24th Week in Ordinary Time

1st Reading: Is 50:5–9a
The Lord Yahweh has opened my ear.
I have not rebelled,
nor have I withdrawn.
I offered my back to those who strike me,
my cheeks to those who pulled my beard;
neither did I shield my face
from blows, spittle and disgrace.
I have not despaired,
for the Lord Yahweh comes to my help.
So, like a flint I set my face,
knowing that I will not be disgraced.
He who avenges me is near.
Who then will accuse me?
Let us confront each other.
Who is now my accuser?
Let him approach.
If the Lord Yahweh is my help.
who will condemn me?
All of them will wear out like cloth;
the moth will devour them.

2nd Reading: Jas 2:14–18
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, to profess faith without showing works? Such faith has no power to save you. If a brother or sister is in need of clothes or food and one of you says, “May things go well for you; be warm and satisfied,” without attending to their material needs, what good is that? So it is for faith without deeds: it is totally dead.
Say to whoever challenges you, “You have faith and I have good deeds; show me your faith apart from actions and I, for my part, will show you my faith in the way I act.”

Gospel: Mk 8:27–35
Jesus set out with his disciples for the villages around Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?” And they told him, “Some say you are John the Baptist; others say you are Elijah or one of the prophets.”
Then Jesus asked them, “But you, who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” And he ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
Jesus then began to teach them that the Son of Man had to suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the Law. He would be killed and after three days rise again. Jesus said all this quite openly, so that Peter took him aside and began to protest strongly. But Jesus turning around, and looking at his disciples, rebuked Peter saying, “Get behind me Satan! You are thinking not as God does, but as people do.”
Then Jesus called the people and his disciples and said, “If you want to follow me, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me. For if you choose to save your life, you will lose it; and if you lose your life for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel, you will save it.

Commentary
The revelation of Jesus’ identity as the Christ, the Messiah, is intricately connected with His impending suffering and death. Indeed, Jesus’ mission as the Messiah can only be accom­plished by His taking the weight of our sins upon His shoulders and carrying them to Calvary. Through His holy cross He redeems the world.
Jesus extends to us the invitation to p­arti­cipate in His mission by taking up our cross and following in His footsteps. Indeed, only by imitating the Lord in His generous self-giving do we find the joy and peace that this world cannot bring. Through self-denial we find our true selves, for generosity brings out the best in us. Aligning our priorities so that we will consciously participate in the life of Jesus is not necessarily the easiest thing to do, but it always brings us closer to our faith’s goal, our salvation.

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