What do you think of Christ?

"Everything revolves around ourselves." This is the way so many people think about life. They get very uncomfortable when the question gets asked, "What about God?" However much we may want to set God aside and get on with living our life without him, the awkward question keeps coming back to us: Have we forgotten about God? 

Can our self-centred way of thinking and living really satisfy, or are we left feeling that there's a God-shaped blank at the centre of our life? When we put this questions to people in today's world, they reply to us, "That's just your opinion." We may reply with a question, "What's your opinion? - Everything happened by chance? Life has no meaning?" To say that everything happened by chance and life has no meaning - That could be harder to swallow than the idea that there is a God, who created us and has revealed himself to us in the Bible story! 

The sceptic may say to us, "You'd believe anything." We might reply to this - "You also believe something. You believe in chance. You believe that this is all we have." Many people may be content to leave it there, and say, "We've nothing more to talk about. We disagree with each other - end of story." 

There are, however, people who are willing to listen - "Let's hear what you have to say about God." When we speak to such people, we must make it clear that the question of God is more than just an academic discussion. It's more than just a matter of settling an argument. It's more than just a matter of going round in circles and getting nowhere. This is about the meaning, purpose and direction of our life on earth. What's it all about? Why are we here? Where have we come from? Where are we going? These are big questions. They don't deserve an unfair dismissal. They need to be taken seriously. They are  more than questions for discussion. They are questions that are crying out for answers. 

As we look seriously at these questions, our attention will be drawn towards Jesus Christ - What does he have to say to us? Is he "the way, the truth and the life" (John 14:6)? When the conversation moves towards Jesus Christ, we must make it clear that talking things through can take us so far, and now we're reaching the point where each one of us must give our personal answer to the question, "What do you think of Christ?" (Matthew 22:42). 

To this question which presses itself upon us, the Bible gives a positive answer - the answer of faith: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16). When we come to this great confession of faith, there is something we must never forget: "This was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven" (Matthew 16:17). Faith in Jesus Christ is always more than the outcome of  an argument. When we've answered questions to the best of our ability, we must leave things in the hands of the Lord, and pray that he will bring people to faith in Jesus Christ, our Saviour.