Ego sum | I am

"Once when Jesus was praying alone, with only the disciples near him, he asked them, "who do the crowds say that I am?" – Luke 9:18

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As Jesus was very actively involved in the public ministry, people had various opinions about him. Jesus was very much aware of it. Some considered him as John the Baptist who is risen, some others as Elijah and others as one of the ancient prophets who is risen. But Jesus wanted to get the answers from his disciples. That's why he is asking them when no one is around. Jesus goes one step further asking his disciples, "But who do you say that I am?"

Here Jesus wanted to make sure whether his disciples had understood him properly. He wanted to get a very personal answer from them. Peter as the leader of the group gives the answer that You are the Messiah of God. This must have been one of the happiest moments in the life of Jesus. The leader of the group is very clear about the identity of Jesus. So it was worth selecting them as his disciples. Even if not the people, Jesus wanted to make sure that at least his disciples knew his true identity.

Today Jesus is also asking us a very personal question, "Who do you say that I am?" or "Who I am to you in your life?" We need to spend our own quality time with Jesus sitting with the Word of God to understand him better. Asking the Holy Spirit to reveal to us the mysteries about Jesus. The same passage we read in the Gospel of Matthew 16: 13-20. In Mt. 16:17 we read, And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven." 

This is a fact that by our own efforts alone we can not understand the mysteries of God. We need the grace of God which comes into us in prayer with humility. Amen.

Reflection on Luke 9: 1-27 by Fr. George Joseph SVD

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