- Whom Do Men Say That I Am? -
Mark 8:27 NKJV: Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns
of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples,
saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"
It was a fair question. After all, by now they had seen Him feed
5,000 men with just five loaves and two fish, had witnessed
multiple healings and the casting out of demons, had seen Him
walking on water and giving sight to blind men, not to mention
had heard teaching that boggled the minds of even the religious
leaders. It was obvious that Jesus was not your run-of-the-mill
itinerant preacher. Yet, for all His wisdom and miraculous power,
there emanated an overriding humility that the people could not
relate to God. Therefore, the answer to His question was not as
easy as it might have seemed.
Though the crowds would surely have expected the Messiah to
display the miraculous signs and wonders that Jesus performed,
they would not have expected Him to be born to a lowly carpenter,
have brothers and sisters, and be so meek and humble. His
wisdom was divine, but His gentleness and lowliness were not.
At least not for the Jehovah they had been told about countless
times - the God who shook the mountains with His thunderous
voice, or the God who swallowed up Korah and the other 250,000
Israelites in one quick earthquake because of their rebellion
against Moses.
It was definitely an appropriate question and one that has been,
and will be, echoed throughout time until the end of the age. And
it still requires one to rectify his or her own conception of God
with this unique prophet from Galilee who was able to defy all
physical laws, yet submitted to every spiritual requirement of His
own making. The question probes the paradox of the Creator
encapsulated in the creation, the Justice of God offered as the
Lamb of God, Divinity taking on humanity to make a way in
eternity for all who had been separated to be reunited with the
Lover of their souls.
The question contains a lesson for us - we must never let God's
gentleness, kindness, and goodness diminish His royalty and right
to be worshiped and obeyed as the King of Kings and Lord of
Lords.
