Mark 8:27-35

Isaiah 50:5-9a

Psalm 116:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9

James 2:14-18

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.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I need to be taught by your Son. I need to hear his word each day. I tend by nature to resist accepting suffering, denying myself, taking up my cross, and losing my life. Yet this is the path that leads to eternal life with you.

Encountering the Word of God

1. You are the Christ: Today’s Gospel passage from Mark has three parts. In the first, Jesus asks his disciples about his identity. This question is one of the most important questions in Mark’s Gospel. It asks: Who is Jesus? From the beginning, Mark identified Jesus as the Christ and as the Son of God (Mark 1:1). Much of the Gospel is devoted to showing how the titles apply to Jesus and what the titles truly mean. We are now midway through the Gospel of Mark this year and Peter now confesses that Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah). This means that Jesus is “the anticipated Son of David, the rightful heir to the throne of Israel, who was expected to return and resume his reign over the nations” (Bergsma, The Word of the Lord: Year B, 394). It also points to Jesus’ divinity, since the royal sons of David were sons of God through the Davidic covenant. In the second part, Jesus teaches his disciples about his upcoming suffering and death. Peter, who just confessed Jesus as the Messiah, rebuked Jesus and was unwilling to accept a suffering Messiah. In the third part, Jesus summarizes his message: it is only by giving up one’s temporal life – through suffering and service to others – that one can be saved and merit eternal life.

2. The Suffering Servant in Isaiah: Although Peter grasped that Jesus is the Messiah, he and the other apostles will struggle to understand what it means to be the Messiah. “Now begins a period of intensive instruction in which Jesus will unveil the mystery of his vocation to be a suffering Messiah who will lay down his life for his people – and the disciples’ vocation to follow in his footsteps” (Healy, The Gospel of Mark, 159). Several passages from the Prophet Isaiah speak about a mysterious Servant of the Lord. Today’s First Reading is considered to be the third “Servant Song.” It focuses on the Servant’s obedience to the Lord, how the Servant will be physically abused by others, and how the Lord will vindicate his Servant when opponents charge the Servant with wrongdoing. This third song finds its fulfillment in the passion, trial, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Jesus’ disciples will share in the suffering and vindication of their Lord.

3. Faith and Works: Two Sundays ago, we began to read the Letter of James as the Second Reading on Sundays. Today, James teaches us that for our faith to be a saving faith, it must express itself in action and love. When we do works of charity and love, “we are not ‘earning’ our salvation. Faith itself is a gift. Faith enables us to receive grace, which is the power of God enabling us to act” (Bergsma, The Word of the Lord: Year B, 392-393). Faith alone – faith without works of love performed in union with Christ – cannot save. Our works cannot merit God’s mercy and assistance. However, once we are united to Christ by grace, our works can become salvific because Christ lives in us (Barber, Salvation: What Every Catholic Should Know, 87).

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I will follow you. I will deny myself each day and resist the temptations of the world. I do not want a life of comfort and ease. I want to learn from you and be your disciple. I want to share in your life, your suffering, your death, and your glory.

Living the Word of God: Do I truly know the Catholic understanding of salvation? Do I know how it differs from the Lutheran (Protestant) understanding? Can I defend and explain the Catholic approach? If not, could I dedicate some time this upcoming month to reading Michael Barber’s Salvation: What Every Catholic Should Know (Augustine Institute – Ignatius Press 2019)?