08/30/2026

​I n last Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus asked his disciples a question that sounds simple but is actually one of the most important questions in the entire Gospel: “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” The disciples give him the answers they have heard: John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. Then Jesus makes the question personal: “But who do you say that I am?” Peter gets the gold star: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

That is an extraordinary claim. Peter is not simply saying that Jesus is a great teacher or an important prophet. He is recognizing something about Jesus that no human being could have figured out on his own. And Jesus tells him so: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.” Peter has received an insight that could only come from God.

In fact, this confession of faith is remarkable because of how difficult—and dangerous—it was to make. Throughout the Gospels, people call Jesus “Lord,” “Son of David,” and even “Messiah.” The demons recognize who Jesus is. But Peter is the first human being in Matthew’s Gospel to 
explicitly confess Jesus as the “Son of God.” And this was not a harmless title. The religious authorities would 
eventually accuse Jesus of blasphemy and seek his death. Peter’s declaration was bold indeed.

But there is something else happening in this conversation. Peter is discovering not only who Jesus is; he is beginning to discover who he himself is. That is because human beings are constantly trying to figure things out. If we had an emoji for the process, we might choose the “scratching your head” emoji, the hand-on-the-chin “thinking” emoji, or the light bulb over someone’s head. We are always asking questions: What happened? Why did it happen? What should I do? How does this work? What does this mean?

The ancient Greeks understood the importance of this process. One of the most famous inscriptions associated with the Temple of Apollo at Delphi was the command: “Know thyself.”

Of all God’s creatures, human beings have this remarkable capacity for self-reflection. We don’t simply experience life; we can step back and think about our experience. We can examine our thoughts, motives, desires, fears and habits. We can ask ourselves why we do what we do and what we really want. And the journey of coming to know ourselves lasts our entire lives.

There are many things we can figure out on our own. But there are also aspects of our personality—and especially the deepest core of who we are—that we cannot fully understand without God’s help. We need the Holy Spirit to show us who we really are.

That is why it can be fruitful, every once in a while, to make this part of our prayer. We can simply ask the Holy Spirit: “Show me who I really am.” Ask the Spirit to reveal the deepest desires of your heart. We may think we know what we want, but sometimes the desires we recognize on the surface are pointing toward something deeper. Ask the Spirit to reveal your strengths and the gifts God has given you. Ask the Spirit to reveal your sins and weaknesses, so that you can make a more honest examination of conscience. Ask God to show you your wounds, fears and attachments.

“Holy Spirit, show me who I really am.”

For Christians, however, there is an even deeper reason why knowing ourselves requires knowing Jesus. Our identity is rooted in our relationships. A husband’s or wife’s identity is shaped in part by the relationship with his or her spouse. A child’s identity is shaped by the relationship with his or her parents. Parents discover something about themselves through their relationship with their children. And for those of us who are baptized, our deepest identity is rooted in our relationship with Jesus Christ.

The world will give us all kinds of answers about who we are. Our job may tell us one thing. Our accomplishments may tell us another. Our failures, mistakes, sins, or the opinions of other people may tell us something else. But none of those things gives us the whole truth. The Holy Spirit reveals something much deeper: you are a child of God. You belong to Jesus Christ. You are loved by him.

That identity was given to you before you accomplished a single thing, before you succeeded at anything, before you proved yourself to anyone. And that identity remains true even when you fail, sin, or fall short.

Perhaps that is why Jesus asks Peter—and each of us—the question: “Who do you say that I am?” Once we begin to get the answer to that question right, we can begin to answer the next question: “Who do you say that you are?” The answer to the first question makes possible the answer to the second.

So perhaps this week, take a few moments in prayer and ask the Holy Spirit for the grace Peter received:

“Holy Spirit, help me to know Jesus more deeply. And as I come to know him, help me to know myself more truly—my desires, my sins, my wounds, my strengths, and above all, the identity you have given me through my union with Christ as a beloved child of God.”

The more clearly and accurately we see who Jesus is, the more clearly and accurately we come to understand who we are. And that is something none of us can figure out entirely on our own. We need the Holy Spirit to show us the truth.

— Rev. James F. Hurlbert