Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” - Matthew 16:16
At the age of twelve Jesus clearly stated that he knew his identity as the Son of God (Luke 2:49), yet he went back to Nazareth and subjected himself to Mary’s and Joseph’s authority and waited another eighteen years to begin his ministry.
How did Jesus know his identity? That Jesus was both fully God and fully man is a tenet of our Christian faith. Only God could effect the redemption of the human race.
Being perfect God yet perfect man does not mean that Jesus was born a superbaby! He was a human baby with a human nature, yet perfect God with God’s nature. The mystery of Jesus’ divine and human nature is impossible for finite minds to grasp—it must be accepted by faith.
We may not be able to understand it all, but we can accept the truth by faith. The Bible is a reliable record of truth, and God intends us to trust the information we read there. Jesus Christ was a historical figure. He was not merely a good man who came to an untimely end or a deluded person with grandiose ideas about himself. Jesus was God, and he was also human. Peter had that “big moment” when he said to Jesus, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). When you believe that, it will be a big moment for you because it will change your life! Thank Jesus Christ for becoming human so that he could bring you to God.
For Further Study: Matthew 16:13-19
Excerpted from The One Year Devotions for Women, Copyright ©2000 by Jill Briscoe. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.
For more from Jill Briscoe, please visit TellingtheTruth.org.
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