Week 2

Who is Jesus? Man, Myth, or Messiah?

Focus:

This week will focus on the identity of Jesus. We will observe how people responded to Jesus
while he was here on the earth.

Daily Prayer:

Ask God to prepare you for the battle. Ask Him to give you a clear mind and a ready heart. Pray
for a clear understanding of the identity of Jesus.

Verse of the Week:

“Who do men say that I, the Son of Man am?”

Matthew 16:13 (NKJV)

 1st Things1st: Who is Jesus to You?
Read Matthew 16:13-19

Who is Jesus to you? Write a few words to describe your relationship to Christ.

Perhaps you used words such as Savior, Friend, or Lord. All of these are great descriptions of Christ.
How you describe Jesus, reveals how close you are to Him. Maybe you listed words such as: best friend,
daddy, or hero. Those words indicate you have a very close relationship to Christ. It shows you are
comfortable with the identity of Jesus.

Many times we stay distant from God. We consider Him our Savior, but we never treat Him like a
friend. We consider him our King, but we are not willing to surrender to His plans. So who is Jesus to you?
Your answer might tell you more about yourself than you wanted to know!

Prayer

Just praise God and call Him your friend. Pretend he is sitting right next to you. Tell Him thank you for all
He has done in your life.
 Best Friends or Worst Enemies
Read John 20:24-30

You would think that the disciples would never doubt that Jesus was the Messiah. However, they
struggled to accept Jesus as Deity. Peter denied Christ 3 times. Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of
silver. If this wasn’t bad enough, the only disciple that followed Jesus all the way to the cross was John.
The rest of the disciples ran and hid in fear. Then there is Thomas. After the death of Christ, Thomas felt
so rejected that he quit believing. It seemed all the disciples struggled to believe. Despite the miracles,
the messages, and God’s voice from heaven, the disciples still did not believe. After the resurrection, their
unbelief was changed. They put all the pieces together, and realized that this was the plan from the
beginning.

The disciple’s unbelief was caused by their lack of faith. They felt hurt and disappointed.
Have you ever doubted Christ? What was the reason for your unbelief?

What did it take for the disciples to believe that Jesus was the Messiah?

Prayer

Ask God to help you demonstrate your belief in Him through actions and not only words. Pray for someone
you know who does not believe in Jesus.
 Jesus Defend Himself
Read John 5:31-45

What proof did Jesus give to support His claim of Deity?

In this Scripture Jesus gave proof of His deity to the Pharisees. In court, it was the Jewish custom to
present evidence that at least two witnesses could verify. If the witnesses could verify the evidence, then
it was accepted as truth. Jesus provides several witnesses for His claims of Deity.

The first witness is John the Baptist. Jesus reminded the Pharisees that John was constantly
preaching to people about the coming Messiah. When Jesus came to the earth, John told the people that
Jesus was the Messiah.

The 2nd witness is the work of the Father. Jesus was referring to the cross and salvation. Jesus was
telling the Pharisees that the resurrection would be another proof of His Deity.

The next witness is the Father’s voice. When Jesus was baptized, the Father’s voice spoke from
heaven saying, “This is my Son in whom I am well pleased.” This also happened at the temple when Jesus
turned over the tables.

The 4th witness is the Scripture. Jesus said that he fulfilled the prophecies from the Old Testament.
Jesus also spoke of the law or the words of Moses. Jesus said that Moses even wrote about the Messiah.
Jesus demonstrated that He had fulfilled the Scripture.

Prayer

Ask Jesus to give you a clear understanding of the lesson today. Pray for someone who is lost.
 Oh Brother!
Read John 7:1-5

Jesus was widely rejected as the Messiah before the resurrection. Many of the people following Him
thought he was an incredible teacher, but very few truly believed that Jesus was the Messiah. We have
examined the disciples, and the Pharisees disbelief, but it gets worst. Even the brothers of Jesus rejected
Him as the Messiah.

At this point in Scripture, Jesus left Judea and went to Galilee. The crowds of Judea were upset that
Jesus claimed to be the Messiah. As Jesus went to Galilee, His brothers found Him and rebuked Him. His
brothers told Jesus to do miracles openly so that people would believe. Jesus calmly corrected His brothers
by telling them the time had not come.

After the resurrection, Jesus appeared to His brother James. It was at this moment that James and
the rest of the family believed that Jesus was the Messiah. They finally accepted Him as the Lord.

Why do you think it took so long for the brothers of Jesus to believe?

Prayer:

Ask Jesus to begin preparing your heart and mind for the upcoming lecture. Continue to pray for a lost
person everyday.
 The Cry of the Crowds
Read John 10:1-11

How does the crowd’s response to Jesus compare to the world’s response today?

It seems not much has changed since the days of Christ. There are still those who reject Christ and
the resurrection. It seems many Christians only believe with their mind, but not through their actions and
faith. There are some people who are ready to crucify Christ again. The world hates Jesus, because Jesus
brings truth. Jesus exposes sin and the world does not desire to be exposed. This is the heart of unbelief.

This week we have seen that everyone seemed to reject Christ at some point in their lives. The
resurrection was the turning point. After people saw Jesus, they believed in Jesus. This was the final proof
that Christ was the Messiah!

Prayer

Continue praying for the lost people you know. Also pray for the lecture. Ask God to prepare your
heart and mind. Ask him to give you a clear understanding of the upcoming material.
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