Who Do You Say Jesus Is? Your Summer Kickoff Question

Hey, Carpool Crew. Happy Sunday. Today is gonna be a good one. I'm Pastor Justin. And guess what? Today we're talking about who Jesus really is to you. It's a big day. Tomorrow is the start of summer. Now, it might not be the official start of summer. It might not be when school is over for you. But on the podcast, we treat June and July like summer. So those months are going to be filled with some new episodes on some different topics. Here's the one thing I want you to remember for the ride: you decide who Jesus is to you. Now, listen to this from Matthew chapter 16, verse 15: 'But you,' he asked them, 'who do you say that I am?' All right, picture this. Jesus and his disciples are walking together. Out of nowhere, Jesus stops and asks, 'Who do people say I am?' The disciples started listing what they've heard. 'Some say you're a prophet. Some say you're John the Baptist come back. Some say you're someone else from the Bible.' People had a lot of opinions. Here's the big moment. Jesus turns and looks at them, and he asks the real question: 'But who do you say I am?' Boom. Yeah, I like a good boom. Not what do other people think. What do you think? Peter speaks up first. 'You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.' In other words, you're the one we've been waiting for. You're God's Son. And Jesus tells him, 'You got it.' If Jesus were sitting with you right now, he might tell you, 'I don't want a borrowed answer. I want your answer. Tell me who I am to you.' Think about summer coming up. You're gonna be around different people, cousins, neighbors, hanging out in the community, maybe some camp friends or just people in the neighborhood. Maybe people who don't know Jesus yet. And at some point, the question is gonna come up, maybe out loud, maybe in your own head. Who is Jesus to you? See, other people will have opinions. Some will say, 'He's just a story.' Some will say, 'He's a good teacher. We should listen to some of his stuff.' Some will say, 'I don't really care who he is.' But Jesus is asking you, not your parents, not your pastor, not your friends. He's asking you, 'Who do you say I am?' You know, here's what you can do this summer. First, start every morning with two words. 'Hi, Jesus.' Just like that. Try it every day all summer. Start thinking about Jesus more. Second, read one chapter from one of the Gospels each week. That's Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John. The very beginning of the New Testament. Pick one and start. I'm sure your parents would love to do it with you. Third, when someone asks who Jesus is to you, say it out loud. You don't need fancy words, just true ones. Let's go back to that one thing I wanted you to remember. You decide who Jesus is to you. Remember, Carpool Crew, no matter where you are or how you're listening, God loves you. And parents, if you've been loving the podcast, there's another parent you know that you could share it with today. Maybe at church, maybe even sharing it with your kid's pastor. We would love to be a resource to your entire church. I hope you have an incredible Sunday. And before you go, let's answer this question together. Who do you say Jesus is? And how can we keep that real all summer long? I'll see you tomorrow as we really kick off summer on Carpooling with Jesus.