Feb 20, 2018 – Mark 8
Jesus asked. "Who
do you say I am?" Peter answered, "You are the Christ." Mark
8:29
What we believe about
Jesus directly affects what we believe about ourselves.
Identity is at the core of most of our beliefs, and leads to
most of our behaviors.
I had a friend who thought he was a good musician. He played an instrument, and knew technically
how to play, but struggled with timing and the feeling of the music. In his head, he believed he was a musician,
and so he devoted time to it. He
practiced, and played, and performed – but even though he thought he could play
the instrument, he was not musically gifted enough to do it well.
That’s not just true for musicians. Many aspire to be athletes, or artists, or
leaders, or even speakers (and preachers), but even though they want to identify
with the belief in their mind, their body and soul don’t match. Trying to be something you are not just
doesn’t work. You may do all the right
things, but it’s not who you were made to be.
On the other hand, when we figure out exactly who we were
designed to be, it can open doors to incredible results. Just look at some of the greatest athletes,
artists, preachers, business leaders, parents, … you name it. When we discover and live out our identity,
it can be an incredibly productive life.
Maybe not what we wished for or imagine in our dreams, but far greater
than anyone else can do in that role.
So how do you find out who you really are? That’s the big question! If we can discover our identity, then we can
live it out and be at our best.
Jesus asked Peter the question of identity – but not who
Peter was. He asked who Peter thought
Jesus was! Jesus’ question to Peter did
two things in helping Peter discover his identity.
1)
By recognizing who Jesus is, we realize who we
are NOT! If Jesus is a great leader, or
teacher, or prophet, or other good role model, then we can be as good as Jesus
in something. By reducing Jesus to
something other than the Son of God – it lets us pursue false identities. But if Jesus truly IS the Christ – then He is
Lord over our lives and our identity is defined by Him.
2)
By elevating Jesus above ourselves, we are able
to discover who we ARE! Once the pride
is gone from trying to be something we are not, we can quickly discover who God
designed us to be. Let’s face it –
people want to ‘Be Like Mike’ because of pride.
We want for ourselves what Michael Jordan (or any other role model),
achieved and gained for themselves. But
when we humbly come before the Christ, our pride is gone, and whatever He
decides is a great blessing!
Right after Peter makes that declaration, Jesus tells Peter
his true identity. He’s not a fisherman
any longer. He’s the leader of the
coming church movement. But more than
that, Peter is a child of the Most High God, and a friend of the Christ
Himself! Peter’s identity is no longer
tied to his pride, it’s tied to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Now Peter is released to be the best Peter
possible – bringing thousands into salvation, and launching the church that
saves millions for generations to come.
That’s an identity worth having, and it comes from who we
think Jesus is – so what’s your answer?
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