Luke Chapter 9: Verses 18-21 (NIV-UK)
Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, ‘Who do the crowds say I am?’
They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, that one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life.’
‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’
Peter answered, ‘God’s Messiah.’
Jesus had just recently fed a multitude of people using five loaves and 2 fish – 5000 men plus women and children, so I’m sure the place had been buzzing with talk about all they had seen and heard. Soon afterwards, Jesus asked His disciples, in private who the crowds thought He was. It seems there were a variety of opinions. But then, as they were in private, Jesus asked, “What about you – What do you think? And Peter responds. It’s easy to get caught up with popular opinion. What do other people think? We might get worried about what other people think of us, and the way we live our lives. But these verses remind us that when it comes to making a decision to follow Jesus, it has to be a very personal decision. Jesus asks us – what about you? It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. At our baptismal service yesterday, we sang a very old chorus that underlines the need for such decisions to be personal ones…
”I have decided to follow Jesus, I have decided to follow Jesus, I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back, no turning back.”
Jesus never pushes us into following Him, or even into obedience, but He does deal with us intimately and with grace and says, never mind what anyone else thinks – what about You?
Dear Lord,
I am grateful that You don’t necessarily expect us to respond in a crowd. You deal with us privately and sensitively, but You do expect us to make a decision about following You and doing Your will. Help me to remember that its You I need to please. I don’t need to worry about anyone else. I ask for Your Holy Spirit’s help to ensure that doing Your will is what I need to focus on. In Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen.