Who Do You Say Jesus Is?

On June 9, 2014 by Bobby Blakey

Jesus Christ.

Who do you think of when you read his name?

This thought is the most important thing about you.

blakey fam HB pierLast week my family and I moved to Huntington Beach. One night we went out to dinner. I guess you could say we went “shooby-dooby” down to Ruby’s. (Our new location here in Huntington Beach at the end of the pier surrounded by ocean is a little bit nicer than the Laguna Hills mall surrounded by empty parking lot!) As we walked down the pier my children heard the name of Jesus mentioned out loud two times. One was an angry man who was cursing. Another was a friendly man and his wife who were handing out coffee as they evangelized. Both men used the same name. But they were saying two completely opposite thoughts about Jesus.

What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”

This line is often quoted from A.W. Tozer in his excellent book about God, Knowledge of the Holy. But in John 14:6, Jesus says he is the way, the truth and the life. No one gets to the Father except through him.

So, we could say: What comes into our minds when we think about Jesus is the most important thing about us.

This gets us back to our original question:

Who do you say Jesus is?

Jesus asked this question to his disciples. You can read about it in Matthew 16:13-18, Mark 8:27-30, and Luke 9:18-20. He started by asking what other people were saying about him.  In the time of the New Testament just like today, there were many people who had different opinions about Jesus. But then Jesus asked the disciples what they thought and we read the right answer:

“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

If you cannot say Jesus is God, then you have the wrong view of Jesus.

And if you have the wrong view of Jesus you will not get to the Father in heaven.

The sad reality is most Americans today seem to have settled for a Jesus who is less than who the Bible says he is. He is a “good teacher. He is a “prophet.” He is a god, but not the God. He is a man who became God. Or some will even say he is God, but deny it by the way they live their lives like they can do whatever they want and he has no authority over them.

Walk down any street in America and you will hear a wrong view of Jesus.

And here’s what breaks my heart the most:

Those of us who can say who Jesus is, don’t say who Jesus is.

We might preach Jesus at church. We might praise Jesus with those who agree with us he is God. We might pray in the name of Jesus in private. We might discuss Jesus in a small group of people who are already Christians.

But when was the last time we told someone they were wrong about Jesus? What have we done to confront those who teach a false Jesus or to correct those who are being misled by this damning misinformation?

All of us who are Christians should say who Jesus is publicly.

We should carry his name across this land like a flag before us for all to see. He is the banner over us. We are his people. He is our God.

I am concerned so many people around me don’t know who Jesus is.

And I am convicted I have not done enough to tell them.

So, I am committed to doing two things about it:

#1. I am going to write about Jesus here on this blog. Please come back and check for more posts where I will confront a false view of Jesus with the truth of who he is.

#2. We are going to plant a church where the gospel of Jesus will ring out here in Huntington Beach and into the surrounding cities of north Orange County. This summer we hope to go to the pier and to where people shop and even to their homes, carrying his name to as many people as we can. We will also keep you updated on what God does through Compass HB here on this blog.

So, who do you SAY Jesus is?  

A little bit louder now.

Someone is walking by who needs to hear you.

9 Responses to “Who Do You Say Jesus Is?”

  • Andrea Quist

    Great blog post Pastor Bobby! I am stoked to continue to read through them this year! Thankful for the bible that makes crystal clear who Jesus is & we are not forced to guess or infer who he is or who we would like him to be!

  • Nonie Stoecklein

    Dear Pastor Bobby,
    Great blog, with great truth!! I am convicted, that I don’t tell more people who Jesus is, and I am praying that, when God to brings people to me, I will be bold! I am so thankful for you and the team going to Huntington Beach, to preach the Truth of the Gospel!

  • Isaac Garrido

    YES! Knowing who Jesus Christ is is a key component to the right understanding of the gospel! If only more Christians will tell the name of Jesus on their roof tops. I’m resolved to tell people who Jesus is, and not some wishy washy view of him as some may have!

  • Olivia Martin

    This is amazing! So excited to see how the Gospel will be spread in HB!

  • Tom Ward

    We see at invocations such as government functions, sports functions and other secular events that so-called Christian ministers do not invoke the name of Jesus in their prayers. In our world today the vitriol towards Jesus and His true followers (Christians not Christian-Lites) continues to increase daily. Too many not only are ashamed of the gospel but apparently also God the Son – do they forget that Jesus is the only way to the Father? Jesus made it very clear what His followers could expect from the world – First -“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake”, and Second – “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you”.

  • Jenni Cuccia

    Thank you Pastor Bobby!! So convicting and so encouraging! Praying for Evangelism. Every. Day. Acts 4:12!!!!!

  • Beth Lauder

    This blog post spurs me on to tell more people who Jesus is! I am so excited to be a part of the evangelism explosion at Compass HB. The paragraph that stood out to me the most was…
    “The sad reality is most Americans today seem to have settled for a Jesus who is less than who the Bible says he is. He is a “good teacher. He is a “prophet.” He is a god, but not the God. He is a man who became God. Or some will even say he is God, but deny it by the way they live their lives like they can do whatever they want and he has no authority over them.” I am spurred on to lovingly and gently confront people who have the wrong view of Jesus and point them toward the Biblical truth of who He is! This morning I am praying that Christians at Compass HB and Compass AV and across our nation would be committed to speaking the truth in love to the lost and that we would get down on our knees and beg God to save people! He is able and I want to be a useful tool in His hands to evangelize those who need to be saved.

  • Excellent presentation. I know I am quilts of no responding when people abuse the name of Jesus. I know for so many it is out of ignorance of who He is. Even though I have the answer I all too often remain silent.

  • New in the area and I just heard about your church, looking forward to meeting you. I have the belief and knowledge who Christ is, I am also wanting to learn more about the word. Look forward to more posts on your blog.

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