Thought for Today
Genesis 27:32 His father Isaac said to him, "Who are you?" He answered, "I am your firstborn son, Esau."
Exodus 3:13 "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?"
Mark 8:27 Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" . . . 29 He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah."
The title for today’s devotional in These Days is “Who Is Jesus?” The devotional is a reflection on Mark 8:27-30. That passage in Mark is our New Testament lectionary reading for worship tomorrow. On my UCC planning calendar, the suggested theme is “Who Are You, Jesus?” Interesting questions both, questions about the basic identity of the one we refer to as Jesus Christ.
Interestingly, the author of today’s devotional uses that title as a springboard to comment not on the idenity of Jesus, but, rather on what Jesus calls us to be. He mentions one of the Beatutudes, "Matthew 5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” While I do believe God calls us all, through Jesus, to be peacemakers, in Greek εἰρηνοποιοί, the word peacemaker only appears in the Bible in the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus himself said, "Matthew 10:34 Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.”
“Identity is the set of qualities, beliefs, personality traits, appearance, and/or expressions that characterize a person or a group.” (Wikipedia) I see in Jesus’ question to his disciples the issue of Jesus’ identity. From that question, I do see the question posed for each of us who identify ourselves as Christians. Think for a minute what responses you might elicit were you to ask, “Who do people say I am?”
Many of us, were we asked to identify ourselves or to identify someone else might begin with a name. Our naming convention in Western Europe and the Western Hemisphere begins with a given name followed by a surname. We often mistakenly think of Jesus as a given name and Christ as his surname. But the naming convention in 1st century Israel was different from our own. Jesus would have been known in the Greek of the New Testament as Ιησοῦς υἱός Ἰωσὴφ (Jesus son of Joseph). Christ is our English rendition of the Greek Χριστός (Christos), a noun meaning “one who has been anointed.” That Greek word is a translation of the Hebrew word Anglicized as “ משיח (mashiach / mah-shee-ahch - where the " ch " is pronounced hard as in the name Bach” (www.ancient-hebrew.org)
Who is Jesus? Isn’t Jesus more than merely a name or a title? As the ones who identify ourselves as followers of Jesus, as Christians, shouldn’t we be more than merely our names or titles? As I think about that devotional, shouldn’t Christians be identified as more than those whose lives reflect one or all of the Beatitudes? Certainly, those attributes in Matthew chapter 5 are significant and important.
I do not mean to trivialize the Beatitudes, but, as I think about my identity, I am more than my given name, more than my surname, more even than any of those Beatitudes I reflect in how I live my life. I am also a son, a father, a husband and even more. That set of qualities, beliefs, personality traits, appearance, and/or expressions that characterize me is greater than a name or title. I strive for that set to basically identify me as a child of God and as a Christian.
To paraphrase a line familiar to all parents who have taken any kind of trip, “Am I there yet?” No, not entirely. But as a Christian, I know the truth of what we often see on tee shirts, “I’m not perfect, just forgiven.” For that, I continually thank God. I try each and every day to live the truth of that beloved hymn They’ll Know We Are Christians by Our Love. I work to make my love for God and for others the focus of my identity, the guiding principle of my set of qualities, beliefs, personality traits, appearance, and/or expressions that characterize my life.
Stay safe, be known by your love, trust God,
Pastor Ray