In 2010, The City Church in Seattle launched a “Jesus Is…” media blitz across their city. Giant billboards popped up over busy roads, inviting commuters to ponder how they would fill in the gaps to the two-word prompt. A website, built specifically for the campaign, received over 40,000 responses from Seattle and across the globe, with people keen to share their answers.

Jesus is…

I wonder how you would complete that sentence?

At Unley Park Youth this term, we’ve been exploring this very theme. It’s a deceptively simple question really because our answers may just be one word, two words, a short sentence maybe. But the resonance of our answers is massively significant because who we believe and know Jesus to be informs so much of our lives and faith.

At youth group, we used a simple format to share our Jesus is… testimonies with one another. It looked like this:

Jesus is…                   

I know this because…            

Therefore, I…

And the responses shared were a beautiful insight into the inner world of our church’s young people. For them, Jesus is…my best friend, hope, the way, my Father, my backbone, beyond comprehension, just to name a few.

In the Gospel of John, there are seven specific instances of Jesus spelling out to us who he is with his “I am…” statements.If you’re unsure how to respond to “Jesus is…”, these seven “I ams” are a great place to start. (I’ll give you a hint; they can all be found between John 6 through John 15).

For me, I love the reminder we’re given in Matthew 1:21. “[Mary] will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (ESV)

Jesus is…Jesus, our saviour. Wow. That alone is extraordinary to me.

So, I leave you with this…How would you respond to the prompt Jesus is… and just as importantly, who can you tell about it?

In Him,

Chris