Matthew 16:13-14 NIV
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” [14] They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
This is a great question for us to also be asking as we think about our engagement with the communities we are part of – who do they think Jesus is, how do they see him and react to him? I’m guessing the answers won’t be John the Baptist or Elijah, but they may use spiritual leaders from our world today to describe him. Their answers provide a good starting point for our outreach and conversation. The challenge is to move people from there to Peter’s answers in the next few verses.
Father, help us to be alert to the clues around us as to how our communities see Jesus so that we can find ways to engage in their language and where they’re at.
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