Who Do You Say Jesus Is? Part One

Who Do You Say Jesus Is: Those Who Watched From Afar

The Question

Who do you say Jesus is? The answer to this question can radically alter the course of your life. Jesus claimed to be the Son of God, and He said He is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). The four Gospels tell us Jesus not only had compassion on the multitudes and individuals, but He also spoke the truth in love. John 1:14 says He was “full of grace and truth.” He was patient with sinners and at the same time angry with unrighteous religious leaders who were leading their people astray. He loved those who were His own in this world to the very end (John 13:1), even though they deserted Him in His most desperate hour.

He knew the purpose for which He had come into the world (John 18:37), and He was obedient to His calling from the Father to the point of death on a cross. Why did He do this? Simply because He loved us. He lived a perfect, sinless life and offered it up willingly so we could be restored in our relationship with Him. Our sin demanded payment to satisfy the holiness of God, and Jesus was the only One Who could satisfy that payment, once and for all.

We know all this to be true because we have evidence in the Word of God from several eyewitnesses to these events. Walk with me for a few weeks as we look back at Jesus’ life through the eyes of various people who lived the same time as Him and see what they thought of Him. First, let us look at those who watched Him from a distance – the Jewish multitudes and the religious leaders. Who did they say Jesus was? What did they believe about Him?

The Stories

The Jewish multitudes in Jesus’ day were desperate for the Messiah the Old Testament had prophesied about. Prior to Jesus’ arrival on the scene, there were 400 years of silence from God – no new words of prophecy, hope, or encouragement. In addition, when Jesus started His earthly ministry, the Jews were under heavy Roman oppression, and their government and religious leaders were corrupt. Was Jesus the Messiah they had waited so long for? Was He the One Who would release them from this oppression and give them the hope and freedom they were desperate for?

Over the course of His three-year ministry, Jesus did many miracles among the people. John said, “If every one of them were written down, I suppose that the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written” (John 21:25). Jesus fed large multitudes of people with very little food. He opened the eyes of the blind, cast out demons, and healed the lame, the sick, and the lepers. He also walked on water and calmed the wind and waves. When his good friend Lazarus died shortly before Palm Sunday, Jesus raised him from the dead. There were many who followed Him out of curiosity at first. When His teachings became difficult to understand, they walked away from Him (John 6:60-66). Still, others said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more miraculous signs than this man” (John 7:31)?

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, many people had traveled there to celebrate the annual Passover Feast. They wanted to know more about Him. They had their hopes up, and they thought He could be the One. As He rode into town on a donkey, they threw their cloaks at His feet to pledge their submission. They also waved palm branches at Him to symbolize the triumph of the Messiah King. Lastly, they shouted out “Hosanna”, which means, “Lord, save us now”. However, they soon realized He had not come to save them as a political King in the way they thought. By the end of the week, they turned their backs on Him, and they shouted, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him” (Luke 23:21)! Most of the multitudes did not believe Jesus was Who He said He was before the crucifixion.

On the other hand, the religious leaders, especially the Pharisees, were the ones who should have recognized Jesus the most. They had memorized the entire Old Testament. It was their job to look for the fulfillment of the prophecies regarding the coming Messiah. However, they were blind to the truth. Over time they had grown more in love with the Law than the Lawgiver.

For example, when Jesus performed miracles on the Sabbath, including the healing of the lame man by the pool of Bethesda and the healing of the man born blind, this infuriated the religious leaders. They cared more about the letter of the Law than the spirit of the Law. They were harsh to the people they were supposed to be shepherding and added many man-made laws to God’s Law, and they required the people to follow them closely or be kicked out of the temple. Lastly, they had strong political ties to the Roman government and did not want anything to mess that relationship up, such as Jesus declaring Himself to be a King.

Jesus never went easy on them either. He called them “white-washed tombs” and hypocrites who were greedy, self-indulgent, and wicked (Matthew 23:25-28). He also told them they were like their father, the devil, who was a liar and a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44). The final straw for them was when He declared Himself to be equal with God. They began to plot His arrest and execution (John 5:18). Jesus told them unless they believed in Him, they would die in their sins (John 8:24). Unfortunately, in the end, the religious leaders were the ones who incited the Jewish multitudes to turn on Jesus. They demanded He be crucified when they should have been the ones leading the people to Jesus. Except for a couple of private followers, the religious leaders did not believe Jesus was Who He said He was.

The Response

What about you? Are you on the fringe trying to figure out Who this Jesus is? Jesus taught in various ways to the multitudes and the religious leaders over the course of His three-year ministry. Many of them chose to reject Him because they did not understand His purpose.

God had chosen the nation of Israel thousands of years before to be a light to the Gentile nations. He had promised He would send salvation to all nations through the Israelites. That includes us! Jesus was the ultimate fulfillment of that prophecy. Because many of the Jews failed to believe, salvation came to anyone who would choose to believe. Jesus is inviting you to come and see Who He is, just like He said to His disciples when He first called them (John 1:39). Will you say yes to Him?