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.” Matthew 16: 15, 16, NKJV.
Dear God, may we always recognize who You are, and give You the glory that is due to Your name. This is our prayer, in the precious name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
One’s identity is very important. When a person knows who he or she is, their behavior will show it. Children leaving home, for the first time, going off to school are often reminded by their parents, who they are, and who they represent. It may seem like a simple thing, even unnecessary, to remind someone of their identity, but too much emphasis cannot be placed on this subject.
Let us take a peek into the life of the Savior when He came to this earth on His mission of salvation. We will observe how He maintained His identity.
As a Child: “When they had finished the days, as they returned, the Boy Jesus lingered behind in Jerusalem. And Joseph and His mother did not know it; . . . So when they saw Him, they were amazed; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us? Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously.” And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” But they did not understand the statement which He spoke to them” (Luke 2: 3, 48-50). They did not know what He was talking about, but He did – because He knew who He was.
As He began His ministry: “Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine. Jesus said to her, ‘ “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come” ‘ ” (John 2: 2-4). Knowing who we are helps us to maintain our focus. Knowing the times and doing everything at the right time was of life and death importance in the work of salvation.
In the Wilderness of Temptation: ” ‘ ” Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘ He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and, ‘ In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ Jesus said to him, ‘ “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the LORD your God’ ” ‘ ” (Matthew 4: 5-7).
Here again, Jesus is faced with the question of who He was. It is not as if the Adversary did not know who Jesus was. He was asking the question to confuse Jesus, in order to raise a doubt in His mind regarding His identity. But even in a state of physical weakness (after forty days and forty nights of fasting), the Savior never lost sight of who He was, or the mission that He had come to accomplish. He simply responded with divine authority, “You shall not tempt the LORD your God.” Although His divinity was clothed with humanity, He was still, the LORD God!
On the Cross. “And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, ‘ “Father, ‘into Your hands I commit My spirit.’ ” ‘ Having said this, He breathed His last” (Luke 23: 46). Even when the sins of the whole world hid His Father’s face, as He breathed His last, the Savior held on to His divine identity, and rested secure, in His Father’s love!
When Jesus asked the disciples who others thought He was, He was not asking the question for His self-assurance. He never lost sight of His identity. It was to strengthen the faith of His disciples in the hour of trial. They needed to know for themselves, and to confess with their mouths, that He was “the Christ, the Son of the living God” – the hope of their salvation – and ours. This was indeed, divine revelation!