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Scripture introduces Jesus of Nazareth as a real man in real history who is also the eternal Word through whom everything was made. He is the promised Christ of Israel, the , under Pontius Pilate, raised on the third day, and now confessed as Lord. The Bible never presents him only as a teacher, and it never lets him remain a private opinion. It records him asking his own followers the question and waiting for their answer.
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God's answer first
Three passages, read before any explanation. One tells you where he came from, one tells you what he became, one records the answer his own disciples gave.
The passage that answers this
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John does not begin the life of Jesus at Bethlehem. He begins before creation, and he says three things in one sentence: the Word already was, , the Word was God. Everything else the Gospel says about Jesus is said about this person.
Read these with it
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Became flesh, and lived among us. The same person who was in the beginning is the one they ate with. Notice that glory is what they say they saw, and that they saw it in a man.
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Jesus asks about public opinion first, then sets it aside and asks the disciples directly. The answer he accepts is not teacher or prophet. It is the Christ, .
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Why we ask this
Almost everyone has heard something about Jesus, and most of it arrives second hand, from art, films, sayings and other people's assumptions rather than from the accounts themselves.
The four Gospels do not answer with a description of his personality. They answer with titles, actions and claims, and a reader who has never been shown that can find the New Testament confusing.
Every other Bible question about Jesus depends on this one. Why he died, why he rose, what following him means, all of it changes depending on who is doing it.
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Historical context
- Written by
- John, one of the twelve
- Written to
- readers who were not there, written so that they might believe
- Written because
- a Gospel written after the resurrection, closing with its own stated purpose in John 20:30-31
John opens with the words in the beginning, the same three words that open Genesis. Whatever else he intends, he is placing Jesus before creation rather than inside it, and Genesis 1 is the passage he expects his reader to hear.
The setting of Matthew 16 matters as well. Caesarea Philippi was a Gentile city, filled with shrines, far north of Jerusalem. Jesus asks who he is in a place where many gods were named.
The New Testament writers were not writing about a distant figure. Luke names Roman officials and local rulers, Luke 3:1-2, and Paul says most of the five hundred witnesses to the were still living when he wrote, 1 Corinthians 15:6. This is why the question is treated as a historical one and not only a spiritual one.
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Verse by verse
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Watch the verbs. Was, three times, before anything is made. Then all things were made through him, which puts him on the maker's side of the line between Creator and creation. With God and was God are held in one sentence and neither is dropped.
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Became is the new verb. He did not stop being the Word, and he did not appear to be a man. Lived among us is literally the language of pitching a tent, which is why readers familiar with Exodus 40:34 hear the tabernacle behind it.
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Firstborn in Scripture usually means rank and inheritance rather than origin, as Psalm 89:27 uses it of a . The reason given in the next line is that all things were created through him, which rules out reading firstborn as the first thing made.
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The Son is placed in a line of revelation and then above it. Prophets spoke; the Son is himself the speech of God. Note the sequence at the end: purified us of our sins, then sat down. The sitting is the sign of finished work.
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This is the shape of the whole story in one paragraph: existing in the form of God, emptied, servant, obedient to death, exalted, confessed as Lord. Paul quotes it to settle an argument about humility, Philippians 2:3-4, which tells you he expected his readers to already know it.
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John states his own purpose. He selected material so that a reader would reach two conclusions, the Christ and the , and he says the point of reaching them is life in his name. The Gospel is not neutral reporting and does not claim to be.
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What Scripture says
He existed before he was born
. Jesus himself says before Abraham came into existence, I AM, John 8:58, and prays about the glory he had with the Father before the world existed, John 17:5. Micah 5:2 had already spoken of one whose goings forth are from long ago.
He is fully a man, not a spirit or an appearance
. He grew, Luke 2:52, was tired, John 4:6, thirsty, John 19:28, and wept, John 11:35. 1 John 4:2-3 makes confessing that he came in the flesh a test of true teaching.
He is the Christ promised to Israel
Christ means one, the promised . Luke 24:44-47 has Jesus explaining himself from Moses, the prophets and the psalms, and Matthew 1:1 opens by placing him in the line of David and Abraham.
He is called the Son of God, and he called God his own Father
The Gospel records what his hearers understood by it: calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. Matthew 3:17 has the Father's own voice, and Romans 1:4 says the declared him with power.
He was crucified and raised in history, not in legend
Paul lists the deaths, the burial, the third day and named witnesses. The Gospels place it under Pontius Pilate, Luke 3:1 and Matthew 27:26, and Acts 2:32 has Peter saying to which we all are witnesses.
He is now confessed as Lord
Every knee should bow, every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Paul is quoting Isaiah 45:23, where the one bowed to is Yahweh, and Romans 10:9 makes confessing Jesus as Lord the substance of Christian faith.
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The words behind the question
Christos
Christ is a title, not a surname. It answers a Jewish expectation of an from David's line, 2 Samuel 7:12-13, which is why Peter's confession in Matthew 16:16 is an answer to Israel's whole story and not a compliment.
Logos
John's readers used the term widely, but he defines it himself rather than borrowing a philosophy: the Logos was with God, was God, made all things, and became flesh. Nothing outside the passage is needed to read verses 1 to 14.
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Cross references
Who he was before Bethlehem
, and all things made through him.
The glory he had with the Father before the world existed.
One coming from Bethlehem whose goings forth are from long ago.
A real human life
He grew in wisdom and stature as a child.
Tired from the journey, sitting by the well.
in every way as we are, yet without sin.
The titles Scripture gives him
The Christ, .
Son of the Blessed, and coming with the clouds.
My Lord and my God, spoken to the Jesus.
What he came to do
To seek and to save that which was lost.
To serve, and to give his life as a for many.
That he might destroy the works of the devil.
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Common misunderstandings
Jesus was a good moral teacher.
The Gospels record him forgiving sins, Mark 2:5-7, accepting worship, Matthew 14:33, and saying that all judgement has been given to him, John 5:22. A teacher who says those things is either telling the truth or is not a good teacher. The category is too small for the material.
Jesus never said anything about being God, so his followers invented it later.
The claims are inside the accounts, not attached to them. John 5:18, John 8:58, John 10:30-33 and Mark 14:61-64 all record hearers reacting to what he said as blasphemy. Whether one believes him is another question, but the material is not silent.
He was only a prophet.
Matthew 16:14 shows exactly that guess being offered by the crowds, and Jesus asks for a better answer. Prophets said thus says the Lord. Jesus said I say to you, Matthew 5:22, and but I say is placed against what was written.
He is a figure of myth rather than history.
The New Testament writers date him among named officials, Luke 3:1-2, name the man who condemned him, and appeal to living witnesses, 1 Corinthians 15:6. That is not the shape of a myth, whatever conclusion a reader draws about the claims.
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Things most readers miss
He asks the question before anyone asks it of him.
Matthew 16:13-15. He raises public opinion, hears it, and then asks the disciples directly. Scripture treats the question as one you are expected to answer, not only to study.
John states his purpose out loud.
John 20:30-31 says the signs were selected so that you may , and that believing you may have life. A reader who wants to know who Jesus is has been handed the author's own aim.
The clearest confession comes from a doubter.
John 20:28. My Lord and my God is said by Thomas. Jesus does not soften it, and the next line blesses those who without seeing.
Colossians answers firstborn in the following line.
Colossians 1:15-16. Firstborn is immediately explained by for by him all things were created, which is why the word cannot mean first created thing in this passage.
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Someone in Scripture faced this too
The question who is Jesus is asked inside the Gospels themselves, by people who were standing in front of him. Their answers are recorded, including the wrong ones.
Peter at Caesarea Philippi
What he or she went through
He had watched Jesus for a long time, heard the crowds guess John the Baptist, Elijah or a prophet, and then was asked to himself.
How God responded
You are the Christ, . Jesus called him blessed and said flesh and blood had not revealed it to him, but the Father in heaven.
What we learn
Scripture presents the right answer as something given rather than deduced from the crowd. The same Peter later denied him, Matthew 26:69-75, so a true confession is not the same as a strong personality.
Nathanael under the fig tree
What he or she went through
He assumed nothing good could come out of Nazareth and came only because Philip insisted that he come and see.
How God responded
Jesus described where Nathanael had been before they met, and Nathanael answered, Rabbi, you are the . You are of Israel.
What we learn
The invitation in the passage is come and see, not accept an argument. Scripture repeatedly answers the question by putting the reader in front of Jesus himself.
Thomas eight days after the resurrection
What he or she went through
He had said plainly that unless he saw the nail marks and put his hand into the wound, he would not .
How God responded
Jesus came, showed him the wounds, and told him not to be unbelieving. Thomas answered, My Lord and my God.
What we learn
The most direct confession of his deity in the Gospels comes from the man who doubted longest. Jesus did not rebuke the request to see, and he did not correct the words Thomas used.
How it points to Christ
The wounds are still there in the body. Whoever Jesus is, he is the one who was , and John's Gospel closes with that identification, John 20:30-31.
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Christ and this question
The whole of Scripture read as being about him
On the road to Emmaus, beginning from Moses and from all the prophets, he explained to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself, Luke 24:27. He did not present himself as a new subject but as the subject already there.
In Luke 24:44-47 he names the three parts of the Hebrew Scriptures and says they are written about his suffering, his rising and the message that follows. Whoever Jesus is, he is the person Israel's Scriptures were pointing to.
John 5:39-40 says the same in the form of a rebuke: you search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have , and these are they which testify about me, yet you will not come to me that you may have life. Studying the question is not the same as coming to him.
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What to do with this
Read one Gospel from beginning to end
Mark is the shortest and moves quickly. Read it in one or two sittings and watch how people react to him. Reading a whole account gives you the person rather than a collection of verses about him.
Answer the question he actually asked
Matthew 16:15. Write down your own answer to but who do you say that I am, and then write down which passage you got it from. It shows you quickly whether your view of Jesus came from Scripture or from around it.
Read John 1:1-18 slowly
Mark every was and every became. The two verbs carry the whole doctrine of who he is, and the passage will teach you more than a summary of it can.
Take the next question in order
Is Jesus God, then why he is called the , then why he came, then and the . The questions build, and taking them out of order is usually why people stall.
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Study the question further
Was Jesus a real historical person?
The New Testament presents him inside dated public history, names the Roman and Jewish officials involved, and appeals to living eyewitnesses. Scripture makes historical claims about him openly rather than avoiding them.
Luke 3:1-2
The ministry dated by Tiberius, Pilate, Herod, Annas and Caiaphas.
1 Corinthians 15:6
Over five hundred witnesses, most of whom remain until now.
Acts 26:26
Paul telling a king that this thing was not done in a corner.
What does the name Jesus mean, and what does Christ mean?
Jesus is a personal name meaning Yahweh saves, and it was given with a reason attached. Christ is a title meaning one, the promised of David's line.
Matthew 1:21
You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.
Luke 2:11
A Savior, who is Christ the Lord, announced to shepherds.
2 Samuel 7:12-13
The promise of an everlasting throne to David's offspring.
Was Jesus a man or was he God?
Scripture says both, and never trades one for the other. He is described as tired, hungry and dying, and in the same accounts he is worshipped, forgives sins and is called God.
Fully human
, John 1:14, and he was in every way as we are, Hebrews 4:15.
Fully God
, John 1:1, and Thomas says My Lord and my God, John 20:28.
One person
Philippians 2:6-8 keeps both in one sentence: existing in the form of God, made in the likeness of men.
Did Jesus have brothers and sisters?
The Gospels name brothers and mention sisters. Christians have long differed over whether these were children of Mary, and Scripture does not settle that question directly, so it should not be argued as though it did.
Mark 6:3
James, Joses, Judah and Simon named, with sisters mentioned.
John 7:5
His brothers did not believe in him during his ministry.
Galatians 1:19
James called the Lord's brother, later a leader in Jerusalem.
Why do the four Gospels tell his story differently?
Each writer selects and arranges material for a stated purpose and a particular audience. They overlap heavily on what he did and said, and they differ in order, detail and emphasis, which is what independent accounts of the same person look like.
Luke 1:1-4
Luke describes his own research and orderly account for Theophilus.
John 20:30-31
John says he selected signs so that readers would believe.
John 21:25
Many other things Jesus did, not written down.
How to apply this today
- Which Gospel have I actually read all the way through?
- Where did my present picture of Jesus come from, text or atmosphere?
Father, I want to know your Son as he actually is. Teach me from what you have written rather than from what I assumed.
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Reflection
- Read John 1:1-14 and mark every was and every became. What does each verb tell you about him?
- Read Matthew 16:13-16. Why does Jesus ask about the crowd's opinion first, and what is the difference between their answers and Peter's?
- Read Philippians 2:5-11 as a single sentence. Where does the movement downward stop, and what turns it upward?
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Prayer
Father, I want to know who your Son is, not only what people say about him. You have written enough for me to see him.
Open my eyes as I read the accounts. Where I have made him smaller than he is, correct me from your own words.
Lord Jesus, you asked your disciples who they said you were. I answer that you are the Christ, , and I ask you to teach me what that means. Amen.
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Further reading
John 1:1-18
The fullest single introduction to who he is in Scripture.
Colossians 1:15-20
Creation, reconciliation and rank, held together in one passage.
Hebrews 1:1-4
The Son as God's final word, and the seated .
Mark 8:27-33
The same question asked, answered, and immediately misunderstood.
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Explore the passage
These are questions the text can actually answer. Take one, go back to the passage with it, and read until Scripture answers rather than until you have an explanation you like. Each question names where this study, or another passage, does the answering.
What this reveals about God
Start here, because every passage of Scripture is first about God before it is about us. Read for what He does, what He says, and what He is called.
What does these passages teach about God?
Underline every verb God is the subject of. What He does tells you who He is.
What does these passages reveal about God's character?
Look for the words the text itself uses of Him: holy, merciful, faithful, jealous, patient. Take the text's own vocabulary rather than your own.
What this reveals about us
Scripture is honest about people. Read for what it says of human need, human failure, and the kind of response it calls for.
What does these passages teach about humanity?
Watch what the people in the text want, fear, and trust. Scripture rarely flatters them.
What does these passages reveal about faith?
Faith in Scripture is always faith in someone, about something specific. Ask what exactly is being believed here, and on what word.
Where this arrives in Christ
Jesus said the Scriptures testify of Him. Follow the line the Bible itself draws rather than inventing one.
What does these passages reveal about Jesus Christ?
Look for what the New Testament does with this text. A connection Scripture makes is a connection you can stand on.
What does these passages reveal about salvation?
Ask who does the saving, who is saved, from what, and by what means. Let the text answer each part.
The world behind the words
The first readers knew things we have to learn. Recovering what they knew is study, not speculation.
How would the original audience have understood these passages?
Ask what they had already been told, what they were living through, and what this would have cost them to believe.
What historical or cultural background helps explain these passages?
Look at the work, the worship, the law and the customs the text assumes you already understand.
What do these words carry in the original: Christos, Logos?
Take the word to its root, its first appearance, and its range of use. Then let the context choose the meaning.
How this connects to the rest of Scripture
Scripture is its own best commentary. The clearest answers usually come from another passage rather than from a scholar.
Which Old and New Testament passages help explain these passages?
Prefer passages that quote or clearly echo this text. Those links are the Bible's own, not ours.
What biblical themes are developed in these passages, and where do they begin?
Trace one theme backwards to where Scripture first raises it, then forwards to where it lands.
What this asks of you
Application is the last step, never the first, and it must come out of the passage rather than out of general advice.
What does these passages teach believers to do today?
Say it as one sentence you could obey this week, and be able to point at the verse it came from.
Where faithful readers differ
Some questions here are genuinely open. Where Bible believing Christians read this differently, the readings are set out with the passages behind each one, and what Scripture states plainly is kept separate from what is interpretation.
Which parts of these passages does Scripture state plainly, and which parts are interpretation?
Write two lists. Anything you cannot put in the first list, hold loosely and say so when you teach it.
Questions Audela will not answer
Where Scripture does not answer a question, Audela says so plainly rather than filling the silence. An honest “the Bible does not tell us” is more faithful than a confident guess, and it keeps the reader’s trust in God’s Word rather than in our reasoning.
The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever.
- Ask instead: What does the passage say God did, and what does that reveal about His character?
- Ask instead: What has God told us about His purpose here, in this text or elsewhere in Scripture?
- Ask instead: What does Scripture say about how God acts, and where does it say it?
- Ask instead: What happened, and what does the rest of Scripture make of it?
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Study tools
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Where this leads
A question is a doorway, not a destination. Here is where this one leads if you want to keep reading rather than stop at an answer.
Topic hub
Primary study
Romans 8: No Condemnation, No Separation
Romans 8 shows what belonging to this person changes: no condemnation, the Spirit of Christ, and nothing able to separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus.
Supporting studies
John 1:1-18
Read the introduction the Gospel itself gives.
Mark 1-4
Read the earliest reactions to him, in order.
Colossians 1:15-20
Read what the apostles said of him after the resurrection.
Deep chapter studies
John 15: The Vine, the Branches, and the Friends of God
His own words about remaining in him, worked line by line.
Romans 8: No Condemnation, No Defeat, No Separation
Life in Christ, from no condemnation to no separation.