Baal and had a temple dedicated to Pan. Even Herod the Great had set up his temple there. Jesus asked His disciples, “Whom do the men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” They were quick to answer with Elias, Jeremias, John the Baptist or some other prophet. Then Christ asked them, “But whom do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Wow. Without hesitation, God placed that wisdom in Peter. Only God could have revealed that to him (Simon Peter). Now, if we look back to those men whom the world at that time said Jesus was, we see that He was the embodiment of those men. John the Baptist preached incredible sermons. Elisha performed incredible miracles (through Jesus Christ). Jeremiah wept with great compassion for the lost souls of Israel; he gave passionate ministries.
Jesus was known to give wonderful sermons. The first four books of the New Testament are filled with His sermons. Jesus also performed many incredible miracles while He was on Earth. And, finally, Jesus was filled with compassion for the lost sinners and their needs. In present time, like His disciples, we don’t serve Christ because of those things He did. We serve Him because He is the very Son of God.
If we are to be a church that gives and that is a beacon of light to a lost world, then Jesus has to be what it is all about. Peter said, “Thou art the Christ Messiah, the promised one.” This may not seem significant to you, but Jesus is the very one that was promised by God even from the very beginning in Genesis. God said “Let us make man in our image.” He was talking with Jesus Christ.
The serpent caused man to fall in the garden, but God promised, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15). It wasn’t immediately in the garden or shortly there afterwards.
Jesus was also the blood that was applied to the door post in Exodus that kept the angel of death from the first born in the Jewish households.
Jesus was also the brass serpent that was lifted up in the wilderness when the Jewish people strayed from God and were plagued with venomous asp bites.
There were numerous pictures of Christ throughout the Old Testament. Joshua and Joseph were both pictures of Jesus Christ. Job even proclaimed that he knew who his Redeemer was even as he was nearing death. King David wrote, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”
Over the many generations, Israel went through their numerous judges, prophets and kings. None of them were successful. The prophets were rejected, the kings failed, the priest had to keep trying to atone for the sins of the nation with sacrifices, and they all failed by the end of the Old Testament. Then, after 400 years of silence from God, He sent His Son. Like John the Baptist said, “Behold the Lamb that taketh away the sins of the world.” Jesus was the promise made manifest.
Jesus Christ the Messiah, the Promised one. Jesus Christ — the man. Son of God — your God. He is everlasting. Do you realize that what you couldn’t do yourself, His blood did? That you couldn’t save yourself; His blood did. It is Jesus’ blood that set you free, Jesus’ blood that redeems you. This is why we don’t believe in a man but Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God. We’re not worthy of His love, but I’m glad He died for our sins and saved us.
I KNOW WHO JESUS IS TO ME!
Please come join us for church. We have two services. Our first service, the Early morning service, is at 8:30 a.m., with Sunday School immediately afterwards, and after Sunday School, the second morning worship service, the mid-morning service, will start at 11 a.m.
The Nursing Home Ministry meets at Golden Living Center in Anderson at 2:30 p.m. every other Saturday.
Please check out our FBCP Teen Group Facebook page.
Friday night Bible Study will be postponed for the next two Fridays.
WMU is scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 9, at 1:30 p.m.
The final week of VBS is Wednesday, Sept. 7. We will have a meal starting at 6 p.m. followed by the lesson from 6:30-8 p.m.
AWANAs will resume Wednesday, Sept. 14.
The men will be going on a fishing and camping trip to Roaring River State Park Sept 9-10 (or 11).
You can hear a rebroadcast of one of our pastors’ services on KURM radio, 100.3 on the FM dial, at 8:30 Sunday mornings. Or listen to our pastors’ services on our website at www.firstbaptistchurchpineville.com/ Sermons.html.
If you have no church home of your own, we would love for you to join us in ours (off the northeast corner of Pineville square, just behind U.S. Bank). No friendlier, down-home church can be found anywhere in the fourstate area.