Often our first introduction to Jesus is through the witness and recommendation of others. We become acquainted with Jesus because a friend, family member or stranger shares with us their good experiences with Him. Then religion and/or church services we start to develop our own persona of Jesus through cliche’s and colloquialisms like: “Can’t nobody do me like Jesus!” “Jesus be a fence!” “He may not come when you want Him but He is always on time.” Regardless of how you heard and what you have heard, it is the personal responsibility of every Christian to ask and answer the question, who is Jesus to me?”
The Bible records a conversation between Jesus and the disciples in the books of Matthew and Mark where Jesus asks of the disciples “Who do people say I am?” and the disciples replied some say you are John the Baptist, some say you are Elijah and others say you are a prophet. And Jesus probes a little further and asks “But what about you? Who do you say I am?. At which point Peter replies, “You are the Christ” So what we see in Peter’s reply is that because of his relationship with Jesus, spending time with Him, walking and talking with Jesus and seeing His works, Peter knew exactly who Jesus was.
What others have to say seems to box Jesus in and doesn’t allow for us to think of Him as being much more than what we have heard that He is. We often hear that Jesus is a provider, but how much more can Jesus be to the financially stable person who feels lonely and has no thought of a need for Jesus to be a provider? This person instead needs Jesus to be a friend. By faith we believe that Jesus is a healer. But, what about the physically well person who needs Jesus to be a liberator of light in the midst of their darkness? How do you come know Jesus to be your all in all when you have not heard the words or testimony of others to give a relatable description of Him for your specific circumstance?
Take a moment to do a bit of self examination, ask yourself the question, who is Jesus to me? Is Jesus defined in your life by what your mother told you; what your daddy said, or how Grandma prayed? It may seem easier and far less time consuming to go about your day and not truly focus on inviting Jesus to be a present part of your life. But thats almost like treating your relationship with Jesus like an insurance policy. A conversation with the insurance agent is only necessary if there is an accident or other mayhem involving our assets.
The more time that a person spends studying the life of Jesus and becoming familiar with His ways, His thoughts, then the greater his/her faith in who Jesus is will increase. Then, in the times when the individual needs Jesus to be to them that which they have not been introduced to by popular culture, they will already have established a confidence in His ability to help them live out the victory that scripture promises.
The question remains “who is Jesus to you?” Before hastily answering, be reminded that your life should bring credibility to your answer. So if the answer is that “Jesus is your teacher”, then your life should show others that you are someone who is seeking to learn, seeking to be better, a good student who applies the learnings from the Master Teacher Jesus. If your response is, “Jesus is my strength” then your actions should faithfully rely on that strength knowing that it is only through focused development of your relationship with Him that your faith is increased and made strong. If you choose to affirm that “Jesus is the Lord of your life,” your life should show that He is the final authority. That you allow Him to lead and direct your path and that your wants take a back seat to His will.
One thing that Christians can all agree on is that “Jesus is Redeemer” because it was through His blood that our sins are cleansed and forgiveness was made possible. So if Jesus is Redeemer to you then you must stop beating yourself up over your past mistakes. You are forgiven so let the past be the past, look towards your future and let it go.
Do not allow your life become so busy that you only know Jesus through the testimony of someone else. Or that you can only make time to commune with Him when your life is in crisis. Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the way to God, He satisfies, He forgives. Jesus is Power, He is powerful over death and disease. He is the light of life in darkness.
Jesus is whatever and whomever you need Him to be.
Do not allow other people define who Jesus is to you. Nor should you allow anyone to discourage you against who He can be. Jesus came so that we can live, He gave so that we can receive. He is comforter, provider, friend, healer, redeemer, vindicator, conscious conviction, wisdom, understanding. He is life, He is liberty, Jesus is our victory
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