Jesus Is the Messiah
Open Your Bible
Matthew 15:1-39, Matthew 16:1-28, Isaiah 28:16, Romans 10:9-11
BY Bailey T. Hurley
In my twenty years of following Jesus, there have been plenty of seasons of routine spiritual rhythms without genuine worship. When I read, “This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me” (Matthew 15:8), I feel convicted by the lack of intimacy I can cycle through with Jesus. If Jesus were to ask me who I think He is, I wonder if my response would be more of a textbook answer or a description that comes from the depth of knowing someone so well that you are readily able to describe who they are.
When Jesus asks the disciples, “who do people say that the Son of Man is?” (Matthew 16:13), I imagine all the men making designs in the dirt with their sandals, looking down and mumbling some answers about what they’ve heard people shout in the streets or whisper in the synagogues. The disciples followed Jesus from town to town and watched Him perform miracle after miracle. And even though they saw things with their eyes, their hearts still had room to grow in knowing who He really was.
But when Jesus asked again, Simon Peter replied, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (v.16), and Jesus praised Simon! For it wasn’t just seeing the outward things but God revealing in Simon’s heart who Jesus truly was.
How do you really know someone? You spend time with them! You watch them! And then you open your heart to see them as they truly are. How intimately connected to the Father I long to be to see the person of Jesus for who he really is—the Messiah, the Savior. How do I often let myself get distracted by the details of faith and the busyness of life that I miss the true person of Jesus?
In this dry season, one of the newer members of our small group shared: “I used to laugh at Christians; I thought they were stupid for believing in something like Jesus. God is absolutely amazing to take someone like me and turn my life completely around—someone who hated Jesus and now worships Him with my whole life.”
His frank and earnest story moved me. Afterward, while getting ready for bed, I thought: “What an amazing God I have. I don’t doubt He can call people from darkness into light, but, wow, nothing can stop Him. Jesus is the Son of the living God.” This isn’t the first time God has used someone’s testimony of faith to remind me of the passion I had when I first came to believe in Jesus. This person’s faith story was a gift to my faith and a tool to draw me back to the person of Jesus. May Simon Peter’s declaration of who Jesus is also draw us towards Jesus, our Messiah. For “everyone who believes on him will not be put to shame” (Romans 10:11).
41 thoughts on "Jesus Is the Messiah"
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❣️❣️my heart is full after reading today’s scriptures and the devo. Thank you Jesus for flipping the script when you were born and dies for us. True freedom from The Law!
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@RHONDA J: amen dear sister. I miss you too. I have been trying to read a long the Warrior boots book. Thank you for such truth and boldness you are so faithful to share.
@KELLY (NEO): thank you so much for checking on my eye, it is healing 80%, sometimes it rubs in the morning but no more excruciating pain and emergency optometrist visits anymore. Praise the Lord. Thank you dear she’s for your prayers that worked wonders!
@SEARCHING, JULIA C: ❤️ bless you dear hearts!
@ALLISON BENTLEY: such wise advice. Thank you.
@TAYLOR: anxiety be gone in Jesus’ Name. Hope you will feel better.
@SARAH D: thinking of you, and the difficult boy in your classroom, may the Lord give wisdom and transform the atmosphere.
@MIA FAITH: prayers for your family and the search team. You are always on the back of my mind. May the Lord sustain you and your loved ones.
@DANIELLE B: recovering from your car accident and help to deal with the aftermath, insurance work, etc. May God heal you from any trauma this might cause.Be blessed dear sisters.
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“Five loaves for the five thousands”, “Seven loaves for the four thousand” (Matthew 16:-10). God does math His way. It does not make sense, the math won’t add up, but it is sufficient. YET, is it too hard to believe? I loved math, like a lot a lot in school. It’s a subject that gives me such confidence because it is either right or wrong, not in between. BUT GOD. Look at this. Just incredible. What we know is not what it seems.
Who is the Lord to me? If he comes in a form of a stranger on the street, and asks me, who is Jesus to you? He is a very tough person to me. He doesn’t hold my hands when I cry, indeed He stays silent, but His Word says He loves me and can calm the storm, external and internal. And in those words, the words of life, I come back to again and again when storm rises, to reassure, to praise, to strengthen what’s left, and to thank Him. Sometimes it feels like a one-way relationship, Lord are you there? Knock knock. I know You are, my monologue, then silence, I wait for my God. And at other times, it’s Him who knocks and I remain silent and numb. He talks to me like a friend when I am driving, when I sing a song and I cannot make a note, I heard him laugh. But He is a tough leader that will not indulge me in my weaknesses and push me forth into boldness, courage, new strength, and new risks (faith is risk to me). Saying yes to him has cost me my life, but so I can find a life back again, it’s a different life that I wake up to, different surroundings, different scenes, people, the old has gone. I find myself grieving what was changed/lost, the Sword creates a division, and not peace (Luke 12:51). Then I realized my identity was placed in my surroundings. One thing I know for sure, that God remains a constant, the rest will be variables. The Messiah. The Christ. The Saviour. The One who was, who is, and is to come. He is Love, from the beginning till infinity, the Alpha and the Omega. The Great I Am. And my best friend (this humble me who has a friend in HIM). Glory be to Him forever and ever. Amen. -
Hello sisters!
Gwineth Amen
Cheryl Amen
Carla ❤️
Kris ❤️Peter recognized who Jesus was and he was willing to die on a cross for his redeemer. When the time came he felt unworthy to have the cross the same and had them put it upside down. Peter’s love and belief in His savior, he gave his all.
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Kris. Loved your words: “These 12 guys failed miserably often.” and “So, when I don’t get it, when I don’t understand, when my faith is weak, when I fail… I know Jesus has compassion on me just like He did this motley crew.”
Claire B. Me too.
Tara B. As I think about my adult children, I too should ask myself: How do my children see Jesus in and through me so that they want to draw near to You again? The point being that my focus needs to be on You calling them back, not my herding them the path and timing I want them to take. -
Good morning and Happy Tuesday sweet She’s! Day 2 of my Spring Break! SPY KIDS!! Yep! I said it! SPY KIDS! Who remembers their children just loving these movies? I do! MY kids were SO into them! IF, you haven’t heard the SRT podcast, you must as the guest speaker Alexa PenaVega who was Carmen in Spy Kids! I loved her story of coming to Christ!! Its a must listen!
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Clara Whitesell…there is FREEDOM in what you said today! Please know your SRT sisters here are and WILL be praying for you, sweet girl! YOU are in the right place here. Stay connected! And what better time then the LENTEN devotional season here.
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“Defilement is from within “ Matthew 15:10-20 these verses give me so much comfort. How do we change our heart posture? A couple of years ago I cut out secular music and it has made a difference in my all around outlook on life. Of course I am “putting something in” BUT I am also changing what comes out! I encourage you ladies today to look at what you are filling your heart with? Facebook envy over someone else’s accomplishments? Pornography lusting after the flesh? Simple music of the world glorifying self? Just try to make one small change and you will see the difference I promise! God is faithful and He will change our hearts!!!
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