Who are You?

“So they [the Jews] said to him,

‘Who are you?’

Jesus said to them,

‘What I told you from the beginning.’”

Jn. 8:25

Have you ever had the experience of someone asking you a question that you’ve answered several times before? How did you feel? I feel for teachers or professors who experience this again and again! In my own experience, I think sometimes I feel upset or annoyed because (1) it seems like the other person was not paying attention when I was speaking to him and (2) the other person doesn’t seem interested in what I have to say. This all really stems from pride, I feel.

The Jews asked Jesus “Who are you?” after they’ve seen Him heal the sick, teach in the synagogues, and heard others talk about Him. This question comes right after Jesus saved the woman caught in adultery, saying to her, “Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more.” Have they not been paying attention all this time or do they really not know who He is? Jesus simply answered, “What I told you from the beginning.” What did Jesus tell them in the beginning? In the beginning of John’s Gospel we read of the scene where Jesus cleanses the temple saying, “Take these out of here, and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.” He is the Son of God. He is who was from the beginning.

Today, we are faced with the same questions the Jews asked Jesus, “Who are you?” Who am I? Am I Christian who believes only in name but really do not believe or practice? Who am I? Who are you? Jesus is confident in who He is and He tells us to call God “Our Father.” Jesus knows who He is, and He also knows who we are. Do you know who you are?