By Pastor Michael Blackford
Macksville Free Methodist Church
Pratt Free Methodist Church

Who Jesus is, is a big deal. Our salvation and our eternity depend on it. Our faith in God and His Word, the Bible, require us to believe what Jesus said about Himself. Consider these words of Jesus: Luke 22:66-71 (at His trial before the crucifixion) ‘They said, “If you are the Messiah, tell us.” But He said to them, “If I do tell you, you will not believe. And if I ask you, you will not answer. But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”

They all asked, “Are you, then, the Son of God?” And He said to them, “You say that I am.” “Why do we need any more testimony.” They said, “since we’ve heard it ourselves from His mouth?” ‘ Also Matthew 26:62-66.

The religious leaders understood what Jesus was saying and planned to have Him killed for it. He claimed to be God’s ‘right hand man’, equal to Him.

After teaching His Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapters 5,6, and 7, the crowd commented that He did not teach as the scribes did or the religious leaders. He taught with authority. In His teaching He told them ‘you have heard, but I say…’ He also told the listeners not to act like certain people who play act their religion, but truly do what God expects. He was correcting their understanding of what God expected of them. They had it wrong.

In Matthew 16:13-20, He asked His disciples who they believed Jesus was. Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus put His stamp of approval on it by accepting that answer and telling the disciples the answer came from God the Father Himself.

Mark 2:23-28 records an encounter with the Pharisees and Jesus about ‘working’ on the Sabbath, which was not allowed by the Law of Moses and was punishable by stoning (death). Jesus replied ‘…Then He told them, “The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath. So then, the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” Jesus claimed to be Lord over what God created back in Genesis at the beginning of time. And only God had that power.

Several places in John show Jesus claiming to be more than just a man. The ‘I am’ statements are there. “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.” 14:6. “I am the bread of life” 6:35. “Whoever drinks the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again. In fact, the water I will give him will become a well of water springing up in him for eternal life.” He is the giver of ‘living water’ and the ‘living water’ itself. 4:7-26. “I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows Me will never walk in the darkness but will have the light of life.” 8:12. “I am the Good Shepherd…” 10:11+14 “I am the gate for the sheep…I am the gate. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved…” 10:7-9.

There is enough evidence for those who want to believe, but never enough for those who prefer to doubt God is real. Pay attention when people talk about Jesus, because not all churches believe Jesus is who He claimed to be. Instead they prefer to make Jesus in our image instead of believing we are made in His image.