The Question We Have to Answer

It was humanly impossible for anyone to perfectly fulfill every single prophecy about the Messiah. Good thing Jesus isn't just anyone, or just human.

What in the Word: Mark 8:27-29

Hang-Onto-It Verse: " 'But what about you? Who do you say I am?' " (Mark 8:29 NIV)

The Backstory:
Jesus was a master teacher. Actually, He was a master everything. That's why His followers called Him "Master"! One of His genius teaching tools was to pose questions that led people to truth. One day, He asked His disciples, "Who do people say I am?" (Mark 8:27). They answered, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets" (Mark 8:28). Then Jesus asked The Big Question: "But what about you? Who do you say I am?" Gulp. This is not just a question for a teachable moment in an ancient village. This is a question I need to be able to answer today. This is a question you need to be able to answer today. Because if we do not know who Jesus is, our faith in Him will be on very shaky ground. Personally, my faith gets a big boost from studying some of the thousands of prophecies written about Christ hundreds of years before He came to earth and seeing how He fulfilled every single one, to the letter. Look up 2 Corinthians 1:20 and fill in the blanks: "No matter how many promises God has made, they are ______ in _____________." Love it! Let's look at some of the "yes's" of God in Jesus.

The Main Event:
You know those vocabulary matching quizzes you sometimes have to do in school? This is SO not one of those. Just look up the Bible verses in the numbered list below. Read the reference, then figure out which verse in the lettered list shows Jesus living out that prophecy. Write that letter next to the prophecy it matches. I've done one for you as a freebie. This is like putting together a puzzle: in the end, every single piece fits together perfectly to create one amazing picture. Ready? (Yes, you are!) Go!

1. Zechariah 9:9 ____ 

2. Isaiah 53:7 ____

3. Isaiah 7:14 ____

4. Psalm 69:21 _ D _

5. Psalm 22:18 ____        

A. "Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.' And they divided up His clothes by casting lots." (Luke 23:34)

B. "The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them." (Matthew 21:6,7)

C. "Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, 'Are you not going to answer?'...But Jesus remained silent. The high priest said to Him, 'I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.' " (Matthew 26:62-63)

D. "A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plan, and lifted it to Jesus' lips." (John 19:29)

E. "This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit." (Matthew 1:18)                                    


The Take-Away and The Truth in Action:
So, here's that question again: what about you? who do you say Jesus is? 

This is where I've got to show some tough love. I didn't put this one on the Answer Key because only you can answer this question for yourself. And while we're on the subject of your answer, I need to tell you a couple tough truths. Please stay with me and then I promise I'll leave you some treats at the end! 

1) You should not be satisfied answering "I don't know" to this question. And this is not the time for your parents' or your Sunday School teacher's answer. This has to be your response from your mind and soul. Also, deciding not to answer IS answering. If you say Jesus really isn't anyone to you, then He is nothing to you. If you say you can take or leave Jesus, you're leaving Him. I know this sounds harsh. But I really, really want God's best for you, and I've walked with Him long enough to know that His best only happens when you know the truth about who Jesus is and own it for yourself. If you're at a place in your life where you don't care about Christ or think He's nothing in your life, I encourage you to call, text, email, or message the wisest, most mature, most encouraging Christian woman you can find, and tell her where you're at. If she's the right spiritual mentor for you, she won't be shocked, horrified, or put off by your raw honesty. Instead, she'll guide you along and pray with and for you. Then, she'll rejoice when you get to the point of knowing your answer to The Big Question. Which leads me to my second tough point (please, please don't quit on me yet!)...

2) We do not get to decide who Jesus is. He is who He is. Period. Who we think He is does not change of the truth of who He actually is. Someone may say, "I think Jesus was just a kind person and a good teacher." They can certainly think and believe that, but it does not make it true. Only careful study of the Bible, conversations with God in prayer, and the wind of the Holy Spirit blowing through your soul and mind can lead you to truly know and believe Jesus. When the One and Only asks us, "What about you? Who do you say I am?" He is not asking who we think He might be. He is asking if we know and believe the truth about who He is and if we can give an answer to anyone who asks that question. Again, our job is to discover the truth about The Truth and then own it for ourselves. Only then, will we know what--and Who--we know.

Phew! Thanks for sticking with me this far! Here's a lemony treat plus a couple favorite new quotes to reward you for all your hard work. I'd love to read your personal answer to The Big Question, so if you're willing, share it below. And if at this point, you're wondering, "Okay, fine, now who does Jesus say I am?" stay tuned. That's a sweet subject for another day...

Showdown on the Mountain

Facing a battle? Feeling outnumbered by the enemy? Check out this fascinating example of God's power on full display.

What in the Word: 1 Kings 18:16-39

Hang-Onto-It Verse: 1 Kings 18:39 ~ " '…The LORD—He is God! The LORD—He is God!' "

The Back Story

Look up Exodus 20:3. What is commandment #1? There’s a reason the first thing God said when He dictated His “Top 10 Rules for Living” was “don’t have gods other than Me.” He knows that if we don’t make Him our first and only, the other rules won’t matter much. If God is not #1 in our lives, why should we care about how we use His name or whether we set aside a day to worship Him? And if we divide our affection for God, who is perfect, are we really going to care about how we treat other people (the focus of commandments #5-#10), who are, well, not? So God lays the groundwork for our relationship with Him and with others by telling us not to have other gods or idols. WHICH is exactly what God’s people were doing at the time Elijah was on the scene. (The Bible calls the people who were supposed to be following God Israelites or the nation of Israel or Jews or the “chosen people.”) This was not, by the way, front-page news, because since Creation, God’s special people had been breaking commandment #1. It always made a mess of things, but they kept doing it anyway. At this point in history, God’s people were worshiping a false god called Baal, who was sort of the "head god" in a whole collection of invented gods. Baal was not a real person. He was not a thing. He was just a made-up idea the people called their god. This had gone on for a while before The Great I AM, in His perfect timing, decided to settle the issue—God or Baal?—once and for all.

The Main Event

Read 1 King 18:16-26. (Yes, it’s a chunk, but you’ll like it…this isn't geometry, after all). The main participants in this battle were God, Baal, the prophets of Baal, the prophets of Asherah, and Elijah. How many prophets of Baal were ready to duel? How many Elijahs were there? Take a minute to think about if you've ever experienced a time when you felt like it was hundreds of the enemy against one of you.

Read 1 Kings 18:27-29.* What was Elijah basically doing at this point in the duel?
(*For fun, check out this link to some amusing alternatives to the word translated as "busy" by the NIV. I know this is a Bible study for girls, but if you've got a brother or dad around, they’ll probably think this little tidbit is hilarious.)

Read 1 Kings 18:30-35. Why do you think Elijah wanted the offering and the wood for the sacrifice drenched with water before the fire was lit?

Read 1 Kings 18:36-39. What request did Elijah make of God? How did God answer him? What was the people’s reaction to God’s answer?

The Takeaway 
Here’s the best news: the exact same power—not some watered-down version, but the same full-on power—that God showed in a BIG way that day on the mountain is available to you right now for whatever showdown you are facing. Whether your fight is against school or bullies or depression or a messed-up family or sin or unbelief or lies or uncertainty about what to do with your life or mistakes you've made or physical challenges or poverty or being left out or feeling unloved, the power God used to put the prophets of Baal in their place can put your foes in their place.  

But how does this power work in real life? You have to ask for it! You have to dig into your mind and heart and find a seed of faith at least as big as a mustard seed and believe that God is Who He says He is and that He can do what He says He can do. Then ask for His power to give you victory on your mountain! Say, “God, I am choosing to believe in You. Help me to believe more tomorrow than I do today. Help me to believe that You’re real and loving and powerful and caring even when I can’t see what You’re doing. Please give me Your power to take on _______. Please help me to win this fight through Your strength.” Then keep on asking every day, all day long. And when you see God say “yes” in whatever ways He does (according to what He knows is best for you), you’ll be like the people on the mountain that day: on your face in awe, yelling, “The LORD—He is God! The LORD—He is God!.”

The Truth in Action (or: “Great. What do I do now?)

Think of a specific showdown you’re facing in your life right now. Give some thought to what it would look like if God gave you victory in that battle. How would you feel differently? Act differently? What would be different about your daily life? Finish this sentence: “If God helped me win this showdown, I would ____________________."

Now, what do you need to do to cooperate with God in this thing?  Maybe you need to end a relationship. Maybe you need to forgive someone. Maybe you need to ask someone to forgive you. Maybe you need to BE QUIET around a certain someone. Maybe you need to ask for help to deal with something that’s bigger than you are. Start talking to God about it. Ask Him to show you what’s true.  Ask Him over and over—not because He’s stingy but because He likes to hear from you—to show Who He is in this battle. Ask Him to lay your enemies low—whether your enemy is someone else, something else, or your own self. Keep saying the hang-onto-it -verse in your mind, speaking it out loud, or writing it in a journal or on a white board in your room or on the back of your hand or in a notebook during a boring movie in English until God does something you can see or feel. And when He does, say it again: “The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!”

"How sweet are Your words to my taste! Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth."
(Psalm 119:103, NAS)