January 18, 2024 

Today’s Reading: Mark 8:27-9:1

Daily Lectionary:Ezekiel 40:1-4; 43:1-12; Romans 8:18-39

And [Jesus] asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him. (Mark 8:29–30)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Peter gets the answer right. Jesus asks the big question and Peter aces the quiz. Who is Jesus? The Christ. Today we remember St. Peter and his bold confession of faith. But on a day like today, it can be just as easy to remember Peter’s many less-than-correct answers to big questions. Just after Peter’s great confession, Jesus calls him Satan because Peter refuses to accept Jesus must die. On the night Jesus is betrayed, Peter denies His Lord three times, insisting he does not know Jesus, even when asked repeatedly. But in this moment, He says the right thing at the right time. How did this lowly fisherman get this answer right when he so often missed the mark?

In Matthew’s account of this same event, we are given the answer. Jesus says, “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” This great confession is given to Peter. It is not his own, invented in his mind to impress his Teacher of the other apostles. God the Father revealed this confession to Peter, gave it to him freely, and enabled this sinner to boldly confess, “You are the Christ.”

This is why we remember St. Peter the Apostle and his confession. This great confession of faith doesn’t belong just to Peter but to you. Jesus is the Christ, Who takes away the sin of the world. He does so out of love and not because we have earned it. Because we continually fail that Christ came for us sinners. Join in the confession of St. Peter because it belongs to you too. Who do we say Jesus is? The Christ, the Son of God, born in human flesh to save the world from sin, death, and the devil. This Christ died a sinner’s death and rose from the dead that we may also have eternal life. This Christ calls you His own in the waters of Baptism. This Christ offers Himself freely in His Body and Blood at the Lord’s Table. This Christ, this Jesus, is yours, given freely. We thank God for St. Peter and his confession because this is our confession too. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Here stands the font before our eyes, telling how God has received us. The altar recalls Christ’s sacrifice and what His Supper here gives us. Here sounds the Scriptures that proclaim Christ yesterday, today, the same, and evermore, our Redeemer. (LSB 645:4)

-Deaconess Emma Heinz is the Registrar for Higher Things.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.

The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.