The Kitchen Sink
An occasional piece of paper
September 14, 2003
Vol. 6 no. 33a

Everything But...
           “Who do people say that I am?” Usually, worrying about what people think about you is a sign of insecurity. Jesus’ humanity may be silhouetted in his fretting about reputation and image. Yet this is not the inquiry of a fragile ego, no harvest of his evangelistic output, but his concern to hear what kind of Messiah people thought they had.
           Most people don’t have a Messiah or Christ: they want a champion. Our Jesus, they say, supports our cause, our constituency, our kind of people. Such a Jesus triumphs for us, but seldom suffers.
           “But…who do you say that I am?” That But has weight. Jesus leans into the disciples, hoping they know a Messiah when they see one. While Peter does produce the correct answer, plain talk about rejection, suffering, and death do not fit into his answer. Is Peter ashamed? Are we?
           When we yearn to be Christ-like, we cannot be ashamed. We will probably fail at most of our Christian endeavours, not win. We love, yet may be hated and ridiculed. To carry the cross unapologetically and unashamedly is the crux of being a Christian.