"Who do you say I am?"
Luke 9 : 19
In today’s Gospel passage we see Jesus praying alone in the presence of His disciples. He often spent the night in deep communication with His Heavenly Father, whom He addressed as Abba – Dad! Jesus was deeply aware of His identity as God’s Son. St. John makes this very clear in his Gospel. Describing Our Lord’s inner state at the Last Supper, he writes, ‘Jesus knew that the Father had put everything into His hands, that He had come from God and was returning to God’ (John 13: 3 )
Having spent 3 years with His Apostles ministering to the people, Jesus now wonders if the crowd really know who He is. Having asked the disciples what the crowds were saying, He then puts the same question to them “Who do you say I am?” It is Peter who answers. ‘you are the Christ of God’. (Luke 9:20 ) It must have been some consolation for Jesus to know that at least Peter recognised Him for who he was.
Today, Jesus asks the same question of each of us. ‘Who do you say I am.’ It is easy to proclaim that Jesus is Lord, but is He Lord of my life? Am I proud to confess His name – to make Him known?
Prayer
Father in heaven, form in us the likeness of your son and deepen His life within us. Send us as witnesses of Gospel joy into a world of fragile peace and broken promises. (Roman Missal V111 Sunday of the year)