“‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’”

Matthew 16:15-16
In 1833 George Wilson was sentenced to be hanged. President Andrew Jackson issued him a pardon, but Wilson refused it. Supreme Court Justice John Marshall wrote, “A pardon is a paper, the value of which depends on the acceptance by the person implicated. … If it is refused, it is no pardon. George Wilson must hang.” Some decisions have life-altering consequences. 

I read a story about a teenage girl who came forward at a church service to announce her decision to follow Christ and be baptized. Someone saw an old suitcase by the wall of the church building and later asked the pastor about it. He pointed to the girl who had just been baptized and said, “Her father said that if she was baptized as a Christian, she could never go home again. So she brought her luggage.” 

The more Jesus revealed who He was—the One with power to pardon and forgive—the more people opposed and rejected Him. Encounters with Him demanded a decision, and that is still true for you and me today. It’s a matter of life and death; follow Him.

 



Scripture Focus

Matthew 16:15-16

Insight

“Lord, make me a crisis person … not a mile-post on a road, but a fork that forces decision when facing Christ in me.” (Jim Elliot, 1927-1956)

Bible In A Year

  • Joshua 11-12
  • Psalm 102
  • Acts 27

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