Personal and Decided Faith
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 8:27-35.
Jesus and his disciples set out
for the villages of Caesarea Philippi.
Along the way he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that I am?”
They said in reply,
“John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others one of the prophets.”
And he asked them,
“But who do you say that I am?”
Peter said to him in reply,
“You are the Christ.”
Then he warned them not to tell anyone about him.
He began to teach them
that the Son of Man must suffer greatly
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed, and rise after three days.
He spoke this openly.
Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples,
rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”
He summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them,
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake
and that of the gospel will save it.”
for the villages of Caesarea Philippi.
Along the way he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that I am?”
They said in reply,
“John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others one of the prophets.”
And he asked them,
“But who do you say that I am?”
Peter said to him in reply,
“You are the Christ.”
Then he warned them not to tell anyone about him.
He began to teach them
that the Son of Man must suffer greatly
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed, and rise after three days.
He spoke this openly.
Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples,
rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”
He summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them,
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake
and that of the gospel will save it.”
—
Reflection
Different people take Jesus differently. Our experience of Jesus does not only shape our idea of Him but even our own biases may work for or against Him. Jesus wanted a personal answer from His disciples so He asked them, “who do you say that I am?” Christian discipleship is rooted in our personal conviction of who Jesus is.
Such conviction is needed because Christian discipleship is not a walk in the park. Ahead the path lies a long, thorny, and winding road, and on top of one’s shoulders rests the cross. A personal conviction on the identity of Jesus must lead to a personal decision to follow Him. We cannot be Christians by name alone, we have to be Christians through and through.
Jesus cannot just be a brother, a healer, a friend, a teacher or a prophet. He has to be the Christ for every Christian. This is the very revelation of His person. He is the anointed Savior who must undergo His Passion and Death in order to save us. His calvary cannot be separated from His resurrection. A Christian knows this, and thus follow Christ in death and in life.
Such conviction is needed because Christian discipleship is not a walk in the park. Ahead the path lies a long, thorny, and winding road, and on top of one’s shoulders rests the cross. A personal conviction on the identity of Jesus must lead to a personal decision to follow Him. We cannot be Christians by name alone, we have to be Christians through and through.
Jesus cannot just be a brother, a healer, a friend, a teacher or a prophet. He has to be the Christ for every Christian. This is the very revelation of His person. He is the anointed Savior who must undergo His Passion and Death in order to save us. His calvary cannot be separated from His resurrection. A Christian knows this, and thus follow Christ in death and in life.
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