who do they say that I am

Who Do You Say That I Am

Posted on by Betsy

A few years ago I had the opportunity to go to an after-hours Halloween event at Walt Disney World. One of the highlights of this event was a fantastic parade. I loved seeing the Haunted Mansion grave diggers doing a color guard style routine with their shovels, scraping them on the street and creating sparks. There was also an axe-wielding bride wearing a lighted up dress on a hoverboard, which made her float. Of course all the characters were there in Halloween garb, and it is very festive and not so scary at all. But just as the parade was to begin, the crowd erupted when a strange looking dog-like character in an electric yellow jumpsuit and cool sunglasses came down the street, dancing like crazy.

I watched for a moment, trying to place him and wondering why everyone was so excited. Finally I turned to the fellow next to me and asked, “Who is that?” He looked at me like I had three heads and yelled, “That’s Max Powerline!” “Oh, of course!” I yelled back, still not recognizing the character. “You never get to see Max Powerline!! This is a rare character sighting!” the fellow continued enthusiastically as he snapped pictures with his phone. It was like the king of England showed up without notice and everyone lost their minds.

I had to go home and Google Max Powerline to discover that Max Goof is Goofy’s son (huh?) and when he is dressed that way, he is in his Powerline persona, a rock star that he emulates in order to impress his crush, Roxanne. So now you know.

My brain instantly went to the Scriptures about Jesus and his struggle to have people recognize who he was. Even to the bitter end, there was confusion among his closest friends about who he was. But for one shining moment, Peter, who many times had max goofed up, gave the correct answer.

Matthew 16 (Common English Bible)

13 Now when Jesus came to the area of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Human One is?”

14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”

15 He said, “And what about you? Who do you say that I am?”

16 Simon Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

17 Then Jesus replied, “Happy are you, Simon son of Jonah, because no human has shown this to you. Rather my Father who is in heaven has shown you. 18 I tell you that you are Peter. And I’ll build my church on this rock. The gates of the underworld won’t be able to stand against it. 19 I’ll give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Anything you fasten on earth will be fastened in heaven. Anything you loosen on earth will be loosened in heaven.” 20 Then he ordered the disciples not to tell anybody that he was the Christ.

“You are the Christ.” Such a profound and accurate statement. Christ means “messiah” and speaks to the saving and redeeming function of Jesus’ persona. So while the world observed Jesus as teacher, rabbi, and even healer, Peter pinpoints Jesus’ as the long awaited messiah who had come to redeem his people. And by “his,” we mean all people.

Who is Jesus to you? Do you think of him as your friend? Do you worship him as your Lord? Is he in the process of redeeming you right now? He is the Christ, the son of the living God, and the greatest power line to the father we will ever know.

Max Powerline and Carol by Mark Poblete

Who Am I

Posted on by Betsy

When I was in college, a funny story circulated around campus during finals one semester. It seems that a professor was monitoring a large class that was taking their final in an auditorium. He could see a young man about half way up the room who was blatantly cheating off the papers of those around him. The professor decided to wait until the student walked his test down to the desk before confronting him.

As the student came forward to place his answer sheet on the stack of the other sheets, the professor held up his hand. “One moment, young man. I can’t accept your test. I watched you copying answers from everyone around you, and I am going to have to give you an F.”

The student hesitated for a moment, his test held against his chest. “Do you know who I AM?” he yelled. The professor was taken aback, and shook his head no. The student then spun around and yelled to the startled students who were still finishing their exams, “DOES ANYONE IN THIS ROOM KNOW WHO I AM??? They all looked around silently, and nobody answered.

With that, the student lifted up half of the exams on the desk, shoved his in the middle of the pile, and walked away.

I always think of that story when I read about the time that Jesus was traveling with his disciples and he asked the same question of them:

Mark 8(The Message)

27 Jesus and his disciples headed out for the villages around Caesarea Philippi. As they walked, he asked, “Who do the people say I am?”

28 “Some say ‘John the Baptizer,’” they said. “Others say ‘Elijah.’ Still others say ‘one of the prophets.’”

29 He then asked, “And you—what are you saying about me? Who am I?”

Peter gave the answer: “You are the Christ, the Messiah.”

You just have to cheer for Peter right here. Peter was beloved by Jesus, but sometimes he missed the mark. He got it right this time, and Jesus was pleased. Indeed, Peter’s correct test answer earns all of them a new teaching that Jesus went on to deliver. They were worthy of the truth, and it was time for them to receive more of it.

30-32 Jesus warned them to keep it quiet, not to breathe a word of it to anyone. He then began explaining things to them: “It is necessary that the Son of Man proceed to an ordeal of suffering, be tried and found guilty by the elders, high priests, and religion scholars, be killed, and after three days rise up alive.” He said this simply and clearly so they couldn’t miss it.

32-33 But Peter grabbed him in protest. Turning and seeing his disciples wavering, wondering what to believe, Jesus confronted Peter. “Peter, get out of my way! Satan, get lost! You have no idea how God works.”

Well, that didn’t last very long, did it? Peter slides from first in the class to almost expelled. His love for Jesus was so great, he had a ‘Jack Nicholson’ moment where truly couldn’t handle the truth. But Jesus knew that it was only the truth that would set them all free.

So he continued his class, and we would do well to lean in and learn from this:

34-37 Calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am. Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to saving yourself, your true self. What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you? What could you ever trade your soul for?

You are not in the driver’s seat. Embrace suffering…Jesus will show you how. Self-help is not the way, but self-sacrifice will gain you everything.

Whatever you do, don’t sell your soul.

38 “If any of you are embarrassed over me and the way I’m leading you when you get around your fickle and unfocused friends, know that you’ll be an even greater embarrassment to the Son of Man when he arrives in all the splendor of God, his Father, with an army of the holy angels.”

Several years ago I taught a Bible study and a 90-year-old retired pastor signed up. On the first day, I expressed my surprise and delight that he was taking a Disciple One class, given his age and experience. He smiled and said, “Oh, I had to come! I am studying for my finals.”

May we all continue to learn and grow, right up until the final exam.

You Are the Christ by Kathy Schumacher

WHO and WHOSE

Posted on by Betsy

My journey into ministry began innocently enough. I was a young mother of two when a good friend talked me into taking a Bible study called DISCIPLE. It was a year-long study that covered about 75% of the Bible. It also had a free nursery and like many young mothers, anything that came with a free nursery was pure GOLD. I immediately signed up. At that point in my life if a course on taxidermy had come with a free nursery, I would be the proud owner of many stuffed things right now.

The video presenter was a beautiful man named Zan Holmes. His resonant voice still echoes in my mind these many years later. I remember sitting spell-bound one day listening him say, “Always remember WHO you are…and WHOSE you are.” That struck a chord with me. It was during that year of intensive study that I discerned my call to ordination. God was directing me to the WHO by reassuring me of the WHOSE. I am a flawed and inconsequential child of God who is also the daughter of the great, high King. So if he decides to send me to seminary, I figured I would be alright.

God indeed went ahead and the rest is my history. The Holy Spirit acts as our on-site supervisor, available 24/7 for everything we are called to do. You can’t learn this from a bible study or a divinity school. You simply have to yield to God’s understanding and remember WHO God is.

Watch what happens to Peter:

Matthew 16 (The Message)

13 When Jesus arrived in the villages of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “What are people saying about who the Son of Man is?”

14 They replied, “Some think he is John the Baptizer, some say Elijah, some Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”

15 He pressed them, “And how about you? Who do you say I am?”

16 Simon Peter said, “You’re the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

17-18 Jesus came back, “God bless you, Simon, son of Jonah! You didn’t get that answer out of books or from teachers. My Father in heaven, God himself, let you in on this secret of who I really am. And now I’m going to tell you who you are, really are. You are Peter, a rock. This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out.

By the power of God’s Spirit, Peter had discerned that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah. He understood that Jesus was the Son of God. The three years of journeying with Jesus revealed WHO God is in a profound way to Peter. Then Jesus helped Peter understand WHOSE Peter was. He was a sinful man raised up to be the rock upon which the church would be built. In typical Messiah-transformation fashion, Peter the worst became Peter the first.

Imagine what he can do with YOUR life.

19 “And that’s not all. You will have complete and free access to God’s kingdom, keys to open any and every door: no more barriers between heaven and earth, earth and heaven. A yes on earth is yes in heaven. A no on earth is no in heaven.”

Where is God saying yes to you? And where is the no? We are all called to some form of ministry in the kingdom of God. Some will be bishops and some will be NICU nurses. Some will be dads and some will be Sunday School teachers. Who are you?

When we remember who we are, and more importantly whose we are, the kingdom is open wide to us. There are no barriers to God. There are no obstacles except our own disobedience and reluctance.

YOU are a child of God. Who do you say that he is?

Remembering Whose by Michelle Robertson

Is He Real?

Posted on by Betsy

My four-and-a-half year old grandson had the opportunity to see Star Wars Storm Troopers marching down the street at Disney World last month. He is still processing the experience. He has a Storm Trooper play figure at home, and a book that has pictures of them. We watched a Star Wars LEGO movie which of course has Storm Troopers. What is real? What is plastic? What is true? What is story?

As we discussed the marching Storm Troopers, he knew that they were real people wearing white plastic costumes. But knowing that only added to his confusion…if they were real people, were they REAL STORM TROOPERS? Like, after work, did they get into their troop transport to be delivered one by one back home to their Storm Trooper spouse and kids?

As we negotiated this conversation, I thought back to a time when the same was asked about Jesus. He was just as confusing to the people around him. It was obvious that he was a real person, but was he just wearing a God-costume?

Matthew 16

13 When Jesus arrived in the villages of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “What are people saying about who the Son of Man is?”

14 They replied, “Some think he is John the Baptizer, some say Elijah, some Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”

15 He pressed them, “And how about you? Who do you say I am?”

16 Simon Peter said, “You’re the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

17-18 Jesus came back, “God bless you, Simon, son of Jonah! You didn’t get that answer out of books or from teachers. My Father in heaven, God himself, let you in on this secret of who I really am. And now I’m going to tell you who you are, really are. You are Peter, a rock. This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out.

One of the amazing things about scripture is that no matter how familiar you are with a passage, each reading brings new insight. Did you notice this:

My father in heaven, God himself, let you in on this secret of who I really am. And now I’m going to tell you who you are, really are.

The more we know Jesus, the more we know ourselves. The better we understand who he is, the better we understand who we are. This is such a lovely thing. God-awareness becomes self-awareness.

When I pray in church I often use the phrase “who we are, and whose we are.” I like to remind us all of that dynamic. We are children of God, made in his image, striving every day to be more like Jesus. That is who we are.

But WHOSE we are? We belong to God, who is the great high king. God, the one who formed the earth, has claimed us as his own. He is our steadfast provider, our hope, and our redeemer. And he chose to be in relationship with us. Imagine that!

Who are you today? A striving follower of the way, or a defeated and tired foot-dragger? Are you a loyal son or daughter, or are you wondering if this whole God-thing is just a bunch of plastic story-telling?

The ones who were closest to Jesus struggled with that question. But when the resurrection happened, the truth was made clear. So let us strive to be people of the resurrection story. God is real, and he came in the form of a storm-trooping Messiah to save the world from evil and sin. THAT is how this story plays out.

Today we thank God for who his is, and for whose we are.

Real or Not?