Who does the world say Jesus is?  Who do you say Jesus is?

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Jesus asked that question of the disciples in today’s verse, Matthew 16:13. The answer today is similar to the answer in Jesus’ time. The world thinks of Jesus as a good man, a great moral teacher, a healer, a prophet, a social reformer. Other religions think of him similarly. Islam knows Jesus as Isa al-Masih (Jesus the Messiah), an important prophet but not divine. Judaism recognizes Jesus as a historical teacher or rabbi from the first century but does not believe he was the Messiah or divine. Hinduism sees Jesus only as a wise spiritual teacher.

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Wikipedia says Jesus was “a first-century Jewish teacher and religious leader,” though it recognizes that Christians view him as the Son of God and the Messiah.

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Google AI recognizes that people view Jesus in “many different ways depending on their religious faith, culture, or historical perspective. He is seen as the divine Son of God and Savior in Christianity, a major prophetic figure in Islam, a wise moral teacher in secular or multi-faith views, or an influential historical rabbi.”

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But I like the way a famous Irish philosopher put it. You may know him for his famous songs –  
“With or Without You” and “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.” Bono is the lead singer for the Irish band U2, and he is a devout Christian. When asked about his faith years ago, he told the interviewer that Jesus can be one of two things – who he said he was, or a lunatic.

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Bono’s take is a variation of a three-fold answer proposed by C.S Lewis. Lewis said that Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or Lord. He recognized that Jesus could have been a liar and made everything up (that seems implausible since few liars would suffer like Jesus did for the sake of the lie). Or, he could have been a lunatic and actually believed he spoke the truth (also unlikely, as most lunatics don’t model things like Jesus). Or, he was who he said he is. Like Lewis, Bono, and hopefully you, that’s what I believe.

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So did Peter. When Jesus asked this question in Matthew 16, he had already been in the business of performing miracles and talking parables. He had already fed the 5,000 with a few fish and loaves of bread. He had already answered the Pharisees about signs. Then, he and the disciples traveled to Caesarea Phillipi, a region known for worshipping many gods. He asked the disciples who people said he was. He referred to himself as the “Son of Man,” a phrase he used 81 times in the Gospels, a phrase never used by anyone else. Peter, a man of so many highs and lows, so very human, replied, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Who do you say Jesus is?

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The world can believe that he is a great man, a prophet, a teacher, and the world can go on living without having to change.

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But when someone professes that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God, there’s a cost.  For Christians in America, the cost is much easier than the cost Peter and most of the disciples had to bear. They paid for their beliefs with their lives.

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Maybe it's not a physical or financial cost. Sometimes, the cost may just be obedience. Yet, even in Jesus' time, people called him Lord but did not obey. Jesus even asked them in Luke 6:46, "Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?"

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How about you? If you call him, “Lord,” do you live as though he is “Lord?” Do you follow him to the point of discomfort? Discomfort with your finances, your life choices, your priorities, your time, your sleep, your energy….?

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Who do you say Jesus is?