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In the Bible, in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 16, we find out the truth about who Jesus really is in a conversation between him and his disciples that is recorded there.  It says:

 

'When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’

They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’

‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’

Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’

Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.'

 

We can see in this conversation that Jesus affirms what Peter has said.  In other words, Jesus says – that's true – my Father in heaven, God himself, has revealed to you my true identity as the Messiah, God's own Son.

 

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It's difficult sometimes for  non-Jewish people to understand the importance or implications of Peter's statement because we don't have the cultural understanding of the Jewish longing for the Messiah.

 

The word, Christ, also means Messiah and throughout the Old Testament, there are prophecies or clues about the identity of the Messiah so that the Jewish people would recognise him when he came. Unfortunately, by the time that Jesus arrived, the Jewish people had added their own expectations and interpretations to the prophecies and, for this reason, some missed accepting him as the Messiah because he didn't fit their expectations.

 

Jesus Christ fulfilled over 300 prophecies spoken by various prophets over 500 years before he was born.  Mathematician, Peter W. Stoner, calculated that the probability of just eight prophecies being fulfilled is one chance in one hundred million billion so only the person who was the Messiah could fulfil all of them and that person was Jesus Christ.

 

So, the Messiah was to be a victorious King who would liberate his people from oppression and bring peace. He would establish an everlasting kingdom and rule righteously as a wise Judge. He would be a High Priest, making atonement by blood for the sins of all people and interceding on behalf of people. He would be the Son of God, given as a sacrificial gift, for the salvation of the world and the reconciliation of humanity to God.

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'For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.'    (John 3:16-17)

 

Jesus Christ came as a Saviour of the world because we all need saving.