you are John the Baptist; for others Elijah, or Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” Jesus
asked them, “But you, who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah,
the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “It is well for you, Simon Barjona, for it is not
flesh or blood that has revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And now I say to
you: You are Peter; and on this Rock I will build my Church; and never will the powers
of death overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: whatever
you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you unbind on earth shall
be unbound in heaven.” Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he
was the Christ. From that day, Jesus began to make it clear to his disciples that he
must go to Jerusalem; that he would suffer many things from the Jewish authorities,
the chief priests and the teachers of the law; and that he would be killed and be raised
on the third day.Then Peter took him aside and began to reproach him, “Never, Lord!
No, this must never happen to you!” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me,
Satan! You are an obstacle in my path. You are thinking not as God does, but as
people do.”

Reflect

“You are the Messiah.” When we do not allow God to take the lead, we will surely be
lost in our journey. When we try to get ahead of Jesus, we become a stumbling block
to God’s divine plan. We must stay behind Jesus. When we do, then we will realize that
any authority we have at present is only given to us. Hence, it is not by our own merit
that we have embarked on this journey of faith. Today’s Gospel narrates Peter’s
profession of faith. Jesus asked his disciples about what people were saying about
him. They said that the people thought of Jesus to be John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah
or one of the prophets. Afterwards, Jesus turned to his disciples, asking them about
what they could say about him. Peter, responding to Jesus, made his profession of faith:
“You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Mt. 16:16) Jesus commended Peter for
his answer. Nevertheless, Jesus also highlighted that Peter’s profession of faith was part
and parcel of God’s revelation to him. It was not flesh and blood that revealed such truth
to Peter. It is God himself. The faith we profess is primarily a revelation and a gift from God.

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