The words of
Matthew 16:13-16 reveal there was a lot of buzz going on about Jesus even while
His sandals were still slapping the dusty roads of Palestine. Then, as now,
many thought highly of Jesus but not highly enough. The apostle Matthew wrote:
“When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples,
saying, ‘Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?’ So they said, ‘Some say
John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He
said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter answered and said,
‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ " Millions today
acknowledge and praise Jesus as a great and good man and as a noteworthy
religious leader. They agree He has much to say to our modern world about
things like love, forgiveness and tolerance toward others. But, like the people
in Matthew’s narrative, millions today are incomplete in their understanding of
Jesus and the claims He made for Himself in the four gospel accounts, not to
mention claims made for Him by inspired writers in the rest of the New
Testament.
Many who purport to know much about Jesus are unwilling
to accept and submit to New Testament teaching that He was God in the flesh,
not only the One who came to save us from our sins, but the One coming back to
judge us for them. Many pay lip service to Jesus as one of many great religious
men, but will not pay heart homage to Him as the risen and sole Savior and Lord
through whom all men must come to God or else be lost (John 14:6). A story
attributed to actress Rosiland Russell, although not directly about Christ, has
application as we consider what we ought to believe about Him. According to
Homiletics magazine, Russell told that while on a cruise, one day on deck she
found herself sitting next to a man who had a terrible cold. She advised him,
“I think if you go to bed early, take a lot of fluids and two aspirin, you will
feel better in the morning.”
When the man registered no response, Russell added, “My
name is Rosiland Russell – you know? I make movies.” The man apologized for his
non-recognition, thanked her for her advice, and followed up by introducing
himself: “My name is Charles Mayo, and I run a medical clinic”
(Homiletics,9/1998, p 32).
A little
humility is always in order when we discuss Christ, the Son of the living God!
But some theologians and other religious people today brazenly speak and write
as if they know more about Christ than Christ Himself; or His apostles, the men
most intimate with Him and in the best position to tell us what to believe
about Him! Are you content to believe what mere mortals say about Jesus –
especially modern mortals who for some reason want us to trust that they are somehow
better-positioned and know more about Christ than the writers of the New
Testament were? A TIME magazine (4/1996) cover story had a picture of Jesus on
the front cover and in bold letters announced “The Search For Jesus” – and
underneath in smaller letters were these words, “Some scholars are debunking
the Gospels. Now traditionalists are fighting back. What are Christians to
believe?” Excuse me, but why am I a “traditionalist” to believe what the Gospel
says? And what is so new about “scholarly” de-bunkers? Scholars have been
debunking Christ and the Gospels for 2,000 years, but they won’t stay debunked!
They debunk the debunkers! Jesus declared Himself the Son of the living God,
and inspired apostles said the same thing. What do you say?
by Dan Gulley, Smithville, TN
No comments:
Post a Comment