Joel M Bradshaw

27Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?”

28They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”

29“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.”–Matk 8

[Note: I did research on this text for a paper in my doctoral class. I will present portions of that paper here]

Jesus here highlighted a key tension: His identity. Jesus obviously saw Himself in a certain way, but did others? The answers the disciples reported back were choices that King Herod back in chapter 6 of Mark also pondered. Jesus to them was special, but possibly a theological do-over of an old character or one prophet among many.

Before we get to what Peter said, let us briefly ponder where this was happening. Caesarea Philippi was a city once named Paneas, honoring the god Pan. In Jesus’ day, Pan still had a shrine in the area. Herod Philip renamed Paneas to honor Caesar and also himself. Hence the name Caesarea Philippi. This was a Gentile territory. So was Jesus simply a being like the god Pan…one object of worship among many choices? Or could His identity actually run deeper than that?

Peter’s answer reflected the theology of Daniel 9. The disciples understood Jesus to be Anointed Ruler that Daniel prophesied about. They proclaimed Jesus to be the Messiah or Christ. Caesarea Philippi was a political city named after two major political figures. Peter described Jesus with a political and kingdom title. The disciples expected Jesus to deliver them from these very Romans Caesarea Philippi was named after!

It gets even more interesting. First century historian Plutarch famously reported during the reign of Tiberius Caesar that “the great Pan is dead!” Later church Father, Eusebius, tied Plutarch’s statement to a spiritual reality. The Greek word for Pan also means “all.” Eusebius claimed that the very Jesus who once walked in Pan’s city was the very reason that all the gods are effectively dead, not just Pan.

So during this exact season of our text in Mark, a historian proclaimed that Pan is dead. Jesus walked in Pan’s city and was proclaimed to be the Messiah. The church would later look back at this moment through the eyes of spiritual warfare.

Jesus’ identity was not just one of many choices. He was viewed by His disciples as powerful and unique. Much like the plagues in Exodus defeated Egyptian’s pantheon, was a larger theological point being made about Jesus? Paul would later write these words…

And having disarmed the powers and authorities, [Jesus] made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” (Colossians 2:15)

To the Jewish audience, was Jesus simply one of the many prophets? A renegade Rabbi? To the Gentile audience, was Jesus one of the many gods like Pan? How do you view Jesus? He didn’t deliver Peter and his crew from Rome, but actually defeated sin and death, a much larger enemy.–JMB