Sunday August 24, 2008: Isaiah 22:19-23; Romans 11:33-36; Matthew 16:13-20

I have never been a Muslim and have no intentions of becoming one. However, I love studying Islam. Having grown up in a small town with a sizeable amount of Muslims, I came to know about the religion and some of their rituals. When I went off to college, I took classes in Islam and enjoyed every bit of them. I became very much interested in Islam and its relationship with Christianity. One of my major graduate papers was on Muslim – Christian relations. After graduate school, I have continued to research on Islam. I consider myself to be very knowledgeable about Islam and Mohammed, yet I have no personal knowledge of Islam or Mohammed. My knowledge of Islam and Mohammed is what I have read in the books and have learnt from Muslim friends and neighbors. I cannot make any faith claims based on this kind of knowledge.


The first question posed by Jesus Christ to his Apostles needed a response from the head. They needed to tell Jesus Christ what is out there about him. What they have learnt from people about him. The response to the first question is very easy. I can give that kind of response about Islam. The second question, “Who do you say that I am?” is the more challenging question and this is personal. It requires a deep faith. In the context of Islam, I cannot answer such a question. It is a question that moves us from the head to the heart. Christianity is not knowing about Jesus Christ, but, it is, knowing Jesus Christ personally. It is a heart to heart relationship with Jesus Christ. This knowledge of Jesus is life-changing. It changes not only our faith lives but it also changes our whole worldview. You no longer look at Jesus Christ as a nice guy, a good man, a humble person, even though he has these virtues, but you will look at him as truly what he is to you, a personal savior. There is a movement from the general to the particular. He is no longer a healer, but my healer; no longer a redeemer, but my redeemer; he is no longer the great provider, but my great provider. He becomes 100% personal and this influences how you look at the whole of your reality.


This personal knowledge of Jesus leads us to our personal freedom. You will find out how comfortable and relax you are in his presence. You would begin to see yourself no longer as a slave but a rightful son or daughter of God, fully adopted and with full rights and privileges and you dine with him not as a servant but as a co-heir. This enables you to freely share with him all your joys and sorrows, your happiness and pains, your successes and failures and you can freely ask him to help you with your challenges. You will find out that you are always in the “moment” with him and you can proceed into the future without any fears because you are confident that he will care for you.


Knowing Jesus Christ personally helps us to live out fully God’s will for our lives. The bible, the rituals of the church and the teachings of the church can only give us tools to know Jesus Christ. They do not replace our relationship with Jesus Christ. You need to know Jesus personally in order for you to know what he wants you to do. That is the only way you can be a good Christian. You need to discern God’s will for you daily. It will be a mistake to think that you know all that God wants you to do. You need a personal relationship with him to be able to discern his mission for you.


The gospel this week challenges us to go and build a relationship with Jesus Christ. We know Jesus by reading our bible; we know Jesus by being with his family every Sunday; we know Jesus by praying. Let us use all these tools he has given to us to establish a solid relationship with him. If you have never asked yourself before, spend some time this week and ask yourself, “Who is Jesus Christ to me?” Continue to ask him until he answers you. You will be surprised what you will hear and how that will change your life.