Who is Christ?

I apologize, yet again for the tardiness of this post, assuming it will be tardy - we'll see how quickly I can type without typos. Life often gets in the way of the things that we want to, or need to do. This morning, my brother was running late getting ready for work, so he asked me to make him lunch. And then my browser crashed when I went to preview the post. So, anyway, here is my musings from today's Lectio Divina.

Today's Lectio Divina comes from the Homily section of today's reading from the Prologue from Ohird. I promise that I read other things than the Prologue, it's just that the Prologue is so very well written and causes a lot of contemplation for me.

Who do people say that I am? Jesus asked this question to His disciples, and from then until now it has been asked to every generation. Every generation has had to give an answer. This question is the question of life and death, and its answer is either life-bearing or death-bearing.

St. Peter's reply was, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." (St. Matthew 16:16) And Jesus praised that answer.

So who is Christ? This question is widely asked still to this day. Some men say that Jesus was a good man, a good teacher, and that His followers mistook what He taught for another religion. Others seem to think that Jesus was the ultimate hippy preaching peace, love, and acceptance of all sins. There are others still who are agnostic, or apathetic, to the question and say they cannot know the truth - or simply do not care. And then there are those who proudly proclaim. that He is the Christ! He is the Son of God! He is our savior, the Redeemer of the human race from death and sin, the Resurrected and the Resurrector, the Living-one, and the Life-giver. He is God!

There are some who claim to be Christians that believe that Jesus was only a good man that taught good morals - they deny that He was anything other than just a man, they deny that He is God but still claim to follow His teachings. But Jesus taught that He is God! When Jesus stated, "I AM" He wasn't merely affirming that He existed, He was claiming to be God in language that His accusers would understand.

Jesus taught that He is the Messiah. St. Peter proclaimed Him to be the Christ. St. John said He is the Word and that the Word is God. The Church has declared that Jesus is God since the very beginning.

So who do I say that Christ is? Why is this a life and death question? Jesus broke Death. He defeated Death by His death. He broke open the gates of Hades and redeemed the souls captive therein - thereby redeeming us also. By his defeating Death He has given us a way to Life. He came to life and brings us to life!

Who do I say Christ is? He is the I Am. He was there when the universe was created. He was there when Jacob wrestled and Abraham offered hospitality. He was with the three youths thrown into the furnace.

Christ is the friend of man. He is the Master. He is the King. He is the Victor. He is the Lord. He is the God who died and lives again. He is God!