Hungry for God: Who Do You Say He Is?

“And He asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’”—Mark 8:29

I was speaking with a young man a few months ago who has left the faith. He has read all of these different authors, many of them atheists, and has also surrounded himself with those who are in complete rebellion. He has many of his own questions and he is struggling immensely. He was telling me about how he began to do things that others had told him were sin, although the Scripture never said any such thing. He started forming an opinion about who Christ was through them. He was interacting with these authors and with some Christians who were building hedges around the faith and so he left. It was painful talking to him. To see a young man who had made some monumental decisions in his life, and it was based upon other’s testimonies. I told him that what they say doesn’t matter at all. It doesn’t matter what these so-called scholars or friends say. Their lives are greater indicators about who they are and what they believe. I told him, “Jesus asks you the question that only you can answer, ‘Who do you say that I am?’”

I spent some time soon after that with another man who is in rebellion. I have been witnessing to him and through my witnessing I’ve learned that he grew up in the faith. But as he aged, and started growing he wanted what he wanted and it wasn’t what God wanted, so he tried to reconcile his faith and his sin. But he too, is miserable and lonely. We’ve been meeting and he has been asking me a series of questions about the faith. He asked me several questions and as he did, I was struck.

No sooner had he asked one question and I started to answer it, he would throw out another, and then another, and then another. He was asking all of the questions that I’ve heard many different so called “educated” people ask over the years that don’t have simple one word answers. But in the midst of our dialogue, I realized that he didn’t want to know what I had to say. It came down to a part of the conversation where we were talking about the true motivation for following God—love for Him and fear of Him. He said,  

“Do you know what my biggest fear is? To not be able to be me.” I knew what he meant though and I challenged him, “You want to be yourself and I understand that. But it depends on what you mean. If you mean be yourself and be true to yourself as a person and pursue your hopes and dreams then that is all well right and good. If, however, you mean that you want to continue in your sin, then that is a different story.”

He was hiding behind his questions and refusing to deal with the real issue—his sin. Jesus speaks both to the young man, the older man, and us today, who do we say He is? Who do we say Jesus is? Not what do my grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, pastors, elders, classmates, colleagues, friends, and foes say. They don’t matter in the long run. Who do you say He is? That is the most important question that each one of us has to answer for ourselves. Amen.