The Most Important Question

HE IS RISEN! A glorious and blessed Easter Sunday to you and yours, and may your celebration of the resurrection of our Lord be deeply meaningful to your spirit today. It is a beautiful day to feast and celebrate with family and loved ones, and a wonderful opportunity to pause and reflect on the most momentous event in history.

Those of us who follow Jesus and celebrate this day are making an absolutely audacious claim: we believe that in His death and resurrection, God the Son took our sin and shame upon Himself; defeated death, hell, and the grave; and made a way for us to be with God forever in eternity. Many of our friends and neighbors think we’re crazy for really believing such a thing. They humor us (at least for now) and think, “sure, it’s fine to call yourself a Christian, but don’t go overboard.” 

But, since Jesus' resurrection has truly, factually, historically happened, it cannot be ignored. It requires that every person answer this question found in Luke 9…
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Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were with him, He asked them, “Who do the crowds say I am?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, that one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life.”
“But what about you?” he asked.
“Who do you say I am?”

Recently, I was able to be a part of a bus tour through the mountains of Greece. This tour retraced some of the steps of the Apostle Paul on his second missionary journey, visiting Corinth, Athens, Berea, Thessaloniki and Philippi. How amazing it is to be somewhere where such significant historical things have occurred! I’ve noticed before how much easier it is for me to realize the length and breadth of God’s story when I step outside of my modern Texan neighborhood into a place with such ancient roots. At Wal-Mart, it's difficult to remember most anything about the big picture, but beside the river at Philippi where Lydia and her household were baptized, the Bible comes to life! The Bible is not just an old, dusty, outdated book that needs to be reinterpreted for a new generation. It is a record of real people and real events in real places. It shows us a picture of our great God who was then and is still now graciously inviting us into relationship with Himself.

In the Bible we can read that as Jesus, the perfect representation of God the Father, walked this earth, He invited people to follow Him. As they did, they watched Him do all kinds of amazing things. He drew crowds everywhere He went, healing the sick, delivering people from all kinds of oppressive and destructive spirits, even bringing the dead back to life. He spoke amazing words of life and hope, and made revolutionary statements of a very different Kingdom that He was bringing to earth, in which the people would be known not because they were the biggest or loudest or strongest, but because of their humility, meekness, and peacemaking. He was kind and approachable - women and children were drawn to Him in a time which both were considered lesser. Many people loved Him, and a few hated Him with a passion; regardless of which side people landed upon, it is easy to say that people of that time and place had a very hard time ignoring Jesus. 

So the scene was set for Jesus to confront His closest followers with the most important question in the world - “Who do you say that I am?” And it was at this moment that Peter had the revelation that the entire church is built upon: that Jesus was Messiah, the Son of the Living God, the King they’d been waiting for all those long years. 

In this passage of Luke 9, Jesus answers Peter, and I encourage you to take the time to look up and read what He said. It is especially meaningful at Easter. But for now, please notice how the passage continues in verse 28...
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About eight days after Jesus said this, He took Peter, John and James with Him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As He was praying, the appearance of His face changed, and His clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about His departure, which He was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.

Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him. As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”
(He did not know what he was saying.)

While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and covered them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to Him.”

Just a little over a week after Peter's magnificent revelation,  Jesus invited His closest friends to witness something marvelous - what we now call the transfiguration. Fully man and also fully God, Jesus met at the top of the mountain with the physical representation of the law and the prophets -  what an amazing gathering! The veil of time and space between here and Heaven was somehow lifted for a moment; the three old friends stood talking about Jesus' own great exodus that was coming shortly. Both Moses and Elijah and all that they represented had always pointed to the great Messiah, and now Jesus was here, preparing to cross the gap between death and life for all of us, forever breaking the curse of sin and death! 

Peter, James, and John witnessed Jesus in all His glory, which much have been a tremendous sight to behold.  I can't say that I would have done anything different than Peter, who immediately started chatting and making unhelpful suggestions. When I get nervous, I get chatty, too! Peter thought, here is Moses the deliverer we've heard so much about, and Elijah the great prophet - now Jesus is here! Let's build all three important leaders a shelter and stay here forever. In other words, Peter might have understood that Jesus was Messiah, but didn't yet know exactly what that meant. 

This is where so many land today - mentally assenting, like Peter and the other disciples had, that Jesus is the Messiah; believing in Him, but needing to realize...

Jesus isn’t just a wonderful teacher and friend  we all love to be around because He makes us feel so good.

He isn’t just a great leader for His generation, another Moses or Elijah.

He isn’t just the perfect respresentation of all that humanity was created to be, someone we can aspire to emulate in action and morals.

Jesus is the Christ,
​God the Son

​The Orthodox Church of this area of the world has long referred to Him as Jesus Pantocrator - Jesus, King of the Universe. Knowing WHO HE IS can change your life. 

a striking icon of Jesus Pantocrator, located at St. Catherine's monastery on Sinai

​On this Resurrection Day, Who do you say that He is?  Let Christ the King take the sin and shame from your life, and bring peace and rest into your troubled soul. Let Him fill your heart with joy and hope through His Holy Spirit. Let Him carry your burdens, for they are not too heavy for His strong hands. This marvelous King has conquered sin and death, and has overcome this broken world! He encourages us, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in Me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am."